33 St. Patrick's Day Desserts Better Than A Pot Of Gold... Or At Least Chocolate Coins

If you're celebrating St. Patrick's Day this year, we bet you're thinking all about the alcohol. But whether you're pub hopping or having a party at home, don’t push your luck—party guests can’t survive on green beer alone! May we also suggest having some dessert with your drinks…or even some drinks in your dessert 😉? Get inspired by our list of 33 St. Patrick’s Day desserts—they might just be better than the pot o’ gold at the end of the rainbow.

The way we see it, there are two camps when it comes to St. Patrick’s Day desserts: sweets that are extra-adorable, and sweets featuring standout Irish-inspired ingredients. If you’re looking for the perfect Pinterest-worthy celebration, we’ve got just the things: try turning any of your regular recipes into a colorful masterpiece with the help of some food dye and store-bought candy or cereal.

Green goes a long way this time of year to avoid getting pinched, but we're also pretty big fans of using the whole set of colors to make rainbow-hued baked goods too. Check out our shamrock cookies, our rainbow ice cream cake, our St. Patrick's Day cake, or our rainbow bundt cake to see how easy it is to achieve at home.

Another option is to shine a light on ingredients that go along with the St. Patrick’s Day theme, like Guinness, Bailey’s Irish Creme, or anything mint (it’s your something green!). We’ve got a number of desserts featuring these here, like our mini Bailey’s chocolate cheesecakes, our Guinness cake, our mint chocolate chip pie, our Bailey’s chocolate cream pie, our shamrock shakes, and more. Best part? These ingredients are an amazing way to jazz up a store-bought box cake mix, meaning these desserts are easy enough to make after you’ve already started drinking. 😉

Want even more St. Patrick’s Day inspiration? Check out our best St. Paddy's Day drinks, appetizers, and side dishes too.

We think we found our pot of gold with this epic top hat-shaped rainbow cake. While it does take a bit of time to assemble, it's actually pretty straight-forward. Once you start assembling the layers, the tricky part is done—just don’t forget to fill your cake with Lucky Charms before putting the top layer on!

Get the St. Patrick's Day Cake recipe.

Who said St. Patty’s Day desserts need to be bright green? Try this delicious pie of chocolatey boozy fun instead! This no-bake twist on a classic chocolate cream pie is the perfect dessert for your holiday festivities or a clever way to use up Baileys left over from the party.

Get the Bailey’s Chocolate Cream Pie recipe.

Don’t just make plain old cupcakes for your St. Patty’s Day bash—make these adorable rainbow-topped cupcakes that taste as good as they look! They’re nothing more complicated than a moist, vanilla cupcake with a rich buttercream frosting, but with some green food coloring, a rainbow candy belt, and clever piping, you can turn these into a super-festive treat.

Get the St. Patrick's Day Cupcakes recipe.

This recipe has everything you love about a typical brownie, but with a fun twist: It has Baileys in the batter and in the whipped cream, making it the perfect dessert for St. Patrick's Day and all year round.

Get the Skillet Fudgy Brownie Pudding recipe.

Don’t worry, this confection from Philadelphia only looks like cute little potatoes, and actually contains no spuds at all! Imagine the texture of a chocolate truffle but with cream cheese, coconut, and vanilla instead. The outside is coated in ground cinnamon, giving it an uncanny likeness to the real thing.

Get the Irish Potato Candy recipe.

We went with Lucky Charms and green M&M's for added St. Paddy's Day flair, but like any party mix, this is completely customizable! Feel free to get creative with this mix, but whatever you do, don't forget the green. 😉

Get the Leprechaun Bait recipe.

If the end of the rainbow led to these mini desserts, honestly we wouldn't be disappointed in the slightest. They're made from box brownie mix (although you can make homemade brownies if you prefer), then decorated with whipped cream "clouds," a candy rainbow belt, and gold sprinkles. Have fun with it!

Get the Pot O' Gold Cups recipe.

Our easy sugar cookie recipe always keeps its shape while baking so you can relax in knowing all of your leaves will come out perfectly round and defined. We love decorating with royal icing, but you could use a simple buttercream frosting for a quick and easy way to frost these cookies too.

Get the St. Patrick's Day Cookies recipe.

The original Shamrock Shake, a mint-flavored soft-serve vanilla milkshake first introduced in 1970, is only available at McDonald's for a limited time (end of February through March) each year. Ditch the drive-through and make your own so you're not beholden to the Golden Arches.

Get the Copycat McDonald's Shamrock Shake recipe.

Though the dough for this quick bread recipe is rather traditional, how we serve it (with chocolate 😅) is not. If you want to bake up a classic loaf, skip the mini chocolate chips and don't sprinkle extra sugar on top. Personally, we really love our sweeter, chocolatey version, but a plain slice served warm with salty Irish butter is just as amazing.

Get the Irish Soda Bread recipe.

