Ridiculously Good Desserts You'd Never Know Were Vegan

This chocolate cake lives firmly in the “bring it to every gathering and guard the recipe with your life” category. It’s a one-bowl situation (already winning) and deeply chocolatey, with that unapologetically moist texture thanks to the sneaky trick of boiling water.

Nutty, lightly sweet and just rich enough, they’re made with a short, no-nonsense ingredient list and come together without much effort. They pair just as well with your morning coffee as they do as a pick-me-up treat after your third Zoom call of the day.

Think of this one like the Avengers of desserts. Chocolate, espresso and salted caramel are all delicious solo acts but work much better as a team, assembling to save the world (or at least your taste buds). Bring this out and people will assume you’re “really into dessert now.”

Life is way too short for dry, crumbly, “this is fine” brownies. Rich, fudgy, chewy and blessed with that shiny, crinkled top people get oddly emotional about, these decadent brownies are very likely to ruin other brownies for you.

If you assumed red velvet was off the table once dairy left the chat, this cake would like a word. It’s rich, lightly chocolatey and topped with proper cream cheese frosting, all without the beetle-based coloring (a fact you may now regret learning).

’Tis the season for slow cookers, and this recipe alone justifies the counter space. This crockpot chocolate lava cake is Taylor Swift-level rich and unapologetically gooey, with a molten center that makes a strong argument for dessert-first thinking.

Rich chocolate cream and soft layers, with the option to include coffee and alcohol (your call, though one of those choices is obviously more fun). Serve this tiramisu in a glass or a big dish and let people assume you went full Italian nonna for the afternoon.

These vegan lemon squares are doing exactly what they’re supposed to do with their buttery base and tart lemon top. Simple, unfussy and proof that lemon desserts deserve more respect. If this doesn’t win you over, lemon was never the problem.

Crème brûlée without cream or eggs sounds like a technicality worth questioning, and yet here we are. This vegan version is smooth, silky and deeply satisfying, finished with a proper crackly sugar top and banana chips for a little texture and restraint-free indulgence.

Get the recipe here!

Carrot cake already lives in the grey area between dessert and justification, and this one leans all the way in. No flour, no refined sugar and a creamy cashew icing that will absolutely distract you from noticing either of those facts.