60 easy desserts for effortless entertaining

These 60 easy desserts keep the stress levels low and the deliciousness high.

Pecan chocolate bread and butter pudding

This chocolate bread and butter pudding makes use of any leftover bread.

Baked ricotta cake

Ricotta is fantastic in desserts, and this cake is no exception. Begin this recipe 1 day ahead.

Bring the Middle Eastern sweets counter to you with these pecan baklava rolls

Bring the Middle Eastern sweets counter to your home with Michael Rantissi’s pecan baklava rolls.

Easy lemon meringue pie

You will need a kitchen blowtorch for this delicious dessert recipe. This is an edited extract from A Table for Friends: The Art of Cooking for Two or Twenty by Skye McAlpine (Bloomsbury, $49.99).

Coconut yoghurt cake

Zero waste tip: “When it comes to storing perishables like dairy, the freezer is your best friends. Milk and yoghurt can be stored in ice cube trays and popped out to use in smoothies.” – Ronni Kahn.

Melt-and-mix white chocolate and ginger mud cake

“This cake melt-and-mix white choc and ginger mud cake is especially good served warm,” says Phoebe Wood.

Burnt butter, almond and honey cake

This gluten-free cake is the perfect answer to any afternoon tea questions.

For a taste of summer in winter, it has to be this tart al limone

Citrus and dessert, a match made in Italy. Begin this recipe 4 hours ahead. You will need a kitchen thermometer.

Make afternoon tea plans with this chocolate and ginger teacake

“Ginger, tea and dark chocolate are perfect partners for this rich teacake,” says Lucy Busuttil.

Banoffee cream pudding with white choc crumble

“Make sure the baking dish for the pudding fits inside a larger, high-sided pan for the water bath. Begin this recipe at least four hours ahead,” says Phoebe Wood.

Sticky ginger pudding

You can never beat a pudding, unless it’s spiced with ginger. And, don’t forget the cream.

Jamie Oliver’s rice pudding

“These decadent and creamy Spanish desserts are punctuated with sumptuous fruits, aromatics and nuts, making them the perfect end to any good meal.”

Dark chocolate self-saucing pudding

Melted dark chocolate topped with cream, it doesn’t get much better.

Muhallabia (Middle Eastern milk pudding)

This rich and creamy Middle Eastern dessert is the perfect summer indulgence.

Chocolate, coconut and cherry sponge

Turn to the dark side this spring with a decadent chocolate sponge.

Mike McEnearney’s indulgent baked rice pudding

Raspberries have a lovely sharp bite that goes well with this rich, creamy pudding, says Mike.

Shortbread, chocolate and caramel come together in a wicked frozen dessert that will keep the late summer warmed at bay. The bonus? It’s freezer-ready for ad-hoc entertaining (not that you’ll want to share!).

Strawberry and rhubarb cobbler

Try this Italian strawberry and rhubarb cobbler, it’s to die for! This super easy dessert is light on ingredients and easy to make, just add cream!

Matt Preston’s self-saucing chocolate pudding

“When I arrived in Australia over 20 years ago I was blown away with this country’s love of a good chocolate pudding. Sticky date pudding with butterscotch sauce and the rightfully venerated lemon delicious! That same self-sauciness blesses this pudding that’s based on a recipe found in a vintage cookbook from Victoria.” – Matt Preston

Andrew McConnell’s rustic rhubarb tarts

These super easy rhubarb tarts are proof that you don’t need to spend hours slaving in the kitchen to produce a tasty dessert. Chef Andrew McConnell insists that working with seasonal produce will always win on flavour.

Fig and raspberry oat slice

An easy oat slice that works as well as an impressive dessert as it does packed in lunch boxes the next day.

Strawberry, ginger and honey pie with golden spelt crust

Produce Awards Earth category 2015 winner, Wellington Apiary prickly box honey, is the finishing touch to this flaky spelt pastry and strawberry pie, says delicious. senior food editor (and pie connoisseur) Phoebe Wood.

Ready-bake chocolate cookie ice cream sandwiches

This dough is perfect to have in the freezer; slice off as many biscuits as you need and bake them fresh. They also make a quick dessert with ice cream between, says Valli.

Cheat’s mille-feuille

For a quick dessert or afternoon tea treat try this mille-feulle.

Butterscotch sauce with burnt-butter bananas and ice cream

This deliciously gooey and moreish dessert shows just how versatile butter can be. It’s best eaten quickly and before anyone else!

Blender chocolate mousse with whisky caramel popcorn

This impressive looking dessert is a breeze to make: just whiz everything in the blender and set in the fridge.

Easy apple tart with rosemary and honey syrup

Not only is this tart absolutely tasty, it’s also ready in almost no time at all, meaning you can whip it up at a moments notice.

Caramel cake

This cake is delicious. It’s best eaten on the day it’s made, but still tastes great the next day, says Valli. This recipe is an extract from Valli Little’s new book, My Kind of Food (Harper Collins, $39.99), available nationwide.

Four-ingredient chocolate cupcakes

These foolproof cupcakes are a quick and easy way to impress a crowd.

Flourless walnut brownies with whipped cream

All you need is a food processor is to make these quick and easy brownies that are topped with ricotta icing that makes for just the right amount of sweetness.

Choc top and popcorn sundae

Two of our all-time favourite movie snacks, choc tops and popcorn, rolled into one dessert? Sounds good to us!

