The 51 Best Dessert Recipes From Gourmet
The archives of Gourmet magazine are full of treasures both savory and sweet—but since we’ve been focusing on baking lately, we wanted to share a few favorite desserts from the magazine. Below you’ll find the most popular cakes, tarts, cookies, and other sweets from Gourmet, including an astoundingly creamy (and easy!) cheesecake recipe, the perfect dessert for rhubarb season, and more than one option for a classic chocolate birthday cake. (Maybe you need two birthday cakes this year.)
Photo by Andrew Purcell, Prop Styling by Paige Hicks, Food Styling by Carrie Purcell1/51Lemon Curd Tart With Olive Oil
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Nathaniel James, Food Styling by Simon Andrews2/51Chocolate Mousse
Photo by Caleb Adams, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell3/51Three Cities of Spain Cheesecake
We have many cheesecake recipes on Epicurious, but this one is an all-time favorite. There's no water bath required, and the fluffy, tangy sour cream topping covers any cracks.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Nathaniel James, Food Styling by Frances Boswell4/51Apple and Calvados Tart (Galette de Pommes au Calvados)
Photo by Isa Zapata, Prop Styling by Stephanie De Luca, Food Styling by Yekaterina Boystova5/51Flourless Chocolate Cake
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Bill Clark7/51Pear and Hazelnut Frangipane Tart
Frangipane is a brilliant way to make any fruit into a fabulous dessert. Here, supple Bosc or Anjou pears pair with toasty hazelnuts.
Photo by Joseph De Leo, Prop Styling by Anne Eastman, Food Styling by John Bjostad8/51Double Chocolate Layer Cake
Everyone needs a go-to chocolate cake recipe, and this one from March 1999 is a great candidate.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson9/51Orange Chiffon Cake
This fluffy, springy cake is a bit like angel food cake but a little richer since there are egg yolks in the mix. Make it for dessert in winter, when the sunshiny citrus will have the most impact.
Photo by Romulo Yanes12/51Rhubarb Tart With Orange Glaze
This Gourmet dessert isn't at all fussy—it calls for store-bought puff pastry—but really looks impressive at a dinner party.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson14/51Baked Alaska Saint Pierre
The year: 2004. The recipe: Baked Alaska. This refreshing citrus-forward take on the classic features spongy génoise, orange ice cream—a silky combination of store-bought vanilla ice cream and bittersweet marmalade—and tangy orange sorbet. And fire, of course.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Beatrice Chastka, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson15/51Pumpkin Cheesecake With Bourbon–Sour Cream Topping
The caramelized flavor of bourbon and the tang of sour cream add balance to the rich, spiced filling of this cheesecake. Chopped pecans add a nutty dimension to the graham cracker crust. Bookmark this Gourmet classic for your Thanksgiving dessert table.
Photo by Isa Zapata, Prop Styling by Stephanie De Luca, Food Styling by Yekaterina Boystova16/51Inside-Out German Chocolate Cake
Photo by Romulo Yanes17/51Salted Caramel Ice Cream
This lush ice cream is salty and sweet—reason enough to invest in an ice cream maker.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Alex Brannian, Food Styling by Ali Nardi19/51Bourbon Pumpkin Pie
Photo by Isa Zapata, Food Styling by Yekaterina Boystova22/51Sticky Rice With Mango
This recipe is one of our most popular Gourmet recipes of all time. Find yourself a really ripe mango and make it tonight.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Alex Brannian, Food Styling by Ali Nardi24/51Classic Pecan Pie
25/51Milk Chocolate Brownies
Chopped milk chocolate provides most of the rich chocolate flavor in these easy brownies, though there's a touch of cocoa powder, too.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Alex Brannian, Food Styling by Katherine Sacks27/51Jelly Doughnuts
Stephanie Foley31/51Brown Sugar Berry Cobbler
Does anything say summer like a cobbler? This one from July 2010 gains complexity from a jumble of different berries and extra depth from dark brown sugar. Mixing the brown sugar with regular granulated sugar makes it easier to sprinkle on top of the biscuit topping before the cobbler goes into the oven; when it comes out, the tender, featherlight biscuits will be crowned by golden crunch.
Photo by Romulo Yanes38/51Pineapple Galette
Fresh pineapple conjures up images of sunshine, so what better way to cheer up a winter day than with a galette made with golden yellow wedges layered over buttery pastry? Today's pineapples tend to be quite sweet, so just a hint of cinnamon and sugar is all you'll need to bring out their bright flavor.
Photo by Travis Rainey, Prop styling by Alexandra Massillon, Food styling by Kaitlin Wayne40/51Dulce de Leche
42/51Cinnamon Palmiers
Photograph by Victoria Jane, Food Styling by Mallory Lance, Prop Styling by Alexandra Massillon50/51Chewy Oatmeal Cookies
Lara Ferroni51/51Tiramisu Yule Log
This is the kind of baking project you'll only make once a year—but there's a reason this Gourmet dessert recipe is a perpetual favorite. Go all the way with cute meringue mushrooms and a dusting of confectioners' sugar.
