We all love and appreciate a thoughtful plated dessert, but sometimes something simpler is in order. Maybe you’re planning a party where you know guests will need to nosh standing up, or perhaps you’re putting together a picnic and are looking for perfectly portable treats. In any case, dessert needn’t be encumbered by forks and spoons. Here, we’ve rounded up a selection of sweet endings that can easily be eaten by hand. From mini cherry empanadas to candied fruit skewers and toffee-studded brownies, these desserts are sure to delight served with nothing more than a napkin.
Cherry Empanadillas
Fry up a batch of these fruity treats, dress them up with a pretty pink glaze, and serve them warm — they won’t be staying in anyone’s hand for long! Use either fresh or frozen dark sweet cherries for the filling to enjoy them any time of year.
Red Velvet Cake Ice Cream Sandwiches
Food & Wine / Photo by Stacy Allen / Food Styling by Emily Nabors Hall / Prop Styling by Tucker Vines
Chef Taffy Elrod sandwiches no-churn cream cheese ice cream between cakey red velvet cookies for a sure crowd-pleaser that can be prepared in advance.
Cannoli
Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Torie Cox / Prop Styling by Josh Hoggle
If you’ve never made your own cannoli, this recipe will quickly have you singing the praises of such an endeavor. The orange-scented mascarpone and ricotta cheese filling is the perfect creamy foil for the impossibly crisp, buttery, Masala-laced shells, all accented with chopped chocolate or pistachios.
Pasteis de Nata (Portuguese Custard Tart)
Food & Wine / Photo by Robby Lozano / Food Styling by Julian Hensarling
No trip to Portugal is required to enjoy these creamy egg pastries, which are baked at a high temperature so they develop a deep golden brown hue on top while maintaining their buttery, flaky texture.
Pistachio Cookie Cups
Food & Wine / Photo by Morgan Hunt Glaze / Food Styling by Emily Nabors Hall / Prop Styling by Josh Hoggle
These bite-sized white chocolate chip pistachio cookie cups from F&W recipe developer Melissa Gray are filled with rich Sicilian pistachio cream and drizzled with dark chocolate.
Banana Pudding Paletas
Pastry chef Paola Velez turns nostalgic banana pudding into a festive frozen treat using all the classic components — nutty browned butter, bits of banana, pudding, and crushed vanilla wafers — and decorating with white chocolate sauce and chocolate sprinkles.
Brown Butter Blondies
Morgan Hunt Glaze / Food Styling by Margaret Monroe Dickey / Prop Styling by Caleb Clark
With their crisp crust and fudge-textured interior, these golden bars are essentially brownies without the cocoa. They derive their butterscotch-like flavor from a combo of brown sugar and browned butter.
Salted Caramel S’mores
Upgrade the quintessential campfire treat by adding a drizzle of salted caramel to s’mores made with crisp homemade graham crackers — it takes just one rich, gooey bite to know the extra effort is totally worth it. These grahams are sweetened with a combination of brown sugar, molasses, and honey for a deep flavor that’s unparalleled by any boxed variety.
Tanghulu (Candied Fruit Skewers)
Impress your guests with these skewers of ripe fruit covered evenly in a thin, clear sugar shell. 2021 F&W Best New Chef Lucas Sin shares a simplified recipe that sticks to water, sugar, and a little bit of light corn syrup rather than candy thermometers, parchment paper, and ice baths.
Sbrisolona (Italian Almond Tart) with Roasted Red Grapes and Champagne Sabayon
Frederick Hardy II / Food Styling by Ruth Blackburn / Prop Styling by Shell Royster
Italy’s rustic almond tart, whose name means “crumble cake,” is like a giant cookie broken into pieces — and it’s traditionally eaten with your hands. Chef Suzanne Goin serves it alongside seedless red grapes that are roasted with salt, sugar, and grapeseed oil to intensify their flavor and texture.
Bourbon Balls
Food & Wine / Photo by Morgan Hunt Glaze / Food Styling by Julian Hensaring / Prop Styling by Julia Bayless
Combine chocolate, bourbon, and pecans in 40 minutes without an oven for this easy, infinitely pop-able treat that’s popular throughout the South.
Vanilla Cupcakes
Matt Taylor-Gross / Food Styling by Debbie Wee
So simple, so delicious! This recipe lends itself to any frosting, including White Buttercream, Cream Cheese, or Chocolate. Consider it your blank slate for every birthday party and potluck from here on out.
