27 Best Southern Dessert Recipes to Try

Chocolate Mayonnaise Cake may sound strange, but trust me—you won’t taste the mayo at all. It’s just an oil-based ingredient that makes this cake rich and moist.

Though I make it from scratch, it’s actually easier than a boxed cake mix. It only calls for flour, sugar, baking soda, vanilla extract, cocoa powder, mayonnaise, and water.

Hummingbird Cake has a delicate sweetness, just like you’d envision the tiny bird it’s named after.

The savory cream cheese icing plays off the cinnamon and nutmeg-flavored cake in a way that smells heavenly while I’m making it and tastes even better.

Adding chunks of pineapples and banana as you stack the cake adds natural sweetness.

Key Lime Pie is a classic dessert, but you don’t need limes from the Florida Keys to make it taste great.

Regular limes are fine, but I stay away from tart bottled lime juice. Sweetened condensed milk cuts the lime and helps it set, even without eggs. A graham cracker crust adds even more sweetness.

It may not have the most appealing name, but Mississippi Mud Cake is probably my favorite Southern dessert.

The chocolate cake has a layer of marshmallows melted on top.

But that’s not the icing—you’ll add another layer of chocolate to the cake for the icing, which makes this dessert delightfully messy.

Most people think of cobbler as a fruity dessert, but this Southern Chocolate Cobbler is an instant classic.

It’s easy to make because I combine the ingredients, sprinkle the topping over the batter, and bake.

The bottom should still be gooey because that’s what gives the impression of hot fudge.

Banana pudding is one dessert that’s classically southern to me.

This recipe for Old Fashioned Southern Banana Pudding is rich and flavorful but not tough to make.

You’ll make the pudding from scratch, then layer it on top of vanilla wafers and banana slices. The hardest part is letting it cool before taking a bite.

Ambrosia is a delicious, rich, fruit-based dessert.

For Southern-Style Ambrosia Salad, I combine heavy whipping cream, sugar, and sour cream with marshmallows and coconut flakes.

The fruits include mandarin oranges, pineapple, and maraschino cherries. You only need to mix everything together and refrigerate it before serving it—no cooking required.

Turtles are pecan candies covered in caramel and chocolate. Turtle Bars are a delicious version of these flavors in a convenient handheld style.

I make everything from scratch, so I use flour, brown sugar, butter, beacons, and chocolate chips.

I love changing this recipe up by using milk chocolate chips, semi-sweet chips, or dark chocolate chips, depending on my mood.

Southern Pecan Cake Bars remind me of Pecan Sandies because they’re delicious cake bars without the need for icing.

I’ve tried pecans and walnuts in this recipe, and sometimes add chocolate chips to add a little sweetness. But the basic recipe is rich and buttery as-is.

Pound cake is one of my favorite desserts to eat plain or topped with fresh fruit.

This recipe for Southern Pound Cake is rich and moist with a crumbly crust. It’s simple to make, calling for simple baking ingredients like flour, sugar, butter, shortening, eggs, vanilla, and whole milk.

Pralines are pecans topped with butterscotch and caramel; I make a Southern Pecan Praline Cake using a boxed cake mix.

The cake is delicious on its own because you mix frosting into the batter, but once it’s ready to serve, I add the magic by pouring on a topping of sweetened condensed milk and pecans.

I know any dish with “butter” in the title is going to be good, and the Kentucky Butter Cake is no exception.

This cake tastes like pound cake, but it’s lighter. After I bake it, I poke holes and pour on a butter glaze.

The glaze is key because you want to keep it liquid, not let it caramelize.

Brown sugar is one of my favorite ingredients because it’s not too sweet and has plenty of flavors.

This Southern Brown Sugar Pie highlights that sweetness in the form of a delicious pie.

The top crisps up, and the insides stay gooey, so you can eat it plain or top it with whipped cream or ice cream.

Buttermilk is something I might use in one recipe and then leave in the fridge, so I was happy to find this delicious recipe to use it all.

Southern Buttermilk Slab Pie actually comes in bar forms, so you don’t need a pie crust. Make it in a casserole pan and dust it with powdered sugar for sweetness.

Grab a yellow cake mix as the base for Southern Pineapple Sunshine Cake.

Poke holes in the baked cake and add crushed pineapples so the juice seeps into the cake.

The topping is a thick vanilla pudding, but I also add a layer of Cool Whip to hold pecans and shredded coconut in place.

If you ask me, one praline-related recipe isn’t enough for a round-up of Southern desserts.

Southern Praline Bread Pudding has a bread pudding base with brown sugar, butter, and pecans added in. The topping includes brandy, so this moist pudding packs a punch.

Fruity southern desserts are some of my favorites, and this Southern Peach Cobbler is a classic.

I’ve used canned peaches in a pinch, but if you can get your hands on fresh ones, you’ll feel like you’re down South with each bite.

The cake topping gets fluffy during baking, so it’s a feast for my senses.

Desserts don’t have to be fancy to taste great. Southern Fried Apples are a straightforward dish I eat as comfort food.

I’ve also used them as toppings on waffles, pancakes, or even pound cake, but they usually don’t last long enough for that. Once I smell the apples and cinnamon, I’m ready to eat them.

I wasn’t a huge coconut fan until I baked this Southern Coconut Cake with savory cream cheese frosting.

There’s plenty of coconut flavor in the cake and filling, and I’ve also added flakes to the icing to heighten the richness. The recipe makes three layers for a gorgeous cake.

Sometimes the cake portion of caramel cake gets dry, or maybe the icing steals the spotlight. But this Southern Caramel Cake is moist and decadent, and I’ll never try another recipe.

Sometimes the icing hardens before I’m done, so I heat it back up until it melts and is malleable.

I love making chess squares for a snack-size dessert, and this Southern Lemon Chess Pie delivers the same flavors in a crispy pie shell.

The lemon flavor is rich but subtle, so this pie is ideal for any occasion, regardless of the season.

I love flavorful pound cake on its own but add in fresh peaches, and I’m sold. Georgia Peach Pound Cake ensures I get peaches in every bite.

This pound cake looks more crumbly than other recipes, but don’t worry—it still has the same delightful taste. It stays so rich and moist that you don’t need a glaze.

Why yes, Southern Pecan Caramel Sauce is a dessert on its own!

But you can also use it on ice cream or over pound cake. It includes bourbon to add even more richness to the caramel sauce.

Pecans add crunch and make it something you can eat by the spoonful—trust me.

Southern Egg Pie sounds like a breakfast dish, but it’s actually a creamy custard pie.

The final product is flaky yet smooth, delivering a rich, silky taste. I sprinkle nutmeg on the top to make it look even tastier and also to add depth to each bite.

I’ve listed plain and peach pound cakes, and now it’s time for Southern Lemon Pound Cake.

All pound cakes are deceptively light and moist, but the lemon flavor makes this cake taste like a rich dessert. The glaze includes lemon juice to bring out the tartness.

Old Southern Sugar Cake is a simple sponge cake that doesn’t need any toppings, but I usually sprinkle some powdered sugar and add fresh fruit as a garnish.

I make it in a cast iron pan to keep it just dense enough that I can eat it without needing a fork.

Dessert doesn’t have to be just cakes and pies—why not make Georgia Peach Ice Cream?

Use fresh peaches for the most flavorful option. Puree the fruit with cream and sugar, then add condensed milk and vanilla to make mouth-watering ice cream.

Check out our favorite ice cream makers to use!