Updated on: Aug 31, 2024
Are you looking for sweet treat ideas to serve at a summer get-together? Well, you came to the right place because this article has a variety of tasty summer desserts. Don't worry, there are some sweet yet refreshing desserts to keep you cool during the hot, summer weather. There's a whole list of summer dessert ideas mentioned below. So, what are you waiting for? Keep on reading to find what delicious treats you can serve at your party! We also have great ideas for those who are health conscious.
Summer Dessert Ideas: Cakes
1. Princess Cake
Princess cake is a Swedish tradition among royalty but is a summer favorite everywhere. This cake comes in so many different versions but this particular one is the easiest and the sweetest. You can either make your own or buy an angel food cake mix.
Cut the cake in half and place whipped cream and berries on the surface. Cover it with more whip cream before putting the second half on top of the bottom layer. Cover the top with more whip cream and berries and it’s done! If you want a fun twist on the name of the cake then get a crown cake topper to place on top!
2. Lemon Raspberry Cake
A lemon raspberry cake would be perfect for any hot summer day. This cake is light and delicious. The cake itself is lemon-based. The filling is both a buttercream frosting and raspberry preserves. Top the cake with more buttercream frosting and add whole fresh raspberries to the top. Serve it to guests on pink paper plates to match the color of the filling!
3. Strawberry Shortcake
This is a classic dessert that satisfies almost everyone. Who doesn't love a good cake? The kinds of strawberry shortcakes vary depending on the recipe. This recipe combines homemade lemony biscuits, macerated strawberries, and homemade whip cream to create a unique dessert ready for the summer. Try serving your guests their slices on strawberry-themed plates!
4. Peach, Blueberry, and Pecan Dump Cake
A dump cake is not only super easy to make but is a delicious treat as well. Take advantage of summer fruits and make one with peaches and blueberries! If you want to make your baking even easier, you can use yellow cake mix for your dump cake.
5. Blackberry Tahini Yogurt Cake
A blackberry tahini yogurt cake is a refreshing recipe for summer! Even better, it can be a one-bowl recipe that helps with cleanup. You can purchase store-bought tahini for your recipe, or make your own with sesame seeds and oil. We recommend using olive oil, grapeseed oil, or sesame oil!
Summer Dessert Ideas: Finger Foods
6. Summer Lemon Bars
Light like a pastry, these tart treats are perfect for parties or events in the summer. For the adults who don’t wish to drink, but still like the idea of more “adult” desserts, these lemon bars are spiked with Leinenkugel's Summer Shandy beer. If you don’t feel like taking a shot at making them yourself, try your local bakery or ask if they can refer you to any bakeries that specialize in creating desserts. Either way, serve them to your guests on lemon-themed plates!
7. Coconut Cupcakes
For a little tropical treat, try these coconut cupcakes that are served with coconut-flavored buttercream icing on top. These can be served as birthday, wedding, or baby shower cupcakes with their elegant coconut shavings and light creamy colors.
8. Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes
Strawberry lemonade is a summer staple, so try making a sweet treat based on it! These cupcakes can be decorated with pink buttercream frosting to reflect the flavor. For an easy DIY decoration, cut up straws and stick them into the frosting to make it look like a glass of lemonade. You can also decorate them with strawberry or lemon cupcake toppers.
9. Smores
Smores are a classic summer dessert idea, all you need are graham crackers, chocolate bars, and marshmallows! Or purchase a smores kit to have everything in one place. Roast the marshmallows over a stove, or set up a bonfire outdoors to enjoy the summer weather and roast marshmallows together!
10. Lemon Blueberry Mini Cheesecakes
This dessert is a delicious summer snack that you can make easily. The sweetness of the blueberries combines beautifully with the sour lemons to create a refreshing bite-sized snack! They're a perfect snack to bring to a picnic, so why not serve them in gingham cupcake liners to match your picnic blanket?
Summer Dessert Ideas: Dessert
11. Bourbon Peach Cobbler
This is a great dessert for any adult party that adds a little kick to a regular peach cobbler by adding bourbon and a buttery biscuit crust for added flavor. Try serving it in a cast-iron skillet for your guests!
12. Bing Cherry-Amaretti Fool
It is always a good idea to use fruit that is in season during the summer for the desserts you plan to make. Bing cherries are in season during the summer, and this custard-style fool dessert is the perfect way to incorporate this fruit. The mixture of whipped cream and sweet cherries balances out the sour cream. Topped off with crushed amaretti cookies and mint leaves, you have a delicious dessert.
13. Peach Crisps
Peach crisps are a vegan and gluten-free dessert option! They're also super easy to make. All you need to do is line your baking dish with sliced peaches and then top it off with a crumble topping made of crushed walnuts, oats, brown sugar, and coconut oil. Then just throw it in the oven and bake it for 30 minutes! Want to stay on theme with your party decor? Then give your guests peach napkins to clean up any stray crumbs from your crumble topping!
14. Grill Roasted Pineapple
This might be one of the most simple desserts on this list. All you need to do is grill roast pineapple until the skin is browned and the insides are soft. When it's ready you can eat it with vanilla ice cream or even with a shot of rum. If you're serving it to guests try supplying them with pineapple-shaped shot glasses for their drinks.
15. Peach and Plum Galette
Take advantage of in-season fruits by making a peach-plum galette! The peach and plums combine to make a dessert that's both sweet and tart. If you want your dessert to be tarter then you can also add cherries to your dessert! Top it off with either whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
Summer Dessert Ideas: Frozen
16. Ice-box Cake
This cake takes a little time to make but it only has two ingredients. You need your favorite wafer cookie. Most people use chocolate wafers. Grab a 13x9 pan and fill it with loads of whipped cream. Then place each wafer vertically in the whipped cream and freeze. This is an easy and fun spin-on cookie and cream ice cream. If you're making this for an event and want a special touch, try serving it on a personalized baking pan!
