41 Easter Desserts (to Delight in All Spring Long)
It’s springtime, which means Easter is nigh, which, if you celebrate the holiday, means you’ll need some Easter desserts. You’ve come to the right place.
Below you’ll find 41 dessert ideas for your Easter celebration, from hand pies and Bundt cakes to cookies and tarts. One of our pies, the Peanut Butter Pie With Hidden Fudgy Center, is 10 times better than a visit from the Easter Bunny carrying a basketful of Cadbury candy eggs and Peeps and Jelly Beans. We can scientifically prove this; we measured it in our laboratory. (No, we didn’t. We don’t have a lab.) There are also moon pies, ice cream sandwiches, and cheesecakes, because every Easter dinner needs to be followed by an Easter cake of some sort—and preceded by an Easter egg hunt, during which we anticipate there will be more sweet, pastel-colored Easter treats for the taking.
Now, let’s hop through this list of Easter desserts. (Sorry. Had to.)
Photograph by Isa Zapata, Prop Styling by Tim Ferro, Food Styling by Mieko Takahashi1/41Grandma Weesie’s Fried Peach Pies
If anyone could make a bangin’ Easter dessert, it was novelist Andrew Sean Greer’s grandmother Louise Thomason, also known as Grandma Weesie. If you want to read a heartwarming story, read his essay about love and pastries.
- Photograph by Laura Murray, food styling by Sue Li2/41
Pretzel and Potato Chip Moon Pies
This one’s for fans of the sweet-and-salty combo. These individual desserts are made with shortbread cookies, pretzels, and salty potato chips, the perfect contrast to marshmallows and bitter dark chocolate.
- Photo by Alex Lau3/41
BA’s Best Carrot Cake
Our favorite carrot cake recipe gets crunch from toasted walnuts and a boozy punch from rum-plumped raisins. They’re optional, but come on. Who’s not going to go for rum-plumped raisins? They’re Rum. Plumped. Raisins.
- Photograph by Joe Lingeman, food styling by Shilpa Uskokovic, prop styling by Marina Bevilacqua4/41
Victoria Sponge Cake
Indulge your “Great British Baking Show” dreams with this fruit jam-filled, cream-slathered classic named for Queen Victoria of England. Best enjoyed with a cup of tea—or for Easter brunch.
- Photo by Peden + Munk5/41
Bittersweet-Chocolate Truffles
Since you’re forming them, the shape of these truffles is up to you. Make them a little less round and you’ve got D.I.Y Easter candy: chocolate eggs.
- Photograph by Christopher Testani, Food styling by Victoria Granof, prop styling by Alex Brannian6/41
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
Maybe pineapple upside-down cake isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Easter recipes, but the retro classic is a festive-looking people-pleaser—and this one gets an instant upgrade with sophisticated Luxardo cocktail cherries.
- Photographs by Laura Murray, food styling by Simon Andrews, prop styling by Sophie Strangio7/41
Cookies and Black Sesame Cream
Make your own black sesame cream—or crème if you want to be fancy—and then marry it with whipped cream and crushed Nabisco chocolate wafers. (You could also use Oreos.) Boom: You've got cookies and black sesame ice cream.
- Photograph by Eva Kolenko. Food styling by Susie Theodorou. Set design by Kira Corbin. On set producer: Jennifer Thomas.8/41
Rum Cake With Sticky Maple Glaze and Coconut
It’s not a bunny cake—you’ll have to go to Easter Pinterest for that—but it is a Bundt cake, and it’s got rum in it. In other words, it’s the perfect dessert for adults.
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Simple Strawberry Shortcakes
If there’s a better combination of disparate parts—fresh strawberries macerated in lemon juice and sugar, homemade whipped cream, lemon-scented cream biscuits—please alert the media. (That’s us; we’re the media.)
- Photograph by Joe Lingeman, food styling by Shilpa Uskokovic, prop styling by Marina Bevilacqua10/41
Confetti Cake With Chocolate Frosting
Colorful “confetti” sprinkles deserve to go both inside the cake and outside of it, on top of the milk chocolate frosting. We’re celebrating, aren’t we?
- Photograph by Joe Lingeman, food styling by Shilpa Uskokovic, prop styling by Marina Bevilacqua11/41
Carrot Sheet Cake With Cream Cheese Whip
(1) It’s a sheet cake, so no need to worry about layers. (2) The carrots are blitzed in a blender, so no need to worry about grating (or shredding a knuckle). (3) The cream cheese frosting is airy and mousse-like, so no need to worry about a thing.