Though we never tire of Rice Krispies treats, sometimes we like to mix it up. These Lucky Charms treats serve a double dose of marshmallows and are extra cute for St. Patrick's Day too.

Get the Lucky Charms Marshmallow Treats recipe.

White and semisweet chocolate chips make these truffles very decadent. Our favorite part about them? They taste just like all our favorite Baileys cocktails, but you can eat more than one.

Get the Baileys Truffles recipe.

Baking a traditional layer cake can be intimidating, but poke cakes couldn't be easier. The secret ingredient to this twist on Boston cream pie: instant vanilla pudding mix.

Get the Boston Cream Poke Cake recipe.

We used mint Oreos, but if you already have the classic kind on hand, feel free to use those instead. Adding mint extract (and a little green food dye) to the cheesecake layer is what's absolutely key for this dessert lasagna.

Get the Mint Chip Lasagna recipe.

This tender apple cake is jam-packed with fruit, which is why we think it's perfectly appropriate to eat a slice for dessert or breakfast. Don't skip the custard sauce—it's traditional and delicious to boot.

Get the Irish Apple Cake recipe.

Buttery shortbread is already a favorite Irish sweet, but these are made extra special with layers of gooey caramel and chocolate. You'll feel like you found that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow when you eat them!

Get the Millionaire Shortbread recipe.

If you love Boston cream pie, prepare to freak out over this cheesecake. Looking for something a little easier to make? Try our Boston Cream poke cake.

Get the Boston Cream Cheesecake recipe.

This creamy, decadent cheesecake is made even MORE creamy and decadent with the addition of Baileys. And don't worry if yours cracks while baking — that's what the ganache is for!

Get the Baileys Cheesecake recipe.

Forget about the store-bought stuff—you won't ever buy it again after making this! Turn it into any variety of dessert or brunch cocktails this St. Patrick's Day and beyond.

Get the Homemade Baileys Irish Cream recipe.

These brownies really double down on the mint with Andes candies (on top and in the brownies) AND mint frosting. They don't need to be green if you're anti-food coloring (or used it all up for your green beer), but we think it adds some extra holiday fun.

Get the Mint Chocolate Chip Brownies recipe.

These are the ultimate indulgence, for St. Patrick's Day and beyond. Fudgy brownies, a peppermint buttercream, and a luscious ganache layer combine into a mint chocolate lover's dream come true.

Get the Andes Brownies recipe.

Layers of green, mint goodness can be all yours. You can cover the whole thing in ganache, or just drizzle it on top—whichever, we say the more Andes chocolates, the better.

Get the Andes Chocolate Cake recipe.

Just when you thought brownies couldn't get any better, we added booze in the form of a Baileys fudge frosting. You're welcome.

Get the Baileys Brownies recipe.

What's better than our Lucky Charms treats? Lucky Charms ice cream sandwiches. We went with strawberry ice cream, but feel free to swap in your favorite flavor (store-bought or homemade ice cream works!).

Get the Lucky Charms Ice Cream Sandwiches recipe.

Brownies, cheesecake, and booze? We'll call that a holy trinity. We use a box brownie mix, but by all means feel free to try our homemade brownie recipe.

Get the Baileys Cheesecake Cups recipe.

This no-bake pie tastes just like the beloved ice cream flavor. Looking for more no-bake mint chocolate goodness? Give our mint chip lasagna a try too!

Get the Mint Chocolate Chip Pie recipe.

Don't ask us how, but cake mix + eggs + veggie oil + Baileys = perfectly moist, rich chocolate cupcakes. And we didn't stop there: These lil guys get the extra boozy treatment with Baileys making its way into the batter and the frosting. Try it with the new Baileys vanilla mint shake to switch things up this year too.

Get the Baileys Cupcakes recipe.

Turn simple a no-churn ice cream recipe into a stunning cake—simply add different food coloring to your base, layer, and freeze! Feel free to get creative and add regular cake or cookie layers too, à la some of our favorite icebox cakes.

Get the Rainbow Ice Cream Cake recipe.

These mini cheesecakes might be small, but they're bursting with creamy, chocolaty flavor. We're hooked. Wanna supersize them? Try our classic Baileys cheesecake.

Get the Mini Baileys Cheesecakes recipe.

Chocolate + stout = one of the greatest dessert combos of all time. The proof is in this cake (and in our Baileys Irish floats). Hot tip: Make sure your Guinness is room temperature, and it will incorporate into the batter more easily.

Get the Guinness Cake recipe.

This gorgeous rainbow Bundt cake recipe is surprisingly simple to make. Serve it as is, or add vanilla icing and gold sprinkles to remind you there's always a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!

Get the Rainbow Bundt Cake recipe.

We took a regular chocolate chip cookie and added Andes mints and green food dye to make these perfect for St. Patrick's Day.

Get the Mint Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe.

Is there anything easier than a poke cake? This one is so easy, you can throw it together even after you've already started drinking. 😉

Get the Baileys Poke Cake recipe.