Dessert Recipes

Old-fashioned raspberry pie with a double crust, thickened with instant tapioca and brightened by almond extract and lemon juice. A bakery-style summer pie that slices clean.

Sawmill cake with no eggs and no dairy, just cocoa, vinegar, and margarine for a moist, dark chocolate sheet cake. The Depression-era one-bowl dessert born from pantry shortages.

Banana walnut snack cake starts with a cake mix and adds mashed banana, buttermilk, and chopped walnuts. A quick semi-homemade cake that tastes like banana bread.

Glossy chocolate icing made with butter, sugar, evaporated milk, and chocolate morsels. Boils in one minute, sets up firm on warm brownies. Just 4 ingredients.

A scrumptious bread pudding that will have you singing the "Pina Colada song" all day long!

Fruited cream puffs: shortcut pate a choux made with pancake mix, filled with ice cream and topped with sweetened strawberries. Ten elegant frozen desserts from pantry staples.

Classic springerle: traditional German anise cookies embossed with intricate designs, dried overnight, and baked pale, then mellowed for a week into crisp, picture-perfect holiday treats.

Chocolate cake layered with peanut butter chip mousse and dripping chocolate ganache glaze, topped with mini peanut butter cups. A three-component showstopper.

This egg-free, dairy-free chocolate wacky cake uses applesauce and vinegar for a moist, tender crumb. A Depression-era classic that mixes right in the pan and bakes in under 30 minutes.

A silky, no-bake blueberry mousse sweetened with real maple syrup. Just 4 ingredients and no gelatin needed for this elegant, airy dessert that serves 8.

Praline ice cream cake bakes softened vanilla ice cream right into a graham-cracker crumb batter, then finishes with sour cream caramel topping and chopped pecans.

French chocolate decadence cake with over a pound of dark chocolate and just one tablespoon each of sugar and flour. Served with whipped cream and raspberry-liqueur sauce.

Individual almond cream tarts: buttery pastry shells filled with almond-scented vanilla cream and topped with fresh kiwi, strawberries, grapes, and a glossy apple jelly glaze. A classic French patisserie dessert made home-doable.

Oreo ice cream pie: a four-ingredient frozen dessert with crushed Oreos, softened vanilla ice cream, whipped topping, and chocolate drizzle. The easiest crowd-pleaser in the freezer playbook.

Childhood PB&J turned into a two-layer peanut butter cake filled with more peanut butter and red jelly, topped with fluffy seven-minute frosting. Nostalgic birthday cake for grown-ups.

Fruity Jello cookies made with a cookie press, using flavored gelatin for bright color and fruity flavor. A buttery spritz-style cookie in any flavor you choose.