47 Summer Desserts That’ll Sweeten Even the Hottest Days
Open the summer desserts file, and you’ll find everything from best-of-season fresh fruit, simply cut and served on a platter, to a decadent icebox cake, to silky tofu pudding, to all manner of ice creams. This is a time for ease and delight—and ease and delight you shall have. There will be BBQ-friendly sheet cakes. There will be fresh peach pies. There will be chocolate weed brownies. (Ease and delight, remember?) Basically, there will be anything you want there to be, as long as it’s no-fuss and tempers that steamy summer heat. Here are our best summer desserts for your ease, delight, and pleasure.
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Alex Lau2/47Creamsicle-Inspired Orange Pops
Swirl sweetened vanilla Greek yogurt with citrusy orange curd for this updated take on a childhood favorite. No ice pop molds? Layer each element in parfait glasses and top with your favorite granola for an easy end to any summer party.
Photograph by Scott Semler, Food Styling by Judy Kim, Prop Styling by Stephanie Yeh4/47Raspberry-Cardamom Yogurt Semifreddo
You don’t need an ice cream maker for this stunning fruity froyo. Just whip some cream, fold in the Greek yogurt and flavorings—including bitsy pieces of dark chocolate that shatter when you bite in—and freeze.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Mieko Takahashi5/47Japanese Cheesecake
Not all cheesecakes lend themselves to summertime (too dense, too rich). This airy, positively poofy Japanese cheesecake is a wonderful exception—serve with tangy rhubarb compote for a wonderful contrast.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Thu Buser, Prop Styling by Nicole Louie6/47Blackberries and Vanilla Cream With Crispy Puff Pastry
Baking off a sheet of puff pastry then breaking it into shards feels like some sort of illegal magic trick. Tuck those shards into a pillow of cannoli cream and saucy summer berries for the easiest—yet somehow most impressive—dessert you’ll make all season.
Photograph by Elizabeth Coetzee, Food Styling by Mieko Takahashi, Prop Styling by Alexandra Massillon7/47Easy Cherry Turnovers
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Thu Buser, Prop Styling by Nicole Louie8/47Peanut Butter Rice Crispy Treats With Brown Butter
Summer calls for easy desserts; this is the one you want for beach days, picnics in the park, and potlucks under the stars. The secret to leveling up cereal bars? Peanut butter and toasted milk powder.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Sean Dooley, Prop Styling by Marina Bevilacqua9/47Mango Mess
Juicy fruit, a pillowy cloud of cream, and shards of crisp meringue come together for the tastiest take on Eton mess you will ever make.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Prop Styling by Sean Dooley, Food Styling by Kendra Vaculin10/47Cookies and Cream Ice Cream Cake
If cookies ‘n’ cream is your go-to at any new-to-you ice cream shop, let us introduce you to your new favorite dessert. Serve it as a birthday cake for all the summer babies.
Photo by Peden + Munk, food styling by Sue Li, prop styling by Rebecca Bartoshesky11/47Cinnamon-Oat Peach Crisp
Photo by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Micah Morton12/47Coconut Ice Cream Sandwiches With Salty Chocolate Shell
Tuck store-bought ice cream between two rummy coconut cookies, then dip in D.I.Y. Magic Shell for an ice cream sandwich that’ll satisfy any sweet tooth.
Photograph by Rana Düzyol, food styling by Pearl Jones, prop styling by Beth Pakradooni13/47Strawberry Galette
This easy summer fruit galette requires less fuss than a strawberry pie, but has all the same components, down to the burbling fruit filling and tender, flaky crust.
Photo by Shay Harrington14/47Chocolate Fudge Cake
Sometimes, after a heavy BBQ meal, you just want slices of fresh watermelon. Other times, after all of those smoky meats, your palate wants a slice of ultrarich, dark chocolate cake so dense it has to be called fudge cake. Here you go.
Photograph by Doaa Elkady, Food Styling by Pearl Jones, Prop Styling by Gözde Eker15/47Lemon-Poppy Seed Tart
Photograph by Isa Zapata, food styling by Jesse Szewczyk, prop styling by Hazel Zavala and Caroline Newton16/47S’mores Sandwich Cookies
Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by Caroline Hwang, prop styling by Elizabeth Jaime.17/47Lush Vanilla Berry Pudding
We love banana pudding, but when fresh berries gleam bright at the farmers’ market, this is the custardy, fruity, wafer-y dessert we’re putting on the menu.
Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by Caroline Hwang, prop styling by Elizabeth Jaime.18/47Apricot Tart With Whiskey-Pecan Frangipane
Photograph by Rana Düzyol, food styling by Pearl Jones, prop styling by Beth Pakradooni19/47Diner-Style Strawberry Milkshakes
Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by Caroline Hwang, prop styling by Elizabeth Jaime.21/47Milky Shaved Ice With Strawberries
Photograph by Rana Düzyol, food styling by Pearl Jones, prop styling by Beth Pakradooni22/47Sour Cherry Crumb Cake
When sour cherry season rolls around: run, don’t walk. Those ruby-red orbs won’t last long. Bake a handful of them into this summery coffee cake, then freeze another handful to make it again in a few months.
