26 Best Southern Desserts
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This post is a one-stop-shop for Southern dessert lovers who crave a good old-fashioned sweet treat.
What are Southern desserts?
Southern desserts are classic after-dinner favorites primarily from the Southern US states.
These Southern desserts include down South classics and favorite African-American dessert recipes, like:
- Black folks Southern banana pudding
- Black folks Southern bread pudding
- Black folks sweet potato pie recipe
- Black folks Southern peach cobbler recipe
- Black folks Southern tea cake recipe
- Soul food apple pie recipe
- Pie crust cookies Southern desserts
- Southern soul food pig pickin cake
- Black folks Southern red velvet cake recipe
- Southern desserts strawberry rhubarb pie
… and more!

How do you make Southern desserts?
These aren’t your average Southern desserts.
When possible, I’ve used an Instant Pot pressure cooker or the Instant Pot Omni Plus oven to make the same Southern comfort food desserts with buttery-rich flavors in a fraction of the traditional time!
Your taste buds will be delighted by these tried and true traditional desserts – now quicker and easier to make.
Why not add some Southern flair to your meal?
These are recipes for the same classic Southern desserts – with a new contemporary twist!
There’s Black folks banana pudding and Instant Pot banana pudding made from scratch. Strawberry pretzel salad – also known as strawberry pretzel pie.
Little Southern desserts called pie crust cookies, and of course strawberry rhubarb pie.
And the list goes on and on, from an Instant Pot banana bread loaf to purple sweet potato pie!
- Southern pig pickin cake
Delight your family and friends with a Southern soul food pig pickin cake – the only mandarin orange-infused cake with pineapple frosting!
- Pie crust cookies Southern desserts
What’s better than cookies? How about cute little pie crust ones! Heavenly, crispy, and flaky pie crust cookie bites. Get the best flavors of each season in every bite.
- Black folks Southern peach cobbler recipe
Southern peach cobbler is an iconic Southern dessert first created with biscuit dough, dropped over sliced peaches, and placed at the bottom of an iron pot. It was baked in an open hearth, cooking over hot coals for… Presto – peach cobbler!
- Southern Living chocolate lava cake recipe
How to make chocolate lava cakes at home!
- Instant Pot Southern banana pudding from scratch
Pudding desserts in Southern style. Why not?
Instant Pot Banana pudding is a Southern dessert specialty that everyone should know how to make from scratch. I’ve made it even easier to learn how with this Instant Pot recipe.
- Southern ambrosia salad
Most Southern ambrosia recipes contain canned fruit or fresh fruit like Dole pineapple chunks, canned mandarin or navel orange slices, miniature marshmallows, whipped cream, cream cheese, and coconut flakes.
- Strawberry pretzel salad
This Southern dessert isn’t just any salad; it’s the new queen of salads! A classic Southern dessert and a decadent dish called a salad. Probably because it won’t leave you feeling weighed down as many heavy desserts do!
- Lemon meltaway cookies
The days are long, the sky is blue, and lemon meltaway cookies remind you of everything that tastes lemon juice zesty and new! So if you want to serve the most popular cookie in the South, make this ultimate Southern cookie treat.
- Strawberry rhubarb pie
The strawberry-rhubarb filling provides tart flavor, with sweet notes balanced by a crust that’s crunchy around the edges yet still tender in the middle. It’s very symbolic of what Spring has to offer. This pie will have you looking forward to warmer days that have arrived.
- Lemon zucchini bread
This classic bread is a perfect light dessert, snack, or even a quick breakfast. Made with an all-natural blend of zucchini and lemon zest, the bread comes out full of flavor and is perfect for any occasion!
- Instant Pot banana bread
Banish the days of dry and flavorless quick bread! Instant Pot banana bread puts a stop to bland bakery loaves with ultra-moist banana goodness within an hour!

Traditional African American desserts
What do African-Americans eat for dessert?
Check out these best recipes for some of what Black folks include as part of our soul food Southern desserts menu.
- Black folks Southern banana pudding
Why would you serve another type of pudding when it could be Black folks Southern banana pudding?
This mouth-watering recipe has been tempting Southerners for generations with ingredients like cream cheese and vanilla wafer cookies. There’s nothing like this Southern dessert recipe’s whipped creamy texture and sweet taste.
- Black folks chocolate Southern banana pudding recipe
- Black folks Southern bread pudding
- Black folks baked apples
Is it a dessert or a side dish? Of course, it’s 100% a dessert if you add vanilla ice cream! But you can let guests decide the role of this conversation starter recipe at your next Thanksgiving dinner or Christmas feast!!
- Soul food apple pie recipe
This sweet soul food apple pie recipe is not difficult to make, and any beginner can master it.
- Black folks Southern soul food carrot cake
- Cranberry sauce cornbread
It’s the best of both worlds with this recipe! A combination of Black folks’ fresh cranberry sauce and Black folks’ homemade cornbread.
Also, check out this recipe for how to make fresh cranberry sauce even easier in an Instant Pot!
- Black folks red velvet cake

- Black folks sweet potato pie
Black folks’ deep-south sweet potato pie is somewhere between a Southern candied yam and an old-fashioned gingersnap!
- Purple sweet potato pie
Try Black folks sweet potato pie’s contemporary cousin made with Stokes purple sweet potatoes!
- Wakanda food purple sweet potato pie
- Southern sweet potato pie
What makes this sweet potato pie Southern? It’s the addition of the smooth velvety cream cheese frosting!
- Black folks Southern pecan pie recipe
- Soul food almond flour pie crust
An almond flour pie crust is so easy to make, just like a regular pie crust. Even if you don’t have any baking experience at all, trust me, you’ll be able to whip this up in minutes!
- Black folks Southern tea cakes
- Cranberry brie bites
What do you think about this best Southern desserts recipes list?
What’s your favorite Southern dessert recipe here?
If you like this recipe roundup, then you’ll love these Black folks best cornbread dressing recipes & best soul food cornbread recipe roundup HERE.
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Equipment
- 9×13 baking dish
Ingredients
- 3 bananas ripe & sliced into 1″ discs
- 8 oz. whipped cream 1 container
- 8 oz. cream cheese 1 container, whipped
- 4.6 oz. vanilla pudding 1 box of cook & serve
- 11 oz. Nilla Wafers 1 box and ¼ cup of crumbled Nilla Wafers cookies
Instructions
- Make the instant pudding according to the pudding mixture instructions and set it aside in the refrigerator.
- In a medium-sized bowl, mix the whipped topping and cream cheese and set aside.
- Line the bottom and sides of a 9×13 baking pan with Nilla Wafer cookies.
- Add a layer of banana slices over the Nilla Wafers.
- Using a small spatula, spread the vanilla pudding evenly over the bananas.
- Add a layer of the whipped topping and cream cheese mixture over the layer of pudding.
- Sprinkle the ¼ cup of crumbled cookies all over the top layer of whipped cream.
- Allow the banana pudding to chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- This recipe can be made per the instructions and transferred to individual baking cups, ramekins or mason jars.

- Want to make just half of this recipe, or need to make more or less banana pudding?


My sweet tooth is craving from all these desserts! LOL