30 Best Dairy-free Desserts You’ll Love

Contrary to popular belief, dairy-free desserts are just as tasty as regular sweet treats. Most would probably think of zero-dairy diets as restrictive since they don’t have the usual baking ingredients, like butter or milk. In fact, most of us cannot even begin to imagine having to go without ice cream, yogurt, and other traditionally made baked goods. 

But trust us, these dairy and lactose-free dessert recipes are quick and easy to make, and definitely a must-try! You’ll soon find out that, like tasty sugar-free dessert recipes, staple baking ingredients like sugar and dairy aren’t the only things that give sweet treats and more their signature deliciousness.

This scrumptious dairy-free cake is just one of the many no-bake dairy-free desserts we have in this list. This recipe combines yummy Oreo cookies with dairy-free ice cream and whipped toppings to make the ultimate ice cream cake! 

So, just because it’s a zero dairy dessert, doesn’t mean your kids can’t have sweet cakes or creamy ice cream. And don’t worry! Though its filling may look like it’s made with milk, Oreo cookies are completely dairy-free.

Recipes for Inspiration: Easy Dairy-Free Ice Cream Cake

If you’re looking to make something fabulous for dessert, then this tres leches cake would be a good place to start. This vanilla-flavored cake is one of the many dairy-free baking recipes in this list, and like the rest, you won’t regret trying. It’s silky and moist, making it a delectable treat for both kids and adults alike. Instead of the usual dairy products, the recipe uses cream of coconut and dairy-free milk to make a lush sponge cake. Baking with zero dairy products is just as easy and this yummy dessert is proof.

Recipes for Inspiration: Dairy-Free Tres Leches Cake

Fans of pudding will be happy to know that you don’t actually need dairy to have a creamy dessert. This vanilla pudding recipe uses only egg yolks, white sugar, cornstarch, and almond milk to make a delectable dairy free pudding.

Recipes for Inspiration: Dairy-Free Vanilla Pudding

You can also make a delicious pie without needing any dairy ingredients! This recipe for Purple Sweet Potato Pie is made creamy with coconut milk. The crust is crunchy and sweet with pecan and dates, and the purple sweet potato pie filling is absolutely divine. The children will be asking for more once you’ve given them a taste of this recipe.

Recipes for Inspiration: Dairy-Free Purple Sweet Potato Pie

You don’t need a bulky ice cream maker to treat the kids to a cool dessert once the hot season rolls around! This recipe for a deliciously icy mango sorbet is so simple to make, anyone can do it. Not to be confused with ice cream, sorbet is somewhat healthier since its main ingredients are just fruit puree and sugar or syrup. It’s also free from any milk or other dairy products. It’s a great treat for those who are looking after their fat and caloric intake, and, of course, wanting some dairy-free desserts.

Recipe for Inspiration: Mango Sorbet

If mangoes aren’t as readily available in your local grocery store or supermarket, then you can always try making some refreshing and sweet peach sorbet instead. Just like the mango sorbet recipe, this dessert is easy to make as well. You don’t even need to use fresh pears, since canned ones will do just as nicely. There’s nothing like a fruity and dairy-free sorbet to keep the kids satisfied! 

Recipe for Inspiration: Pear Sorbet

Just because it’s dairy-free doesn’t mean you can’t have chocolate! It’s true that most chocolate products used in desserts have some form of milk in its ingredients. However, cocoa (the plant used to make chocolate) actually contains zero dairy.

This recipe for Chocolate Banana Soufflés uses cocoa powder to get that delicious choco flavor. Pure cocoa powder has no dairy because it’s ground from cocoa solids, which are taken from cocoa beans. So, make sure to use pure cocoa powder for delicious, chocolate and banana-flavored soufflés. These yummy French desserts will surely delight the kids (and even the adults too)!

Recipes for Inspiration: Chocolate Banana Soufflés 

Once fall season starts, it’s almost guaranteed that there’ll be some intense craving for good ‘ol pumpkin pie. And this amazing recipe is both dairy-free and sugar-free, making it one healthy treat. It swaps the usual milk ingredient for creamy coconut milk and suggests for you to use erythritol or any sugar alternative you prefer. Give it a try and find out what the fuss for scrumptious pumpkin pie is all about! 

Recipe for Inspiration: Sugar Free Pumpkin Pie

Smoothies are a kid-favorite dessert drink, and this luscious strawberry smoothie tastes amazing even without dairy. You only need fresh strawberries, ice cubes, agave syrup, and your milk alternative of choice to make this tasty beverage.

Recipe for Inspiration: Luscious Strawberry Smoothie (Non-Dairy)

Again, you don’t need dairy and you most certainly don’t need sugar in order to make delicious treats for the kids. This recipe makes the chewiest cookies that are both sweet and tasty despite not having any sugar or dairy in it. That’s because it uses the natural sweetness of fruits such as apples, dates, and raisins to make up for said ingredients. Even better, they’re super easy to bake too! 

