Dessert Pizza Shells
Submitted by pandagurlie
Yeast-risen dessert pizza shells made with apple juice in the dough, shaped like individual tart shells and baked crisp. Top with ricotta, fresh fruit, nuts, and a dusting of powdered sugar.
YIELD
1 pizzaPREP
30 minCOOK
30 minREADY
These dessert pizza shells are individual-sized yeasted dough rounds shaped with raised edges like a tart, baked fully, then loaded with sweet toppings. Apple juice in the dough adds a subtle fruity sweetness that sets this apart from savory pizza crust.
The dough rises for up to two hours (or overnight in the fridge) until doubled, then gets divided into four-ounce balls and rolled thicker than a standard thin-crust pizza. The extra thickness holds up under the weight of cheese, fruit, and nuts without cracking or going soggy.
Pulling up the edges into a crust cuff creates a well that contains the toppings like a shallow pie shell. This is the detail that makes these work as dessert vessels rather than flat discs where everything slides off.
The shell gets baked completely before topping (except when making something like a baked apple pizza, where a par-bake is enough). A fully baked shell stays crispy under creamy toppings like ricotta, mascarpone, or cream cheese.
Chef Tips
- Roll to at least ⅛ inch thick. Thinner than that and the shell can’t support toppings without breaking.
- Overnight fridge rise works great and actually develops more flavor than a fast room-temperature rise.
- Brush the baked shell with fruit preserves before adding toppings. It seals the surface and adds a layer of flavor.
Variations
- Berry ricotta pizza: Spread ricotta, top with fresh mixed berries, and dust with powdered sugar.
- Nutella and banana: Spread Nutella on the warm shell and layer with sliced banana and chopped hazelnuts.
- Apple pie pizza: Par-bake the shell, top with spiced apple slices, and finish baking until the apples are tender.
Ingredients
Directions
Dissolve the yeast and the skim milk powder in the water.
Add the sugar or honey and stir well to dissolve.
Let this sit for about 10 minutes.
Add the apple juice and combine well.
Put all of the flour in a large mixing bowl.
Add the salt and combine.
Add the liquid mixture to the flour along with enough additional water to make a soft but not sticky dough.
Knead the dough for 4 minutes if using a stand mixer; 8 minutes if kneading by hand.
Divide the dough into balls of about 4 ounces each, put them on a floured sheet pan, cover the pan and allow to rise for 1½ to 2 hours, until doubled in bulk (or let rise, covered well, in the refrigerator overnight).
Thickness: To make a dessert pizza shell, the dough should be rolled thicker than that for a thin-crust pizza because it will be holding more weight.
Go with a dough shell that is at least ⅛ inch thick.
Forming: Pull up the sides to form a crust cuff or a well to hold the dessert toppings.
The pizza shell should like like a pie or tart shell.
Size: A four- or five-inch diameter pizza seems to be the best size, because it can be served as an individual dessert or as one for two people to share.
Bake it completely.
This baked crust will then be ready to take various toppings.
In a few situations you might want to only par -bake the crust -- when doing a baked apple pizza, for example.
Toppings: Cheeses: For the sake of simplicity and good taste, cheeses can be narrowed down to three: ricotta, mascarpone and cream cheese.
Fruits: Just about any fruit will work.
Using fresh fruit will control the moisture.
Nuts: Walnuts, pecans, almonds, and pine nuts are favorites.
Miscellaneous: Spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves work well.
Crushed or ground amaretto cookies make a great topping over cheese and fruit.
Chocolate chips, raisins and zest of oranges, lemons or limes can be used most effectively to pump up the flavor.
A dusting of confectioners’ sugar looks good and goes a long way in the taste department.
Brushing or layering fruit preserves or a fruit glaze on the crust before toppings go on adds a lot of flavor and offers a wide range of taste possibilities.
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