A few weeks ago, my boyfriend and I stayed at friend of his home and for a treat Saturday morning they served us Fruit Pizza.
The smell of the crust reminded me of going to a State Fair and the resulting dish, as you can see above, was beautiful. I asked for the recipe and she delightedly told me was Diabetic Friendly. Here’s a version of that recipe followed by some ideas I’ve had for when I make it not to far in the future.
INGREDIENTS
CRUST:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup cold butter
SAUCE:
1 package (8 ounces) reduced-fat cream cheese
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
TOPPINGS:
2 cups halved fresh strawberries
1 cup halved fresh kiwi fruit
1 cup fresh blueberries
“CHEESE”:
5 teaspoons cornstarch
1-1/4 cups unsweetened orange juice
1 teaspoon lemon juice
DIRECTIONS
CRUST
In a large bowl, combine flour and powdered sugar. Cut in butter until crumbly. Press into an un-greased 12-inch pizza pan. Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes or until very lightly browned. Cool on a wire rack.
PIZZA SAUCE
In a small bowl, beat the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth. Spread over cooled crust.
TOPPINGS
Arrange the strawberries, kiwis and blueberries on top.
“CHEESE”
In a small saucepan, combine the cornstarch, orange juice and lemon juice until smooth. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for two minutes, until thickened. Cool slightly. Drizzle over fruit.
Refrigerate until chilled.
Yield: 16 servings.
CARMA’S TWEAKS, TIPS & SUGGESTIONS
Note, some of these tweaks and tips may reduce the “diabetic friendliness” of this dish.
Crust Ideas: Use sugar cookie mix for a similar crust. Want to get more creative? Try different cookie mixes for the crust. Gingersnap mix will spice it up. Snickerdoodle mix will give it a touch of zesty cinnamon flavor. Fruit-flavored cookie mixes will up the fruitiness.
Sauce Ideas: If you want this to be more like a dessert, use vanilla frosting instead. For a creamier sauce, add in half an 8-oz tub of Cool Whip and reduce the sugar to 1/4 cup. Want a lighter frosting (and only if the dish will be served and consumed quickly)? Use unsweetened whipped cream. Want to be bold and different? Experiment with adding chocolate to any of these suggestions!
Topping Ideas: Use different fruits for the topping. I’m not partial to kiwi, so I’d probably substitute with Mandarin oranges, papaya (red or regular), baked apple, banana, cherries or any other favorite fruit du jour.
“Cheese” Ideas: I found the glaze that mimics the cheese to be too tart for my taste. So I’m going to experiment with other juices such as pineapple, apple, white grape and perhaps even guava.
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Take Charge of Your Health!
Changing your eating habits can be tough. But it doesn’t have to be if you take a little time to think it out and create a plan.
This Healthy Eating Worksheet will walk you through the process of creating a healthy eating plan. All you need to do is print it out, set aside some time to complete it, and then fill it out. Then you can create your plan, knowing that you have addressed potential obstacles and came up with some creative ways to handle them.
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