Can’t make it to Dublin to celebrate St. Paddy’s Day? No worries: You can still claim the luck of the Irish in your own kitchen. Even after you’ve had your fill of soda bread and corned beef, you’ll want to make room for sweet treats like green doughnuts, chocolate stout cake, Guinness brownies and a potato candy that has nothing to do with spuds. Here, 48 St. Patrick’s Day desserts that are better than a pot of gold.
48 St. Patrick’s Day Desserts, from Guinness Brownies to Irish Cream Tiramisu
Save room for Irish potatoes
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Published Mar 5, 2024
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Photo: Mark Weinberg/Styling: Erin McDowell
Erin McDowell
1. Baileys Cookies and Cream Parfait
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, special occasion–worthy
Save the yogurt and fruit parfaits for Easter. These layered desserts are just boozy enough, thanks to a generous splash of Irish cream. (Sorry, kiddos, this one is adults only.)
Photo: Mark Weinberg/Styling: Erin McDowell
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why I Love It: no cook, crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly
This regional confection is popular in Philadelphia around St. Patrick’s Day. The sweet bites are called potatoes because they look like potatoes—but they taste like a fancy Mounds candy bar coated with cinnamon instead of chocolate.
Erin McDowell
- Time Commitment: 2 hours, 15 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
Sure, Valentine’s Day gets all the love when it comes to decadent desserts, but let’s not overlook the fact that Guinness and chocolate make a delightful pair. Luck of the Irish, indeed.
Erin McDowell
- Time Commitment: 3 hours, 20 minutes
- Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly
Essentially an “adult” slushy, we love the idea of serving this frozen treat as an alternative to after-dinner espressos. Even better, it calls for just six ingredients.
Erin McDowell
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 40 minutes
- Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly
Requiring only five ingredients and two hours of your time, you’ll be set with a gourmet dessert and still have time to binge watch Darby O’Gill and the Little People.
Photo: Mark Weinberg/Styling: Erin McDowell
6. No-Churn Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream
- Time Commitment: 5 hours
- Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, kid-friendly, gluten free
No one will pinch you if you present them with a bowl of this minty green ice cream. And FYI, if you can make whipped cream, you’re halfway there.
A Cookie Named Desire
7. Irish Apple Cake with Whiskey Crème Anglaise
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 20 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
If you’re keen on celebrating St. Patrick’s Day in a more traditional way, this cake has your name on it. It’s a popular dessert served in Irish households, and you can top it with confectioners’ sugar, a creamy whiskey sauce or both.
Sally's Baking Addiction
- Time Commitment: 3 hours
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, special occasion–worthy
Before you diss a brownie made with beer, allow us to explain. Guinness stout is commonly paired with chocolate in baking for its deep, coffee-like flavor. (In other words, it doesn’t taste like beer in the slightest.)
Two Peas & Their Pod
- Time Commitment: 2 hours, 30 minutes
- Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients, kid-friendly
These crumbly cookies made from sugar, butter and flour were actually invented by the Scottish (and leavened with yeast). Over time, the yeast was swapped for butter—an Irish staple—and that’s how shortbread as we know it today came to be.
Spoon Fork Bacon
10. Spicy Chocolate Stout Cake
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 15 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
We were so entranced by the swoops of peanut butter frosting, we almost forgot there’s a rich, cinnamon-spiked chocolate cake underneath there.
What's Gaby Cooking
11. Double Dark Chocolate Marshmallow Mint Chex Bars
- Time Commitment: 10 minutes
- Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, kid-friendly, <15 minutes, <10 ingredients
You don’t have to be Irish or a pro baker to whip up this quick, sweet snack. Make a batch for your kids’ lunches, your office party or just to hoard at home.
Cupcake Project
- Time Commitment: 2 hours, 10 minutes
- Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, no cook, beginner-friendly
It might only take ten minutes to make your own Irish cream, but once you try the homemade version (made with sweetened condensed milk and heavy cream), you’ll understand why it’s a dessert.
Gimme Some Oven
13. Guinness Floats
- Time Commitment: 2 minutes
- Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, no cook, <10 ingredients, <15 minutes
Behold the easiest St. Patrick’s Day dessert ever: Just scoop, pour, drizzle and sip. If you're not convinced or you've never had stout, know that it tastes a little like coffee and chocolate combined.
Photo: Nico Schinco/Styling: Erin McDowell
14. Carrot Cake Doughnuts with Cream Cheese Glaze
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly
St. Paddy’s Day means spring is on the way, and nothing says spring like a moist carrot cake doughnut with a tangy cream cheese topping. Plus, what better way to start the day?