- Photograph by Laura Murray, food styling by Sue Li12/41
Tahini Linzer Torte Bars
Set out a platter of these sweet bars and you’ll have what looks kind of like an Easter basket. Unlike a woven lattice, this version uses strips of dough simply laid on top of each other. In other words, it’s easier.
- Photograph by Doaa Elkady, Food Styling by Pearl Jones, Prop Styling by Gözde Eker13/41
Lemon-Poppy Seed Tart
A lemon tart recipe that doesn’t have you stand in front of the stove cooking lemon curd? We did that. Both the shortbread crust and the punchy filling for this spring dessert come together in the food processor.
- Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by Caroline Hwang, prop styling by Aneta Florczyk14/41
Lemon-Elderflower Pound Cake
You do not need perfect strawberries to make this pound cake. We repeat: You do not need perfect strawberries to make this pound cake. They’re going to get roasted in the oven, anyway, so if the berries at your market don’t look great, don’t worry.
- Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Judy Kim, Prop Styling by Nicole Louie15/41
Miso White Chocolate–Macadamia Cookies
Chewy chocolate chip cookie lovers: Here’s another to love. Bolstered by brown butter, macadamia nuts, and miso, this ode to the Pepperidge Farm Sausalito has depth and personality.
- Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by D’mytrek Brown16/41
Pistachio and Mango Sans Rival
Fruity and nutty, creamy and crispy, this Filipino sans rival (that’s “unrivaled” in French) is just that. It’s also the orange creamsicle color of our Easter spread dreams.
- Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Thu Buser, Prop Styling by Stephanie De Luca17/41
Chocolate Chip Cookie Ice Cream Sandwiches
Rigorous testing brought us to the ultimate chocolate chip cookie recipe for ice cream sandwiches. This is important: It should yield pliantly in its frozen state without the risk of a chipped tooth or ice cream squishing out and onto your Easter fit.
- Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Judy Kim, Prop Styling by Stephanie De Luca18/41
Double Banana Cake
The bananas: mashed into the batter and sandwiched between the cake layers. The icing: a souped-up American buttercream frosting. The guests at your Easter dinner party: in heaven.
- Photo by Chelsie Craig, Food Styling by Kate Buckens19/41
Classic Cannoli
If you’re feeling Italian this Easter, we say go for homemade cannolis. Just remember, the higher-quality ricotta you can find, the better the results will be.
- 20/41
Lemon-Raspberry Cupcakes
It’s the pastel pink icing, for us. That’s what makes these cupcakes Easter cupcakes. You can make a lemon glaze version with powdered sugar and lemon juice, then turn it pretty pink by whisking in some raspberry jam.
- Photo by Ted + Chelsea Cavanaugh, food styling by Rebecca Jurkevich, prop styling by Kalen Kaminski21/41
Lemon Meringue Pie
Have you ever met a more perfect excuse to buy a kitchen torch? This sky-high pie comes with a sharp lemon filling, crisp crust, and sweet-and-salty—and singed—meringue topping.
- Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne, Prop Styling by Carla Gonzalez-Hart22/41
Easy Sugar Cookie Icing
Seasoned pros and beginners alike will appreciate the ease and usability of this four-ingredient icing recipe. It’s THE way to decorate your Easter egg cookies.
- Photograph by Doaa Elkady, Food Styling by Pearl Jones, Prop Styling by Gözde Eker23/41
Blood Orange–Rosemary Olive Oil Cake
In case the blood orange caramel cascading over this cake isn’t tempting enough, the tender crumb is also delicately perfumed with rosemary sugar. Convinced to make it yet?
- Photograph by Joe Lingeman, food styling by Shilpa Uskokovic, prop styling by Marina Bevilacqua24/41
Tahini Hot Fudge Skillet Cake
It’s called a cake, but really, this is a family-size brownie—and it’s gluten- and dairy-free. Tahini, not cream, is to thank for its smooth, satiny sauce.
- Photograph by Julia Stotz25/41
Coconut Tres Leches
Is it coconut cake or tres leches? It’s both—and there’s a slick of jam under the whipped cream for an additional dimension of flavor. She has range!
- Vincent Cross26/41
Hot Cross Buns
Studded with dried fruit and marked with a cross, these sweet yeasted English buns are usually baked on Good Friday. (Note that they also make an excellent Easter side dish alongside salty-sweet Easter ham, but consider yourself lucky if there are still some left by Easter Sunday.)
