19 Old-Fashioned Desserts Grandma Used To Make and Love

Take a bite of sweet nostalgia with these retro dessert recipes.

By
Devan Grimsrud
Devan Grimsrud
Devan Grimsrud

Devan Grimsrud is a Berlin-based writer, editor, and recipe developer originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota. After working in television production with James Beard Award-winning chef Andrew Zimmern, she relocated to Berlin and became the managing editor at Kitchen Stories, an international digital cooking platform with millions of active users. 

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Published December 12, 2025
Devan Grimsrud
Lazy daisy cake slice on a spatula in a pan with more cake

Simply Recipes / Ciara Kehoe

Each of these 19 recipes holds a blast from the past in every nostalgic bite. If you're looking for sweet comfort, just like grandma used to provide, these recipes are there to hold your hand. From cakes and no-bake pies to sweet salads and brownies, take a walk down memory lane with one of these retro desserts, and don't forget to read through the helpful tips and tricks from our editors, readers, and contributors along the way.

  • Sad Cake

    Parchment Paper Lined Plate With Sad Cake Slices Next to a Mug and a Blue and White Table Napkin

    Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm

    "Sad cake in its truest form is a 3-ingredient recipe, but it welcomes tinkering. Add nuts or chocolate chips or omit the coconut, it's your call." —Sara Bir, Simply Recipes Senior Editor

  • Apple Pandowdy

    A white bowl with a serving of Apple Pandowdy topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream

    Simply Recipes / Photo by Morgan Hunt Glaze / Food Styling by Jennifer Wendorf / Prop Styling by Priscilla Montiel

    "Many old-fashioned versions call for a solid top crust that is cracked after baking (or “dowdied”), allowing some of the juice to seep to the top. This slightly more modern version is topped with pieces of store-bought pie crust, creating a patchwork top that’s an ideal topping for the saucy filling." —Nicole Hopper, Simply Recipes Recipe Developer

  • Lime Icebox Pie Recipe

    A slice of lime cracker pie in a dish

    Simply Recipes / Mihaela Kozaric Sebrek

    "Fantastic and very refreshing dessert that requires almost no effort and no baking time. The hardest part is to wait for the cake to set in the fridge, so it's best if you make it the night before the planned gathering." —Mihaela, Simply Recipes Reader

  • Grandma’s Oatmeal Cake Recipe

    slice of Grandma’s Oatmeal Cake on a plate with a fork

    Simply Recipes / Photo by Julia Gartland / Food Styling by Pearl Jones

    "Set a timer when boiling the frosting. If you boil it for longer than 1 minute, it can become brittle. Less, and it sticks to your teeth instead of melting in your mouth." —Rachel Knecht, Simply Recipes Contributor

    Continue to 5 of 19 below

  • Oh Henry Bars

    Oh Henry bars on a crinkled parchment paper with a bowl of crushed peanuts

    Simply Recipes / Ciara Kehoe

    "The original recipe from Susan Buckalew (as well as most other recipes online) calls for corn syrup. I use honey because it adds more flavor, but if you prefer, use corn syrup. The texture will be the same either way." —Sara

  • Chocolate Pudding Cake

    two bowls of chocolate pudding cake with scoops of vanilla ice cream next to a baking pan with more cake

    Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm

    "Pouring hot liquid over the top of the prepared cake batter helps to form the pudding sauce. I chose to use hot coffee because it enhances chocolate, producing a richer flavor. However, you can choose to use an equal amount of hot water instead. Just make sure the coffee or water is very hot (but not boiling) before pouring it over the batter." —Molly Allen, Simply Recipes Contributor

  • Ambrosia Salad

    A bowl of ambrosia salad with fruit and a cherry on top

    Simply Recipes / Photo by Robby Lozano / Food Styling by Julian Hensarling / Prop Styling by Claire Spollen

    "Ambrosia salad doesn’t have a great shelf life. If you think about it, it’s fruit and whipped cream. Make it a few hours before you plan to serve it. But I wouldn’t make it the night before, especially if you’re planning to serve it for a special meal." —Nick Evans, Simply Recipes Contributor

  • Cream Cheese Pound Cake

    slice of reddit pound cake with whipped cream and slices of fresh berries

    Simply Recipes / Stephanie Ganz

    "In a typical pound cake recipe, you use a pound each of flour, sugar, and butter. Here, you swap out half of the butter for cream cheese, which gives the cake a velvety texture and slightly tighter crumb." —Stephanie A. Ganz, Simply Recipes Contributor

