Different Ways to Use Refrigerated Cookie Dough

Refrigerated cookie dough offers a quick, affordable way to bake a batch of warm, fresh cookies. However, there is much more that you can do with these tubes of sweet batter besides slice and bake it into traditional cookies. These recipes using refrigerated cookie dough will help you create delicious, impressive and easy desserts using items you have on hand.

Fruit Pizza

Use the tube of dough as the crust for a delicious dessert pizza that is easy to whip up but impressive enough to serve to guests.

Ingredients

1 tube refrigerated sugar cookie dough
8 ounces cream cheese
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup pineapple juice
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups mixed fruit, drained

Directions

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and open the package. Allow the dough to rest on a counter so that it softens and becomes more malleable. Preheat the oven to 350F. Shape the dough into a ball and then roll it into a large circle about 1/4-inch thick. Place the dough on a greased pizza pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Beat together the cream cheese, sugar, pineapple juice and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Spread over the cookie crust. Arrange fruit over crust. Slice and serve.

Cookie Pie Crust

You have probably had pie or cheesecake with graham cracker or even Oreo piecrust. Why not use a tube of cookie dough to make a sweet, crunchy crust for your favorite pie? Here is a recipe using sugar cookie dough and peanut butter pie filling, but you can experiment with your favorite cookie dough and filling combinations.

Ingredients

1 tube refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 cup peanut butter
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons milk

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease pie plate. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and open the package. Allow the dough to rest on a counter so that it softens and becomes more malleable. Shape the dough into a ball and then roll it into a large circle about 1/4-inch thick. Place the dough on a greased pizza pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool completely. Beat together cream cheese, peanut butter and powdered sugar until creamy. Stir in vanilla and then stir in milk. Pour the mixture into the piecrust. Allow to set before serving.

Bar Cookies

Any type of refrigerated cookie dough would taste great as is in bar form, but you can also stir in other tidbits, such as raisins, chopped candy bars or nuts, for even more delicious flavor.

Ingredients

1 tube refrigerated cookie dough, any variety
1/4 - 1/2 cup mix-ins of your choice, optional
Frosting, optional

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a 9x13 baking dish. If adding mix-ins, place dough in a medium bowl and mix the additional ingredients into the dough with your hands. Spread the cookie dough into the baking dish evenly. Bake 25 to 30 minutes until baked through. Frost when cool, if desired.