10 quick or prep ahead desserts to make this summer

The sun is shining, the weather is sweet and so are the puddings we’re bringing out for our family and friends…

From a leisurely barbecue with your neighbours, to laidback mezze-style dishes to share when catching up with old friends, summer is the perfect time for foodie get-togethers.

But when it’s warm outside, we don’t want to spend hours getting even hotter in the kitchen. Which is why summertime desserts often end up being a tub of shop-bought ice cream. There’s nothing wrong with that, but here are 10 quick or prep ahead alternatives for when you do want to make an effort…

Special but speedy

1. Eton mess

Strawberries, freshly whipped cream and meringue; this is the epitome of a summer dessert. And it’s quick to pull together.

There’s no shame in buying supermarket meringue nests and then it’s just a case of breaking them up a little and mixing in your chopped strawberries and cream. Job done.

You can give it your own twist too. Anthony Worrell Thompson’s easy Eton mess recipe, sees him mash strawberries with a dash of sugar and port before adding to the cream and meringue mix. While James Martin adds a little ginger cordial to his Eton mess.

If you’re not a purist, you can even change the fruit. This totally tropical Eton mess swaps strawberries for mango and passion fruit.

Alternatively, swap the cream for natural yoghurt and make a lighter Eton mess.

2. Chocolate mousse

A light, bubbly chocolate mousse makes the perfect end to a meal.

They take just minutes to make but also, annoyingly if you’re in a hurry, a couple of hours to set. However, there are ways to speed up the process. Nigella’s chocolate olive oil mousse requires just a 20 min set time.

Nadiya Hussain’s chocolate hazelnut mousse uses chocolate hazelnut spread and cornflour in her mix to great effect and requires no setting time.

Instead of eggs or cream there are other ingredients which give a silky consistency, quickly. This quick avocado chocolate mousse and vegan chocolate mousse (which features silken tofu) require very little setting time.

3. Fruit skewers and salads

Fruit is the ultimate quick dessert. This is how to quickly turn it into something special.

Fruit skewers make a playful end to any meal. These fruit kebabs come with a home-made chocolate dipping sauce but it takes a matter of minutes to make.

Another alternative and quick end to any meal is simply chocolate covered strawberries.

4. Instant ice creams and sorbets

Bags of frozen fruit are now a supermarket staple and they’re often far cheaper than fresh fruit. Transform them into speedy desserts by blitzing them together in a food processer with a small amount of water and a little honey or syrup to sweeten. Adding frozen banana to any mix will give it a creamy texture too.

For instant banana ice cream, you just need to put your frozen bananas into a food processor and serve. However, you could add extra flavourings – cocoa powder to make it chocolate banana ice cream, or a little double cream and syrup to make it a rich ice cream – as this recipe for instant banana ice cream highlights.

Alternatively, if you don’t have frozen fruit, you could use fresh and then mix with yoghurt and ice cubes, as this recipe for instant frozen yoghurt shows. You’ll just need to make sure your blender/food processor is up to the task.

Prep ahead options

5. No-bake cheesecakes

From a sweet and summery strawberry cheesecake to an easy chocolate cheesecake, or a rich white chocolate cheesecake there are no shortages of cheesecake options.

Want to create a wow-effect? A no-bake speculoos biscuit cheesecake can be made a day in advance, you’ll just want to decorate it (which will take five minutes), before serving.

Vegans don’t need to feel left out, there are brilliant options including lemon and blueberry vegan cheesecake,vegan Black Forest cheesecake and vegan lemon cheesecake.

6. Pavlova

Make the base of your pavlova ahead of time and then, it’s just a case of piling it high with toppings before serving.

You could opt for a tangy Caribbean pavlova which sees pineapple and mango mellowed by cream and toffee sauce, or go for the Hairy Bikers’ simple but massive giant pavlova.

Nigella is the queen of pavlovas and it’s hard to beat her lemon pavlova or her cappuccino pavlova.

Forgo the eggs in the meringue mix for aquafaba (the water from a tin of chickpeas) and enjoy a vegan pavlova.

7. No-churn ice cream

Mary Berry’s an expert in easy-to-make ice creams and has a base recipe for no-churn ice cream which comes with a variety of flavour options including, vanilla, ginger and rum and raisin.

Alternatively, why not try a summer berry no-churn ice cream or make Nadiya’s Kulfi ice cream bars.

Nigella’s got a couple of winning flavour options too, no-churn cheesecake ice cream with cherries jubilee and one-step no-churn coffee ice cream.

8. Possets

It doesn’t come easier than this. Simply heat cream and sugar together before whisking in lemon juice, then leave to set.This easy lemon posset really is, erm easy.

A lot of chefs add biscuits to their posset recipes, Paul Hollywood makes lemon and lavender posset with lavender biscuits, James Martin opts for lemon posset with lemon shortbread and Tom Kerridge goes for lemon posset with fennel biscotti. All great for making ahead.

9. Blondies

Everyone knows brownies are a sure-fire hit, but in summer blondies come into their own.

For a simple but effective option, these white chocolate blondies are crisp, fudgy and chewy all at the same time.You can top with them with any flavourings you like. We particularly love these raspberry blondies.

Want an alternative to white chocolate? Go for peanut butter blondies.

10. Tiramisu

Tiramisu tastes better the longer it sits in the fridge, making it a brilliant prep ahead option.

Rick Stein’s tiramisu was inspired by a visit to Venice where he was impressed by them being served in cocktail glasses. Nigella’s Tiramisini are also served in the same way and if you forgot to make it in advance this is the recipe to go for as it only takes 20 minutes to set.

For a special occasion, you’ll want to make Mary Berry’s Tiramisu cake which comes with four layers of filling.

You could also make a vegan tiramisu using cashews as an alternative to cream.

Originally published July 2024