Photograph by Jessica Pettway, Food Styling by Judy Kim, Prop Styling by Stephanie Yeh25/47Plum and Lime Upside-Down Cake
Photograph by Scott Semler, Food Styling by Judy Kim, Prop Styling by Stephanie Yeh26/47Dark Chocolate-Espresso Ice Pops
We’ll take our fudge pops with a jolt of coffee, thank you very much. That means we can have this sweet treat for breakfast, right?
Photo by Travis Rainey, Prop Styling by Christina Allen, Food Styling by Drew Aichele27/47Triple Strawberry Cheesecake
Photo by Emma Fishman, Food Styling by D'mytrek Brown28/47Peach Sorbet With Crushed Blackberries
Lemon-blueberry? Classic, but we’re feeling partial to peach-blackberry this summer. Turn peaches into creamy sorbet (without an ice cream maker) and top it with a no-cook sauce of fresh berries.
29/47Simple Strawberry Shortcakes
Secret’s out: We add a secret ingredient to our whipped cream to make it a little more tangy (and worthy of being eaten on its own). That ingredient is sour cream.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Taneka Morris, Prop Styling by Maya Rossi30/47Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie
This pie recipe gives Reese’s vibes with its peanut butter mousse topping and fudgy chocolate base all layered into a graham cracker crust.
Photograph by Scott Semler, Food Styling by Judy Kim, Prop Styling by Stephanie Yeh31/47Root Beer Float Granita
Root beer float, you’ve been replaced. This icy, creamy, 2-ingredient concoction is all we need to close out the summer cookout.
Photo by Laura Murray, Styling by Anna Billingskog32/47BA’s Best Blueberry Pie
This blueberry pie recipe is all about showcasing perfect summer-fresh blueberries (though, TBH, even ho-hum out-of-season blueberries can shine here) and achieving the right crust-to-filling ratio.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Thu Buser, Prop Styling by Stephanie De Luca33/47Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Thu Buser, Prop Styling by Stephanie De Luca34/47Any-Berry Lemon Ricotta Cake
Photograph by Rana Düzyol, food styling by Pearl Jones, prop styling by Beth Pakradooni35/47Fresh Strawberry Tart With Almond Crust
For berries that are just too good to bake, this fuss-free tart simply piles the raw fruit into a crisp almondy crust. Don’t forget the whipped cream.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, food styling by Sean Dooley, prop styling by Marina Bevilacqua36/47Blueberry Fool With Toasted Coconut
So easy even a...well, you know who could do it. This no-bake dessert is low-key and laid-back while keeping it creamy, tangy, crunchy, and jammy.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Emilie Fosnocht, Prop Styling by Sean Dooley37/47Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Cream Puffs
If it’s summer and you’re baking choux buns, we say you’ve done enough, but if you want to make homemade strawberry ice cream too, we’re not going to stop you.
Photo by Scott Semler, Food Styling by Mieko Takahashi, Prop Styling by Emma Ringness38/47Fudgy Weed Brownies
Photographs by Mamadi Doumbouya, food styling by Pearl Jones, prop styling by Shannon Maldonado39/47Brown Butter Peach Cobbler
In the heart of summer, fresh peaches require no accompaniment—but using them to make peach cobbler is undoubtedly welcome. So is a side of vanilla ice cream.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Prop Styling by Sean Dooley, Food Styling by Kendra Vaculin40/47Cherry Lemonade Beach Pie
Give us a Ritz cracker and saltine crust, a chilled and creamy lemon filling, and some sunshine, and we’re happy—oh, and there are literal cherries on top.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Prop Styling by Tim Ferro, Food Styling by Mieko Takahashi41/47Grandma Weesie’s Fried Peach Pies
What says it’s summertime more than a fresh peach pie? We actually have an answer for that: Fried, handheld, individual peach pies you can take to the beach.
Photograph by Isa Zapata, food styling by Kendra Vaculin, prop styling by Gözde Eker42/47Baked Alaska With Pistachio Brittle and Raspberry Curd
Photo by Michael Graydon and Nikole Herriott, Food Styling by Susie Theodorou, Prop Styling by Kalen Kaminski43/47Peach-Plum Galette
You can use any combo of stone fruit in this galette, so dream big. Apricots and cherries would be divine. Peaches and nectarines make good friends too.
Photo by Emma Fishman, food styling by Susie Theodorou, prop styling by Elizabeth Jaime44/47Rum-Soaked Fruit and Coconut Crisp Sundaes
It only takes a few minutes to turn ripe, in-season berries into a syrupy topping for a rum-soaked summer sundae. (It would also be good on poundcake. Just saying.)
Photo by Chelsie Craig, food styling by Kat Boytsova45/47Swirled No-Churn Thai Tea Ice Cream
The hardest part of this recipe is tracking down Thai tea mix (or waiting for it to arrive in the mail)—but it’s worth it. Tantalizingly vanilla-y and deeply spiced, it dials back the sweetness of the ice cream.
Laura Murray46/47BA’s Best Coconut Cream Pie
Think of this coconut cream pie recipe like a Samoa cookie in pie form, complete with a coconut graham cracker crust and caramel layer.