- Photo by Alex Lau, food styling by Susie Theodorou and Natasha Pickowicz, prop styling by Rebecca Bartoshesky27/41
Tiramisù Layer Cake With Mascarpone Mousse
Your family requested layer cake? Well, they will most certainly get layer cake with this Easter dessert recipe, which boasts four levels of sweet Marsala- and espresso-soaked vanilla genoise with Swiss meringue buttercream.
- Photograph by Scott Semler, Food Styling by Judy Kim, Prop Styling by Stephanie Yeh28/41
Ginger-Lime No-Bake Cheesecake Bars
You braised a leg of lamb for seven hours. You baked a savory tart filled with ricotta and Swiss chard. You even thought of Easter brunch in addition to dinner. Dessert needs to be a no-bake situation.
- Photograph by Alex Lau, food styling by Susie Theodorou, prop styling by Sophie Strangio29/41
Sour Cherry Cheesecake
You could use fresh cherries if you live somewhere where they’re in season right now, but the frozen kind work just as well for this cheesecake topping. Bonus: They come pitted, which saves time.
- Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Kaitlin Wayne, Prop Styling by Carla Gonzalez-Hart30/41
BA’s Best Sugar Cookies
The Platonic ideal of the classic sugar cookie, this recipe yields a workable dough that you can turn into the cutouts of your dreams—bunnies, carrots, eggs, and baby chicks included.
- Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Taneka Morris, Prop Styling by Maya Rossi31/41
Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie
This pie recipe gives off Reese’s cup vibes with its peanut butter mousse topping and dense chocolate base, all layered into a graham cracker crust.
- Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Pearl Jones, Floral Styling by LaParis Phillips32/41
Chocolate Sheet Cake With Brown Butter Frosting
Tell us you’ve seen cuter sprinkles than the ones topping this chocolate cake. We don’t believe you. Edible glitter would be cool, too, to be honest.
- Photograph by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Judy Kim33/41
Sparkly Red Velvet Cookies
If you didn’t think red velvet could work for Easter cookies, think again. This recipe requires no fancy equipment—just one bowl—and its pretty shade of red looks even more beautiful coated in sparkly sanding sugar.
- Photograph by Emma Fishman, food styling by Pearl Jones, prop styling by Stephanie Yeh34/41
Preserved-Lemon Tea Cake
If you didn’t eat lemon cake, did you even Easter? It’s a springtime holiday essential, like honey-glazed ham, deviled eggs, and dyed eggs. (Okay, the last aren’t for eating, but they’re still necessary.)
- Photo by Alex Lau35/41
Rhubarb Custard Cake
This cake is designed to be made with an electric hand mixer, which works more air into the eggs, lightening the batter and making it less dense.
- Michael Graydon + Nikole Herriott36/41
Lavender Shortbread With Fruits, Flowers, and Herbs
An iced cookie wreath may scream Christmas, but when you decorate them with candied lavender, edible flowers, and freeze-dried berries, it’s clear that it’s the Easter bunny who’s coming to town.
- Kelsey McClellan37/41
Hazelnut Lace Sandwich Cookies
These cookies make us think of those Lay’s potato chip commercials from way back when: “Betcha can’t eat just one!” Seriously, though, how much do you want to bet?
- Alex Lau38/41
Salted Caramel–Chocolate Tart
Roll up your sleeves, because this tart is a project. For those who don’t particularly like tinkering in the kitchen, there’s still reason to try it: It can be made a day in advance, and it’s, well, look at it. It’s delicious.
- Alex Lau39/41
BA’s Best Key Lime Pie
Our best—truly; we worked real hard on it—Key lime pie recipe sports a whipped cream topping with tangy Greek yogurt and coconut oil, which gives the graham cracker crust that tropical je ne sais quoi.
- Photo by Alex Lau, styling by Sean Dooley40/41
BA’s Best Angel Food Cake
Angel food cake is so simple, but the ingredients and equipment matter. (Yes, you do have to use a tube pan and cake flour, and yes, you do need to sift the dry ingredients and cool the pan upside down.)
- Laura Murray41/41
BA’s Best Coconut Cream Pie
An Easter desserts list would not be complete without a recipe for coconut cream pie, and this one is the one. Whipped cream makes for a nice pairing, but if you want to use up your egg whites, make a marshmallow topping.
