20 Salted Desserts That Make Us Want to Break Out the Maldon
Salted desserts have never been more popular, and it's easy to see why. Not only does it bring out other flavors, it's a perfect foil to rich chocolate and sweet caramel. Try these confections and see for yourself.
Marcus Nilsson1/20Bourbon–Sea Salt Caramels
Sweetened condensed milk makes for an extra-luscious confection.
- Alison Roman, Janet McCracken2/20
Salted Caramel "Ding Dong" Cake
It may look like a giant lunch-box treat, but an ultra-smooth ganache and a final flourish of crunchy sea salt make this one elegant cake.
- Photo by Alex Lau, Styling by Sean Dooley3/20
Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies With Toffee
Prepare for these toffee-and-chocolate-laced brown butter cookies to ruin you for all others.
- 4/20
Almond Bread Pudding with Salted Caramel Sauce
Adding salt to this classic sauce lets you taste the rich complexity of the caramel, not just the sweetness. To save time, feel free to replace the almonds and butter with 1/2 cup store-bought roasted almond butter (no added sugar). Just stir in the salt and almond extract and it's recipe-ready.
- 5/20
Caramel Budino with Salted Caramel Sauce
Half a vanilla bean goes into the caramel sauce, along with the usual suspects—cream, butter, sugar, and salt.
- 6/20
Brownies with Salted Caramel Sauce
Served warm, these not-too-sweet brownies beg to go a la mode.
- 7/20
Hazelnut Butter Cake with Sea Salt Caramel
This cake is covered in a decadent sea salt caramel that will fit in a small saucepan, but make sure you use something larger—the molten sauce bubbles up quite a lot.
- Photo by Romulo Yanes8/20
Salty Chocolate Chunk Cookies
Finishing your cookies with a delicate, flaky salt like Maldon brings out the chocolate flavor and tempers the sweetness, creating the ultimate sweet and salty snack.
- Michael Graydon + Nikole Herriott9/20
Salted Honey and Chocolate Bark
This confection is both sweet and salty, and makes great holiday or host/hostess gifts.
- Matt Duckor10/20
Chocolate-Caramel Cake with Sea Salt
Mayonnaise in the batter isn’t as weird as it sounds—it’s just eggs and oil, after all. It’s also why this cake is so moist.
- 11/20
Salted Butter Caramels
Put the evening over the top by setting out these easy, impressive caramels after dessert. Or set out wax-paper bags so friends can take them home for the next day.
- Michael Graydon + Nikole Herriott12/20
Chocolate-Caramel Pecan Tart
This fudgy tart is finished with a flurry of flaky sea salt.
- 13/20
Milk Chocolate and Salted Caramel Gâteau Saint-Honoré
Frozen puff pastry makes this dessert much easier than it looks.
- Danielle Walsh14/20
Salted Texas Chocolate Sheet Cake
The flakes of sea salt and chopped pistachios bring this cake to another level.
- 15/20
Salted, Seedy Chocolate Bark
Use whatever nuts and seeds you have on hand, but don't skip the salt!
- 16/20
Chocolate Cake with Fleur de Sel Caramel Filling
Lemon and a pinch of salt balance out the richness of the caramel filling.
- Matt Duckor17/20
Dark Chocolate Pudding with Pretzels
More proof that salt makes any dessert taste better—we’d even top these puddings with crushed potato chips.
- 18/20
Chocolate-Almond Bark with Sea Salt
We like the rich flavor and look of Marcona almonds in this bark, but roasted almonds work nicely, too.
- 20/20
Mini Chocolate Tarts with Pistachio Halvah and Sesame Salt
Crumbled halvah, sesame seeds, and sea salt are the ultimate topping.