Recipe for Inspiration: Sugarless Apple Cookies

Fans of Rice Krispies and creamy peanut butter will love this no-bake recipe. These peanut butter cookies are not like the usual sweet treats you’d expect to come out of the oven. They’re a scrumptious and creative mix between everyone’s favorite crunchy treats and peanut butter filling. Try making this to get a taste of easy yet tasty dairy-free desserts! Also, don’t forget to check if the Rice Krispies you used contain zero dairy products, since the ingredients vary between each brand.

Recipe for Inspiration: Peanut Butter No-Bake Cookies

Easy Gluten-Free and Dairy-Free Desserts

Plenty of dairy-free desserts are also surprisingly gluten-free! Gluten is a type of protein commonly found in wheat, barley, rye, and other grains. For those whose bodies react negatively towards these grains, then a gluten-free diet is essential.

This banana cream pie is gluten-free and vegan-friendly. It’s also a perfect mashup of palatable textures with its crumbly oatmeal crust and pudding-like banana almond milk filling. For the  ultimate dessert, it’s then topped with a custard-coconut whip and freshly sliced bananas. Your kids will surely love this creamy delight!

Recipe for Inspiration: Banana Cream Pie (Vegan + Gluten Free)

This flourless chocolate cake is one of the easiest dessert recipes you’ll ever bake in your life. It only needs four handy ingredients: dark chocolate, unsalted butter, eggs, and sugar. And not only is it dairy free, it’s also conveniently gluten-free! Even though it doesn’t use any flour (arguably a staple baking ingredient), it still manages to come out incredibly rich and moist. You’ll find a hard time accepting such an easy yet delectable dairy free cake recipe even exists! 

Recipe for Inspiration: Flourless Chocolate Cake

These gluten-free banana and chocolate chip muffins are extra healthy and extra yummy! Like the dirt cake, it’s also vegan-friendly, using a vegan egg replacement and vegan chocolate chips. The banana not only brings a wonderful flavor, it also helps to hold the ingredients together, making the muffins sweet and fluffier than the regular kind.

Recipe for Inspiration: Gluten-Free Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins

Here’s a healthy dessert recipe that’s also sugar-free. These dairy-free chocolate chip oatmeal cookies are irresistibly soft and easy to make. They only require 3 ingredients: bananas, gluten free quick oats, and chocolate chips! To make it dairy-free, don’t forget to replace the latter with either dairy-free, vegan, or dark chocolate chips. Don’t worry, they all taste great and will bring decadence to your gluten-free oatmeal cookies.

Recipes for Inspiration: Chewy Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Breakfast Cookie

These Peppermint-flavored Meringue treats are incredibly easy to make, needing only four basic ingredients. With just egg whites, sugar, peppermint extract, and food coloring, you can make a refreshing yet sweet dessert the kids will surely love. This recipe also makes for up to 30 meringue pieces, so they’re also ideal for serving at parties or celebrations!

Recipe for Inspiration: Peppermint Meringues

Who doesn’t love a good carrot cake for dessert? This recipe is dairy-free, gluten-free, and vegan-friendly, making it one of the healthiest foods you and the kids can eat. It uses real carrots, almond milk, gluten free all-purpose flour, vegan butter, and wonderful spices! All of these ingredients are then baked to make a scrumptious cake dessert the kids will surely love.

Recipe for Inspiration: Vegan Gluten-Free Carrot Cake

Put a chocolatey twist on your usual coconut macaroons with this gluten-free and vegan-friendly dessert! This recipe uses semi-sweet chocolate, which is also known as dark or bittersweet chocolate. 

This chocolate is dairy-free as it only has cocoa solids and cocoa butter, all of which come from the cocoa plant. However, make sure to buy the true or traditional semi-sweet types since some manufacturers still add milk to their products.

Tip: Always refer to the product’s labels to check whether the semi-sweet chocolate you intend to buy contains any dairy or not.

Recipe for Inspiration: Chocolate Drizzled Coconut Macaroons

This salted dark chocolate tart is as decadent as it sounds. The sweet and nutty almond crust gives way to an irresistible salted dark chocolate filling. The wonderful tart is then topped with more sea salt, revealing how well the saltiness pairs with the richness of dark chocolate. 

We’re sure that the adults will love this dessert just as much as the kids do. In fact, it might be best to serve this dessert during the most special occasions. 

Recipe for Inspiration: Salted Dark Chocolate Tart

Vegan-Friendly Dairy-Free Desserts

These easy and healthy vegan desserts are also dairy-free! So, any milk, butter, or cheese ingredients used in these recipes are all plant-based alternatives. 

