Dessert Recipes

Brazilian iced chocolate with Coke layers melted unsweetened chocolate, double-strength coffee, hot milk, and chilled cola over ice. A retro Brazilian beverage that fizzes between dessert and drink.

Classic four-ingredient flaky pie dough with shortening and ice water. Makes two 9-inch crusts for double-crust pies, lattice tops, or freezer-stash backup. The base every home baker needs.

Buttery crescent cookies with ground nuts, chilled overnight, then shaped into half moons and rolled hot in powdered sugar. A traditional Christmas cookie with crumbly shortbread texture.

Super moist and chocolaty. If you are a big fan of both bananas and chocolate, these muffins will definitely please you.

Marguerites cookies made with fluffy meringue piled on saltine crackers and topped with chopped nuts. A vintage sweet-and-salty treat browned in the oven.

Pineapple upside-down cake made in the slow cooker with pineapple rings, maraschino cherries, and brown sugar caramel base. No-oven retro dessert for warm-weather entertaining.

Quick caramel apple pie with quartered caramel candies, caramel ice cream topping, diced unpeeled apples, and a pecan topping. Uses a store-bought crust for easy assembly.

Low-fat apple bread pudding sweetened with maple syrup instead of refined sugar. Egg whites and skim milk keep it light while apples and raisins add natural sweetness. A guilt-free comfort dessert.

Deep pot apple pie with butterscotch chip sauce and cinnamon brown sugar pastry strips layered over cooked apples. A rustic, scoopable apple dessert served in bowls.

Cherry and almond Christmas cake: maraschino cherries, apricots, ginger, and almonds macerated in amaretto and brandy, baked into a lighter apple-puree batter, then soaked in more amaretto. A boozy, fruit-packed festive cake that keeps for a month.

Pineapple butterscotch cake doctored from pound cake mix and instant butterscotch pudding, topped with crushed pineapple and butterscotch chips. The shortcut potluck cake that always disappears.

Homemade pepper jelly with sweet bell peppers, banana peppers, and apple cider vinegar. Colorful marmalade-style slices suspended in a sweet, tangy jelly.

Sugar-free strawberry-pineapple-orange ice cream churned in a home freezer with light milk and a sugar substitute. Diabetic-friendly summer dessert sweetened by fresh and canned fruit.

Light-as-air sourdough chiffon cake with a subtle tang from sourdough starter, brightened by lemon juice and vanilla. Baked in a tube pan for sky-high lift and a cloud-soft crumb.

Easy Butterfinger pecan cake: chocolate poke cake soaked in butterscotch sauce, topped with whipped topping folded with crushed Butterfingers and pecans. Five ingredients, all crowd-pleaser.

Mincemeat bars with a chewy oat-molasses crust and condensed mincemeat filling. Old-fashioned holiday baking with a crumble topping, dusted with powdered sugar.