16 Best Desserts to Make With Frozen Fruit
Fresh pies, cobblers, and sorbets start in the freezer.
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There's just something about fruit desserts. Maybe it's the ease of highlighting and enjoying their natural sweetness. Or maybe it's because they all taste so darn good with a scoop of ice cream! Either way, when they're in season, there's nothing better than summer desserts bursting with fresh flavor, like a berry dessert that requires an extra napkin (in the best way possible).
But here's the thing: You don't always need fresh fruit on hand. Maybe it isn't in season or it just doesn't look so hot at the store. Or maybe you just don't feel like peeling fuzz and fighting with pits for a peach dessert. There are plenty of desserts made from frozen fruit that can not only taste just as good, but in some cases, taste even better than fresh. That's because fruit is frozen at its peak freshness, so you have a better chance at getting the best flavor possible.
Now, not all fruit desserts can use one-to-one swaps. If a recipe doesn't specifically call out frozen fruit, make sure you read the recipe notes to see if you can make the swap. When in doubt, avoid using frozen fruit when fresh fruit is required to decorate or appear in nice slices or whole like a fruit tart. Or just refer to this list! These 16 dessert recipes use frozen fruit or can easily swap it in, guaranteed to give you sweet goodness straight from your freezer any time of year.
Peach-Raspberry Crisp
You'll find a lot of crisps, crumbles, and cobblers on this list. That's because frozen fruit often loses its shape and releases more juices, but all that gets covered and enjoyed even more when baked.
Get the Peach-Raspberry Crisp recipe.
Strawberry Sorbet
Another excellent vehicle for frozen fruit is a frozen dessert! Sorbets are meant to highlight the intense flavor of a fruit, so what's better than fruit that's frozen at its peak?
Get the Strawberry Sorbet recipe.
Blackberry Cobbler
There are a few ways to make cobbler. This version is cake-like and tender. If you use frozen berries, let them thaw and then pat them dry before you sprinkle them over the batter.
Get Ree's Blackberry Cobbler recipe.
Blueberry Crumble
Frozen blueberries are some of the easiest fruits to use because they defrost so quickly. Nothing highlights their juiciness quite like a crumble with a brown sugary, oat topping and a touch of cinnamon.
Get the Blueberry Crumble recipe.
Mango Pie
You can make this no-bake dessert even easier if you use frozen mango. That's because it comes pre-chopped, so you can skip the steps of peeling and pitting the mangoes!
Get Ree's Mango Pie recipe.
Apple-Raspberry Crisp With Pistachios
Apples and raspberries are in season together for such a short time. But you can use frozen raspberries all year round for this jewel-toned beauty of a dessert.
Get Ree's Apple-Raspberry Crisp With Pistachios recipe.
Homemade Dole Whip
Frozen pineapple is the key to making the homemade version of one of the most popular desserts at any Disney theme park. And are you ready for this? It only takes three minutes of prep time!
Get the Homemade Dole Whip recipe.
Blueberry Scones with Vanilla Icing
You don't need to defrost frozen blueberries when you make these scones. In fact, they actually help keep the dough cold, which is key to the flaky yet tender scone texture.
Get Ree's Blueberry Scones with Vanilla Icing recipe.
Cherry Crumb Pie
If you want to make anything with cherries out of season, frozen is the best way to go. Bonus: It’ll save you the hassle of needing to pit two pounds of cherries for this pie.
Get Ree's Cherry Crumb Pie recipe.
Rhubarb Crisp
Rhubarb has such a short season! But you can get the flavor of late spring all year if you defrost some frozen rhubarb and make this crisp. Try it with strawberry ice cream!
Get Ree's Rhubarb Crisp recipe.
Mango Sorbet
Use frozen mango chunks and skip the ice cream maker. All you have to do is whiz them in a food processor with agave syrup and lime juice for this refreshing treat.
Get the Mango Sorbet recipe.
Cherry Crisp
Do you want to pit six cups of cherries by hand or would you rather let frozen ones defrost and have the work done for you? If you answered the latter, you're a step ahead for this dessert.
Get the Cherry Crisp recipe.
Peach Crumble
Skip the peeling and slicing and use frozen peaches any time of year. Just add a little extra lemon juice and sugar to the mixture to pump up the flavor.
Get the Peach Crumble recipe.
Strawberry Cobbler
The key to nailing the texture of this cobbler when using frozen strawberries is to let them thaw completely and drain the liquid in a colander before proceeding. No soupy cobbler here, just maximum flavor!
Get the Strawberry Cobbler recipe.
Cherry Sherbet
In the land of frozen desserts, somewhere between dairy-free sorbet and intensely rich ice cream lives sherbet. It also happens to be an excellent location to place a pound of cherries!
Get Ree's Cherry Sherbet recipe.
Peach Dumplings
The secret to these dumplings comes from a can of lemon-lime soda! But of course, they wouldn't be peach flavored without some frozen peach slices, too.
Get Ree's Peach Dumplings recipe.
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