18 Easter Desserts That Are Better Than Candy

Made with ordinary limes, this “Key lime” pie tastes every bit as authentic as the real deal — plus it’s easier to make.

Unlike most carrot cakes, which are heavy and dense, this one is light with a fine texture. The secret is finely chopping the carrots in a food processor to the consistency of couscous rather than grating them.

With this recipe, a creamy, gorgeous, crack-free New York-style cheesecake is totally doable, even for beginners!

A classic breakfast cake is one of the handiest things to have in your baking repertoire, and this sour cream coffee cake from the famous Zingerman’s Bakehouse in Ann Arbor, MI is one of the very best.

You can never go wrong with chocolate and peanut butter. With a chocolate cookie crust, creamy peanut butter layer, and smooth-as-silk milk chocolate topping, these squares are truly over the top.

Dense and creamy with a hint of lemon and a crisp brown sugar-graham cracker crust, these bars are not only a cinch to make, they rival the very best NY cheesecake out there.

Pound cake is like the little black dress of dessert: it’s elegant in its simplicity; you can dress it up or down; and it’s wonderful anytime, anywhere.

Thought Rice Krispies Treats couldn’t get any better? Wrong! These are made with browned butter, extra salt, and a secret ingredient that makes them taste toasty and caramel-y.

With a crisp and buttery shortbread crust, luscious lemon filling, and dusting of powdered sugar, these lemon squares are as pretty as they are delicious. They also freeze beautifully, so you can make them ahead of time and defrost as needed.

This warm banana cake drizzled with hot toffee sauce and topped with sliced bananas and pecans is a fresh take on the classic English dessert sticky toffee pudding.

My son calls these biscotti “crunchy brownies.” When you dunk them in coffee, they soften, becoming rich, chocolaty and decadent.

Part cookie, part brownie — who doesn’t love blondies? And the best part is that they’re ridiculously easy to make: less ingredients than cookies and easier than brownies because there’s no chocolate to melt.

With a coconut-scented cookie crust and creamy coconut custard, all covered in a pillow of whipped cream and heaps of toasted coconut, this pie is truly dream-worthy.

Made with cream cheese, ricotta cheese and a ground almond crust, the cake is a hybrid between an American-style cheesecake and an Italian-style cheesecake. The tart sweetness of the raspberries is the perfect contrast to the cake, which isn’t overly sweet.

Chocolate and Nutella-swirled babka makes a crave-worthy treat any time of day.

Learn how to make baklava, the layered phyllo pastry filled with chopped walnuts and soaked in a fragrant honey syrup.

This marble cake may look fancy, but its flavor is pure old-fashioned goodness.

Adapted from Melissa Weller, this chocolate chip ricotta cake has a rich flavor and an impossibly moist texture.