For some of us, we like to replicate food that we love. This is especially true when we find a dessert that is so good that our sweet tooth is constantly craving it.
However, several desserts, like pies, cookies, and cakes, need an oven to make. This can be a hurdle for oven-less households, but that doesn’t mean you can’t recreate the delicious and classic desserts you love.
Thus, I’ve compiled several easy no-bake desserts so you can make your favorite sweet treats even without an oven. They will prove that there are simple ways to make quality desserts.
1. Classic No-Bake Cookies
In their different forms and flavors, cookies are one of the most well-loved sweet treats. They’re dainty and tasty, but most recipes have them baked, mainly because their dough has eggs and flour.
But with this recipe, you’ll make eggless cookie dough; thus, it’s safe to consume without oven-baking. Its ingredients include butter, granulated sugar, milk, cocoa powder, creamy peanut butter, vanilla extract, and oats.
To make these oat cookies, combine and boil butter, sugar, milk, and cocoa powder. Then, add peanut butter, vanilla, and oats before scooping them into a sheet. Cool the cookies, then enjoy!
2. No-Bake Peanut Butter Bars
Peanut butter bars aren’t just perfect for people who love peanut butter. They are also among the most popular no-bake desserts, bringing together sweet and salty flavors in a simple, effortless treat.
You only need butter, graham cracker crumbs, peanut butter, powdered sugar, and chocolate chips to make these desserts. This sweet treat’s flavors are reminiscent of Reese’s mini peanut butter cups.
Peanut butter bars have two layers – the bottom is a mix of graham crumbs, creamy peanut butter, sugar, and butter. Meanwhile, the top is a hardened layer of peanut butter and chocolate ganache.
3. No-Bake Lemon Bars
Like other lemon-flavored desserts, these no-bake lemon bars have a refreshing, bright taste profile that’s perfect for a hot summer day.
Unlike most lemon bar recipes that need baking, this one uses a no-bake crust and cooks the lemon custard in a saucepan over heat. Moreover, it’s gluten-free and low-carb, thus, allowing more people to enjoy it while being healthy.
To make the no-bake crust, you’ll need toasted coconut, almond flour, sea salt, cocoa butter, and almond butter. Meanwhile, lemon custard has egg yolks, monk fruit sweetener, lemon juice, grass-fed gelatin, and pastured butter.
4. Easy Chocolate Fudge
Chocolate fudge is a creamy and decadent candy often sold in shops as quick, tasty gifts. But you can make them yourself with just four ingredients and without an oven.
This easy chocolate fudge recipe only calls for chopped chocolate bars, unsalted butter, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla extract. It’s essential to use good, if not the best, quality chocolate bars to ensure all the flavors are present.
Microwave butter and chocolate before adding the condensed milk and vanilla. Pour into a pan, refrigerate until set, and voila! Enjoy your fresh chocolate fudge or give it as a gift!
5. Rice Krispie Treats
Rice Krispie Treats is a popular dessert that transforms simple rice cereals into a fun, gooey, and crispy dish. They’re delicious yet easy to make, even in large batches – thus, perfect for a dinner party or other gatherings.
This particular Rice Krispie has butter, marshmallows, vanilla, salt, and Rice Krispies cereal (the star of the show). In combining the ingredients, you must achieve the perfect cereal to marshmallow ratio so that this treat isn’t too dry while maintaining structural integrity.
Melt butter and marshmallows together before adding vanilla, salt, and rice cereals. Spread over a prepared pan to set.
6. No-Bake Cheesecake
If there’s dessert heaven, I’m sure there’s a special spot for cheesecake over there. One of the most classic desserts, its rich flavors, creaminess, and versatility make it a worldwide favorite.
Although cheesecakes are traditionally baked, many recipes now use gelatin and refrigerators to help cheesecakes set or become solid. Moreover, these no-bake cheesecakes tend to be lighter than the baked ones, so that’s a plus!