17. Summer Dessert Ice Cream Cake
Why not have ice cream cakes served at your event? The five-layer ice cream cake adds more than the typical chocolate and vanilla flavors to this delicious treat. In addition to two ice cream flavors of choice, the oreo cookie, hot fudge, and whipped cream layers add unique flavors to a classic treat. Most bakeries and cake shops know how to create this cool treat, so it shouldn’t be too hard to get your hands on one of these from your local bakery. Try serving it to your guests on paper plates so you don't have to worry about cleaning up the melted ice cream!
18. Frozen Chocolate Bananas
If it is too hot outside to bake anything, you can’t go wrong with classic summer treats. These frozen chocolate bananas are a healthier alternative to regular ice cream bars and absolutely delicious. They're also completely customizable, sprinkle on whatever topping you want. Whether it's colorful sprinkles, chopped nuts, or crushed pretzels for a sweet and salty kick!
19. Salted Caramel Milkshakes
This dessert is sure to satisfy your sweet tooth cravings as well as cool you off in the hot summer sun. You can serve it to everyone no matter their age. For an added kick, you can even add a little rum to the shakes for a more adult version. Serve them to guests in some classic milkshake glasses!
20. Popsicles
Popsicles have been a summer staple since we were all kids! Plus they're super easy to make and completely customizable. You could make them by freezing fruit smoothies or by using fruit juice. All you need to do is pour your choice of liquid into a popsicle mold, put in some popsicle sticks, and pop it into the freezer. If you want some extra sweetness you can also dip your popsicles into chocolate and freeze them again.
Summer Dessert Ideas: Pies
21. Key Lime Pie
This dessert is a refreshing option for the summertime! The limes give this pie a tangy taste which goes well with the sweetness of the condensed milk. We recommend pairing it with a graham cracker crust that you could either make yourself with crushed graham crackers or buy a premade crust. Try serving it to guests on some lime green plates to match the color of your pie!
22. Cherry Pie
Is there anything more quintessentially summer than a cherry pie cooling on a window sill? This dessert is a classic summer dessert idea and will be a hit whether it's a dessert for the family or a dessert for a party. Make sure to have some vanilla ice cream ready for anyone to take a scoop of. If you're serving it to guests then maybe invest in a cake stand (which can double as a pie stand) to make it look polished!
23. Coconut Cream Pie
Coconut is an essential part of summer. If you want a little taste of tropical weather then make a coconut cream pie! This dessert is sweet as can be and will be a crowd-pleaser. Make sure to get a pie tin if you think you'll be baking this dessert a lot. Otherwise, a disposable one will do as well!
24. Pina Colada Cream Pie
My favorite vacation drink is a pina colada, that's why I was ecstatic to learn that there's a dessert version of it! A pina colada cream pie combines coconut and pineapple, two classic summer flavors into one delicious pie. If you want to give your pie a kick then you can add some rum to it in order, or leave it out for a kid-friendly version. You can also serve your guest's pina coladas in these pina colada glasses as a refreshing drink!
25. Three Berry Pie
Take advantage of the in-season berries by making a three-berry pie. I recommend blackberries, blueberries, and strawberries for a dessert that's sweet and tart. You could get berries from your local supermarket or make a day out of it by going berry picking and then baking a pie with what you ended up getting! Top it off with some vanilla ice cream! If you really want to make everything from scratch you could even make your own ice cream with an ice cream maker!
Summer Dessert Ideas: No Bake Desserts
26. Frozen Margarita Mousse
A frozen margarita mousse is a delicious and easy dessert that will cool you down! All you need is margarita mix and whipped topping to create a yummy mousse. You can even add crushed pretzels and salt in order to make the sweet and salty flavors of the mousse stand out. Serve it to guests in margarita glasses to make it seem like a real margarita!
27. Cannoli Dip
Try making a cannoli dip to munch on during the summer months! You can serve them with cannoli chips for your guests to eat the dip with. Or you can also just purchase some waffle cones and break them up in a bag. Either way, they'll be a hit!
28. Watermelon Granita
Watermelon granita is a sweet and spicy dessert that makes use of one of the summer's most popular fruits. We recommend picking an especially ripe watermelon for your watermelon granita. It'll make blending the watermelon easier for you. If your watermelon granita is for adults only, then you can add some vodka to give it a kick. Try serving it in watermelon-themed bowls for a cute summer dessert.
29. Peanut Butter Cup Trifle
Have you ever watched the Great British Bake Off and wanted to know what a trifle tasted like? Well turns out they're not that difficult to make! If you want to make a peanut butter cup trifle all you need to do is layer peanut butter cups, cake cubes, whipped topping, and pudding in a trifle bowl until it's full. Then just refrigerate it and you'll have a delicious chocolate and peanut butter dessert!
30. Rainbow Gelatin Cubes
Try making rainbow gelatin cubes for a dessert that looks stunning and is fun to eat! It's an easy dessert, all you need to do is layer different colored gelatin and a gelatin-milk mixture in a deep baking pan while freezing in between. When everything is set just cut the gelatin up into cubes and serve it to your guests! If you want a boozy kick, try adding vodka to the gelatin!
Summer Desserts Ideas: Conclusion
That concludes the top 13 summer dessert ideas list. There are some simple ideas like ice cream and then some fancier and detailed ideas like a princess cake or a Bing cherry-amaretti fool. Hopefully, you found these ideas easy to use and are inspired to kick off an awesome summer party with delicious, cool treats!
Written by Kasey Dolezal and Kathleen Perrier; Contributors: Cal Fiala and Royce Legaspi