I was invited to a Super Bowl party at a friend's house last month, and as always, I wanted to bring a covered dish.
In the past I've done chili, Swedish meatballs, fruit salads, veggie trays and desserts. I knew there would be the usual wings and pizza, cheese platters, taco dips and bowl upon bowl of chips and pretzels.
Now, don't get me wrong, those are all tasty treats, but I thought maybe I could sneak in a dish that was just a bit more "refreshing" than the usual Super Bowl party fare. I recalled a recipe for a "dessert pizza" that involved fruit and a cream cheese topping. The idea sounded great, but I wanted to make the pieces not quite so messy to cut and easier to serve. Why couldn't I just prepare them already in mini pieces? And then the idea struck me.
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I pulled out the mini-muffin pan that I love to cook with, but don't use nearly enough, and went to work.
I tried cutting the dough into different size sections and found that the 2" squares worked the best. (I found if they were cut too big, the "pocket" puffed up too much to insert the topping and fruit.)
After the puffs were baked and the fruit was chopped into small portions, I had some fun inserting blueberries into raspberry halves, and mixing and matching different fruit for appearance and taste.
Fact Box
Fruit Puffs
8 oz. (1 can) refrigerated crescent rolls
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup sugar
Chopped fruits of your choice
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lay out crescent roll dough and pinch seams together. With a pizza cutter, cut the dough into smaller sections about 2 inch square. Spray non-stick cooking spray into each compartment of a mini-muffin pan. push each square firmly into each compartment, making sure to tuck them well into the corners. Bake about 10 to 12 minutes or until golden-brown. Check frequently to be sure not to overcook. Allow to cool briefly before removing the "puffs" from the pan. Allow to cool more completely. Combine the cream cheese and sugar, mix until blended. Spoon the mixture into each puff and top with your choice of chopped fruit, such as blueberries, strawberries, kiwi and/or raspberries. Serve.
The end product was beautiful and delicious.
I was greeted at the party by friends who commented on my dish, asking me things like, "You knew this was a Super Bowl party, right?" and "Why would you bring something so pretty to a football party with a bunch of beer-guzzling men?"
As it turned out, with or without beer, both genders seemed to enjoy the puffs. Amazingly, they cleared out more quickly than even the nachos and cheese!