Healthy Picnic Dessert Recipes

Find healthy, delicious picnic dessert recipes, from the food and nutrition experts at EatingWell.

Staff Picks

Blueberry-Lemon Ricotta Pound Cake

Rating: Unrated
30
This healthy pound cake recipe isn't just delicious--it also only requires one bowl to make. For the best cake texture, be sure to beat the sugar and butter together long enough in Step 2 to look creamy--the time it takes to get there varies according to the type of electric mixer you have. Serve with brunch or alongside a cup of coffee in the afternoon.
By Stacy Fraser

Lemon Squares

Rating: Unrated
2
Lemon squares are so delicious, but classic lemon square recipes tip the scales with their calories and saturated fat. Our healthy lemon squares recipe shaves almost 200 calories and more than 5 grams of saturated fat per lemon square. For a variation, use lime juice in place of the lemon juice.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Rating: Unrated
10
This makeover recipe was one of the favorites chosen for our 30th anniversary issue. Tahini gives this cookie a subtle sesame flavor.
By Bruce Weinstein & Mark Scarbrough

EatingWell's Died-and-Went-to-Heaven Chocolate Cake

Rating: Unrated
6
This foolproof cake is one of our most popular recipes. Dutch-process cocoa is preferred here for its deep chocolate flavor.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Mini Berry Cream Pies

Rating: Unrated
3
Try this Mini Berry Cream Pies recipe the next time you want to whip up a quick healthy dessert. For this red-white-and-blue dessert, frozen mini phyllo cups work the best. Keep them nestled in their tray for easy transport to a picnic or potluck.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Lemon Thins

Rating: Unrated
5
These lemon cookies are made healthier with whole-wheat pastry flour and they get their zippy flavor from fresh lemon zest and juice rather than lemon extract. This lemon cookie recipe would be the perfect accompaniment to afternoon tea.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Fresh Fruit Salad

Rating: Unrated
2
This refreshing fruit salad is a classic combination that will be the favorite at any potluck or cookout. Serve with a creamy yogurt dressing to take this side (or dessert) to the next level.
By Carolyn Casner

Peach Custard Pie

Rating: Unrated
3
We use low-fat milk along with nonfat Greek yogurt in the creamy custard for this peach pie. The yogurt gives the custard a smooth texture without using cream or too many egg yolks. A slice is just as delicious served warm from the oven as it is chilled. For an added treat, serve topped with fresh blueberries.
By Jim Romanoff

Meringues

Rating: Unrated
1
Perfect meringues depend on totally yolk-free whites. The seemingly fussy step of separating each egg into a small bowl before combining them guarantees yolk-free whites for bakeshop-quality meringues every time. These crispy little morsels travel well and make great gifts too.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Fresh Apple Squares

Rating: Unrated
4
One batch of dough does double duty as both the crust and streusel topping to make one of the easiest desserts around.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Peach & Blueberry Cobbler

Rating: Unrated
14
This is a healthier version of a traditional cobbler, with canola oil in place of some of the butter and whole-wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour. Unlike more classic biscuit-topped cobblers, the peaches and blueberries are nestled into a tender batter that swells around the fruit as it bakes. Other fruits may be substituted. It's especially beautiful when baked in and served right from a cast-iron skillet.
By Virginia Willis

Fresh Strawberry Pie

Rating: Unrated
1
Fresh strawberries top a lightly sweet cream cheese filling in this lightened-up pie recipe. Serve with a dollop of whipped cream for a delicious and photo-worthy finish.
By Devon O'Brien

Inspiration and Ideas

Dairy-Free Banana Rice Pudding

Dairy-Free Banana Rice Pudding

Rating: Unrated
2
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.
Muffin-Tin Strawberry Shortcakes

Muffin-Tin Strawberry Shortcakes

Skip rolling and cutting dough and use your muffin tin in this healthy strawberry shortcake recipe. Look for lemon curd in the store near jams and jellies or skip it and combine the berries with 2 tablespoons sugar in Step 4.
Almond Butter-Quinoa Blondies

