The Best Smoked Desserts You Can Make At Home [GUIDE]

No meal is ever complete without some lip-smacking dessert to end with. And when it is a BBQ menu, you ought to have some unique smoked desserts on the cards. Most of the classic smoked dessert recipes are prepared using seasonal fruits, nuts, whipped cream, and dark chocolate. The results can turn out to be surprisingly outstanding when you follow the right guide, technique, and smoker settings.

Five of the best-smoked desserts you can easily make at home are – Drunken Apple Crisp, Smoked S’more Cheesecake, Huckleberry (or Blueberry or Peach) Cobbler, Smoked Pumpkin Pie, and Smoked Banoffee. Most of these smoked desserts are prepared at a temperature of 350 to 375℉ using Pecan, Oak, Cherry, Apple, or Cedar Wood.

Smoking or baking desserts is easier than you think. All you need to do is use fresh ingredients and follow the recipe as guided. Unless you are grilling some stuff, we would recommend preparing the dessert first, and then you can start smoking the appetizers and the main course for your guests. The difficulty level for making desserts in a smoker is medium to high. Here is our list of the five best-smoked desserts of all time.

What Is The Best Wood For Smoked Desserts?

The best woods for smoking desserts are – Pecan, Almond, Cedar, and Oakwood. If the dessert contains fruit, you may also use Whisky Oak Barrel, Plum, Pear, Cherry, Brandy Cask, and Apple Wood or a mix of different types of wood to add a unique, smoky flavor profile to the desserts.

What Desserts Go Best With Smoked BBQ

1. Drunken Apple Crisp

Well, you might have tried smoked apple crisp before, but have you tried this twisted version? The Drunken Apple Crisp has an exclusive flavor profile and is one of the easiest to prepare smoked dessert recipes. To prepare this recipe, follow this step-by-step instruction:

1. Preheat the oven to 350℉.
2. Peel 3 to 4 medium-sized Granny Smith Apples and slice them into wedges.
3. In a food processor, blend ½ cup of dried cranberries, ½ cup brown sugar, ¼ cup honey, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1 ½ tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp vanilla, 1 tsp salt, ½ cup oats, ¼ cup walnut, and 8 tbsp of unsalted butter.
4. In a large mixing bowl, coat the apple slices with the filling. Add 2 ½ tbsp of Bourbon or Revel Stoke Whisky and toss nicely.
5. Pour the mixture into a cast iron pan and smoke/bake the Drunken Apple Crisp for 1 hour or until you see bubbles.
6. Cool the crisp for about ½ an hour before serving.

2. Smoked S’more Cheesecake

If you love marshmallows and campfires, you ought to love this delicious dessert. The decadent gooey delight is actually double smoked as the dark chocolate is first cold smoked and then the entire cheesecake is smoked in a smoker to produce amazing results.

1. Preheat the oven to 400℉.
2. For the crust:

• Use butter or coconut oil to coat the baking pan.
• Use a food processor to turn graham crackers into crumbs and then mix with melted butter and powdered brown sugar.
• Press the crust onto the pan to cover ⅓ thickness of the pan.
• Bake for ~8 minutes to turn the crust into slightly golden brown.

1. For the Filling:

• In a mixer, combine cream cheese, maple syrup, sugar, vanilla extract, lemon zest, and a hint of lemon juice.
• Gradually add beaten eggs and combine.

1. Pour the filling on the top of the crust and smoke the cheesecake for ½ hour at 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Sprinkle some marshmallows on the top. Smoke for another 45 minutes in the oven.

Remove from the oven and let it rest for ~20 minutes. Refrigerate for a few hours before you serve.

3. Huckleberry Cobbler

If you want your guest to finish their meal with something unique, then you should try this recipe from the locals of Idaho. This dessert is best prepared in late summer (perfect for Halloween!) when the huckleberries ripen up to perfection and can be used for making the delicious smoked Huckleberry cobbler. If you can’t find huckleberries, you can also use blueberries or peaches instead.

1. For the Filling:

• Mix about 6 cups of ripe huckleberries, 1 cup of brown sugar, 1 tsp salt, 2 tbsp lemon juice, and 2 tbsp cornstarch.

1. For the Biscuit Droppings:

• In a large bowl, mix 2 tbsp of softened butter, ½ cup of flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tbsp milk, and a dash of salt. Use your hands to incorporate the mix into a dough and add a splash of milk if required. Make sure that the dough isn’t too wet but has a gooey texture.

1. Pour the huckleberry mix onto a cast iron skillet and add the biscuit droppings on top of it.
2. Preheat the smoker to 375℉ and bake for ~40 minutes.
3. Once the internal temperature reads 200℉ you can take it out of the oven and let it rest for about 15 minutes before serving.
4. You may also add a few scoops of ice cream for making this delicious dessert taste even better.

4. Smoked Pumpkin Pie

This one is another popular staple, especially for a BBQ party on Halloween, Thanksgiving, or Christmas. Always use freshly mashed pumpkin instead of store-bought cans for this recipe. For enhancing the flavor, you can also add a hint of Hickory smoke for that classic flavor.

• For the Filling –

1. Mix 4 cups of mashed pumpkin (fully ripe), ½ can of sweetened condensed milk, 4 eggs, 1 tbsp of pumpkin pie spice, 1 tsp of cinnamon powder, and 3 tbsp of powdered brown sugar.
2. Pour the filling onto an unbaked pie crust.
3. Heat the pellet grill to 350℉.
4. Place the pumpkin pie inside the smoker and smoke for about an hour.
5. Insert a knife into the middle of the pie. If the knife comes out clean, the pie is fully cooked.
6. Cool the pie for about 2 hours. When serving, do not forget to add some whipped cream on top.

5. Brandy Smoked Banoffee

There is nothing better than a combination of caramel and banana. And when all of it is brushed up with a hint of brandy and smoke, the dessert tastes even better. The dish is prepared in four steps – making the crust, toffee, caramel, and white chocolate ganache.

1. Preheat the oven to 325℉.
2. For the Crust – Mix five digestive biscuits in a blender to have a coarse texture. Add butter and mix well. Place the mixture in a greased pie tin and press it firmly so that it covers ⅓ of the pan. Let it sit in the fridge.
3. For the Toffee – In a large bowl, mix 30 gms of powdered brown sugar and 30 gms of butter, 100ml of condensed milk, and a pinch of cinnamon or sea salt. Brush the baking dish with some brandy syrup and pour in the toffee mix. Smoke/Bake for about 1 ½ hour.
4. For the White Chocolate Ganache – use the double boiler method to melt about 50 gms of white chocolate. Add 40 gms of whipped cream and 1 tsp of red food color. Whisk until you get a smooth texture. Transfer to a sauce dispenser and cool it in the refrigerator.
5. Make the caramel by heating sugar and water.
6. Once everything is ready, pour the smoked toffee sauce onto the crust, add a layer of sliced banana, and then the white chocolate ganache. Sprinkle the caramel on top.
7. Refrigerate for about 4-5 hours before serving.

Conclusion

Some of the other easy-to-make smoked dessert recipes include Grilled Fruit Skewers and Exotic Rum-flavored Grilled Pineapples. Such desserts are easier to prepare on a flat-top grill. So, next time you fire up wood for your BBQ, do not forget to try out these homemade smoked dessert recipes to leave your guests feeling absolutely delighted!