Our Best Dessert Recipes & Ideas

The sauce is so gooey.

There’s nothing better than freshly baked cookies on Christmas. Who doesn’t love a platter of spiced gingerbread, classic snowball cookies, or peppermint candy cane cookies to share with loved ones?But do you need an occasion to bake cookies? A lazy Saturday, a winter snow day, or a rainy weeknight is absolutely reason enough, too.

The new classic.

It's such an easy way to please a crowd.

It doesn’t really feel like Christmas to me without sweet smells drifting out of the kitchen, and someone cheekily trying to sneak treats before they’re out on the table. Some years, I feel like pulling out all the stops and making super elegant, festive desserts that are time consuming but so worth, and some years Christmas desserts are last on my priority list.

I’m an “instant gratification” kind of baker. Any baked good that’s deemed a “project” (with the exception of pumpkin cinnamon rolls, of course!) isn’t really my speed. Give me sweets that I can mix together quickly and easily, pop in the oven, and snack on in half an hour and I’m sold. Enter: 3-ingredient peanut butter cookies. Not only are these the absolute easiest, but they’re my favorite soft and chewy peanut butter cookies too.

Proceed with caution!

If you like pecan pie, you’ll love these bars.

I am very worried, friends. Worried that the fear of pie crusts may be keeping a great many of you from making your own pies at home. Is this true? Does this sound like you? Do debates over butter vs. shortening or tender vs. flaky make you want to run and hide? Well, take a deep breath and grab your notebook — today we’re going to go over how to make a pie from start to finish, one step at a time. Here’s your first lesson: Homemade pies do not have to be perfect. Really.

It hits the spot every time.

The filling is the best.

My mother-in-law isn’t a baker, but she has a serious sweet tooth. When she pulled out a chocolate-smudged cookbook on our first shared Thanksgiving holiday, she turned straight to the chapter on pies — and specifically, a recipe for whipped cream-topped chocolate pie. Ever since, I’ve accepted chocolate pie as a welcome addition to any holiday spread.The version I’m sharing here is one I know she’d be proud of.

Five layers of classic chocolate chip cookie flavor.

Unlike any other pumpkin dessert.

So easy to make!

The ultimate pumpkin spice fix.

When a bee sting is actually a good thing.

It’s all about the fudgy frosting.

This was not the best.

Sugar, spice, and everything nice.

Five layers of peanut butter perfection.

They taste like childhood.

Much easier than apple pie.

It was a love story at first bite.

Pumpkin cookie meets snickerdoodles.

Here’s what makes a tarte Tatin so fabulous: even if your crust isn’t perfect, even if it crumbles a bit when you flip it, and even if the tarte is not perfectly centered on your serving platter, it will still taste like something that came directly from heaven. Now, don’t be intimidated by the flip. In many ways, that’s the least stressful part of making a tarte Tatin!

Easier than apple pie.

Do you remember eating chocolate “dirt” pudding cups with crushed cookies and worms at every Halloween party as a kid? My birthday falls just before Halloween, and this is something I requested at every costume party from the time I was 6 until I turned 10. Now I’m delighted to introduce my own kids (and our neighbors) to this classic treat. Here’s how you can make your own party-sized graveyard cake this Halloween. It’s the perfect treat for Halloween.

You’ll definitely want seconds.

Pumpkin cheesecake has become a fall and winter dessert classic for good reason. The lively, familiar spices of classic pumpkin pie are balanced by the cool and creamy goodness of a New York-style cheesecake. The combination makes each bite memorably delicious and worthy of any celebration — especially Thanksgiving. Even if you have never made a cheesecake or pumpkin pie before, this is a dessert that is within your reach.

It tastes like fall.

The hype is real.

How did it take me this long to make this classic dessert?!

Without all the hard work.

Ah, pumpkin pie. It’s a recipe filled with nostalgia, a creamy combination of sugar, pumpkin pie spice, and custardy filling, baked in a homemade pie crust and topped with a dollop of whipped cream. Thanksgiving isn’t the same without it.

Meet this showstopper.

It’s a classic.

Apple crisp is the lazy baker’s best friend. It delivers all the flavor and satisfaction of apple pie, but in half the amount of time. Tender, lightly sweetened, warmly spiced apples get dressed up with a sprinkle of buttery old-fashioned oats that crack under the pressure of a spoon. It’s truly the only crisp recipe you need for fall. Apple crisp requires just a few basic ingredients, an abundance of apples, and a warm oven.

It's even great for beginners.

Grab a spoon.

It’s a classic.

Bonus: They’re so easy to make.

They’re described as “sweet and rich.”

It gives donut vibes.

You’ll go back for seconds — and thirds.

Everything’s bigger in Texas.

Meet your new go-to cake.

It's just that good.

So rich, so gooey.

This old-fashioned recipe takes an unexpected turn.