88 Incredible Summer Desserts Perfect For Every Warm Weather Occasion
We're putting fruit in ALL our desserts this summer.
It goes without saying that the perfect end to any meal is an over-the-top, delicious dessert, and that goes DOUBLE in summer when all the best fruits are in season. With fruits like peaches, blueberries, watermelons, and more all ripe for the picking, we're bee-lining to the U-Pick farms for the sake of fruity homemade cobbler, pie, and cake recipes. Take inspiration from these 88 desserts and join us!
Okay, okay, it's true—when the weather gets hot, sometimes the last thing we want to see is our ovens. That's why we've rounded up some of our favorite no-bake desserts, Popsicles, and even grill-able desserts for when you and your oven aren't on speaking terms. Our favorite treats that won't make you break a sweat? You can't go wrong with our no-bake peaches & cream pie, our no-bake ricotta cheesecake, our no-bake banana caramel pecan pie, or our no-bake blackberry cheesecake bars.
These desserts aren't just for the dinner table, either. We have plenty of treats perfect for the nights when the outdoors is your kitchen. Whether you're camping and cooking over a fire on the side of a mountain, or simply on a grill-only diet, your sweet tooth will be taken care of. Our campfire cobbler, our grilled peaches, our grilled pineapple sundaes, and duh, s'mores are the BEST.
Need more summer cooking ideas? Check out our top strawberry desserts, our favorite grilled fruit recipes, and our best s'mores desserts too.
Creamsicles
Super-simple to make, these frozen bars are a refreshing, easy dessert to enjoy on those too-hot summer days. Trust us—these creamy yogurt-based orange Popsicles are so much better than anything you can buy at the store. You can be the judge of how much sugar you add, and there are no ingredients that you can’t pronounce!
Get the Creamsicles recipe.
S'mores Krispie Treats
We're not exaggerating when we say we're obsessed with this combination of Rice Krispies treats and s'mores. Swapping Golden Grahams cereal is our favorite new game-changer.
Get the S'mores Krispie Treats recipe.
No-Bake Peaches & Cream Pie
A creamy no-bake pie that’s studded with peaches is just what your summer needs. The gently cooked and fresh peaches really highlight the summer fruit, and the salty pretzel crust puts it over the top.
Get the No-Bake Peaches & Cream Pie recipe.
No-Bake Blackberry Cheesecake Bars
These no-bake cheesecake bars get a stunning, swirly topping of blackberries that looks more like art than dessert. Bonus: The cheesecake itself is tart and fluffy with the creamiest texture.
Atlantic Beach Pie
Key lime and lemon meringue pie lovers, gather around! Perfected by Chef Bill Smith at his iconic restaurant, Crook’s Corner in North Carolina, Atlantic beach pie is a twist on a North Carolina dessert staple that swaps traditional meringue for whipped cream and a graham cracker crust for one made with crushed crackers (!!).
Get the Atlantic Beach Pie recipe.
Lemon-Berry Firecracker Cake
Nothing says summer quite like a patriotic red, white, and blue dessert, especially this eye-popping lemon-berry firecracker cake. For a blast of flavor, our spin on the classic firecracker cake upgrades itself from white cake to a tangy lemon batter with blueberry- and strawberry-flavored swirls.
Get the Lemon-Berry Firecracker Cake recipe.
Peach & Cherry Shortcake Dessert Board
Strawberry shortcake is cool and all, but we’ve all done that dozens of times—with a dessert board FULL of different fruits and sweet treats you'll have something fresh the whole crowd will love. We paired late-summer cherries and peaches with biscuits and cookies, but have fun with it!
S'mores Cupcakes
Fact: S'mores are the best; there's no denying it. And now you can have everything you love about s'mores—buttery graham crackers, melty chocolate, and toasted marshmallow—in a cupcake!
Get the S'mores Cupcakes recipe.
Strawberry Cheesecake Pie
Kitchen just way too hot this summer? No sweat, this no-bake strawberry cheesecake pie is here for you.