Almond Butter-Quinoa Blondies

Rating: Unrated
10
Purple Fruit Salad

Purple Fruit Salad

Rating: Unrated
2
Cherry Crisp

Cherry Crisp

Rating: Unrated
3
Chocolate-Fudge Pudding Cake

Chocolate-Fudge Pudding Cake

Rating: Unrated
4

Coconut-Dark Chocolate Truffles

Rating: Unrated
4

Coconut macaroons meet dark chocolate truffles in these little treats. Inside the snap of the dark chocolate shell lies the tender coconut-cocoa filling: a mix of naturally sweet dates, cocoa and coconut flour. Coconut flour is a healthy way to add decadent coconut flavor to this coconut-dark chocolate truffle recipe and other baked goods. It packs a whopping 5 grams of fiber per 2 tablespoons (with only 2 grams of total and saturated fat). Look for coconut flour near other gluten-free flours.

All Healthy Picnic Dessert Recipes

Strawberry-Rhubarb Fruit Bars

Rating: Unrated
4
Strawberry and rhubarb are a classic combination--try them in these easy-to-make fruit bars.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Lemon Pound Cake

Rating: Unrated
1
This wonderful rich, sweet lemon pound cake is downright zingy and the candied lemon slices are a beautiful bittersweet topping that's better than frosting. The best part, though: when you taste it you won't miss all the butter we cut out compared with a traditional pound cake recipe.
By Lori Longbotham

Chewy Granola Bars

You can make these bars ahead of time and freeze them, tightly wrapped in foil, for up to 3 months.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Dried-Fruit Bars

Rating: Unrated
1
Make a batch of these easy homemade dried-fruit bars to tuck into your kid's lunchbox all week.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Mini Angel Food Strawberry Shortcakes

Rating: Unrated
1
These adorable strawberry shortcakes are made with mini angel food cakes. These single-serve desserts are perfect for a picnic or party on a warm summer day.
By Carolyn Casner

Caramel Cream Cheese Custard (Flan de Queso)

Rating: Unrated
3
Every panaderia (bakery) in Puerto Rico has many flavors of flan, from vanilla to guava. Reduced-fat cream cheese gives this version a rich, comforting texture.
By Scott Rosenbaum

Banoffee Pie

Rating: Unrated
2
Love bananas, toffee and whipped cream? Then you've got to try this healthy Banoffee Pie recipe--a healthier version of one of Great Britain's sweetest desserts. It is made with layers of toffee, bananas and whipped cream. Our healthier Banoffee Pie recipe has half the calories, over 65 percent less saturated fat and 40 percent less sugar than the original--but all of the amazing flavor.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Chocolate & Pecan Macaroons

Rating: Unrated
2
We love the rich chocolate flavor in these chewy cookies that are like a cross between higher-fat coconut macaroons and low-fat, low-calorie, egg-white-based meringues.
By Amy Jamison

Chocolate Zucchini Brownies

Rating: Unrated
3
The batter for this healthy one-bowl brownie recipe is stirred together right in the saucepan used to melt the butter and chocolate--no mixing bowl needed and less cleanup for you. Using shredded zucchini in this healthy dessert recipe creates a tender, moist brownie with about half the amount of butter and sugar found in a classic recipe--and it's virtually undetectable in the baked brownies.
By Stacy Fraser

Dark Fudgy Brownies

Rating: Unrated
9
We like to use chocolate with 60-72% cacao content in these rich, fudgelike brownies, as it imparts a deeper, fuller flavor than less-chocolaty choices. Recipe by Nancy Baggett for EatingWell.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Chocolate Raspberry Tofu Pie

Rating: Unrated
7
This chocolate raspberry tofu pie gets an amazing smooth, rich, creamy texture from pureed tofu. But no need to reveal that tofu is the secret ingredient--we're sure no one will guess.
By Elisabeth Redman

