69 easy dessert recipes for effortless entertaining, from classic crumbles to showstopping cakes
From three-ingredient ice-creams to warming apple pies and easy-to-make cheesecakes, these dessert recipes will be definite crowd pleasers
Let’s be honest, no meal is quite complete without a delicious dessert to finish. From failproof fondants to classic crumbles, Good Housekeeping has every sweet craving covered.
If you’re hosting and looking for a dessert recipe that requires minimal hands-on time when your guests arrive, then a cheesecake is perfect – simply remove from the fridge and serve. Make the most of summer fruits with our tangy lemon and blueberry ricotta cheesecake and be sure to save our Christmas pudding cheesecake for the festive season.
For those all-important birthday celebrations, it’s hard to beat our ultimate chocolate cake, and there’s also recipes for a light yet zingy lemon and poppyseed cake and a crowd-pleasing red velvet cake.
Afternoon tea has never looked more appealing, thanks to our collection of traybake recipes. Not only are they a doddle to whip up and great for little ones to help with, but they’ll store well in an airtight container, too.
So, aprons and wooden spoons at the ready, for Good Housekeeping’s most tempting tried and tested dessert recipes for 2022.
Tiramisu Crêpe Cake
This layered crepe cake couldn’t be easier to throw together. If you want to make it alcohol-free then simply omit the coffee liqueur, or replace with cooled espresso.
Recipe: Tiramisu Crêpe Cake
Biscoff crunch cake
A moist, spiced sponge is topped with a Biscoff caramel, cornflakes and Biscoff biccies tossed with white chocolate and, you guessed it, more Biscoff.
Recipe: Biscoff crunch cakeBaked Doughnut Pudding
This decadent dessert is very straightforward to assemble. If you can’t find unglazed ring doughnuts, jam-filled ones would work well too, in which case you might want to slightly reduce the amount of compote you use.
Recipe: Baked Doughnut Pudding
Salted Caramel, Miso and Chocolate Tart
Don’t be concerned if your Mars bars take a while to melt, their gooey caramel and nougat filling is the secret to this decedent tart.
Chocolate Mousse
A great student recipe, pack your brood off to uni with this easy chocolate mousse recipe.
Recipe: Chocolate mousse
3 Ingredient Chocolate Caramel Tart
Don’t be concerned if your Mars bars take a while to melt, their gooey caramel and nougat filling is the secret to this decedent tart.
Peach, Thyme and Ricotta Galette
Everyone loves a speedy recipe, even better when its comes in the form of a dessert. It means that you can have a sweet treat midweek.
Recipe: Peach, Thyme and Ricotta Galette
Marmalade Treacle Tart
Served with chai custard, warming chai and zesty marmalade updates this traditional family fave.
Recipe: Marmalade treacle tart
Strawberry and cream jelly
Reminiscent of childhood, a tower of wobbling jelly is sure to bring a smile to everyone’s face.
Recipe: Strawberry and cream jelly
Strawberry yogurt cheesecake
Try this strawberry cheesecake recipe, a light and simple dessert with a subtle berry flavour.
Recipe: Strawberry yogurt cheesecake
Sensational strawberry gateau
This impressive pudding is not only a real head-turner – it’s also less than 135 calories a slice!
Recipe: Sensational strawberry gateau
Brandy butter chocolate fondants
Mixed with chocolate, these brandy butter fondants are a decadent Christmas treat.
Recipe: Brandy butter chocolate fondants
Strawberry and meringue ice cream
This strawberry and meringue ice cream recipe is a cool new twist on traditional Eton Mess.
Recipe: Strawberry and meringue ice cream
Strawberry shortbread stack
This strawberry shortbread is the perfect pâtisserie for a dinner party al fresco!
Recipe: Strawberry shortbread stack
Three ingredient strawberry ice cream
Keep frozen strawberries in your freezer, then this ice cream can be whipped up instantly when the craving strikes!
Recipe: Three ingredient strawberry ice cream
Lemon Meringue Pie
Raspberry panna cotta
This panna cotta recipe couldn't be easier - serve in pretty teacups and garnish with raspberries.
Recipe: Cheat's raspberry panna cotta
Rhubarb and ginger cheesecake
This colourful cheesecake dessert will go down well at a dinner party.
Recipe: Rhubarb and ginger cheesecake
Chocolate and orange cheesecake
Cooking this luxurious cheesecake in a bain marie keeps it from cracking and helps the texture stay super smooth.
Recipe: Chocolate and orange cheesecake
Marbled chocolate cheesecake
This decadent marbled chocolate cheesecake really does taste as good as it looks.
Recipe: Marbled chocolate cheesecake
The GH Kitchen Team are Good Housekeeping’s resident recipe developers and all-round food obsessives. GH Kitchen Director Sarah Akhurst is our resident hosting pro and loves nothing more than putting on a foodie feast for friends. Our GH Kitchen Manager Linzi Pucino is our very own Italian food expert (originally hailing from the North East of Scotland!) and can be found working her way through midweek recipes that cover all bases, from haggis to ragu! Our Kitchen Editor Nadine Brown loves digging into the stories behind her favourite foods and enjoys applying her eclectic tastes to more modern, flavour-forward recipes - just don't give her too much chilli! Our Junior Food Content Produce Frankie Prichard combines a love of beautiful presentation and flavour-led, seasonal cooking in her recipe development, along with a passion for bringing people together through food. With a wealth of professional kitchen experience between them, they’re dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work every single time
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