Healthy Summer Dessert Recipes

You don't have to have pumpkin pie to still enjoy pumpkin and spice in a Thanksgiving dessert. Pumpkin helps keep this cake tender and moist while, delicate spices add the classic Thanksgiving flavors.

The key to making this healthy, smooth pudding is constant slow whisking. A staff favorite, this recipe is one you'll want to pin for an easy make-ahead dessert.

Soft, chewy and no added sugar! Sweeten these classic oatmeal cookies with ripe bananas and raisins or dates. Plus, a touch of nut butter adds lots of flavor and holds the cookies together while keeping them vegan and gluten-free.

Made with nonfat milk, this comforting rice pudding (delicious for breakfast, too) has a lovely creamy consistency because Italian arborio rice is used.

We gave no-bake cookies a healthy makeover, bumping up the peanut butter and cutting back on added sugar and butter. The result is a chewy, peanut buttery, oat-packed delicious cookie. It's easy to whip up a batch of these--only a few simple ingredients are needed to make these chewy peanut butter cookies and there's no baking required.

Who says you can't have your tart and eat it, too? This deceptively simple fall dessert is made for special celebrations. Look for a fragrant pear that's nonetheless firm to the touch.

Buttermilk and apple butter contribute to the moistness of this simple, one-bowl cake.

Shredded apple replaces some of the oil and keeps the cake moist in these cinnamon-spiked cupcakes. There is a generous amount of fluffy marshmallow frosting to mound or pipe on top for a festive look. Be sure to frost them right after you make the frosting--it stiffens as it stands and becomes more difficult to spread.

With all that delicious fruit an apple pie should be healthy, but the truth is a slice can have as much as 750 calories and 30 grams of fat. For the most part, the culprit is the crust. We use whole-wheat pastry flour to add fiber and lower the saturated fat by replacing some of the butter with canola oil. The brown sugar-sweetened filling in this pie is made with two kinds of apples for the perfect balance. A slice has half the calories of a typical version and only 10 grams of fat--sweet!

Here's a simple recipe for low-fat vanilla ice cream. Our version has all the richness you'll need but about 90 fewer calories than store-bought premium ice cream and a whopping 15 grams less total fat and 10 grams less saturated fat per serving.

This flaky crostata recipe relies on fruit for its sweetness instead of a lot of added sugar, so be sure to use only ripe pears. If they're rock-hard, put them in a paper bag with an apple or banana on the kitchen counter for a few days.

A quick stir-in of grated carrots not only makes these easy drop cookies reminiscent of spicy carrot cake, it also adds sweetness and keeps these cakey cookies moist. A drizzle of cream cheese frosting on top finishes off these better-for-you goodies perfectly.

In this quick high-protein breakfast recipe, Greek yogurt is topped with healthy berries and almonds and lightly sweetened with honey.

Get cheesecake flavor without having to bake with this healthy dessert recipe. To make it gluten-free, look for gluten-free graham crackers.

Apples and nuts are a classic--and healthful--combination, especially when you cut back on the saturated fat that typically tops this sweet treat. Our version is just as delicious, and allows the flavor of the hazelnuts to shine through. A dollop of Vanilla Cream or scoop of vanilla frozen yogurt finishes this homey dessert beautifully.

This rice pudding is dairy-free, but the bananas and rice milk make it so creamy and rich-tasting, no one will know the difference.

Carrots give carrot cake a health-halo effect--people think it's health food, but it's usually very high in fat and calories. But our version has about 40 percent less calories and 50 percent less fat than most. First, we use less oil in our batter. Then we skip the butter in the frosting (don't worry, it's still light and smooth). To ensure the cake is moist, we add nonfat buttermilk and crushed pineapple.

Serve this refreshing fruit salad featuring juicy plums, grapes and berries on its own or with other colorblock fruit salads (like red, green and orange) for a fun, crowd-pleasing rainbow side dish.

Instead of buying pricy energy bars, fuel your fitness routine with this great-tasting homemade energy bar recipe. Whether you use these energy bars as a pre-workout snack or to refuel and recover post-workout, they'll give your body what it needs. Best of all, you can make this energy bar recipe in minutes.

These mini cheesecakes aren't just adorable--baked in a muffin tin, they're quicker to make than traditional cheesecake and perfectly portioned.

A healthy peach cobbler is an old-fashioned, crowd-pleasing dessert that showcases summer's sweet produce. Use fresh peaches when they are in season. The rest of the year, you can use frozen peaches for a quick and easy homemade dessert.

Sweet strawberries are nestled between layers of sponge cake and a cream filling in this easy cake. We add nonfat vanilla Greek yogurt to whipped cream to lighten up the filling and give it a little tang.

These easy-to-make homemade granola bars are inspired by the flavors of a classic oatmeal chocolate chip cookie. But feel free to vary the mix-ins to your preference. We tested several sticky sweeteners, including maple syrup and honey, but found brown rice syrup held the bars together the best.

Here's your new cookie jar staple. This recipe for classic oatmeal chocolate chip cookies gets a healthy boost with whole-wheat flour and uses less sugar and butter than traditional recipes. Don't hesitate to make a double batch--they're so satisfying they'll be gone fast.