Nothing rounds out a summer meal quite like a great dessert.
A scoop of homemade ice cream, a warm fruit cobbler straight from the oven, a cold pie pulled right out of the freezer. It doesn’t have to be complicated to be really, really good.
Summer is also when the best ingredients are available. Fresh blueberries, ripe peaches, strawberries, cherries and stone fruit that are only around for a few weeks. These recipes make the most of all of it.
This list has 15 of the best summer desserts you need to try before the season is over. There’s something here for every occasion, from backyard cookouts to casual weeknight treats.
Trust me, you’ll want to make all of them.
15. Cherry Upside Down Cake
Cherry season doesn’t last long, and this cake is the best way to make the most of it.
Fresh cherries and black plums sit on a bed of raw sugar in a cast iron skillet, get topped with a brown butter buttermilk batter, and bake into something that’s truly irresistible.
Flip it out onto a plate and the caramelized fruit layer is front and center. Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream and call it the best dessert of the summer.
14. Homemade Blueberry Pie
This is the blueberry pie that actually works!
A cornstarch-thickened filling packed with fresh blueberries, lemon juice and cinnamon sits inside a buttery homemade crust that holds up perfectly when you slice into it.
Go classic with a full top crust or make it look stunning with a lattice. Either way, serve it at room temperature with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and let the compliments roll in.
13. No-Bake Lemon Icebox Pie
If you’re looking for a dessert that requires almost zero active effort, this is it.
A homemade graham cracker crust takes just minutes to put together, then gets filled with frozen lemonade concentrate, heavy cream and sweetened condensed milk before heading into the freezer.
Pull it out a few hours later and you’ve got one of the most refreshing pies of the season.
Top it with fresh berries and try not to eat the whole thing.
12. No-Churn Matcha Latte Ice Cream
If you’ve ever ordered a matcha latte and wished it came in ice cream form, here you go.
Heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, and matcha powder get whipped together and poured into a container to freeze overnight. The result is a creamy, earthy, subtly sweet ice cream that tastes nothing like anything you’d find at the store.
No ice cream maker, no complicated steps, no special equipment needed. Just mix, freeze, and enjoy!
11. Strawberry Chocolate Chip Ice Cream
You don’t need an ice cream maker to pull off a seriously impressive homemade ice cream.
Start with the best quality vanilla ice cream you can find, then swirl in homemade strawberry jam, fresh strawberry pieces and chopped semisweet chocolate before refreezing until firm.
The jam is simple and comes together in under 15 minutes on the stove.
The combination of fresh strawberry, rich chocolate and creamy vanilla in every bite is absolutely unbeatable.
10. Blueberry Brioche Bread Pudding
This blueberry bread pudding is one of those desserts that works just as well for brunch as it does after dinner.
Brioche bread cubes and fresh blueberries soak in a rich custard of eggs, cream cheese, half and half and lemon zest. Then, it bakes until golden, puffed and perfectly set. It looks seriously impressive with very little effort.
Serve it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and watch your guests go back for seconds.
9. Air Fryer S’mores
No campfire? No problem.
Marshmallow halves get pressed, sticky-side-down, onto graham cracker pieces and air fried until golden and gooey in about 3 minutes.
Top with chocolate bar pieces and the other graham cracker half, give the chocolate a minute to melt, and you’re done!
Once you try s’mores this way, you’ll be making them all year long.
8. Very Berry Cobbler
This is one of those desserts people are still talking about the next day.
Four kinds of berries get sweetened with raw sugar and thickened with instant tapioca, then topped with a coconut and pecan crust that bakes up crispy, nutty and completely unforgettable.
Most people have never had a cobbler topping like this one, and once they do, they never go back to the regular kind.
Always serve warm with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream. This one is legendary!
7. 3-Ingredient Frozen Chocolate Banana Bites
Three ingredients, zero complicated steps, and somehow completely addictive.
Banana slices get dipped in dark chocolate, drizzled with peanut butter, and frozen until firm. They’re one of the lighter options on this list but they absolutely satisfy a serious sweet craving.
Make a double batch and keep them in the freezer at all times. You’ll thank yourself later.
6. Strawberry Ice Cream Pretzel Pie
Sweet and salty is a combination that never gets old, and this pie is the best example of it.
A crumbly pretzel crust gets filled with vanilla ice cream swirled with homemade strawberry jam, then topped with a poured chocolate shell that hardens right on top. A couple taps of the spoon cracks the shell and reveals the gorgeous pink filling underneath.
Your guests will absolutely not believe you made this at home!
5. Oreo Ice Cream
Three ingredients are all it takes to make the best cookies and cream ice cream of your life.
Heavy cream, sweetened condensed milk, and crushed Oreos get whipped together into a thick, creamy base that freezes into a perfectly scoopable ice cream.
It’s a guaranteed crowd pleaser every single time.
4. No-Churn Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream
If you think you know mint chocolate chip ice cream, this one will change your mind!
Fresh mint leaves steep in warm cream for an hour before anything else happens, and that one step makes all the difference.
The flavor is subtle, clean, and nothing like the artificially flavored kind! And the melted chocolate swirled in at the end creates beautiful thin ribbons in every scoop.
No ice cream maker needed and no food coloring in sight. This is the real deal.
3. Peach Blueberry Cobbler
This peach blueberry cobbler is one of those desserts that makes people put down their forks and ask what’s in it.
Sweet summer peaches and fresh blueberries sit under a coconut and pecan crust that is unlike any cobbler topping you’ve had before. It bakes up golden and crispy on top while the fruit underneath gets thick, jammy, and absolutely delicious.
No peeling required and the whole thing comes together in about an hour. Serve it warm with vanilla ice cream and watch it disappear in minutes.
2. Florida Key Lime Pie
This is the authentic Key West recipe, and it is every bit as good as the real thing.
Egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk, and key lime juice fill a homemade graham cracker crust, then get topped with fresh homemade whipped cream.
Real key lime pie is never green, always yellow, and always this good!
One slice of this and you’ll understand why people make the trip to the Florida Keys just to eat it.
1. Blueberry Crisp with Oatmeal Topping
Don’t let the summer go by without making this blueberry crisp.
Fresh blueberries get tossed with vanilla, lemon juice and cornstarch, then topped with a buttery sugar and oat crust that bakes up golden and perfectly crispy.
It’s simple, it’s straightforward, and it somehow manages to be one of the most impressive desserts you can put on the table.
Every single time this comes out of the oven, someone asks for the recipe. Serve it warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and fair warning: one bowl is never enough.
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