When you’re a kid, Valentine’s Day is all about the paper cards (and accompanying candy!). As an adult, the whole day becomes more amorous, ditching candy and cards for romantic dinners and outings. This year, we’d like to make a push to bring it back around to what has always been the best part—the sweets! We’ve got everything here, from cookies to cupcakes, with truffles, pies, cheesecakes, and more in between. These 75 Valentine's Day desserts are sure to warm the heart of your mom, friends, partner, kids, yourself... whoever needs something sweet come February 14.
We’ve truly got something for everyone here. Looking for something to end a romantic evening? You’ve gotta go chocolate-y. Our chocolate pots de crème, our chocolate cheesecake, our chocolate strawberry mousse cake, and our chocoflan do take a bit of extra effort (but really, if not on Valentine’s, when?), but if you’re looking for something a little simpler, we’ve got you too. Try our death by chocolate poke cake, our Nutella-stuffed red velvet skillet cookie, or our hot fudge cheesecake bars instead. Not a chocolate fan? Try our strawberry upside-down skillet cake, our honey & peanut butter blondies, or our no-bake blackberry cheesecake bars instead.
Throwing a fun Valentine’s Day party, and want to fill out your app table with some sweet snacks? Try our chocolate-covered cherries, our red velvet cheesecake bites, or our heart-shaped sugar cookies. Want something that’s less of an app and more of a spectacular party centerpiece? Try our raspberry tiramisu, our triple chocolate trifle, our copycat Cheesecake Factory Oreo cheesecake, or our red velvet cheesecake. Put one of these out as your guests arrive and you’re sure to elicit some oohs and ahhs.
Looking for kid-friendly treats you can bring to a classroom Valentine’s Day party? Check out our conversation heart cookies, our cheesecake-stuffed strawberries, our candy heart bark, or our strawberry love notes. Kids of all ages (and adults who just want to feel like a kid again) will flip over these.
Speaking of adults on Valentine's, we've also got some incredible V-Day cocktails you've just gotta see. For everyone else, check out our favorite Valentine's Day snacks too—they're perfect for sharing with a sweetheart (or keeping all for yourself 😉).
Chocolate Pots De Crème
These little pots of chocolatey goodness defy explanation. While they are technically a custard, they fall somewhere in the middle between a pudding and a mousse. All you really need to know is that these ultra-chocolatey cups are a rich, sweet dream, topped with fluffy whipped cream.
Get the Chocolate Pots De Crème recipe.
Heart Cookies
What could be sweeter than baking the cutest heart-shaped cookies for your special someone (or yourself) this Valentine's? We went with a cream cheese frosting, but feel free to go with buttercream if you like. Dye the frosting any colors you wish or use any sprinkles your heart desires.
Get the Heart Cookies recipe.
Strawberry Chocolate Mousse Cake
This takes chocolate-covered strawberries to a whole new delicious level. Fair warning, this is an involved recipe you'll want to read through a few times before you get started. But here's the thing, it's 110% worth it. Not only does it look prettier than most things you can buy a bakery, it tastes even more amazing too.
Death by Chocolate Skillet Brownie
The secret to this intensely gooey skillet brownie? This recipe uses just enough flour to hold it all together, keeping the center super-rich and fudgy.
Raspberry Cheesecake
This creamy, decadent cheesecake is swirled with a raspberry sauce to create a showstopper of a dessert, perfect for Valentine's. The raspberry sauce recipe will make more than you need for the swirls, so spoon it over top each slice right before serving.
Get the Raspberry Cheesecake recipe.
Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Brownies
Chocolate and strawberries were always meant to be, and this treat is love at first bite. Go wild and top these with chocolate-covered strawberries too.
Strawberry Love Notes
Valentine's Day doesn't need to be over-the-top lovey dovey or seriously sad and depressing. Instead, February 14 should be fun! These strawberry "love notes" are the most fun—to make, to give, and to eat.
Get the Strawberry Love Notes recipe.
