Where to Try Traditional Louisiana Desserts

When it comes to food, Louisiana does not mess around — and this includes desserts. After a decadent meal, try one of these famous Louisiana sweet treats. Or be a rebel and eat dessert first — we don't care just as long as you're having a good time!

Bananas Foster

One of the quintessential New Orleans desserts originated with one of its most famous families. Owen Brennan, a renowned restaurateur, first came up with the dessert in the 1950s, when he challenged his chef to create a dessert promoting bananas. Made with rum, banana liqueur and cinnamon, the flambéed dish is synonymous with New Orleans decadence. 

Where to Try It: Taste the original at Brennan’s Restaurant in the French Quarter. Also in New Orleans, Arnaud’s also serves the dish, flamed tableside and spooned over French vanilla ice cream. In Baton Rouge, Stab’s Steak & Seafood offers a Bananas Foster, perfect for pairing with a glass of Luca Bosio Moscato d’Asti.

Beignets

Did you know Louisiana has an official state doughnut? It’s the beignet, a square piece of fried dough covered in powdered sugar. This pastry has long been jump-starting French Quarter workers and early-rising tourists alike. 

Where to Try It: Head to Cafe Du Monde for an order of three and a side of café au lait. Beignets there and at nearby Cafe Beignet are served with ample sprinklings of powdered sugar, though you’ll also find savory beignets at Creole restaurants in New Orleans. Outside the Crescent City, satisfy your beignet cravings at Marilynn’s Place in Shreveport and at Coffee Call in Baton Rouge.

Bread Pudding

Sink your spoon into warm, gooey goodness! A mainstay of Louisiana's dessert cuisine, bread pudding has a humble beginning. The dessert was originally a unique way to use leftover bread so it wouldn't go to waste. The bread is soaked in milk, eggs and sugar, then baked and often topped with a bourbon-based sauce. Each chef adds their own spin to the dessert, with some adding bananas, chocolate, nuts and more. 

Where to Try It: Try a bite of this staple at Commander's Palace in New Orleans or Superior's Steakhouse in Shreveport. And in Ruston, Log Cabin Grill offers a few varieties, including an Oreo white chocolate bread pudding.

Chantilly Cake

Did you know that this popular dessert originated in New Orleans? The cake was created by baker Chaya Conrad, who worked at Whole Foods at the time. The cake starts with layers of white or almond cake, spread with decadent whipped frosting and topped with fresh seasonal berries. 

Where to Try It: Order one at Bywater Bakery in New Orleans, owned by Conrad herself. Sugar Love Bakery in Slidell also makes a delicious, fresh Chantilly cake.

Doberge

Legend has it that, back in the 1930s, local baker Beulah Ledner adapted both the name and the cake from the Hungarian dobos torta — a much heavier, layered cake filled with buttercream. To make a lighter cake, the buttercream was replaced with custard. Traditionally, a doberge cake is comprised of six to eight layers of white or yellow cake with chocolate or lemon pudding, custard, curd or ganache filling and poured fondant. You can find doberge in a variety of fun flavors, from tiramisu to pecan praline. 

Where to Try It: Get a taste at Debbie Does Doberge in New Orleans, Maurice French Pastries in Metairie or Joe Gambino’s Bakery in Baton Rouge.

King Cake

You can’t mistake a king cake for anything else. This round, cinnamon-filled cake is made with braided dough, covered in icing and colored sugar. The three colors symbolize justice (purple), faith (green) and power (gold). You’ll see king cakes in bakeries and grocery stores throughout Louisiana between the Twelfth Night and Mardi Gras. 

Where to Try It: There are tons of places to get king cakes around the state, but here are just a few: Manny Randazzo King Cakes in Metairie, Dong Phuong in New Orleans, Nonna Randazzo’s Bakery in Covington, Atwood’s Bakery in Alexandria, Daily Harvest Bakery & Deli in Monroe, Haydel’s Bakery in New Orleans, Meche’s Donuts in New Iberia and Rickey Meche’s Donuts in Lafayette. Local supermarkets also carry king cakes of all kinds during Mardi Gras season.

Pies

Here in Louisiana, we do pies a little differently. From old-school lunchrooms and family-owned diners to creative pie shops serving sweet and savory slices, Louisiana’s pie scene is filled with local flavor, longtime traditions and recipes worth saving room for.