How Sweet Eats
- Time Commitment: 6 hours, 35 minutes
- Why I Love It: make ahead, special occasion–worthy
Swap the usual booze for Irish cream and voilà, a festive dessert. It tastes so good we want to dive in with a spoon, but that’s neither here nor there.
I Am a Food Blog
16. Snickerdoodle Lucky Charms Cookies
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why I Love It: <30 minutes, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly
Hearts, stars, horseshoes and the gang are teaming up with chewy, cinnamon-y cookies for the cookie of our childhood dreams. (Psst: Did you know you could buy a bag of *just* the Lucky Charms marshmallows?)
Snixy Kitchen
17. Gluten Free Matcha Cupcakes with Matcha Frosting
- Time Commitment: 44 minutes
- Why I Love It: gluten free, special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
They’re as green as the rolling hills of Ireland. The cupcakes are sweetened with honey, which tames the bitter notes of the matcha and adds a ton of moisture.
Grandbaby Cakes
18. Baileys Mint Chocolate Cream Pie
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why I Love It: <30 minutes, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
It looks super impressive, but the press-in cookie crust and easy pudding filling make it entirely foolproof. No water bath, no problem.
So Much Food
19. Guinness Sheet Cake with Candied Pecans
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, sheet pan recipe
It’s a little bit southern, a little bit Irish and extremely decadent, thanks to a rich combination of dark chocolate and stout beer. The candied pecans are a delicious touch, but you could also swap in green sprinkles for a festive addition.
Foodie Crush
- Time Commitment: 2 hours, 10 minutes
- Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
Psst: You don’t have to use Guinness when the recipe calls for stout. These brownies are made with Murphy’s, but you can use any dark beer.
The Modern Proper
21. Yogurt and Olive Oil Pistachio Cake with Lemon Buttercream
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 20 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
Nothing against green food dye, but there’s something much more appealing about the springy hue of a real pistachio. Greek yogurt in the batter keeps the cake moist…and also makes it suitable for breakfast, no?
Spoon Fork Bacon
22. Brown Butter Braided Cinnamon Roll Cake
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 45 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly, special occasion–worthy
The key to making it holiday-ready (and mouthwateringly good) is to use the best Irish butter you can find. Thank us later. If making the dough is too intimidating, try using store-bought pizza dough instead.
Also the Crumbs Please
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 35 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
Kiss us, we just made you a batch of these chewy, gooey, chocolate-studded cookies. Pistachios add a subtle green hue without incorporating food coloring.
How Sweet Eats
24. Lucky Charms Cereal Milk Confetti Cupcakes
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 25 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy, kid-friendly
Plan ahead when steeping your cereal milk so the rest of the recipe comes together in a flash. The edible gold leaf is optional, but we like the way it takes things over the top.
Photo: Nico Schinco/Styling: Erin McDowell
25. Miniature Banoffee Cobblers
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 45 minutes
- Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser
This dessert is technically English in origin, but it’s also popular throughout Ireland. And why not? It checks every texture box: gooey caramel, soft bananas, airy whipped cream and crisp graham cracker crumbles.
The Modern Proper
26. Irish Apple Cake Doughnuts with Whiskey Glaze
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
Traditional Irish dessert, but make it doughnuts because why not? If you don’t already have a doughnut pan, you can find them online.
Upstate Ramblings
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why I Love It: kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
And if apples aren’t your thing, maybe green velvet (aka mildly chocolate cake with plenty of green dye) is.
Lomelino's Pies
28. Banoffee Pie with Honeycomb
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
Here’s another take on banoffee, this time with a crispy, caramel-like honeycomb topping for even more texture. Bananas not ripe enough? Here's how to speed up the process.
Sweet Peas and Saffron
29. Guinness Chocolate Glazed Doughnut Holes
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
Hot tip: Anyone can make baked-not-fried doughnut holes if they have a mini muffin tin on hand. Glaze them while they're still hot to let some of the sugar sink in.
Noble Pig
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 30 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
This pretty cake contains Irish cream in both the batter and the glaze for a double-dose of flavor. (Your guests don't need to know that it starts with a boxed yellow cake mix.)
The Recipe Critic
- Time Commitment: 5 minutes
- Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, no cook, kid-friendly
Those golden arches don’t know what’s coming. You can make your shake plain or add cookie crumbles and chocolate syrup for a major upgrade.
Show Me the Yummy
32. Lucky Charms Marshmallow Treats
- Time Commitment: 12 minutes
- Why I Love It: <15 minutes, kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
Sometimes making a festive snack is as easy as swapping in marshmallow cereal in an already-simple recipe. Pretty ingenious, if you ask us.
