16 Tasty Passover Desserts for Your Holiday Table

Flourless Rhubarb Cake Recipe
Photo: Photo by Jennifer Causey / Food Styling by Rishon Hanners / Prop Styling by Sarah Elizabeth Cleveland

An impressive dessert is the perfect way to round out your Passover Seder. Here, we've gathered a collection of delicious recipes that can easily be tailored to accommodate any dietary restrictions you observe for the holiday. Swap in pareve margarine for butter in desserts such as Mixed Berry Crisp with Matzo Streusel, and try topping it with plant-based ice cream, for example. If you avoid eating kitniyot — an ingredient category that includes foods such as rice and some seeds — you'll find several dessert options to suit the holiday, too. From vibrant coconut custards to dairy-free and gluten-free Lemon-Almond Cake with Roasted Rhubarb, these treats go beyond the usual macaroons (although you'll surely want to try Coconut Macaroon Brownies). Read on for all our best Passover dessert ideas to start planning your Seder finale.

01 of 16

Fun and Fancy Macarons

Holiday Macarons
Photo by Sarah Crowder / Food Styling by Drew Aichele

To add an extra-festive holiday touch to macarons, pastry chef Paola Velez paints them with several different colors of edible shimmering luster dust. As for the filling? Pick from homemade dark chocolate ganache, or store-bought jam, apple butter, or firm caramel sauce. The macarons can be made in advance and frozen; wait to fill them until ready to serve.

02 of 16

Chocolate-Hazelnut Matzo Cake

Chocolate Hazelnut Matzoh Cake

Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Torie Cox / Prop Styling by Josh Hoggle

This icebox cake layers liqueur-soaked matzo crackers with chocolate ganache and toasted hazelnuts for a Passover-friendly dessert. This recipe comes from Rochelle Cooper of The Duck and the Peach in Washington, D.C. It’s a family recipe she used to make with her mother for their Passover Seder, and it's a delicious option anytime you want an easy, flavorful, no-bake dessert.

03 of 16

Pistachio-Rose Brittle

Pistachio Rose Brittle
Photo by Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Torie Cox / Prop Styling by Christine Keely

Quality saffron is key to both the flavor and color of this vibrant, crisp brittle that has great crunch. A striking contrast of green pistachios and pink rose petals makes it a visual treat, too.

04 of 16

Lemon-Almond Cake with Roasted Rhubarb

Flourless Rhubarb Cake Recipe
Photo by Jennifer Causey / Food Styling by Rishon Hanners / Prop Styling by Sarah Elizabeth Cleveland

This tender, lemon-scented almond cake is topped with roasted rhubarb, but is equally delicious with any kind of fresh or roasted fruit, like roasted strawberries, fresh orange segments, or roasted plums. Since the cake doesn't contain any wheat flour, it's ideal for those who'd like to avoid gluten, and it's especially versatile for Passover since it's also dairy-free.

05 of 16

Coconut Macaroon Brownies

Coconut Macaroon Brownies
Photo by Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Paige Grandjean and Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Christine Keely

Super-rich, fudgy brownies meet chewy, sweet macaroons in this gorgeous gluten-free mash-up of two crowd-pleasing desserts.

06 of 16

Tropical Jackfruit–Ginger Ale Sorbet with Charred Pineapple

Tropical Jackfruit Ginger Ale Sorbet with Charred Pineapple
Photo by Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Margaret Monroe Dickey / Prop Styling by Claire Spollen

Chef Sam Fore of the pop-up Tuk Tuk Sri Lankan Bites in Lexington, Kentucky, created this fruit dessert recipe for an icy sorbet of jackfruit, pineapple, and ginger ale. Any good-quality, spicy ginger ale or ginger beer will work well in this recipe, Fore says, "but when it comes to the jackfruit, it's important to get jackfruit in syrup, which is sweet, and not jackfruit in brine, which is savory."

