Refreshing Summer Dessert Recipes

By The editors of MidwestLiving.com

Our 36 recipes for summer sweets offer ideas for ice cream desserts, refreshing pies, summer-inspired cakes, fruity bar cookies, shortcake and more.

Start Slideshow

1 of 35

Kiwi Summer Limeade Pie

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Refreshing and creamy, this make-ahead pie from Susan Meier of Omaha combines tropical flavors with macadamia nuts and kiwifruit. It was one of the finalists at Midwest Living's® first Best of the Midwest cook-off.

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 35

Gooey Butter Bars

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Traditionalists may grumble, but we think topping St. Louis-style gooey butter bars with fresh berries is a stroke of midsummer genius.

3 of 35

Choose-a-Fruit Fools

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

No one knows how fools (a centuries-old blend of whipped cream and fruit) got their playful name. Maybe it's because, with just 4 ingredients, you'd be foolish not to make one!

Advertisement

4 of 35

Baby Citrus Cheesecakes

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

These cupcake-size treats are a fantastically simple alternative to a full-size cheesecake. You could also garnish them with fresh raspberries or blueberries.

5 of 35

Pint-Size Grasshopper Icebox Cake

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

A fluffy, summery, make-ahead 6-inch dessert with just four ingredients? Sold.

6 of 35

Strawberry "Cool Brûlée"

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

This deceptively good, weeknight-easy dessert has a topping of yogurt and whipped cream with raw sugar that looks like creme brulee, but requires no cooking.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 35

Peaches and Cream Tart

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Rather than hide gorgeous, peak-season peaches under a piecrust, line them up in sunny formation on an easy base of purchased puff pastry and sweetened cream cheese. We arranged our peaches in stripes, but you can spread them out rustically if you prefer.

8 of 35

Butterscotch Brickle Pudding Pops

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Chopped pecans and toffee bits add delightful crunch to creamy pudding pops. If you don't have plastic freezer-pop molds, use 5-ounce paper cups. Cover the filled cups with foil, make a small hole in the foil with a knife and insert a wooden stick.

9 of 35

S'more Pie a la Marshmallow Crème

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Cream cheese brings body and richness to so-chocolatey mousse filling. More wow comes from the blend of marshmallow crème and crème de cacao draped over the top.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 35

Pink Lemonade Strawberry Shortcake

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Pink lemonade concentrate gives a summery twist to classic strawberry shortcake. 

11 of 35

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Biggies

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Our chewy, saucer-size cookie is delicious by itself, but for a warm-weather treat, it makes generous ice cream sandwiches when filled with tiny scoops of vanilla and chocolate ice cream.

12 of 35

Mini Peach Melba Ice Cream Cake

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Crystallized ginger adds unexpected zip to frosty peaches, raspberries and ice cream.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

13 of 35

Chocolatey Frozen-Mint Dessert

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

This refreshing make-ahead dish from a Witten, South Dakota, reader combines a chocolate graham cracker crust with chocolate chip mint ice cream and a homemade chocolate sauce. Try different combinations of ice cream and crust for your own dessert invention.

14 of 35

Pina Colada Cupcakes

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Cocktail meets cupcake with the tropical marriage of pineapple preserves, crunchy macaroon bits and toasted coconut. We bet you won't even miss the rum.

15 of 35

Tropical Ambrosia Shortcake

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Classic shortcake meets church-basement standard ambrosia salad in this surprising and crowd-pleasing dessert that's packed with tropical fruit flavor.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

16 of 35

Black Forest Freezer Pie

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

This layered dessert combines cream cheese, powdered sugar and whipped dessert topping over vanilla ice cream in a graham cracker crust. When you're ready to serve the pie, spoon on cherry pie filling, and drizzle with fudge topping. The recipe is from Friske's Farm Market near Ellsworth, Michigan.

17 of 35

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake Sundaes

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Quickly warm pineapple in butter and brown sugar, then spoon the softened fruit over crumbled pound cake and dulce de leche ice cream.

18 of 35

Raspberry Cheesecake Bars

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Layers of cheesecake, raspberry filling, almonds and coconut form dessert bars perfect for summer picnics and potlucks.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

19 of 35

Peach Upside-Down Cake

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

The family behind Illinois' Rendleman Orchards has amassed some great peach recipes in 135 years of growing peaches. This cake is no exception. Peach slices and brown sugar form a moist base for the tender, square cake -- and when flipped over, that base becomes the topping.

