A unique dessert pizza made with finely chopped white chocolate and a cream cheese based”sauce” with a fresh raspberry swirl and crispy-sweet streusel topping.
I am so excited right now I can hardly type.
Despite the fact that this pizza is delicious, scrumptious, and a careful layering of amazingly complementary flavors, it is not this dessert that has me feeling so hyped-up. In fact, please forgive me if I skimp a bit on paying this (truly wonderful) recipe due homage, and if I share a little more personal information than I’m usually inclined to, but…
My husband got a job!
!
I’m going to take a step back. I know that anytime someone lands a job it’s cause for celebration, but in our case this was the final piece of the puzzle that we have been waiting on for so long to finally be back to “normal”.
Since May of 2014 Zach has been hit by a what seemed like an endless string of bad luck. Life since our engagement has been an utter roller coaster of extreme highs and lows:
Zach’s unexpected seizure & car wreck. Our engagement. Loss of Zach’s drivers’ license (due to uncontrolled seizures). Purchasing our first home. Zach laid off from his job (less than a month before the wedding). Wedding, honeymoon, & moving in together. Zach’s brain surgery (just two weeks after our wedding). Seizures resolved due to surgery. Zach still unable to find work despite submitting hundreds of applications and even landing a few interviews. License restored and landed a temp job. Zach develops a skull infection, is let go from temp job due to requiring emergency surgery (which leaves him missing a piece of his skull for over 6 weeks and needing to wear a helmet—try applying for jobs when you have to wear a helmet!), and not allowed to drive under doctors’ orders for 6 weeks.
Have you ever been in the ocean and been struck by a huge wave? It sucks you under and somersaults you until you don’t know which way to swim up for air? It tangles your bathing suit and scrapes you on the tightly packed sand and broken shells, and when you finally breach the surface and take a jagged half-breath of air, bleeding and choking but thinking you’re finally going to be OK, another wave crashes over your head and it happens all over again.
That’s what the past 15 months have been like for us (mostly for Zach, all the bad luck has happened to him, but I’ve been right there for it all).
Finally, this past May, things seemed to finally take a turn for the better. He had his second skull surgery (skull replaced and no more helmet), his surgeries and seizures should now be a thing of the past, and his license is restored. The final piece of the puzzle was for him to land a job.
And yesterday, he got the call and the offer letter. I was so excited I could have cried.
Even more exciting–he landed a job at the same hospital where I work! He will be in an entirely different department and building, but there will be so many benefits from being able to drive to work together, at least some days.
This dessert really deserves more than to be restrained to just a small little blurb at the end of a lengthy personal post, and I went back and forth for a long time between including a recipe in this post or not (or even if I should post this at all).
But this is a personal dessert blog, and while I usually tone back the personal side a bit I just can’t merit containing myself today. I also feel that if you took the time to read through all that I wrote, you at least deserve a recipe as a reward, though I regret that I’m only briefly talking to you about its perfectly soft crust, the melted flecks of white chocolate which add a pleasant subtext to a creamy, sugared cream-cheese sauce, the tart raspberry swirl and the sweet streusel topping that adds the perfect textural contrast to the rest of the pizza.
Thank you for reading, and I hope you’re all having as wonderful of a day as I am.
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Enjoy!
White Chocolate Raspberry Cheesecake Dessert Pizza
Ingredients
Dough (Very slightly adapted from Fearless Homemaker to make a single crust without herbs)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ½ tsp instant yeast
- ½ tsp salt
- ¾ cup warm water
Pizza
- 4 oz premium white chocolate
Raspberry Swirl (you will have leftover)
- ¾ cup raspberries fresh or frozen
- 2 Tbsp sugar
- 1 ½ Tbsp water
Cream Cheese Sauce
- 12 oz cream cheese 1 & ½ package
- ¼ cup + 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Streusel
- ¼ cup + 1 Tbsp all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup + 2 Tbsp brown sugar
- 2 Tbsp cold butter
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 500F
Dough
- In large bowl or KitchenAid combine flour, yeast and salt.
- Stir in water, stirring until mostly combined and then switch to using your hands to combine until the dough is sticky enough to form a ball.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead about 5 minutes (until elastic), add additional flour 1 Tbsp at a time if needed (if dough is too sticky and sticks to your hands)
- Roll dough out into 12" circle and transfer to pizza pan. Fold over edges to form a thin crust.
- Finely chop white chocolate and sprinkle over pizza dough.
Raspberry Swirl
- Prepare raspberry swirl by combining raspberries, sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium-high heat.
- Using a spoon, press and mash the raspberries, stirring constantly for 5-7 minutes.
- Pour through fine mesh strainer into bowl and dispose of the seeds and solid remnants. Allow raspberry liquid to cool to room temperature.
Cream Cheese Sauce
- In medium, microwave-safe bowl, heat the cream cheese at 10-second intervals until it is mostly melted and easy to stir.