Macarons
Macarons are delicate sandwich cookies you've probably seen in the window at fancy bakeries, often colored in eye-catching pastels with a sweet filling. If you've always gazed longingly but never tried one, a bite into a macaron should reveal a crisp top with a chewy middle that contrasts with a creamy buttercream filling. This French dessert is a labor of love to create, but the result is so delicious (and the sweetest homemade Valentine's Day treat), that they should be on any beginner baker's list.
Get the Macarons recipe.
Chocolate Ice Cream
It's true, homemade ice cream is a big production. So is it worth it to make from scratch? Yes, yes, yes, one thousand times yes. Every time you take a bite of homemade ice cream, you'll realize you've NEVER had anything as good come from a store-bought pint.
Get the Chocolate Ice Cream recipe.
Red Velvet Ice Cream
This creamy homemade red velvet ice cream is made with a buttermilk base and cocoa powder for that iconic chocolatey, tangy red velvet flavor. It's an ideal treat for Valentine's Day and beyond. A cream cheese frosting is crucial to red velvet, so we added a swirl of the frosting throughout and crumbled some red velvet cake in too so you get bits in every bite. You can make your own cake or buy a few cupcakes from a local bakery to make it even easier.
Get the Red Velvet Ice Cream recipe.
Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Cheesecakes
Chocolate-covered strawberries + cheesecake = OMG. Plus, since you're covering them in chocolate, you don't have to worry about your cheesecakes cracking. Win!
Get the Chocolate Strawberry Cheesecakes recipe.
Heart-Shaped Cake
This easy hack utilizes a square and round cake pan, as well as our absolute favorite red velvet cake recipe. If you're in a hurry, boxed cake mix works just as well! Don't sleep on the homemade cream cheese frosting though, it makes everything 1,000x better.
Get the Heart-Shaped Cake recipe.
Honey & Peanut Butter Blondies
These blondies are like a peanut butter sandwich in dessert form. They're thick and chewy with all of the honey flavor shining through and will make you feel like a kid again. The peanuts add a great crunch to every bite but are totally optional if you're a purist.
Red Velvet Cupcakes
If you're looking for the most festive Valentine's Day dessert, you can't go wrong with rich and decadent red velvet cupcakes. Light and fluffy with plenty of chocolatey flavor, these mini cakes are the perfect treat to present (or gift!) on this most romantic occasion.
Get the Red Velvet Cupcakes recipe.
Chocolate Pie
Though most chocolate pies use an Oreo crust, we went for a buttery flaky crust with just a hint of bittersweet cocoa instead. The filling here is a decadent and foolproof custard made extra easy by being covered in a slightly sour (trust us) whipped cream that will cover any cracks. Top with some shaved chocolate for a richer than rich chocolate pie everyone will love.
Get the Chocolate Pie recipe.
Chocolate-Covered Strawberries
In our book, no Valentine's Day is really complete without chocolate-covered strawberries. Plus, they're so easy to make, there's really no excuse to not whip up a batch for someone you love (or as a simple sweet treat to enjoy all to yourself 😉).
Cheesecake Egg Rolls
Crazy egg rolls are kind of our thing, and we especially love this cheesecake version. The strawberry dipping sauce is technically option, but we say don't skip it! It is TOO good.
Get the Cheesecake Egg Rolls recipe.
Strawberry Upside-Down Cake
We made this strawberry cake in an oven-safe skillet, but if you don't have one, just use a 12" cake pan. Don't forget the vanilla ice cream for serving!
Get the Strawberry Upside-Down Cake recipe.
Crème Brûlée
Crème brûlée says "fancy" like no other dessert: It's deliciously rich, luxuriously smooth, and indulgently creamy. And cracking that glassy sugar surface right before your first bite? Delightfully fun. Looking something a little easier? Try our crème brûlée sugar cookies instead.
Get the Crème Brûlée recipe.
Copycat Cheesecake Factory Oreo Cheesecake
When it comes to a Cheesecake Factory cheesecake, we don't expect anything less than extreme decadence. With five indulgent layers of chocolate and Oreos, this dreamy cheesecake certainly delivers that and more.
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.