20 of 35

Ice Cream Cookie Cake

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

We created Ice Cream Cookie Cake in honor of Indiana, the top ice cream-producing state in the Midwest. You can mix and match cookies and ice cream to make this frosty, no-bake treat that's also an easy make-ahead dessert.

21 of 35

Lemon-Cream Cheese Pie

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

This creamy lemon pie, a longtime reader-favorite recipe, is a signature dessert at Al's Oasis, a family restaurant along the east bank of the Missouri River in Chamberlain, South Dakota.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

22 of 35

Peanut Butter-Fudge Pie

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Vanilla ice cream, gooey fudge sauce and peanuts sit on a chewy rice-cereal crust. Trust us, it's out of this world-perfect for potlucks or family dinners.

23 of 35

Honey-Rosemary Shortbread Cookies

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Chicago chef Myk Banas created these utterly delicious and subtly sophisticated cookies.

24 of 35

Creamy Peach Yogurt Pie

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Juicy peach slices mix with peach jam to make an ultra-easy topping for this no-bake yogurt pie.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

25 of 35

Cherry Phosphate Icebox Pie

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

A humble pie if you ever saw one, this unassuming potluck star has an almondy crust and a yogurt-based filling that mimics the acidic tang of a phosphate. Amaretti (Italian almond cookies) are available at large supermarkets. You can substitute graham cracker crumbs.

26 of 35

Triple-Chocolate Ice Cream Cake

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Layer ice cream with a mixture of cookie crumbs, chocolate pieces and pecans to make this striped frozen dessert.

27 of 35

Pistachio Pavlova with Fresh Berries

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Mildly nutty meringue cradles fresh berries in this classic dessert named for a ballerina. Use your favorite nut to flavor the meringue. Our Test Kitchen recommends pistachios, almonds or pecans. Any fruit works: blueberries, kiwi, bananas.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

28 of 35

Vanilla Cake Batter Ice Cream

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Cake and ice cream go together like peanut butter and jelly-so why not combine them in one sweet scoop?

29 of 35

Old-Fashioned Ice Cream Sundae Cake

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Several states claim to be the birthplace of the ice cream sundae. Since the Buckeye State makes a good case, we created the Old-Fashioned Ice Cream Sundae Cake as a tribute to Ohio. Four layers of baked white cake get sandwiched in ice cream layers in favorite sundae flavors: strawberry, pineapple and chocolate-banana. A whipped topping frosting crowns the cherry-topped dessert.

30 of 35

Summer Breeze Lime Pie

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

A triple dose of lime-zest, juice and curd-gives this dreamy pie its refreshing flavor. The pretzel crust adds unexpected salty punch.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

31 of 35

Raspberry Swirl Angel Food Cake

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

A subtle swirl of fresh raspberries infuses this homemade angel food cake with light fruit flavor. Like all angel food cakes, it has no fat or cholesterol.

32 of 35

Blueberry Almond Bars

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

At the Marshall County Fair's annual Blueberry Bake-A-Rama in Plymouth, Indiana, Lori Van Der Weele took home the Grand Champion award with this recipe that combines blueberries, butter, white baking pieces and almonds.

33 of 35

Ice Cream Chocolate Shell

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

This super-easy homemade ice cream topping doesn't harden quite as fast as that magical store-bought stuff, but it packs a lot more chocolate flavor. Plus, it's totally customizable with different flavors of chips! Store it in the pantry to zap in the microwave whenever you want to crack your spoon into something delicious.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

34 of 35

Root Beer Float Ice Cream Sandwiches

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

Stirring crushed root beer barrels into sugar-cookie dough adds irresistible sparkle and spot-on float flavor-especially when you add scoops of vanilla ice cream between two cooled cookies.

35 of 35

Tropical Fruit Freeze

View Recipe this link opens in a new tab

This slushy ice tastes like a sweet snowball. Just freeze the ingredients together in a container. Then let it stand at room temperature 30 to 60 minutes before scraping off the icy mix.

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Up Next

Advertisement