07 of 16

Dark Chocolate Bark with Roasted Almonds and Seeds

Dark Chocolate Bark with Roasted Almonds and Seeds

Julia Hartbeck

This super-chunky dark chocolate bark from chocolatier Jacques Torres only requires a few ingredients — dark chocolate, roasted whole almonds, and salted roasted sunflower and pumpkin seeds. If you're avoiding kitniyot, replace the sunflower seeds with additional pumpkin seeds or nuts.

08 of 16

Quindim (Brazilian Coconut Egg Custards)

Brazilian Egg Custards
Photo by Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Torie Cox / Prop Styling by Audrey Davis

These Brazilian treats feature a rich eggy custard and a chewy coconut crust. Both crust and custard come from a single batter: The macaroon-like crust forms as the shredded coconut floats and browns while baking; once cooled, the desserts are inverted, revealing the shiny, bright custard layer.

09 of 16

Chewy, Fudgy Almond Butter and Palm Sugar Cookies

Chewy-Fudgy Almond Butter and Palm Sugar Cookies

Christopher Testani / Food Styling by Chelsea Zimmer / Prop Styling by Claire Spollen

These almond butter cookies are chewy and fudgy, with bits of crunch around the edges from nuggets of melted, pooled palm sugar. They're naturally gluten-free and almost chocolaty — without containing any chocolate!

10 of 16

Bananas Foster

Bananas Foster

Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Torie Cox / Prop Styling by Josh Hoggle

These bananas cooked with a citrusy brown sugar and rum sauce and topped with crispy pecans are so good, we eat this dessert straight from the pan. It can easily be made with margarine and served with non-dairy ice cream.

11 of 16

Mixed Berry Crisp with Matzo Streusel

Matzo Berry Crisp
Abby Hocking

Sweet-tart berries, tossed with just enough sugar and lemon juice, are topped with salty-sweet crumbled matzos for the perfect springtime (and Passover-friendly!) dessert.

12 of 16

Vegan Chocolate-Chipotle Ice Cream

Vegan Chocolate Chipotle Ice Cream
Photo by Greg DuPree / Food Styling by Victoria Granof / Prop Styling by Christine Keely

This recipe is 100% vegan, but you would never know it: It's rich and decadent, like frozen ganache, with a bit of smoky tang from the chipotles. Chef and ice cream maker Fany Gerson opts for a combination of both non-dairy milk (she likes oat or rice, but you can sub your favorite alternative) and coconut yogurt.

13 of 16

Strawberry Almond Cheesecake with Matzo Crust

Strawberry Almond Cheesecake with Matzo Crust
Abby Hocking

This silky cheesecake gets sweetness and tang from a blend of cream cheese and sour cream. Matzo meal and ground almonds replace the usual graham crackers in the crust for a nutty, toasty crunch. Topped with strawberries and almond slivers, this cake makes a beautiful centerpiece. If you're keeping kosher, you can make a few easy ingredient swaps for the dairy products and almond extract.

14 of 16

Pavlovas with Passion Fruit Curd

Pavlovas with Passion Fruit Curd
© Con Poulos

For this sunny dessert, egg whites are whipped into meringue clouds while the yolks enrich and thicken tangy passion fruit curd. Make both components ahead of time, then fill the meringues with the curd right before serving.

15 of 16

Gluten-Free Lemon Drizzle Cake

Gluten-Free Lemon Drizzle Cake
© Phoebe Lapine

This classic British loaf cake is incredibly moist because it's made with olive oil instead of butter, which also gives the batter a rich golden color. Lemon drizzle dresses up the cake for company; feel free to omit the poppy seeds.

16 of 16

Sweet Wine Sabayon with Berries

Sweet Wine Sabayon with Berries
© Frances Janisch

Fresh berries paired with a sweet wine-infused custard make for a simple yet ethereal dessert. You'll need a bit less than a cup of wine for this recipe; Elijah by Manischewitz Moscato is a great kosher option.

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