Where to Try It: Lea’s Lunchroom in Lecompte has been baking up some serious pie since 1928. Their world-famous pies are made each morning with daily flavors including coconut, lemon, chocolate and fan-favorite pecan, plus additional seasonal flavors. Strawn’s Eat Shop in Shreveport has been filling bellies with comfort food and delicious pies, like the icebox strawberry pie, since 1944. The family-owned diner now has additional locations to ensure everyone can get their fill. Not Just Pie has been serving fresh pie to the Monroe community since 1985. They offer more than 20 different pie flavors, but their banana caramel pie is a local favorite. Elsie’s Plate & Pie in Baton Rouge serves both sweet and savory pies. From traditional Pie Shop Apple Pie (baked to order) to Louisiana Poulet Pot Pie, there’s something for everyone to love at Elsie’s.

Pralines

The ingredients for pralines are oh-so-simple: sugar (preferably Louisiana-made cane sugar), butter, Louisiana-grown pecans, cream or buttermilk, cooked in a kettle and dried on wax paper. How can something so basic be so good? Maybe it’s because of the Louisiana sugarcane. 

Where to Try It: Find the heavenly dessert at Aunt Sally’s Pralines and Southern Candymakers in New Orleans. And you can find the Sorrento candymaker, Louisiana Praline Company, in grocery stores and shops all over South Louisiana.

Snoballs

Louisiana summers are hot—very hot. Fortunately, locals have long relied on a classic way to stay cool: the snoball. This New Orleans original shouldn’t be mistaken for its distant cousin, the sno-cone. Snoballs are made with finely shaved ice produced by machines invented in New Orleans in the 1930s, creating a texture that’s soft, light and fluffy. Each one is flavored with cane syrups that absorb evenly into the ice rather than pooling at the bottom. 

Where to Try It: During the warmer months, snoball stands pop up across Louisiana, offering a wide range of flavors and indulgent toppings like condensed milk, whipped cream or even a scoop of ice cream inside. Visit Hansen’s Sno-Bliz or Plum Street Snoballs in New Orleans, Debbie’s Snowballs in West Monroe, Flying Dolly’s in Mandeville or SnoMan Snoballs in Baton Rouge.

Learn more about Louisiana's famous foods and culinary history, and check out recipes to satisfy your cravings at home.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a famous dessert in Louisiana?

Louisiana is home to several iconic desserts, including the beignet, a square of fried dough dusted with powdered sugar and considered the state's official doughnut; Bananas Foster, a flambéed banana dessert invented in New Orleans in the 1950s; and bread pudding, a rich, custardy dish often topped with a bourbon-based sauce.

What do Cajuns eat for dessert?

Classic Cajun desserts include bread pudding, made from soaked bread baked with milk, eggs and sugar, and pralines, a candy made from sugar, butter, cream and Louisiana-grown pecans. Both are simple, pantry-based desserts with deep roots in the state's culinary tradition.

What is a typical Louisiana dessert?

A typical Louisiana dessert tends to be rich, often featuring local ingredients like cane sugar, pecans and bourbon. Bread pudding, pralines and beignets are among the most common, found everywhere from neighborhood diners to longtime bakeries across the state.

What candy is made in Louisiana?

Pralines are Louisiana's signature candy, made from sugar (preferably Louisiana cane sugar), butter, Louisiana-grown pecans and cream or buttermilk, cooked in a kettle and dried on wax paper. They're sold at shops like Aunt Sally's Pralines and Southern Candymakers in New Orleans, and by the Louisiana Praline Company throughout South Louisiana.

What's the difference between a snoball and a snow cone?

A snoball is made with finely shaved ice that has a soft, fluffy texture, allowing flavored cane syrup to absorb evenly rather than sink to the bottom. Snow cones use coarser ice and tend to be sweeter and more syrupy at the bottom of the cup. Snoballs originated in New Orleans and are a distinct regional treat.

Where can you find Bananas Foster in Louisiana?

Bananas Foster originated at Brennan's Restaurant in the French Quarter, where the original version is still served. Arnaud's, also in New Orleans, flambés the dish tableside over French vanilla ice cream, and Stab's Steak & Seafood in Baton Rouge offers its own version.