Sweet Potato Pie with Cream Cheese Swirl

Rating: Unrated
3
This creamy sweet potato pie recipe is seasoned like a pumpkin pie with plenty of cinnamon and nutmeg and gets nice ginger flavor from the gingersnap crust. For the best results, roast sweet potatoes in the oven; in a pinch, microwave them instead.
By Stacy Fraser

Apricot Grunt

Rating: Unrated
1
Grunts, also known as slumps, are cousins to the cobbler--they too feature a biscuit topping, but unlike the cobbler, which is baked in the oven, a grunt is cooked on the stovetop. In this easy summertime dessert, apricots simmer in a skillet with honey and a touch of cloves. Then whole-grain buttermilk biscuits are steamed on top of the bubbling fruit until set. Serve warm with a little heavy cream, a dollop of yogurt or vanilla ice cream. Try it with any type of fruit or combination of fruit--frozen fruit works well too.
By Marie Simmons

Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Rating: Unrated
6
This rich, chocolaty Southern favorite has its own culinary mythology: a couple at the Waldorf-Astoria, a shared slice of bright red chocolate cake, a request for the recipe, and the surprise of later finding a $100 charge on their room bill. Maybe all desserts this good deserve a legend.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries

Perfect for Valentine's Day or a birthday, these chocolate-dipped strawberries are a cinch to make and are a healthy dessert. A bit of fresh lime zest adds an unexpected finish to this easy chocolate-dipped strawberry recipe.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Rocky Road Brownies

Rating: Unrated
8
These super-rich brownies made chocolaty with plenty of cocoa powder have less fat than other brownies, but stay extra gooey and good with marshmallows, nuts and chocolate chunks on top.
By Alice Medrich

Old-Fashioned Apple-Nut Crisp

Rating: Unrated
5
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.
By Victoria Abbott Riccardi

Spiced Apple Butter Bran Muffins

Rating: Unrated
3
These muffins are dense, grainy, fruity and delicious. A double dose of apple--diced fresh apple and dark, spiced apple butter (Smucker's brand is good)--makes them extra moist and flavorful.
By Ken Haedrich

Ginger Crinkle Cookies

Rating: Unrated
4
Cynthia Farr-Weinfeld, a hypnotherapist and writer, started improving the nutritional profile of a friend's mother's ginger cookie recipe by substituting whole-wheat pastry flour for all-purpose flour and canola oil for shortening. “Experiment with these cookies,” she advises, “as they taste great either slightly underdone or crispy.” She calls them “the quickest cookies you'll ever bake.”
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

EatingWell Zucchini Bread

Rating: Unrated
4
This simple zucchini bread recipe is a great way to use up your summer bumper crop of zucchini. Try it with toasted walnuts or raisins, or add chocolate chips for a more dessertlike bread. Freeze 2-cup portions of shredded zucchini so you can make zucchini bread all year long.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Almond-Chocolate-Cherry Cookies

These diabetic-friendly cookies, made with cherries and almonds, pack a chocolaty punch. With few ingredients, they are easy to make and are perfect for any occasion.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Blueberry & White Chocolate Chunk Ginger Cookies

Rating: Unrated
7
These easy cookies are a real snap to make--just stir and bake.
By Anna Ginsberg

Princess Tea Cakes

Rating: Unrated
3
Working on this makeover of a classic Russian Tea Cake made Bridget Klein feel closer to her late sister, Gina, because they are “a great match for her personality: delicate and refined, pretty to look at, and yet a definite character that inspires adoration and loyalty.” Gina's middle name, Sarah, means “princess,” in Hebrew; hence the name of these confections. Klein's mom “swore these cookies couldn't be made without butter,” she says, “until she tasted them.” Klein continues: “Gina was a traditionalist, too, but I think I might have been able to fool her with these.”
By Bridget Klein

Chocolate-Dipped Pineapple Rings

Dried pineapple rings dipped in melted chocolate and sprinkled with chopped macadamia nuts are a healthy dessert with tropical flavor. Customize this chocolate-dipped fruit recipe by using different nuts or even dried papaya spears instead of pineapple.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen
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