12 Fruit Dessert Recipes to Try at Home

Fruit desserts are sweet treats that use fruit as the main flavor element. Fruit salad, pineapple upside-down cake, cherry pie, ice cream cake, and peach pie are examples of common, popular fruit desserts. Some recipes feature nontraditional flavors to complement the fruit, such as brown sugar, buttermilk, sour cream, balsamic vinegar, dark chocolate, pistachios, or pecans.

Fruit desserts range in complexity—ranging from a short to long time commitment—and from just a few necessary steps to several. Here are twelve simple fruit dessert recipes representing a variety of dessert types and fruits.

1. 1. Apple pie: With a flaky pie crust and juicy, tender apples, an apple pie is a classic dessert during cooler months. Add salted caramel for a caramel apple pie or a crumb topping for a Dutch apple pie. Learn how to make Chef Thomas Keller’s apple pie recipe.
2. 2. Banana pudding: A warm-weather dessert that will stand up well to sitting out at room temperature for short periods of time, banana pudding uses ripe banana, crispy vanilla cookies, and vanilla pudding. Dollop fresh whipped cream on top and garnish the dessert with a sprinkle of cinnamon. Try this banana pudding recipe.
3. 3. Cherry clafoutis: This fruit dessert is a cross between a cake and custard. Surround fresh cherries with a smooth cake batter, then bake the ingredients in a cast-iron skillet, baking dish, or decorative pie pan. Serve the dish with vanilla ice cream and a dusting of powdered sugar. Learn how to make a cherry clafoutis.
4. 4. Cranberry cheesecake: Utilizing sweet and tangy cream cheese, and tart and juicy cranberries, a cranberry cheesecake is an exercise in contrasting yet complementary flavors. Use a classic graham cracker crust and mix cranberries right into the batter or top the dessert with sugared cranberries. Try this cranberry cheesecake recipe, which features orange zest in its topping for a note of citrus.
5. 5. Fruit tart: Sweet and creamy with a glaze of apricot jam, a classic fruit tart is a glossy dessert staple in pâtisserie windows. Fill a light pastry crust with vanilla pastry cream and fresh blueberries, fresh strawberries, nectarines, raspberries, or your favorite fresh fruit. Learn how to make Chef Dominique Ansel’s French fruit tart with pastry cream recipe.
6. 6. Gluten-free peach cobbler: There are various ways to make peach cobbler. In gluten-free versions, crumbly gluten-free biscuits sit atop ripe, juicy peaches. Serve the dish with ice cream or whipped cream. Try this recipe for gluten-free peach cobbler, which you can make with almond flour.
7. 7. Key lime pie: A graham cracker crust, lime curd, and whipped cream are the basic elements of this citrusy dessert. Some key lime pie recipes call for a meringue topping, but you can also use sweetened whipped cream or no topping at all on this classic dish. Learn how to make a light and fluffy key lime pie.
8. 8. Lemon meringue pie: A refreshing dessert on warm days, lemon meringue pie features a combination of flaky pie crust, lemon curd, and toasted meringue topping. Fresh lemon juice makes the curd tart, while the meringue is sweet and creamy. Try this classic lemon meringue pie recipe.
9. 9. Mixed berry pavlova: Chantilly cream envelops fresh raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries within a crisp and chewy meringue shell in this light and sweet fruit dessert. Use coconut cream for a dairy-free version if you wish. Follow this mixed berry pavlova recipe, which requires only five ingredients.
10. 10. Strawberry rhubarb galette: A freeform pie, a galette is similar to a fruit pizza. A strawberry and rhubarb filling makes the dessert equal parts sour and sweet. Top the dish with sweetened whipped ricotta or Greek yogurt. Learn how to make a strawberry rhubarb galette.
11. 11. Strawberry shortcake: A dessert nearly synonymous with strawberries, a strawberry shortcake combines the fresh berries with sweet whipped cream and a base—for example, pound cake, shortbread, sponge cake, or a store-bought cake mix. This homemade strawberry shortcake recipe includes instructions for a whipped cream topping.
12. 12. Watermelon ice cream: Frozen fruit features in some of the easiest fruit dessert recipes. For example, you can make watermelon ice cream using frozen watermelon, dairy milk (or dairy-free milk), and a flavoring, such as mint or lemon juice. Alternatively, leave out the milk altogether to make watermelon sorbet. Freeze the mixture in a loaf pan to make scooping easy in molds for ice pops. Try this easy watermelon ice cream recipe.

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