17 Dessert Cocktail Recipes

Dessert Martinis and Cocktails

Sugar Cookie Martini

The Spruce / Cara Cormack

Sweet, luscious, and absolutely delicious, dessert cocktails and dessert martinis are a great way to satisfy your sweet tooth. The recipes include creamy indulgences filled with vodka, chocolate, mint, and bananas. Others take a more subtle approach, mixing whiskey or tequila into delicately sweetened libations. Many of them even replicate favorite desserts in a booze-filled glass. They're all quite fun and very easy to mix up. So go ahead and drink your dessert.

  • 01 of 17

    Chocolate Martini

    Easy Chocolate Martini in a glass

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

    Ah, the chocolate martini, how we love thee! There are countless ways that you can mix one up, but sometimes you just have to go super simple. This recipe just happens to be the easiest of them all, though the toughest decision is which chocolate liqueur to use. You can go as light or a rich as you want; it's a delicious drink either way.

  • 02 of 17

    Brandy Alexander

    Brandy Alexander Cocktail

    The Spruce / Julia Hartbeck

    It's appropriate to kick off the exploration of yummy cocktails with the one and only Alexander. While you can mix up the classic cocktail with gin, brandy is often preferred. This delicious treat is extremely simple and offers a luscious, creamy drink with a hint of sweet chocolate.

  • 03 of 17

    Sugar Cookie Martini

    Sugar Cookie Martini

    The Spruce / Cara Cormack

    Sweet, delicious, and incredibly easy, the sugar cookie martini is a delightful indulgence. You'll need just three ingredients, and they're all very common so there's no need to hunt down special ingredients. Just like the cookie, this martini's even better when dressed up with sugar sprinkles.

  • 04 of 17

    Lemon Drop Martini

    Lemon Drop Martini

    The Spruce / Qi Ai

    While you could pick up one of those ready-to-drink lemon drop martini mixes, there's really no need. This popular vodka martini recipe is beyond simple and you'll find that making it from scratch produces a far superior drink. If you have vodka, lemon juice, and simple syrup, you're good to go. A lemon twist and sugary rim dress it up perfectly.

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  • 05 of 17

    Banana Split Martini

    Banana Split Martini in a martini glass and garnished with fruit

    The Spruce / Julia Hartbeck

    While you have banana liqueur in the bar, mix up a banana split martini. This dessert martini pairs the banana-flavored spirit with crème de cacao. The real fun comes when you dress it up as you would any banana split. Try a strawberry vodka, add a caramel or chocolate drizzle, or pile on the whipped cream. There are no rules here!

  • 06 of 17

    Dark 'n Fluffy

    Dark 'n Fluffy Cocktail in glasses

    The Spruce / Bahareh Niati

    Are you looking for an excuse to pour that marshmallow vodka you have stashed in the bar? This dark 'n fluffy recipe is just the thing you need, taking the chocolate martini to a new level of indulgence. With a healthy dose of cream and a few mini marshmallows, dessert is served!

  • 07 of 17

    Espresso Martini

    Espresso Martini

    The Spruce / Julia Hartbeck

    Coffee goes great with dessert, right? The espresso martini is a fantastic pairing of espresso and coffee liquor. Enjoy the after-dinner coffee experience like never before.

  • 08 of 17

    Snickertini

    Snickertini Cocktail in a glass

    The Spruce / Madhumita Sathishkumar

    As you might expect from the name, this recipe replicates the taste of a Snickers candy bar. The key to this candy cocktail is caramel vodka. Add to that Irish cream, amaretto, and a chocolate liqueur, then finish it off with a splash of cream and a liquefied Snickers is born.

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  • 09 of 17

    Golden Cadillac

    Golden Cadillac Cocktail

    The Spruce / Julia Hartbeck

    The Golden Cadillac is a delicious cocktail that was developed in the 1950s. A fantastic dessert drink, this creamy martini is light on the alcohol and pairs nicely with almost any sweet dessert, especially if it includes chocolate. The key ingredient for this recipe is Galliano, that golden liqueur in a tall bottle that towers over all others in the bar. It adds a distinct taste to the slightly rich martini, as it incorporates over 30 flavors, including anise seed and vanilla.

  • 10 of 17

    Pink Squirrel

    Pink Squirrel Cocktail in a glass

    The Spruce / Madhumita Sathishkumar

    It is said that the pink squirrel was created in the early 1940s at a cocktail lounge in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Some liken it to an adult milkshake; in parts of the Upper Midwest, it's made with vanilla ice cream. The sweet taste and pink color made it a very popular cocktail for a few decades. This is an easy recipe and, honestly, you may have a harder time finding crème de noyaux than anything else. This almond-flavored crème liqueur is red in color, making this drink's pretty pink color. 

  • 11 of 17

    Liquid Bourbon Ball

    Liquid Bourbon Ball cocktail in a glass

    The Spruce / Julia Hartbeck

    In the mood for a little whiskey tonight? Then you'll want to try out the liquid bourbon ball. It's a fun recipe that will delight any bourbon aficionado with its crème de cacao and a hazelnut liqueur accents. Add a little shaved chocolate and enjoy!

  • 12 of 17

    Pumpkin Martini

    Pumpkin Martini With Pumpkin Puree

    The Spruce / S&C Design Studios

    A pumpkin martini offers the sweet taste of a traditional pumpkin pie in a glass. It has long been a favorite cocktail for fall, and this recipe uses simple kitchen staples. Made with vanilla vodka, cream liqueur, pumpkin purée, and pumpkin pie spice, this pumpkin pie martini is quick and delicious. It's also a fabulous way to use up excess ingredients from your holiday pie-making endeavors.

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  • 13 of 17

    Talking Monkey

    Talking Monkey Cocktail in glasses

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

    You may not have heard of the talking monkey, but you'll soon be talking about this obscure little martini. For this recipe, you'll pick up chocolate and espresso vodkas, then grab that banana liqueur and your favorite coffee liqueur. Toss in a little cream and shake it up for a truly delightful drink.

  • 14 of 17

    Painkiller Cocktail

    Painkiller cocktail recipe

    ​The Spruce / Cara Cormack

    The Painkiller is a popular tropical cocktail. It was created in the 1970s at the Soggy Dollar Bar in the British Virgin Islands. It's a fun and fruity mix of pineapple, orange, coconut, and a bold rum. This cocktail typically calls for "navy-style" rum, which is high proof and often a blend of rums from multiple Caribbean islands known for producing it.

  • 15 of 17

    Coffee Cocktail

    Coffee Cocktail in a glass

    The Spruce Eats / Julia Hartbeck

    You may not get actual coffee in this "coffee cocktail" but you do get a taste of a great classic drink. The name likely refers to the look of the drink when properly concocted and the fact that the brandy-port combination makes it a fine drink before and after dinner as an alternative to coffee.

  • 16 of 17

    Chocolatini

    Chocolatini Cocktail

    The Spruce / Madhumita Sathishkumar

    There are many chocolate-flavored martinis, and a number of them go under the name "chocolatini." This is one of those recipes, and it is sweet, delicious, creamy, and oh-so-tempting. It's a fabulous cocktail to mix up for special occasions, to serve with—or as—dessert at a dinner party, or enjoy anytime you simply feel like indulging your sweet tooth.

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  • 17 of 17

    Mint Chocolate Martini

    Mint ChocoChata Martini in a glass, next to a cocktail shaker

    The Spruce Eats / Preethi Venkatram

    A creamy mint-chocolate martini is waiting for you with this utterly delicious recipe. RumChata's mint chocochata martini uses just three ingredients and mixes up into an indulgent green cocktail you're sure to love.