Apple and blackberry bars with hazelnut crumble

Katie Quinn Davies has filled these crumble bars with a luscious homemade jam.

Chocolate bread and butter pudding

This sherry-spiked chocolate pudding is the godfather of winter desserts.

Peaches and raspberries mascarpone fool

“If you’re a fool for love, you’ll adore this,” says Silvia Colloca. Nothing says romance quite like this easy, quick dessert just for two.

Jamie Oliver’s baked berry cheesecake

Think you’ve had your fill of berry cheesecakes? Think again. This quick and easy recipe by Jamie Oliver is perfect served warm or cold – either way, you won’t be able to resist going in for seconds.

Apple and blueberry crumble with roasted almond and peanut topping

Flaked almonds adds an extra layer of crunch to this already sweet and crumbly topping.

Matt Preston’s irresistible salted chocolate sour cream cheesecake

This wonderfully decadent dessert is a twist on Matt Preston’s best ever cheesecake.

Apple and cinnamon creme caramel cakes

Combining the flavours of an apple pie and a dessert favourite, creme caramel these cakes are the perfect ending to a dinner party.

The ultimate bread and butter pudding

Valli Little has borrowed a few ingredients from the French to turn this Brit classic into a luscious dessert.

Blueberry and lemon verbena tarts

The combination of light, fragrant lemon verbena custard and blueberries makes for a memorable dessert everyone will love. This recipe is an extract from Valli Little’s new book, My Kind of Food (Harper Collins, $39.99), available nationwide.

Molten black forest puddings

Keep good things coming out of the kitchen all through the weekend with these Black Forest chocolate puddings.

Peanut butter banoffee pie

Matt Wilkinson’s grown-up take on banoffee pie is even more delicious than the traditional version.

Spiced cherry and strawberry pie

Pie – is there anything more comforting or delicious? Golden, buttery pastry. Bubbling, sweet fruit. A generous dollop of cream (or ice cream!) on top… and coffee on the side. Now all you need is that new season of Twin Peaks.

Little black dress chocolate cake

This is one of those reliable cakes – simple yet sexy – that will wow everyone, every time. Keep it plain or accessorise with silver or gold leaf for special effect.

Cherry and almond crumble

A rustic flavour-filled dessert perfect for the cooler months.

Apple and ginger crumble pie

Discover the joy of baking, and eating.

Pear and coconut crumble with double-thick cream

Try this luscious dessert of pear and nutty almonds, baked to crumbly perfection and served with a generous dollop of double-thick cream. Winter never tasted so good.

Chocolate, hazelnut and frangelico tart

The earthy crunch of hazelnuts with the richness of chocolate in this tart is a classic Italian dessert combination.

Apple, berry and port crumble

Homemade apple crumble gets a twist with the added richness of sweet port wine.

Crumble cake with berries

Cap off a relaxed lunch with a crumble cake with berries! Serve with berry sauce and cream for complete indulgence.

Gingerbread brownies

Topped with a drizzle of chocolate and a dusting of icing sugar, indulgent gingerbread brownies make the perfect festive gift.

Spiced pear, blueberry and almond shortcake

This shortcake pie puts every good early Autumn thing into a crumbly and impressive dessert.

Matt Moran’s rhubarb and strawberry crumble

Simple and hearty, this crumble is a winner, with rhubarb and strawberry enhanced by just a touch of lemon.

Apple and berry pies with homemade custard

Serve these sweet apple and berry pies warm with a good drizzle of homemade custard.

Nutella cheesecake with chocolate mirror glaze

It’s the ultimate in dessert decadence. Tempt your guests with this indulgent Nutella cheesecake with chocolate mirror glaze.

Oreo and peanut butter pie

One slice of this salty-sweet tart won’t be enough.

This flourless chocolate torte is perfect those who say they hate Christmas cake

A recipe so good and so easy that’ll it be hard to just make one.

Spiced pumpkin pie

Valli Little shares her recipe for sweet and spicy pumpkin pie.

Rhubarb, ginger and amaretti pies

Snuggle up with this fragrant wintery dessert pie.

Rice pudding with strawberry jam and pistachio brittle

Mike McEnearney’s rice pudding with strawberry jam and pistachio brittle is the perfect comfort food for a cold Winter’s day. It’s sweet, creamy, textured and truly indulgent.

Marsala panettone bread and butter pudding

As if bread and butter pudding wasn’t decadent enough, we’ve added sweet marsala and buttery panettone to create the best version, ever.

Self-saucing chocolate pudding

Delicious and indulgent, this self-saucing chocolate pudding will be your new favourite recipe.

Salted honey, pear and chocolate tarte Tatin

“Salty caramel, roasted pear, crisp pastry and walnuts use into something completely delicious. I love the way the chocolate surreptitiously enriches the caramel, without shouting about it,” says Sue Quinn. This is an edited extract from Cocoa: An Exploration of Chocolate, With Recipes by Sue Quinn (Hardie Grant Books, $39.99).

Flourless chestnut, chocolate and rum cake

“This gooey flourless cake was inspired by ‘Chocolate with rum’, a recipe in Salvador Dali’s cookbook Les Diners De Gala,” says Sue Quinn. This is an edited extract from Cocoa: An Exploration of Chocolate, With Recipes by Sue Quinn (Hardie Grant Books, $39.99).