30 Easy Cherry Desserts That Prove They're The Best Summer Fruit
These sweet cherry desserts 🎵taste so good make a grown man (or really, anyone) cry. 🎵
While summer always ushers in pretty much all of our favorite fruits, cherries are the undeniably sweet scene-stealer. Think about it: Cherries are really the reason for the season, and we've got the summery dessert recipes to prove it. We've been known to hog an entire bag of cherries during the summer until being caught (literally) red-handed. If you too cannot get enough of the sweet-tart fruit, and want to go beyond those Maraschino-topped ice cream sundaes, these 30 cherry desserts have been cherry-picked especially for you.
Cherry pie is an obvious classic in our dessert-making rotation, so delicious that whole songs are based around it. Our classic cherry pie is enough to make any grown person cry, and we, of course, have a bourbon-laced cherry old-fashioned pie that should also make its way to your BBQ table. Want to skip all the crimping involved in pie-baking? Our cherry clafoutis and cherry bakewell cookies will have you feeling like an instant Star Baker.
Not all cherries are the same, though, and we love to spend summer trying as many varieties as we can. Bing are the most prevalent variety, known for their sweet-yet-acidic flavor and dark skin. Rainier are less acidic than Bing cherries and have a beautiful rosy peach blush with a sweeter, slightly tart, flavor profile we'll gladly eat by the handful. And then there are sour Morello cherries. Morellos are the true queen bees of the cherry family. Perfectly jammy in a pie, they're actually nicknamed "pie cherries." They're pretty acidic though, so they need to be combined with sugar to achieve that supreme jamminess. Often found in groceries stores jarred in syrup, Morello cherries are one of our favorite varieties for pies, cakes, and topping homemade ice cream.
Need even more cherry-inspired recipes? We love mixing up Cherry Bomb Mimosas and a Cherry Sazerac for a spiked spin featuring the summer fruit.
Frozen Cherry Coke Slushies
This childhood favorite is peak 7-Eleven nostalgia in the best possible way. Frozen cherries are blended with Coke (both frozen into cubes and straight up) with a splash of lime juice for a surprisingly balanced and totally drinkable frozen drink. The optional addition of a little booze makes for the perfect poolside or patio pounder on a sunny afternoon.
Get the Frozen Cherry Coke Slushies recipe.
Cherry Clafoutis
Super-creamy and custardy in texture, clafoutis is almost like a cross between flan and cake. The main ingredients: sugar, eggs, flour, and cherries. But the secret ingredient is really amaretto. It gives the dessert the slightest hint of almond flavor. You could also use almond or vanilla extract, but if you have the liqueur, we very much recommend it.
Get the Cherry Clafoutis recipe.
Peach & Cherry Shortcake Dessert Board
Strawberry shortcake is cool and all, but we’ve all done that dozens of times. Make the most of late-summer fruit with this peach and cherry shortcake. Serving everything on a large cutting board or platter makes this perfect easy dessert to share with a crowd. The best part is that you can tailor it to your favorite fruit all year round and get a unique and delicious result each time.
Cherry Pie Slab Bars
With flaky crust and juicy-tart filling that sets just right, the classic cherry pie is the ultimate dessert for any summertime soiree, potluck, or BBQ. Best yet, the large slab format is big enough to feed a crowd of hungry party-goers; slice into bars and let folks have at it straight from the 13" x 9" pan.
Get the Cherry Pie Slab Bars recipe.
Shirley Temple Float
Floats are our favorite low-lift summer treat and the easiest way to gussy up a pint of vanilla ice cream. With the Dirty Shirley being the drink of summer 2023, we thought, Why not float-ify it for summer 2024? The result was this foamy, fruit, smooth, and creamy confection that’s 50% drink, 50% dessert, and 100% a sweet tooth satisfier.
Get the Shirley Temple Float recipe.
Cherry Bakewell Cookies
If you’re anything like us, a new season of Great British Bake-Off can’t come fast enough. Hopefully, these cookies will fill the void until our friends across the pond return to their illustrious tent. Bakewell tart is a classic British dessert and a variant of Bakewell pudding. It’s defined by a crumbly shortcrust pastry, a layer of sweet jam, and plenty of velvety almond frangipane, then usually topped with sliced almonds and sometimes powdered sugar or icing.
Get the Cherry Bakewell Cookies recipe.
Cherry Pie
This picture-perfect cherry pie goes great with a damn fine cup of coffee. Agent Cooper would approve.
Get the Cherry Pie recipe.
Cherry Dump Cake
Dump cakes: horrible name, but stupid easy and delicious. We love topping them off with slivered almonds to make this semi-homemade dessert a stunner.
Get the Cherry Dump Cake recipe.
Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies
One of our favorite spins on a classic chocolate chip cookie, now with a pop of sweet-tart maraschino cherries!
Get the Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe.
Cherry Cheesecake Ice Cream
The beauty of a cherry pie à la mode, with the irresistible creamy tang of cheesecake. This ice cream also makes the best milkshake.
Get the Cherry Cheesecake Ice Cream recipe.
Matzo Granola
When crumbled by hand, the ever-versatile unsalted matzo makes a crisp yet hearty base for the perfect granola. This version has a combo of almonds, pistachios, dried sweet cherries, and apple with a hint of black pepper and cinnamon to balance the sweetness. Serve this granola crumbled over yogurt or cottage cheese for breakfast, over ice cream for dessert, or… just eat it by the handful.
Get the Matzo Granola recipe.
Cherry Puff Pastry Pies
No cherry-pitter? No problem. Frozen cherries + store-bought puff pastry = best cherry pie shortcut ever.
Get the Cherry Puff Pastry Pies recipe.
Spumoni Ice Cream Cake
Six pints of ice cream and magic shell to top it off? This ice cream cake makes us want to make Italian-hands at it, it's that good.
Get the Spumoni Ice Cream Cake recipe.
Cherry Old-Fashioned Pie
The addition of bourbon and orange zest brings a boozy punch to classic cherry pie.
Get the Cherry Old-Fashioned Pie recipe.
Ambrosia Salad
We love bringing this kitschy, retro fruit salad to all our summer BBQs. This is not your grandma's ambrosia!
Get the Ambrosia Salad recipe.
Black Forest Cake
This black forest cake could not be easier. We brush cherry syrup and kirsch between each layer for a rich, decadent touch before topping with a whipped frosting.
Get the Black Forest Cake recipe.
Chocolate-Covered Cherries
The secret to these effortless chocolate cherries? Adding almond extract to the coating before dipping in melted chocolate.
Get the Chocolate-Covered Cherries recipe.
Cherry Cobbler
This easy cherry cobbler is adorned with a buttery, buttermilk biscuit topping. The cherries create their own sauce while baking, but hold their shape well and stay nice and tart.
Get the Cherry Cobbler recipe.
Cherry Jam
Cherry season is always too short, so we love preserving them a little longer with this jam. Sure, you can put it on toast, but we love using this for topping thumbprint cookies or in between a layer cake.
Get the Cherry Jam recipe.
Shirley Temple Cake
This stunning, retro cake will transport you back to your childhood. Serve with the iconic drink itself, the Shirley Temple!
Get the Shirley Temple Cake recipe.
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