Get the Strawberry Cheesecake Pie recipe.
Pineapple Granita
Classic granita ranks among the most refreshing desserts ever, up there with snow cones and pops. Simple to make and easily modified, it’s perfect on its own as a light palate cleanser or dressed up with whipped cream and toppings. This pineapple version is big on tropical flavors, with heavy notes of vanilla and toffee thanks to a splash of rum and a scoop of dark brown sugar.
Get the Pineapple Granita recipe.
No-Bake Whipped Ricotta Cheesecake
"No-bake" and "whipped" in the same recipe name as "cheesecake"? Sure! The whipped ricotta and mascarpone combination lightened with whipped cream atop a Biscoff cookie spread is quite dreamy.
Orange Creamsicle Bars
These triple-layered orange bars have us feeling all nostalgic for the classic frozen Popsicle treat that inspired them. But we won’t linger on it for too long because, just like their inspiration, these bars are irresistibly good. They’re creamy, dreamy, and the perfect blend of citrusy orange and vanilla bean flavor paired with a graham cracker crust.
Get the Orange Creamsicle Bars recipe.
Blueberry Surprise
This blueberry dessert is what summer dreams are made of. A tart homemade blueberry filling is sandwiched between layers of lightly sweetened, fluffy cream cheese and whipped cream, all on top of buttery cornmeal shortbread.
Get the Blueberry Surprise recipe.
Fruit Popsicles
In the heat of summer, nothing satisfies quite like a fruit Popsicle. This classic strawberry version is big on fruit flavor and not too sweet.
Get the Fruit Popsicles recipe.
Strawberry Pop Tart Blondies
Buttery, chewy, and filled with strawberry jam, this dessert combines the nostalgia of Pop-Tarts and the classic comfort of blondies in one adorable bar cookie.
Get the Strawberry Pop Tart Blondies recipe.
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake
It may be retro, but this classic cake is a staple easy dessert for a reason. Sweet pineapple gets an irresistible rich boost from melted butter, brown sugar, and eye-catching maraschino cherries—one slice, and you'll feel transported to the tropical vacay of your dreams.
Get the Pineapple Upside-Down Cake recipe.
Strawberry Shortcakes
In this easy recipe, tender, fresh shortcakes get topped with juicy, sweet strawberries and fluffy whipped cream to make this iconic, crowd-pleasing dessert. We used a shortcake that's lightly sweetened to let the strawberries shine, but if you prefer this dessert on the sweeter side, try this sour cream pound cake or super-easy sponge cake.
Get the Strawberry Shortcakes recipe.
No-Bake Banana Caramel Pecan Pie
When it comes to old-school desserts, banana cream pie and pecan pie are always at the top of the list. If you’re torn between which to make, why not combine them? This pie pairs pecans in a sticky caramel, layered with bananas, and topped with a light and fluffy vanilla cream filling. Think banoffee pie, taken over the top with pecans and caramel. 😍
M&M Cookie Bars
These have all the comfort of a chocolate chip cookie, with the added crunch of M&M's and the heft of a bar shape, making for a delicious treat that’s impossible to put down. Try them with seasonal M&M's to switch them up for holidays (red, white & blue, perhaps?) too.
Get the M&M Cookie Bars recipe.
Peanut Butter Banana Pie
There might be nothing better than the combo of peanut butter and banana—unless we're talking peanut butter and banana pie atop a crunchy, chocolate crust!
Get the Peanut Butter Banana Pie recipe.
Mackenzie Filson is a food writer and contributing digital food producer at Delish. Her favorite ice cream flavor is chocolate-pine. If wine was an astrological sign she'd be a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. She's never met a bag of Spicy Sweet Chili Doritos she didn't eat in one sitting.
Camille Lowder is the digital food producer at Delish, otherwise known as our resident queen of recipe galleries. Previously, she attended the Natural Gourmet Institute for culinary school and worked at/managed a number of New York restaurants. She loves anything vegan, foods masquerading as other foods (hello, cauliflower), and a well-used Oxford comma.
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