Healthy Mother's Day Dessert Recipes

Find healthy, delicious Mother's Day 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

Carrot Cake

Rating: Unrated
14
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.
By Patsy Jamieson

Banana-Bran Muffins

Rating: Unrated
36
By the end of the week, any bananas left in the fruit bowl are past their prime--just right for these moist bran muffins. Add a handful of dark chocolate chips to entice children to enjoy a fiber-rich treat.
By Patsy Jamieson

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

Lemon Cheesecake Bites

These creamy and lemony cheesecake bites are diabetic-friendly and guilt free!
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Baked Strawberry Custards

Rating: Unrated
2
Sour cream gives this healthy baked custard recipe richness and tang. It's delicious with in-season strawberries, but feel free to substitute whatever berries you can get your hands on.
By Lisa Weiss

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

Pineapple Coffee Cake

Rating: Unrated
4
Nonfat plain yogurt stands in for sour cream to add moisture and tenderness to this lightened-up pineapple coffee cake. Best of all, you can mix the batter and have this wholesome breakfast treat in the oven in under 15 minutes--that's healthy in a hurry.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Flourless Honey-Almond Cake

Rating: Unrated
13
Honey and almonds flavor this simple (and gluten-free) cake. It's lovely for afternoon tea or a spring holiday dessert. Be careful not to overbeat the egg whites--they should be white and very foamy, but not at all stiff or able to hold peaks. If you beat them too much, the cake may sink in the middle as it cools.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Light Lemon Meringue Pie

Rating: Unrated
2
Smooth and soothing; a great classic pie right down to the crust, redefined with a generous amount of lemon and fewer egg yolks in the filling.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Mini Blueberry-Lemon Cheesecakes

This muffin-tin mini cheesecake recipe is an adorable, healthy dessert that's the perfect cute size. If making 2 dozen seems like overkill, the recipe can easily be cut in half. If you avoid gluten, use gluten-free graham crackers to make the crust.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Inspiration and Ideas

Mini Strawberry-Rhubarb Pies

Mini Strawberry-Rhubarb Pies

This muffin-tin recipe for strawberry-rhubarb pies is cute as can be and delicious too!
Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes

Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes

Strawberries and lemons make for a sweet and citrusy treat in this lightened-up cupcake recipe topped with a cream cheese frosting.
Mini Molten Chocolate Cakes

Mini Molten Chocolate Cakes

Vegan Carrot Cake with Coconut Cream Frosting

Vegan Carrot Cake with Coconut Cream Frosting

Rating: Unrated
1
Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

Rating: Unrated
4
Strawberries Dipped in Chocolate

Strawberries Dipped in Chocolate

Rating: Unrated
1

Apple Crisp with Cranberries

Rating: Unrated
1

Sticking to its food-waste mission, L.A. Kitchen created this dessert to work with almost any fruit you have on hand. We've done it here with pears and apples, but you can use berries or even tropical fruits instead. The addition of dried fruit adds a concentrated hit of flavor you won't get from fresh alone.

All Healthy Mother's Day Dessert Recipes

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.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Cherry Crisp

Rating: Unrated
3
A fruit crisp offers the luscious flavor of a fresh fruit pie without the fuss of making a crust. Celebrate the arrival of cherries with this rich-tasting crisp. The nut-studded topping works great with other fruit combinations too.
By Patsy Jamieson

Skillet Strawberry-Rhubarb Crisp

Rating: Unrated
1
Fresh strawberries and rhubarb meld together under a crisp oat crumble in this gluten-free dessert recipe made in just one skillet. If you're not gluten-sensitive, regular rolled oats will work too. Top with a dollop of whipped cream for an extra-special treat.
By Breana Killeen

