If you’re in the mood for something sweet but don’t want to spend your whole evening measuring, mixing, and cleaning, these easy dessert ideas will save the day. From quick desserts you can whip up in minutes to no-bake treats that rely on simple pantry staples, this roundup has a little something for every craving.
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Why You’ll Love These Easy Dessert Ideas
Dessert doesn’t have to be elaborate to taste incredible! Some of the best sweet endings come from the kinds of quick sweet treats you can whip up on a whim, like the cookies you mix while dinner cools, the cereal bars your kids help press into the pan, or the no-bake favorites that solve a craving fast. These are simple homemade desserts built for real life, fast to make, flexible with pantry ingredients, and easy enough for anyone to tackle, even on a busy weeknight.
Whether you’re hosting friends, sending something for a school event, or just need a little something after dinner, these ideas come together without stress. You’ll find options that travel well, crowd-pleasers that disappear from the plate, and plenty of desserts that don’t require special tools or long chill times, just approachable steps and flavors everyone loves!
Pro Tip: Keep a tiny “dessert stash” in your pantry that includes pudding mix, chocolate chips, peanut butter, cereal, and marshmallows. With just these ingredients, you can assemble dozens of fast, no-bake sweets whenever a craving hits or company shows up unexpectedly.
CourtneyNo-Bake Desserts
Dirt Pudding Recipe
Creamy vanilla pudding and crumbled Oreos combine to make this much loved Oreo Dirt Dessert, or as we call it, Dirt Pudding!
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Cherry Delight
Cherry Delight is a classic no bake dessert featuring a graham cracker crust, whipped cream cheese filling, and cherry pie filling topping. This easy dessert is made in less than 30 minutes and is a crowd pleasing pick for cookouts, BBQs, and holiday gatherings.
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Cap’n Crunch Bars
These sweet and salty Cap'n Crunch Bars are a no bake cereal treat you can make in less than 20 minutes. These soft and gooey treats are a hit with both kids and adults alike!
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Chocolate Covered Rice Krispie Treats
Ooey gooey rice krispie treats are covered in a thin layer of semi-sweet chocolate for an eays, delicious no-bake dessert.
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No Bake Peanut Butter Bars
This easy no bake dessert is as simple as it gets. Peanut Butter + Chocolate + 10 Minutes. What are you waiting for?
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Lucky Charms Krispie Treats
Gooey Lucky Charms Treats are a perfect no bake treat for the whole family! Celebrate St. Patrick's Day or any day with these fun and easy marshmallow treats!
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Chocolate Peanut Butter Puppy Chow
No one can resist going back for seconds on this Chocolate Peanut Butter Puppy Chow. It's a great dessert to take to parties or to make a cozy movie night at home even more special.
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Fruity Pebbles Treats
Everyone's favorite marshmallow treat made with Fruity Pebbles! These Fruit Pebble Bars are soft, gooey, and so much fun to eat!
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Strawberry Rhubarb Fool
This Strawberry Rhubarb Fool is the ultimate summer dessert! layers of homemade whipped cream and tangy sweet strawberry rhubarb compote create a dessert that is light, creamy, and refreshing!
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Cookies
Big Chocolate Chunk Cookies
These Giant Chocolate Chip Cookies are filled with hunks of semi sweet chocolate and finished with flaky sea salt for a gourmet bakery experience. These cookies come together quickly, but they're best if they chill for at least two hours, so keep that in mind!
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Reese’s Pieces Peanut Butter Cookies
These Reese's Peanut Butter Cookies are soft, chewy, and loaded with peanut butter chips, Reese's pieces, and of course, chocolate chips!
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Mint Oreos Chocolate Chip Cookies
Big, thick, and soft Oreo Chocolate Chip Cookies are packed with Oreo crumbs and pieces, melty semi-sweet chocolate chips, and vanilla pudding mix for the perfect cookie for cookies and cream lovers!
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Frosted Pumpkin Cookies
Soft, puffy, and perfectly spiced, these Frosted Pumpkin Cookies are a fall must-make! The brown sugar frosting is made super quickly on the stove top and makes an absolutely incredible melt in your mouth cookie!
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Soft and Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies
Soft and Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies are a no-chill cookie recipe with big peanut butter flavor and an irresistibly buttery, chewy texture.
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Oreos Chocolate Chip Cookies
Big, thick, and soft Oreo Chocolate Chip Cookies are packed with Oreo crumbs and pieces, melty semi-sweet chocolate chips, and vanilla pudding mix for the perfect cookie for cookies and cream lovers!
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Coconut Cookies (Soft and Chewy)
Rich toasted coconut cookies have buttery crisp edges with soft and chewy centers. A coconut lovers' dream!
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Pie Crust Cookies
Put your leftover pie scraps to good use with these easy Pie Crust Cookies! Cut into fun shapes, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar, and baked to flaky perfection, these cookies are a bonus treat the whole family will love.
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Monster Cookies
Peanut butter, chocolate chips, and oats in a chewy cookie, dotted with colorful M&M's candies. It's every kid's favorite cookie!
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Bars & Squares
Old World Raspberry Bars
Raspberry jam sandwiched between two layers of crumbly buttery dough make these Raspberry Bars irresistibly delicious.
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Oatmeal Rhubarb Bars
These Oatmeal Rhubarb Bars feature a tangy sweet rhubarb filling and buttery crumble topping. They're easy to transport and perfect for summer potlucks and gatherings.
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Brown Butter Pecan Blondies
Classic blondies get a boost of richness from brown butter and pecans. These easy bar cookies will become a staple!
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Easy Fudge Brownies
Easy Homemade Brownies are rich, fudgy, and studded with melted chocolate chips. This stovetop brownie recipe made with cocoa powder can be in your oven in just 20 minutes.
