12 Desserts That Don’t Require Flour

12 desserts that don’t require flour. Because we want to remind you of all the soufflés, cheesecakes, brownies, puddings, panna cottas, creme caramels, and more that you can still make and that are just as satisfying as the more customary flour-full recipes. And they come together with ease. When life hands you flour shortages, make these. #lookforthegood

A white ramekin filled with a partially eaten double chocolate souffle and a spoon resting inside
These double chocolate souffles were the first thing I learned to bake and I continue to make them to this day, anytime I need a little sweet treat. Dark chocolate, milk, sugar, whiskey, and eggs come together quickly and more easily than you might think.
Recipe
A round flourless almond cake on a wooden baking paddle with almonds scattered around it
This flourless almond cake is made with ground almonds and quick and easy to toss together. It’s French-inspired and flavorful and gluten-free through and through. Crisp and crunchy on the outside, dense and chewy on the inside. Perfect for Passover.
Recipe
A metal baking pan of gluten free brownies with one piece missing
These gluten free brownies, made with chocolate, butter, and tapioca starch, are remarkably easy and fudgy and, in all seriousness, taste like the real deal even though they’re flourless. Swear.
Recipe
A coconut panna cotta topped with peanut brittle crunch on a white plate.
Chopped homemade peanut brittle sits atop a creamy coconut milk panna cotta.
Recipe
An espresso cheesecake on a silver platter with two slices cut from it.
This espresso cheesecake is coffee squared. It has an espresso biscotti crust and is filled with a chocolate-espresso-cream-cheese filling. Elegant and sophisticated.
Recipe
Four wine poached pears in a shallow white baking dish.
These wine poached pears are an easy, elegant dessert made by gently cooking peeled pears in white wine and then drizzling them with a creamy butterscotch sauce.
Recipe
Four small crocks of pumpkin pots de creme--pumpkin pudding topped with crumbled cookie and whipped cream
These fancy-sounding pumpkin pots de crème are essentially creamy custards made from half-and-half, brown sugar, pumpkin, eggs, and warm spices, topped with maple whipped cream and crushed amaretti cookies. Perfect for entertaining.
Recipe
Three plates, each with a crème caramel on them with spoons resting on the side.
I find this dessert such a simple comfort. It might be the most basic of baked custards, but it really is heaven on a plate. Perhaps it is the memories of eating it as a child, or maybe it’s the texture. Either way, it is a delicious, classic dessert that deserves to be brought back from the annals of “retro” and “old-fashioned” to sit proudly on our dinner tables once again.
Recipe
Four individual white bowls of avocado chocolate pudding with spoons on a wooden table.
The key to using avocado in an avocado chocolate pudding is to make sure you completely purée it, so that there are no undesirable lumps in your pudding
Recipe
Serving bowl and small bowl of French rice pudding topped with whipped cream, along with spoons on a lace tablecloth.
Riz au lait is another way of saying French rice pudding. It’s just made without egg but with plenty of milk and sugar and it’s so gosh darn easy and impossible to stop eating. Quite possibly the thing we love most about the French.
Recipe
A piece of Portuguese tea flan on a white plate, drizzled with caramel sauce with the remaining flan in a bowl in the background.
Portuguese flan, or pudim, is a riff on a classic dessert. For this version, milk is infused with smoky, strong flavored tea, such as Lapsang souchong, and is then added to eggs and sugar to make an unusual, elegant dessert. A caramel top gives the dessert its depth and sweetness.
Recipe
A slice of no-bake cheesecake drizzled with maple bourbon syrup on a white plate with a pitcher of syrup also on the plate.
This no-bake cheesecake is made with a buttery biscuit crust and an unbelievably smooth and creamy white chocolate filling made with heavy cream, cream cheese, and mascarpone. And did we mention no oven required?
Recipe

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