- Stir in sugar and vanilla and stir well.
- Pour cream cheese sauce over the white chocolate on the pizza dough (it is OK if the white chocolate sticks to the sauce a little while you are spreading it over the dough, just try to keep it evenly distributed over the base).
- Ladle spoonfuls of raspberry sauce over the cream cheese sauce (NOTE: you will not use all of the raspberry sauce and you do not want to overwhelm the cream cheese sauce. I use about 2-3 Tbsp) and use a knife to swirl through the cream cheese mixture.
Streusel
- In small bowl, combine flour, sugars and butter.
- Cut in butter until mixture is crumblike and sprinkle over the pizza.
- Bake on 500F for 7-9 minutes, allow to cool at least 5 minutes before cutting and serving.
Nutrition
Kristi @ Inspiration Kitchen
Sam, I’ve been visiting family, so I missed this post, but I am *so* excited for you and Zach. What an incredibly trying year for your both, and what incredible strength you both have. My prayers, good wishes and blessings are being sent your way. I love your blog, and I’m wishing you only the best of blessings. I think this Raspberry White Chocolate Dessert Pizza is a great start! I know that I am pinning it for later. 🙂 xoxo
Sina
This sounds like such a hard year, Sam. Congrats, especially to Zach!! 🙂 I’m so happy to hear that! And your dessert pizza just looks amazing!!
Vanessa @ VanessaBaked
Glad to hear things are going well for you both!
Kathy @ Beyond the Chicken Coop
Wonderful news! Keep up the positive attitude…and wonderful cooking!
Ana | Espresso My Kitchen
Oh my gosh Sam! What a roller coaster of 15months for you guys. But, really happy for you both and congrats to your husband in landing a new job! This dessert pizza looks really yummy! And perfect for a celebration.
Kelly - Life Made Sweeter
Aaaw yay! That’s wonderful about your husband’s new job! Congrats to both of you especially after everything you both have been through. A dessert pizza is the best way to celebrate! It looks gorgeous!
Anu-My Ginger Garlic Kitchen
2014 sounds like a tough year for you! Many congratulations on your husband’s job. That’s indeed is a cause for celebration. You are such a brave girl. Wish all the luck. This dessert pizza sounds absolutely perfect for the celebration!
Thao @ In Good Flavor
Your story reminds some of us that our problems are small compared to what others are going through. I hope that this is the beginning of a better and brighter future for you both. You both deserve it!
The dessert pizza is beautifully done. I love your originality.
Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice
Congrats to your husband and getting a job! Such a wonderful reason to celebrate. Hopefully things will go well and this is the start of new beginnings. This dessert pizza looks amazing! I love the raspberry and white chocolate combo. Delish!
Katalina@ Peas and Peonies
OMG Sam, this post made me both, cry and smile, the journey you guys went thru in such a short term was so hard, but I am sure this made your relationship stronger, God bless your family, you see there is light at the end of a very dark tunnel! Glad that he is better and congrats on the job!
Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary
Whoa, Sam! Congratulations- to you BOTH! You guys have had one hellova rough 15+ months and you both deserve to finally bask in the rainbow at the end of the storm (and collect some gold!). I have a LOT of respect and admiration for you guys. Not everyone can endure so much and still be as positive and wonderful as you are! Kudos to your strength, girlfriend! And I am SO HAPPY for you both and wish you guys much success and happiness in this new chapter in y’alls life!
Now on to this fabulous pizza! Sometimes, seriously deliciousness, like THIS crazy yummy raspberry white chocolate dessert pizza, don’t need a whole lot of words, or an entire blog post dedicated to discussing how nom-tastic it is. Pictures speak a thousand words, and such is the case here. I LOVE the color and the title says it all! It says “DEVOUR me with abandon!” This is fabulous! And so are YOU. Cheers, girlfriend! <3
Natalie @ Obsessive Cooking Disorder
Goodness, congrats on your husband getting a job. Best of luck for his health – although I’ve never had them, seeing patients with them is never fun because they’re frightening for the family Hopefully the surgery (and any antiepileptic meds) resolve it!
This dessert likes so lovely. Pink and romantic 🙂 I had a dessert pizza once at a restaurant – except it was cinnamon apple. yum!
Ashley | The Recipe Rebel
Oh my goodness — you have such a reason for celebration! Congrats to you and your husband! I hope your new normal just keeps on getting better! And this dessert pizza?! I need!
Christin@SpicySouthernKitchen
So happy about your husband’s job! What a rough year. Hopefully there are only good things in store for the remainder of the year.
This has to be the most beautiful dessert pizza! Love the raspberry swirl.
Dani @ Dani California Cooks
I am so happy for you and your husband! What a time of highs and lows…I can only imagine how nice it will be to return to some normalcy.