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Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bars
These chewy, hearty Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Bars can be in an out of your oven in about 45 minutes! This versatile recipe is great for parties and easy to customize based on your taste!
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Cakes & Cupcakes
Chocolate Crazy Cake
Chocolate Crazy Cake is an incredibly easy one bowl chocolate cake that is light, fluffy, and so moist! Crazy Cake is an egg free and dairy free chocolate cake!
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Banana Crumble Cake
Moist, sweet Banana Crumb Cake with a crunchy buttery brown sugar and cinnamon crumb topping.
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Lemon Blueberry Loaf Cake
This Lemon Blueberry Loaf Cake features a bright and citrusy lemon poppyseed quick bread, dotted with blueberries and topped with buttery crumble and a lemon glaze. Perfect for breakfast, snack, or dessert!
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Strawberry Cupcakes
We upgrade a simple cake mix with three types of strawberries to make these easy Strawberry Cupcakes! Pair them with a simple, creamy strawberry buttercream for a moist cupcake that is bursting with strawberry flavor!
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Pineapple Sunshine Cake
A homemade pineapple cake is topped with a layer of crushed pineapple, whipped cream cheese, and pudding for a refreshing and creamy summer dessert.
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Carrot Sheet Cake
Moist carrot sheet cake with cream cheese frosting is an easy dessert that’s perfect for any occasion!
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Easy Rhubarb Custard Cake
This creamy, fluffy rhubarb custard cake is so simple to make and is a lovely recipe for spring!
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Floats & Ice Cream Desserts
Orange Float
These Orange Floats are so refreshing! Combine vanilla ice cream, lemon lime soda, and orange juice for a frothy creamsicle flavored float you'll want to make all summer long!
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Hot Chocolate Floats
Rich hot chocolate is paired with ice cream for a hot and cold, creamy and frothy treat!
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Caramel Apple Cider Ginger Ale Floats
It's never too cold for ice cream, especially if it comes in the form of Apple Cider Floats! With apple cider, ginger ale, and salty caramel sauce, these cider floats are the perfect excuse to eat ice cream in any season.
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Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Cream Floats
These Strawberry Rhubarb Ice Cream Floats are as delicious as they are lovely. Make the easy strawberry rhubarb compote ahead of time, and you’ll be ready for floats whenever the mood strikes!
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Rainbow Sherbet Champagne Floats
These two ingredient Sherbet Champagne Floats couldn’t be easier to make, and they’re the perfect festive drink to celebrate any occasion!
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Kahlua Mocha Milkshakes
Kahlua, ice cream, and iced coffee combine to make the best boozy mocha milkshake.
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Muffins, Donuts & Specialty Treats
Orange Poppy Seed Muffins
Moist and fluffy Orange Poppy Seed Muffins are bursting with fresh citrus flavor. Topped with coarse sugar, these muffins have a great texture with a slight crunch!
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Banana Nutella Swirl Muffins
These tender, buttery banana muffins are topped with a swirl of nutella for a quick, one bowl muffin recipe the whole family will love!
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Air Fryer Donuts
You can make these easy Air Fryer Donuts in less than 10 minutes! There is nothing better than fluffy, warm air fried donuts!
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Baked S’mores Casserole
Made with just 3 simple ingredients this Baked S'mores Casserole is an ooey gooey treat that's perfect for rainy days. Get your s'mores fix in just 10 minutes!
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Salted Chocolate Pretzel Bark
Sweet, salty, and snapped into shareable pieces; this chocolate pretzel toffee bark makes for a perfect snack that's right at home for movie nights or holiday gifting.
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Campfire Banana Boats Dessert
Warm grilled bananas topped with gooey marshmallows and melty chocolate chips are a super easy and FUN dessert for summer BBQs, camping, and more!
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Double Chocolate Sea Salt Truffles
Sea Salt Truffles combine a chocolate truffle made with sweetened condensed milk then dipped in semi-sweet chocolate and sprinkled with flaky sea salt for a rich, decadent treat that's perfect for holiday party trays or gifting.
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Tips for Making Simple Desserts Fast
- Lean on pantry staples. Items like pudding mix, chocolate chips, cereal, graham crackers, peanut butter, marshmallows, and canned fruit come in handy when you need dessert in a pinch.
- Choose no-bake or quick-bake options. Many of the desserts above take less than 30 minutes or rely on a quick stove top step.
- Be mindful of chill times. Some cookie recipes and no-bake desserts might require a chill time. Consider making these easy desserts a day before. You can also make cookies and freeze the dough so you can have a super speedy dessert at the ready!
- Go for small-batch treats. When you want something sweet after dinner, small, simple desserts (like cookies or bars) come together fast and cool quickly.
- Keep it kid-friendly. Cereal bars, sheet cakes, and puppy chow are easy enough for little helpers and perfect for parties or potlucks.
Easy Dessert FAQs
What’s the fastest dessert to make in 10 minutes?
Cereal bars, pudding cups, microwave mug cakes, and quick fruit-and-cream combinations: assemble in minutes with almost no prep.
What dessert is best to bring to a party?
Cookies, brownies, bars, and sheet cakes are great make-ahead options that travel well and serve a crowd with zero fuss.
What desserts require no eggs or no dairy?
Many no-bake treats fit the bill, including pudding-based desserts, cereal bars, and puppy chow. Cookies made with peanut butter or oat-based bars often skip eggs and dairy naturally, making them easy options when you’re working around allergies.
I hope these easy dessert ideas bring a little sweetness to your week, whether you’re treating your family, hosting friends, or just craving something simple after dinner! Happy baking—and no-baking!
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