Chocolate Decadence

Rating: Unrated
11
Inspired by the old-school, ultra-rich, mousselike chocolate cake that usually called for a whole pound of chocolate, half a dozen eggs and lots of butter, this enlightened rendition has deep bittersweet chocolate flavor and dense melt-in-your-mouth texture. No one will guess it's healthier. The secret is excellent natural cocoa powder and good-quality bittersweet chocolate, preferably with 70% cacao. Although the cake can be eaten once it's completely cool, it comes out of the pan much easier and even tastes better if it has been chilled at least overnight.
By Alice Medrich

Greek Walnut Spice Cake

Rating: Unrated
1
A rich, flavorful syrup infuses this Mediterranean-inspired walnut coffee cake with the bright aroma of oranges and cloves. Heart-healthy olive oil and whole-grain barley flour add subtle complexity and texture to this nutty treat.
By Maria Speck

Strawberry Fruit Salad

Rating: Unrated
1
This summer berry fruit salad recipe makes enough for a crowd. Serve with granola and yogurt at brunch, as a healthy potluck side, or halve the recipe to serve 4.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Strawberry Shortcake Cake

Rating: Unrated
3
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.
By Hilary Meyer

Strawberry Pandowdy

Rating: Unrated
1
A truly old-fashioned dessert, “pandowdy” is said to refer to the cutting up of the flaky crust, or “dowdy-ing,” toward the end of the baking time. Once the crust is cut, the bubbly fruit cooks up around the crust. This dessert is good with whichever berries are ripe at the moment. In early summer go for strawberries. Serve with ice cream or frozen yogurt.
By Marie Simmons

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.
By Katie Webster

Buttermilk Oatcakes with Raspberry Compote

Rating: Unrated
3
These high-fiber oatcakes are made with 100% whole grains and no butter. A quick raspberry compote is a nice change from maple syrup.
By Jan Ellen Spiegel

Homemade Chocolate Ice Cream

Rating: Unrated
1
Here's a simple recipe for low-fat chocolate 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.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen

Cherry Sorbet

Try this cherry sorbet recipe with a dollop of lightly sweetened whipped cream or some more chopped cherries on top.
By Carolyn Malcoun

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

Upside-Down Cinnamon-Pecan Coffee Cake

Rating: Unrated
2
Layering the ingredients in this coffee cake recipe right into the pan lets you skip the steps of making the batter and the nut topping separately. To make this healthy one-bowl dessert so it can be served like pull-apart rolls, dollop 16 equal portions of batter over the nuts. If you don't want to fuss with that, dollop the batter on top however you like.
By Stacy Fraser

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

Cinnamon Roll Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

Rating: Unrated
1
Here we take all the warm, delicious flavors of cinnamon buns and roll them into a cake smothered with a sweet cream cheese frosting. It's best enjoyed fresh out of the oven.
By Hilary Meyer

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

Strawberry-Rhubarb Cobbler

Rating: Unrated
2
Strawberries and rhubarb are one of the great flavor combinations of springtime. Here the duo stars in a traditional strawberry-rhubarb cobbler, redolent with the aromas of cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. If you must, you can top it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream but quite honestly, it doesn't need it.
By Ruth Cousineau

Tropical Coconut Custard

A classic sweet custard flavored with coconut, ginger, and vanilla is served in individual cups and topped with pretty slices of star fruit.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

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

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

Riesling Baked Pears

Rating: Unrated
3
Here's an elegant yet simple twist on the autumn classic. Pears are oven-poached in Riesling wine, which is known for its floral accents and aromas and hints of honey and pear. Serve this dessert with lightly sweetened ricotta cheese. Delicious hot, room temperature or chilled.
By Marie Simmons

Coconut Cream & Fruit-Topped Vanilla Cake

This delicious fruit-topped vanilla cake with coconut-cream frosting is perfect for a birthday or holiday party.
By Diabetic Living Magazine

Caramelized Spiced Pears

Rating: Unrated
1
Serve these caramelized pear slices over ice cream, stir into plain yogurt or enjoy as a topping for pancakes or waffles. Brown-skinned Bosc pears hold their shape during cooking, but any variety of pears tastes delicious.
By EatingWell Test Kitchen
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