Food & Cooking Recipes Healthy Recipes Vegan Recipes 18 Vegan Desserts That Everyone Will Love From cupcakes and fruit crisps to chocolate pudding, this delicious selection of plant-based desserts promises to please all. By Peggy Kieran Peggy Kieran Peggy is a freelance writer for MarthaStewart.com. Editorial Guidelines Updated on October 10, 2023 Close Photo: Mike Krautter Craving something sweet? From our take on a chocolate layer cake to two kinds of baked fruit crisps, our very best vegan desserts (made sans dairy!) are delightful. In order to provide the moisture and fat that traditional dairy products offer, our recipes make use of vegan-friendly alternatives. Make one of these recipes, and the vegans in your life—or anyone with a dairy intolerance—will love you. Perhaps best of all, those without dietary restrictions won't even know the difference. Our vegan dessert recipes range from plant-based spins on classics (we're looking at you, chocolate cake) to unique sweets such as spiced cashew-coconut brittle and plum pâtes de fruits. Whether you make them for a special occasion or give smaller treats as a gift during the holiday season, you can feel good knowing that there is something delicious—and safe—here for everyone to eat. Fruit Desserts With Five Ingredients or Less 01 of 18 Vegan Chocolate Pudding Nico Schinco It's rich and smooth, but the creaminess in this dairy-free pudding comes from cashews, not custard. Another bonus: This irresistible vegan dessert is no-cook! View Recipe 02 of 18 Strawberry-Oat Bars These no-bake vegan treats are also gluten-free and have no refined sugars, so they really are a dessert for everyone. The only equipment you need to make them is a food processor to combine the pitted dates, nuts, and oats for the crust. And you don't need to chill them, they are ready to enjoy the moment you make them. View Recipe 03 of 18 Vegan Blueberry Crisp Bryan Gardner Oh so easy and oh so delicious, this vegan fruit crisp is guaranteed to please. Plump blueberries are topped with a crumble made from rolled oats, toasted almonds, sugar, and coconut oil, then baked until bubbling and golden brown. View Recipe 04 of 18 Clementine Granita Four ingredients (clementines, sugar, lemon juice, and fresh ginger), plus a few hours in the freezer, produce this dinner party-worthy dessert. Carefully cut out the clementine flesh to juice it so you can use the shells as cups to hold the frosty treat. View Recipe 05 of 18 Vegan Chocolate Cake Bryan Gardner Everyone needs one classic chocolate cake recipe in their life, and we think this one could be it for you. Our vegan version uses oil in the base for moistness and fat, margarine and dairy-free soy creamer in the fluffy icing, and brown rice syrup and more creamer in the silky ganache. View Recipe 06 of 18 Vegan Apple Pie linda xiao Don't forget about your vegan relatives at Thanksgiving! Make this classic apple pie, which substitutes safflower oil in place of butter or lard for a flaky crust. Sprinkle the pie with turbinado sugar before baking for a shiny top that will make everyone want a slice. View Recipe 07 of 18 Melon Milk Pops Marcus Nilsson Who wouldn't want a taste of these bright, 70s-inspired ice pops? Their vivid colors are all-natural thanks to the trio of watermelon, cantaloupe, and honeydew, which are each blended with coconut condensed milk and fresh lime juice. View Recipe 08 of 18 Dark Chocolate Truffles Johnny Miller Many traditional truffle recipes call for heavy cream, but here we're using coconut oil, which provides fat and body to the rich ganache. Roll in whatever toppings you please (we prefer cocoa powder, chopped nuts, and shredded coconut). View Recipe 09 of 18 Vegan Avocado Ice Cream Martyna Szczesna Even if you don't have a penchant for all things green, we have a feeling you'll adore this cool and creamy dessert. Avocados and coconut milk provide all the body needed for this vegan ice cream. View Recipe 10 of 18 Spiced Cashew-Coconut Brittle Alpha Smoot Snap, crackle, and yum! This six-ingredient treat combines roasted unsalted cashews and unsweetened coconut flakes in a spiced cinnamon syrup. Whenever you need something a little sweet, a little salty, and a little spicy, this brittle is the answer. View Recipe 11 of 18 Vegan Apple Oat Crisp Mike Krautter There are two surprises in this seasonal dessert. The first is that it's dairy- and gluten-free (win-win!). The second is that the filling includes dried cherries, which add a little bit of texture and tartness alongside Granny Smith apples. Do you need another reason to dig in? View Recipe 12 of 18 Dark Chocolate-Walnut Date Bar Sidney Bensimon Crowd-friendly and ready to take on the go at any time, this no-bake dessert is dairy- and gluten-free. The crust is made from walnuts, dates, peanut butter, and vanilla then is topped with melted chocolate and walnuts. View Recipe 13 of 18 Berry Sorbet No special ingredients are required for this cool vegan dessert. Berries and water are blended together, then mixed with a simple syrup (that's sugar and water) and frozen until it has set and is scoopable. View Recipe 14 of 18 Vegan Chocolate Cupcakes Mike Krautter The perfect celebratory bite, these cupcakes are made with coconut oil and almond milk instead of dairy ingredients—and trust us, you won't be able to taste the difference. View Recipe 15 of 18 Pecan, Oat, and Dark Chocolate Chunk Cookies Lennart Weibull These treats are packed with nuts, oats, and chocolate, giving them a texture that's more like a granola bar than a cookie. They're free from dairy and gluten, so they're a dessert that nearly everyone can enjoy. View Recipe 16 of 18 Carrot Ginger Ice Pops Lennart Weibull It requires just four ingredients and 15 minutes of prep work, so who could say no to this refreshing dessert? Carrot juice, strawberries, oranges, and fresh ginger are blended together, poured into molds, and frozen. View Recipe 17 of 18 Avocado Chocolate Pudding No one guess what gives this deliciously chocolatey pudding it's dreamy texture—and they'll be surprised when you tell them it's avocado. It's a no cook dessert and requires just four ingredients, the others are honey, cocoa powder, and vanilla extract. (Swap the honey for agave syrup if you prefer.) View Recipe 18 of 18 Plum Pâtes de Fruits Louise Hagger This naturally vegan candy is an elegant dessert to serve at a dinner or cocktail party. Use whatever flavor fruit purée you fancy and mix with sugar, citric acid, corn syrup, and fruit pectin, then pour into a candy mold and cool completely. View Recipe Updated by Victoria Spencer Victoria Spencer Victoria Spencer is an experienced food editor, writer, and recipe developer. She manages the Martha Stewart recipe archive and is always curious about new ingredients and the best techniques. She has been working in food media for over 20 years. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit