15 Easy Elegant Desserts For Summer Dinner Parties

Easy elegant desserts for summer parties that you can make ahead of time but will impress guests and save you from last-minute stress!

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• Quick tips for making any dessert look more elegant
• 1. Elderflower Jelly with Prosecco & Raspberry
• 2. Eton Mess
• 3. Easy Limoncello Crème Brûlée
• 4. Caramelized Fig Pavlova With Cardamom Cream
• 5. White Chocolate Raspberry Ice Cream Bars
• 6. Rhubarb Pistachio Pavlova
• 7. No-Churn Key Lime Pie Ice Cream Bar
• 8. Blackcurrant Mousse Cake
• 9. Dulce de Leche Verrine with Banana and Cream
• 10. Raspberry Torte With Hazelnut Meringue
• 11. Italian Panna Cotta
• 12. No-Bake Blueberry Cheesecake
• 13. Lemon Syllabub
• 14. White Chocolate Cheesecake Mousse with Raspberry Compote
• 15. Mahalabia With Mango
• 💬 Comments

I love creating a DIY fine dining experience when I host dinner parties, so curating a menu of elegant, easy dessert recipes that lend a classy air to proceedings without sending you into a stress hole is a big priority. These easy elegant desserts are reliable recipes I've hand-picked to serve at summer dinner parties; they're fresh, often fruity, and offer a refreshing end to the meal.

Quick tips for making any dessert look more elegant

1. Garnish with edible flowers.
2. Serve in glassware rather than on a plate; either a wine glass, tumbler, or even cute tea cups can look super cute.
3. Dust with sieved icing sugar just before serving
4. Use sauce plating techniques to help present it in the best possible way.
5. Serve the right food and wine pairing to enhance your meal.

1. Elderflower Jelly with Prosecco & Raspberry

Grown-up jelly is big on my agenda, and this raspberry and elderflower prosecco jelly is the perfect elegant, easy dessert for dinner parties and just looks so classy served in saucer glasses like these champagne coupes. You can make this dessert the day before or the morning of a party.

2. Eton Mess

No summer is complete without Eton Mess, that quintessentially British summer dessert recipe. It's a very easy dessert to serve at dinner parties because all the components can be made ahead of time, and then guests at your dinner party can assemble their own bowl when the time comes. So this is definitely one of my top easy elegant desserts for dinner parties that make for a fun interactive experience too.

3. Easy Limoncello Crème Brûlée

This Limoncello creme brulee has all the taste of summer but is much easier to make than you'd think. You don't even need a water bath! So it's a delicious and easy dessert for a summer dinner party and tastes delicious with a glass of ice-cold Limoncello on the side.

4. Caramelized Fig Pavlova With Cardamom Cream

Sticky summer figs are perfectly complemented by a fragrant cardamom meringue in this elegant twist on a classic pavlova. Serve at the end of a summer meal with a sweet wine and impress your guests with this balanced and flavorful dessert.

5. White Chocolate Raspberry Ice Cream Bars

Lean into Barbiecore summer with these vibrant pink ice cream bars dipped in white chocolate and flaked almonds. No-churn ice cream is a dream for dinner parties as it takes so much less time than traditional ice cream and can be made ahead.

6. Rhubarb Pistachio Pavlova

Now, this is certainly a showstopper dessert for dinner parties. Layers of crunchy pistachio meringue are slathered in whipped heavy cream and stewed rhubarb, creating the most delicious chewy, crunchy, sweet, and decadent summer dessert. Guests will surely be impressed.

7. No-Churn Key Lime Pie Ice Cream Bar

The summer flavors in this easy dessert recipe are insane! First, an easy no-churn key lime ice cream is poured into ice cream popsicle molds. Once they have frozen, dip them in Italian meringue frosting or whipped cream and then into Graham cracker crumbs to get that pie crust crunch. They are the perfect summer dessert to serve at a BBQ party.

8. Blackcurrant Mousse Cake

Tangy, tart and smooth, a fruity blackcurrant mousse cake is a classic dessert for dinner parties. As it needs time to set properly in the fridge, it is best to make it the day before a dinner party. It's elegant, colorful, and not too heavy, making it ideal for summer parties.

9. Dulce de Leche Verrine with Banana and Cream

Now, you might look at the next entry on my round-up of easy elegant dessert recipes and think it sounds hard, but you will not believe the unbelievable hack there is in this recipe for making easy dulce de leche, I can't wait to try it myself! This Dulce de Leche Verrine with Banana and Cream is a picture-perfect elegant summer dessert to serve at dinner parties that is easier than it seems and can definitely be made ahead of time.

10. Raspberry Torte With Hazelnut Meringue

Light and crunchy meringue is always a winner when you're looking for summer dessert recipes, and this raspberry torte has it all, whipped cream, fresh berries, nutty richness, and a drizzle of chocolate over the top. Elegant, classy, and impressive, it's definitely on my list.

11. Italian Panna Cotta

Panna Cotta is the perfect elegant, easy dessert to make the day before a dinner party; it will have been set properly but will still be light and delicate. Top this easy elegant dessert with some fresh fruit and chopped nuts at the last minute and serve at dinner parties.

12. No-Bake Blueberry Cheesecake

Cheesecake is a real favorite of mine, but it can be tricky to make when you're short of time (and uses a lot of pots, pans, and oven space). Enter this no bake cheesecake encased in a graham cracker crust. For non-US readers, use digestive biscuits, gingernut biscuits, shortbread, or a mixture of all three!

13. Lemon Syllabub

The taste of citrus in the summertime is so refreshing, and this lemon syllabub is a light and elegant way to finish your dinner party menu. Zesty and fresh, it also uses just a handful of basic pantry ingredients and can be made several days ahead of time.

14. White Chocolate Cheesecake Mousse with Raspberry Compote

Anything served in a cocktail glass tastes better, right? The tart raspberry ribbons that run through this white chocolate mousse counterbalance their sweetness and stop it from becoming too rich. This is the ideal easy elegant dessert for dinner parties as it can be made several days in advance, freeing up time for other tasks.

15. Mahalabia With Mango

Similar in style to a panna cotta, this Mahalabia with Mango is an excellent easy elegant dessert to serve in high summer when the weather is especially hot! Originally from the Middle East, the mango gives this dessert recipe a tropical edge. Tropical fruits always taste amazing in summer and this mango dessert is perfect for hot weather.

I hope you've found some summer dessert inspiration here, I certainly enjoyed putting this round-up of easy elegant dessert recipes together and can't wait to hear if you try any of them! Tag me in any photos on Instagram; I'd love to see what you make!