Gramercy Tavern Chocolate Chip Cookies
CEDRIC ANGELES
Lest you think a single chocolate chip cookie can’t really be deemed a full-on dessert, these cookies are so large that they might even be considered dessert for two! Utterly decadent and delightfully over-the-top, they’re made with brown butter and a trio of dark, milk, and white chocolate.
Oatmeal Cream Pies
Fred Hardy / Food Styling by Melissa Gray / Prop Styling by Shell Royster
Chicago chef Sarah Mispagel-Lustbader’s nostalgic, next-level recipe features tender, chewy cookies made with oats, dark brown sugar, molasses, and toffee bits. A light, creamy vanilla filling is the perfect complement. This recipe makes 25 sandwich cookies, so it’s ideal for a crowd.
Chocolate French Crullers with Dried Raspberries and Fudge Glaze
Pastry chef Clarice Lam pipes rounds of cocoa-tinged choux dough and fries them to golden perfection to make her crunchy, airy crullers. They’re dipped in a warm fudge glaze so the dried raspberries stick for a sweet-tart topping that’s as tasty as it is beautiful.
Cinnamon-Sugar Churros with Cajeta
Claudette Zepeda offers pro tips for perfect churros, a crowd-pleasing dessert fit for any celebration — complete with a caramel dipping sauce.
Toffee Brownies
heami lee / FOOD STYLING by MARGARET MONROE DICKEY / PROP STYLING by CHRISTINE KEELY
For these decadent brownies from late legendary cookbook author Maida Heater, chocolate-covered candy bits melt as they bake, adding a deeply caramelized flavor and crunchy texture to each bite. Toasted pecans provide even more crunch as they balance the sweetness and complement the toffee.
Lemon Bars
Kelsey Hansen / Food Styling by Annie Probst / Prop Styling by Gabe Greco
Recipe developer Tricia Manzanero Stuedeman spoons sweet-tart lemony custard atop a buttery, slightly salty shortbread crust for lemon bars packed with bright, tart flavor.
Chocolate-Hazelnut Baklava
Food & Wine / Photo by Jen Causey / Food Styling by Julian Hensarling / Prop Styling by Claire Spollen
Hazelnuts, chocolate, cinnamon, and honey make this baklava from Oleana Restaurant in Cambridge, Massachusetts, stand out; it’s rich and sweet enough to satisfy you after a big meal — without a fork.
Boozy Bourbon-Pecan Tassies
“These diminutive pecan pie poppers, with a higher crust-to-filling ratio, offer the perfect bite,” says cookbook author Andrea Slonecker. “I spike them with bourbon to both cut through and complement the sweetness.”
Beignets
Jennifer Causey / Food Styling by Emily Nabors Hall / Prop Styling by Julia Bayless
Beignets are a signature New Orleans sweet, and you don’t have to be in the Crescent City to enjoy them. These puffy fried treats require just 40 minutes of active work time. For a more indulgent dessert, serve them with a dipping sauce, such as Bourbon Caramel.
Cherry-Lime Ice Pops
Greg Dupree / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Thom Driver
F&W’s Andee Gosnell channeled inspiration from Savannah, Georgia’s homemade ice pops, known as thrills, to develop this easy recipe for frozen treats. Make a quick simple syrup to sweeten tart cherry juice and lime juice for a balanced, bright, and refreshing sweet.
Dried Apple Hand Pies
Dried apple slices are rehydrated with spiced cider, fresh lemon, and vanilla bean, turning into a saucy, caramelized autumnal filling for these beautifully browned hand pies.
Chocolate-Dipped Florentine Shortbreads
© Dana Gallagher
With a buttery crust, caramelized almond and candied orange topping, and a flourish of bittersweet chocolate, Pierre Hermé’s shortbread-florentine mash-up hits all the right notes.
Almond, Elderflower, and Lime Travel Cakes
William Werner calls his tiny almond treats “gussied-up pound cakes.” Baked in a mini muffin pan, they’re infused with St-Germain in both the batter and the glaze.
Chocolate-Frosted Éclairs
Joanne Chang’s classic éclairs are filled with vanilla-flecked pastry cream that’s been lightened with whipped cream before they’re topped with a slick of bittersweet chocolate glaze.
South Carolina Peach and Blueberry Tartlets
Fresh peaches and blueberries shine in these miniature tarts. The addition of cornmeal in the pastry gives the crust a bit of crunchy character.
Mini Black-Bottom Cheesecakes
These rich and creamy two-bite cheesecake treats are baked atop a chocolate wafer base. No special equipment is required — just your trusty muffin pan.
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