You’ll need a graham cracker crust, heavy cream, cream cheese, granulated sugar, confectioners sugar, sour cream, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. Top with whipped cream, fresh fruits, or lemon curd.
7. Traditional English Trifle
In this compilation of recipes, I’ve included a traditional English dessert: the trifle. Its dazzling layers and heavenly flavors are heaven-sent, impressing everyone at the dinner table.
Trifles have layers; this particular one has four: custard, cake, fruit, and whipped cream. You can use store-bought or baked yellow cake for the cake layer, so you won’t have to start from scratch.
Prep all the layers first. Once done, fill the bottom of the trifle dish with sliced cake, with the jam side up. The following layers, in order, are fruit, custard, and whipped cream.
8. Magnolia Bakery Banana Pudding
Layered desserts are heaven-sent. They’re tasty, clean, and gorgeous to look at from the sides, like this banana pudding from Magnolia Bakery.
It looks like a trifle AND is inside a trifle dish, but because of ingredient ratios, it’s not. The first layer is the Nilla wafers, followed by sliced bananas. The third layer combines homemade whipped cream, sweetened condensed milk, water, and instant pudding.
Repeat the layers until the trifle dish is full. Serve this dish as soon as possible (not more than eight hours), or the bananas will oxidize or become brown.
9. No Bake Chocolate Mousse Bars
Its silky texture and rich flavors make chocolate mousse a favorite dessert. While usually served inside cups, this rendition of chocolate mousse has them in the form of bars.
Imagine a dessert that completely melts in your mouth with every bite. These chocolate mousse bars are as soft as a cloud and as delicious as heaven, sinking into your tongue with every moment.
From the chocolate graham cracker crust to the mousse and ganache, there’s no baking required. Instead, cook the chocolate mousse over a stovetop, then assemble the bars before refrigerating them until set.
10. Rice Cooker Japanese Cheesecake
When making cakes, we usually think they all need baking in an oven. But did you know you can make a fluffy Japanese cheesecake with a rice cooker?
Rice cookers are essential appliances in Asia, so it’s no surprise that Asians have developed many recipes for them. One such is this Japanese cheesecake, known for its creamy taste and cloud-like texture.
It looks different and tastes lighter than the usual Western cheesecake. It’s made with cream cheese, eggs, granulated sugar, cake flour, and skim milk. You’ll also need powdered sugar for dusting the top.
11. Panna Cotta
If I had to make a list of elegant desserts, panna cotta would make it. Although it’s simple and easy to make, it feels luxurious because of its rich taste, clean look, and silky texture.
Panna cotta is an Italian dessert made with cream, flavorings, and gelatin, which helps it set and become more solid. It feels like a light custard and goes well with various toppings, like fruits, oats, and more.
To make this panna cotta recipe, you’ll need heavy cream and gelatin. Besides those, there’s also cold water or milk, granulated sugar, and vanilla.
12. Icebox Cake
I grew up enjoying the process of making AND eating icebox cakes. They’re simple yet so creamy and delicious that I want to gobble them up even before they’ve finished chilling in the fridge.
This particular icebox cake recipe has a cookies and cream flavor profile. It’s made with cold heavy cream, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and Oreos, which you can substitute with chocolate wafers.
The cream must be cold, so you whip it perfectly with powdered sugar and vanilla. Spread the whipped cream over the cookies and repeat the layers until your container is full.
12 Easy No-Bake Dessert Recipes
Make yourself the tastiest desserts even without an oven!
Ingredients
Classic No-Bake Cookies
No-Bake Peanut Butter Bars
No-Bake Lemon Bars
Easy Chocolate Fudge
Rice Krispie Treats
No-Bake Cheesecake
Traditional English Trifle
Magnolia Bakery Banana Pudding
No Bake Chocolate Mousse Bars
Rice Cooker Japanese Cheesecake
Panna Cotta
Icebox Cake
Directions
- Select your favorite recipe.
- Organize all the required ingredients.
- Prep a no-bake dessert in 30 minutes or less!