20 Sugar-Free Dessert Recipes
Say goodbye to processed white sugar—stevia, maple syrup, erythritol, and coconut sugar are here to save the day.
We here at Delish are all about “everything in moderation”, so while we’re likely not cutting out sugar from our diets completely (though we’ve tried keto and low-carb diets and totally support those who follow them), there are definitely times we want to lower our sugar intake. When we’re feeling low on energy or are having too many cravings, we know it’s time to turn to sugar-free desserts. Whatever your reasoning, if you’re looking for refined sugar-free sweet treats, this list is for you!
A number of desserts on this list skip white sugar in lieu of sugar substitutes like maple syrup, honey, or coconut sugar. We like these because they don’t spike your blood sugar levels as much as white sugar, and they often have more complex flavors. In our almond cake, for example, maple syrup compliments olive oil and citrus in a way regular sugar wouldn’t. Our paleo brownies use coconut sugar and honey to help give them their extra fudgy texture. Honey also plays a role in our classic fruit salad too—we know, we know, fruit's kind of a sugar-free no-brainer, but we promise, the honey-orange dressing we drizzle on top is worth checking out.
Looking to cut out carbohydrates completely? While we don’t always love the carbohydrate-free sugar substitutes out there, our two favorites are stevia (Truvia is our favorite brand) and erithyritol (Swerve is our favorite brand). While you can usually swap Swerve in cup-for-cup for sugar, stevia is much sweeter than sugar so you’ll want to use it in moderation. Our keto cheesecake, for example, only uses 1 tablespoon! Try Swerve in our keto birthday cake (the coconut flake sprinkles are SO cute) or keto ice cream. They’re perfect for sugar-free celebrations.
Another surprise ingredient in a number of our favorite sugar-free desserts? Avocados! They add incredible creaminess, and don’t make the final product taste savory at all. Try it in our avocado pops (dipped in chocolate, yum), chocolate mousse, or chocolate truffles. You may be tempted to sneak the fatty green fruit into desserts all the time!
For more sugar-free desserts, check out our keto and paleo dessert lists too.
Keto Birthday Cake
Calling all Funfetti lovers! Finding sugar-free sprinkles (or making your own) can be a major hassle. But this clever coconut flake hack is easy, fun, and just as impressive. We're big fans of a cream cheese chocolate frosting for this recipe, but if you'd like something more classic (like, vanilla buttercream), try our best-ever keto frosting instead.
Get the Keto Birthday Cake recipe.
Chia Pudding
We like our chia pudding topped with fresh fruit—juicy berries, sweet bananas, or fragrant pears work great—and crunchy granola, but feel free to go crazy with your favorite toppings! Dried fruit, yogurt, nut butters, and sugar-free jams are all equally delicious mix-ins.
Get the Chia Pudding recipe.
Keto Avocado Pops
These avocado popsicles are delicious even if you're not keto, but feel free to sub maple syrup or agave if you don't need these to be low-carb.
Get the Keto Avocado Pops recipe.
Keto Peanut Butter Cup Fat Bombs
If you love chocolate + peanut butter (and who doesn't?!), then these fat bombs are for you! They're just as good as Reese's.
Best Almond Cake
This is one of those gluten-free and dairy-free recipes that we turn to again and again — it's that good. Plus it's sweetened with maple, so it's great if you're avoiding processed sugar too. If you're crazy about citrus, go heavy on the zest (any type!) and your cake will shine like the sun.
Get the Best Almond Cake recipe.
Peanut Butter Protein Balls
When you need a little energy boost, these peanut butter bits will give you new life. We wanted these protein balls to taste a little bit like cookie dough (😈), so we added some mini dark chocolate chips. Skip them if you want!
Get the Peanut Butter Protein Balls recipe.
Keto Chocolate Truffles
These keto truffles are surprisingly decadent. The secret ingredient? Avocados!
Get the Keto Chocolate Truffles recipe.
Fudgy Paleo Brownies
The secret ingredient to making these EXTRA decadent, even though they're processed-sugar-free? Adding 1/2 cup almond butter to the egg-coconut sugar mixture makes these brownies intensely rich, and you end up using less oil too. Win!
Get the Fudgy Paleo Brownies recipe.
Chocolate Covered Strawberries
We know these aren't candy, but when warm weather strawberries return for spring, we think they taste just as sweet. Use your favorite store-bought or homemade sugar-free chocolate chips.
Best-Ever Açaí Bowl
Brazilian açaí bowls are one of our favorite breakfasts and desserts. We usually go topped with fruit for the morning, and add nut butter and cacao nibs for an after-dinner treat. Our topping here works well anytime of day (make extra for snacking too!)
Get the Best-Ever Açaí Bowl recipe.
Chocolate Mousse
This keto and paleo mousse gets its rich, creamy texture from avocados. If you're a little wary of using them in desserts, we promise its amazing.
Get the Chocolate Mousse recipe.
Keto Cheesecake
This version is creamy, rich, and tangy, just like the traditional cheesecake you know and love. With just a few easy swaps—almond and coconut flour in the crust, keto-friendly sweetener instead of sugar in the cheesecake mixture—you'll be transported to sugar-free heaven.
Get the Keto Cheesecake recipe.
Fruit Salad
Really? A recipe for fruit salad? Yes, you need it. Because this simple dressing takes strawberries, raspberries, and mangoes to a whole new level. Sweet syrupy honey, fresh tart orange juice, and bright lemon zest come together to elevate your fruit (even if they're out of season) to new heights.
Get the Fruit Salad recipe.
Keto Ice Cream
This keto-friendly ice cream is creamy, rich, and just barely sweet. Feel free to up the Swerve sweetener a little, but in our opinion, the coconut milk makes is decadent enough. This vanilla base is perfect for mix-ins too!
Get the Keto Ice Cream recipe.
Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies
There's no wheat or gluten or artificial sweeteners here! We swapped out the all-purpose flour and granulated sugar found in traditional chocolate chip cookies for almond flour and honey.
Get the Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe.
Chocolate Cuties
You already know about chocolate-covered strawberries, but have you tried chocolate-dipped oranges? Use your favorite store-bought or homemade sugar-free chocolate chips.
Get the Chocolate Cuties recipe.
Pumpkin Pie Energy Balls
These perfect little bites of energy will help you curb cravings for something sweet when you really need something. Made with oats, coconut, almond butter, and pumpkin puree, they're totally healthy and satisfying.
Get the Pumpkin Pie Energy Balls recipe.
Avocado Fudge Bites
We like to make a big batch of these when we've got too many ripe avocados—we store them in the freezer so we always have a honey-sweetened treat ready when a sugar craving hits.
Get the Avocado Fudge Bites recipe.
Death By Chocolate N'ice Cream
This fudgy nice cream is so delicious... it's BANANAS. When we're craving something chocolatey but don't want extra processed sugar, naturally sweet bananas and cocoa powder combine to save the day. We added some maple syrup here, but feel free to less or skip it if you want!
PB&J Cups
These delicious peanut butter cups are the perfect thing to always have in your freezer for when a sugar craving hits. They only need 4 ingredients—peanut butter, coconut oil, sugar-free jam, and — so you can easily make a bunch and save them for later!
Get the PB&J Cups recipe.
Camille Lowder is the digital food producer at Delish, otherwise known as our resident queen of recipe galleries. Previously, she attended the Natural Gourmet Institute for culinary school and worked at/managed a number of New York restaurants. She loves anything vegan, foods masquerading as other foods (hello, cauliflower), and a well-used Oxford comma.