This vegan and dairy-free treat shows you how waffles can be just as delicious for dessert as they are for breakfast. This recipe for crispy vegan waffles replaces all the dairy and milk ingredients for vegan-friendly ones. Hence, no more milk or butter. Instead, creamy almond milk and delectable coconut oil is used to make an incredibly healthy yet tasty waffle dessert. Serve these with dairy free butter and your kids will surely be begging for more!

Recipe for Inspiration: Crispy Vegan Waffles

Who says you can’t have ice cream when you’re on a vegan and dairy-free diet? This recipe for chocolate ice cream replaces the usual cow’s milk with rich and creamy coconut cream and milk. It also uses Dutch process cocoa powder and a bit of sea salt. Nothing can go wrong with this wonderful ice cream dessert at hand!

Recipe for Inspiration: Creamy Chocolate Vegan Ice Cream

Here’s another diary free ice cream recipe for you to try! To make the ice cream, all you need are frozen bananas, a food processor, and a freezer. The peanut brittle topping is just as easy to make and uses simple ingredients as well. However, the end result is a rich and flavorful iced treat that’ll keep you and the kids wanting for more.

Recipe for Inspiration: Vegan Banana Ice Cream

Sorbets are icy treats that are perfect for beating the summer heat. And this Basil Lime Sorbet dessert is both vegan-friendly and dairy-free, using aromatic basil leaves and fresh lime juice as flavorings to slushy ice. It’s a great palate cleanser for both kids and adults alike.

Recipe for Inspiration: Basil Lime Sorbet 

Popcorn can be a great dessert too, especially if it’s mixed with a sweet and yummy caramel sauce! This recipe is both healthy and irresistable, with vegan butter, maple syrup, and brown sugar to make the caramel coating for the popcorn. Serve this vegan-friendly treat to your kids on movie nights and those days will never be the same again.

Recipe for Inspiration: Vegan Caramel Popcorn

Aside from waffles, pancakes are also great for dessert and not just for breakfast. These simple vegan pancakes use vegan-friendly, real food ingredients like almond milk, whole wheat flour, pure vanilla extract, and more. These are tasty treats you can serve with additional dairy-free toppings like maple syrup and vegan butter.

Recipe for Inspiration: Simple Vegan Pancakes

These vegan chocolate cupcakes taste so phenomenal, you wouldn’t think they were healthy. The guilt-free cupcakes are soft and bursting with chocolatey goodness, then topped with a smooth and creamy chocolate frosting. We guarantee that these vegan cupcakes will become the kids’ next favorite dessert.

Recipe for Inspiration: Vegan Chocolate Cupcakes

These vegan snickerdoodle cupcakes are a great treat for the holiday season. Not only are the baked goods vegan-friendly, but the delectable frosting is also too! You’ll make an incredibly scrumptious batch of healthy snickerdoodle cupcakes with this recipe in hand.

Recipe for Inspiration: Vegan Snickerdoodle Cupcakes

No need to cook or bake to make your kids’ dessert with this vegan chocolate mousse recipe in hand. This mousse is creamy and luscious, with a secret ingredient to make its texture extra rich: avocados! The thick consistency of the beloved green fruit adds a different dimension to this dessert in ways you wouldn’t even think was possible. 

And like the other recipes in this list, there’s zero dairy products used. Instead of the usual cow’s milk, there’s coconut milk, as well as unsweetened cocoa powder and vegan dark chocolate for that choco flavor. Finally, this rich mousse is topped with coconut whipped cream and a sprinkle of pomegranate seeds.

Recipes for Inspiration: Vegan Chocolate Mousse

This easy vegan recipe for gingerbread cookies uses molasses to bring the treats its delectable sweetness. However, it also has an earthy flavor that definitely adds to the cookies’ overall deliciousness. The classic flavors of cinnamon spice, allspice, and ground ginger then give this classic holiday dessert its signature taste. These vegan gingerbread cookies are a great treat to end Christmas dinner.

Recipe for Inspiration: Easy Vegan Gingerbread Cookies

These elegant dark chocolate truffles may seem like it’ll take time and extra care to make. However, they’re actually one of the beginner-friendly dairy-free desserts you can find in this list. In fact, all you need are 2 easy-to-find ingredients: vegan dark chocolate and creamy coconut milk! 

As previously stated, dark chocolate contains zero dairy, and coconut milk is always a great alternative for the usual milk in dessert recipes. If you’re feeling extra fancy, you can even add in some vanilla extract for an even tastier treat. You can also coat them with some unsweetened cocoa or cacao powder for that full chocolatey effect. 

Recipe for Inspiration: 2-Ingredient Dark Chocolate Truffles