Dessert

This homemade cream cheese frosting can be used to add a pleasantly sweet and tangy note to almost any cupcake, layer cake, or any recipe that calls for buttercream.

Nope. They aren’t beans, either.

A whole vanilla bean takes this supremely creamy, wonderfully rich, classic New York–style cheesecake to pro-level.

This giant panna cotta has a sleek mirror finish that’s a thing of beauty. No ramekins required.

Free yourself from individual ramekins for a large-format, party-friendly version. (It jiggles!)

Yes, the convivial festival favorite can be recreated at home. This one’s even more fun with a ginger-tinged glaze and a shower of pulverized berries.

Pies, cakes, and sundaes that are all *fireworks noise.*

Double down on chocolate and orange with this vegan dessert that gets a little help from the freezer aisle.

This easy strawberry galette recipe requires less fuss than a pie, but has all the same components, down to the burbling fruit filling and tender, flaky crust.

Creamy yogurt and the season’s best berries team up to make refreshing frozen paleta treats you’ll want on hand all summer long.

These bright and tangy bars feature a mix of blueberries and blackberries in a citrusy curd that is baked onto a brown sugar crust.

This is possibly the simplest strawberry cheesecake you’ll ever make: It requires no mixer, no springform pan, and it bakes in 30 minutes.

For berries that are just too good to bake, this fuss-free tart simply piles the raw fruit into a crisp almondy crust.

Strawberry sorbet, with a hint of sweet bitterness thanks to Campari, sits on tangy yogurt whipped cream and gets topped with vanilla meringue shards.

This recipe for homemade strawberry milkshakes uses fresh strawberry syrup to deepen flavor and freeze-dried berries for a punch of color.

A one-bowl vanilla cake, doctored store-bought ice cream, and quick raspberry curd make this impressive dessert totally achievable.

Dark brown sugar and a dollop of mascarpone make for superior tenderness. Walnuts optional but encouraged. 

Our best vegan desserts for plant-based dinner parties and anytime snacking.

A slice of this spiced cake with buttermilk-cinnamon glaze feels like a warm hug, and the best part is, it takes less than an hour to make.

A little sugar and heat can turn even sad pineapples into juicy gems. A low-effort dessert for all your gluten-free needs.

This ultra-chocolaty vegan mousse recipe is egg-free, dairy-free, and totally easy. Top the creamy yet light dessert with crackly sesame brittle for contrast.

Our best lemon curd recipe is low-effort, high-reward, and results in a spread so light you’ll want to eat it with a spoon.

This East African snack is fluffy, crispy, and mildly sweet—like the best parts of French beignets and American old-fashioned doughnuts combined into one bite.

However you look at boxed cake mix—a desperate measure for desperate times or a jumping-off point for an infinite number of delicious desserts—here are our best strategies to make it taste better than you ever imagined.