    Continue to 9 of 19 below

  • Grandma's Sunshine Salad

    A molded gelatin salad incorporating shredded and cubed fruits placed on a decorative plate
    Elise Bauer

    "I've been making this dish for over 40 years and I had no idea there was a name for it. I thought I'd just made it up myself. I love to make this dish to go with chicken casserole. Delicious!!!!" —Joy, Simply Recipes Reader

  • Blueberry Boy Bait

    Overhead view of multiple blueberry coffee cake slices on a wooden cutting board

    Simply Recipes / Molly Allen

    "Any blueberries will do, whether they’re fresh or frozen. If you’re using frozen, don’t let the berries thaw—add the frozen fruit straight to the batter." —Molly

  • Chocolate Depression Cake

    Slices of chocolate depression cake on small plates at a table setting with a baking pan with leftover cake, a cup of coffee, and a kitchen towel

    Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm

    "For some easy swaps, you can substitute some or all of the water or coffee for another liquid such as milk, buttermilk, orange juice, or even red wine for an adults-only cake. You can bloom cocoa powder in almost any hot liquid, but skip that step if you use buttermilk since it can curdle when heated." —Mark Beahm, Simply Recipes Contributor

  • Berry Buckle

    berry buckle (some of cut into slices) on a plate at a cozy table setting (cottagecore vibes)

    Simply Recipes / Photo by Andrew Bui / Food Styling by Tiffany Schleigh

    "This is a lovely recipe that happens to be a great way to use up fresh berries, so use fresh if you have it. However, frozen berries will work as well if you’re craving this dessert in the off-season. If using frozen berries, do not thaw. Use them straight from the freezer and fold in at the end when making the batter." —Stephanie Loo, Simply Recipes Contributor

    Continue to 13 of 19 below

  • 3-Ingredient Skillet Apple Crisp

    Bowl of 3-ingredient apple crisp with a dollop of yogurt next to a cast iron skillet with more apple crisp, a purple kitchen towel, and a bowl

    Simply Recipes / Shilpa Iyer

    "For a mix of flavors and textures, I like to pair a sweet variety (Honeycrisp, Gala, Braeburn, or Jonagold) with a tart one (Pink Lady, Winesap, or Granny Smith). I also prefer to bake with medium to large apples, simply because they’re less tedious to peel." —Grace Elkus, Simply Recipes Contributor

  • Gooey Butter Cake

    Gooey Butter Cake Cut into Pieces in a Baking Pan

    Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm

    "The dough is covered with the topping, which makes it difficult to know when it is done baking. Luckily, you can tell from the top edges—they should be golden brown and slightly pull away from the dish. The center will be jiggly when you move the dish back and forth." —Emily Weinberger, Simply Recipes Contributor

  • Grandma's Oatmeal Cookies

    Side view of a stack of grandma's cookies.

    Simply Recipes / Eliezer Martinez

    "My grandma used shortening (Crisco), not butter, which makes a more tender, chewier cookie in my opinion, but you can also make this recipe with butter." —Elise

  • Lazy Daisy Cake

    Lazy daisy cake slice on a spatula in a pan with more cake

    Simply Recipes / Ciara Kehoe

    "If you like the sticky-sweet, coconut-webbed frosting on a German chocolate cake, then lazy daisy cake is totally up your alley. While the cake bakes, you mix up brown sugar, cream, coconut, and melted butter. Then you spread it on the hot cake and slip it under the broiler to melt the sugar and get the coconut a little toasty. When the cake cools, you have a brittle layer on top that’s almost like candy." —Sara

    Continue to 17 of 19 below

  • Southern Soda Cracker Pie

    soda cracker pie slice (topped with whipped cream and fresh strawberries) on a small plate with a fork

    Simply Recipes / Mark Beahm

    "If you don’t have saltines, sometimes grandma would be fancy and use Ritz Crackers or Club Crackers. Grandma used a full sleeve of any cracker, but you can use as few as 20 and still get a good result." —Cynthia Christensen, Simply Recipes Contributor

  • Fudgy Cocoa Brownies

    A plate of brownies.
    Elise Bauer

    "To tell if these brownies are done, you want the end of the skewer or toothpick to come out a little moist, but not dripping with batter. When you take the pan out of the oven, make sure the brownies cool completely before slicing. They need time to set up, or they'll fall apart when you cut them." —Simply Recipes Editors

  • Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

    Chocolate Chip Cookies
    Emma Christensen

    "I highly recommend giving the batter a 30-minute or overnight chill in the fridge before scooping and baking. This lets the dough have time to hydrate and firm up. If you're in a rush, it's fine to bake them right away, but they will spread out more and have a thinner, more delicate structure." —Emma

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