A Classic Twist
33. No-Bake Irish Cream Cheesecake
- Time Commitment: 3 hours, 30 minutes
- Why I Love It: no cook, crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
You had us at no-bake. This creamy cake doesn’t require a fussy water bath or an oven, and while the texture is lighter than a classic New York cheesecake, it’s no less delicious.
A Cookie Named Desire
34. Beer Truffles with Crushed Pretzels
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, crowd-pleaser
You already know what we’re going to say: Use a stout-style beer (preferably an Irish one, like Guinness or Murphy's) to stick with the theme.
How Sweet Eats
35. Boozy Lucky Charms Cereal Milkshakes with Marshmallow Frosting
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why I Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly
Sip responsibly: These cute shakes are made with marshmallow vodka for a kick. Of course, if you’re making them for the kids you can just leave the alcohol out.
Sally's Baking Addiction
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
We’re a little bit obsessed with this simple recipe. The cookies come together in one bowl and call for just six ingredients, and they taste like heaven thanks to a brown butter icing.
Half Baked Harvest
37. One-Bowl, 8-Ingredient Irish Coffee Fudge Brownies
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
There’s coffee. There’s Baileys. There are pools of melted chocolate. What more could you need? (Maybe a scoop or two of vanilla ice cream—just a suggestion.)
A Cookie Named Desire
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why I Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients
Coconut and stout sounds unusual on paper, but one bite of these sweet, chewy, chocolatey cookies and the combination makes total sense.
Saving Room for Dessert
39. Pistachio Shortbread Cookies
- Time Commitment: 33 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
It’s not easy being green…unless you’re a buttery, nutty, obsession-worthy shortbread cookie. To make these ahead, roll the dough into a log and stash it in the freezer until you're ready to slice and bake.
Broma Bakery
40. Peanut Butter Chocolate Stout Cake
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why I Love It: special occasion–worthy, crowd-pleaser
Pull out all the stops and make a towering, decadent chocolate cake spiked with beer this St. Patrick’s Day. After all, what are holidays for if not for eating and drinking?
Photo: Liz Andrew/Styling: Erin McDowell
- Time Commitment: 10 minutes
- Why I Love It: <15 minutes, crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly
We can’t promise a pot of gold at the end of this particular rainbow, but we can promise you’ll be making waffle cakes for every occasion here on out.
How Sweet Eats
42. Frozen Irish Cream Cappuccinos
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why I Love It: <15 minutes, <10 ingredients, gluten free
Top of the morning? On second thought, we’ll save these for dessert. Luckily, you don’t need an espresso machine to make these indulgent drinks, just a blender.
43. Vanilla Bean St. Patrick’s Day Cookies
- Time Commitment: 3 hours
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly
You simply can’t go wrong with a classic (and festive) sugar cookie. These are flavored with vanilla extract and vanilla bean seeds, so they’re lightyears ahead of any store-bought biscuits.
44. The Luckiest Rice Cereal Treats
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 25 minutes
- Why I Love It: kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients
By using the classic puffed rice cereal, these bars maintain the crisp texture of the original (with plenty of festive flair from the Lucky Charms ’mallows). Take your treats OTT by arranging individual marshmallows in a layer on top.
45. Chocolate Stout Bundt Cake
- Time Commitment: 1 hour, 35 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion–worthy
The stout adds depth and moisture to the deeply chocolate cake, so it’s a no-brainer addition. But if you’re looking for even more boozy flavor, it’s also in the ganache.
46. 3-Ingredient Lucky Charms Bark
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly, kid-friendly
You only need white chocolate, cereal marshmallows and lots of rainbow sprinkles to make a magical treat that sweet tooths will adore. The swirls of pink are optional, but easily achieved with a drop of red food coloring. (Oh, and if this is too sweet for your tastes, try swapping in melted dark chocolate instead.)
47. Baileys Irish Cream Mug Brownie
- Time Commitment: 6 minutes
- Why I Love It: <15 minutes, beginner-friendly
St. Patrick's Day dessert for one? It's a thing, especially when you can forgo making an entire batch of brownies and instead mix one up that you don't have to share. Top it with vanilla ice cream while it's still hot and dig in.
48. Salted Pistachio Shortbread
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, <30 minutes, <10 ingredients
One of the reasons we adore shortbread? It requires very few ingredients (here, six, to be precise) and can be customized to your heart’s desire. This version features pistachios and flaky salt for an almost savory twist that also happens to be green.
Don’t Feel Like Baking? Order These Treats Instead
