If you're a diabetic, it may feel like the holiday dessert table is off-limits. But with these 21 sugar-free and low-sugar recipes, you can get in on the good stuff with the rest of the partygoers. Whether you have Type 1, a condition that causes your body to produce little to no insulin, or Type 2, when your body resists insulin or doesn't produce enough, there are plenty of festive treats you can safely indulge in.
21 Holiday Dessert Recipes That Are Diabetes-Friendly
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Published Oct 26, 2024
Henry Hargreaves/Avocaderia
What Makes These Desserts Diabetic-Friendly?
While too many carbs can cause spikes in your blood sugar, making diabetes harder to manage, there's no daily carb intake recommendation from the American Diabetes Association (ADA) for those with diabetes, because people's responses to carbs vary greatly. (K Health advises using the glycemic index to measure how quickly foods can cause your blood sugar to spike.) But by moderating your carb and sugar intake, you can likely dig into these diabetes-friendly holiday desserts, ranging from avocado chocolate mousse to sugar-free sugar cookies with almond flour.
In curating this list, I focused on desserts that are low in sugar, and looked for ones that were higher in fiber and fat. Just consult with your doctor or nutritionist before trying these sweets—they might not fit in with every diabetic diet.
1. Avocado Chocolate Mousse
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why I Love It: <30 minutes, special occasion-worthy, <10 ingredients
- Serves: 4
Unsweetened non-dairy milk, dairy-free dark chocolate and a modest amount of agave syrup make this decadent dessert fair game. "Make the mousse ahead of time and store it in a resealable container in the fridge for up to two days," advise the writers of Avocaderia: Avocado Recipes for a Healthier, Happier Life.
2. 3-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why I Love It: <30 minutes, <10 ingredients, kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser
- Serves: 18 cookies
This diabetes-friendly holiday recipe is naturally dairy- and gluten-free, but creator Yumna Jawad says you can also "try making the cookies vegan with a flax egg." Feel free to swap the peanut butter for another nut butter too, because why not? (Just check the label for added sugars first.)
3. Sugar-Free, Low-Carb Blackberry Cobbler
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why I Love It: gluten free, dairy free, low carb, keto-friendly
- Serves: 9
Traditional cobblers call for lots of sugar, plus cornstarch as a thickening agent. This take on the tasty treat uses a zero-calorie monk fruit allulose blend as a sweetener and grass-fed gelatin for thickening, a keto-friendly ingredient that boosts the dessert's protein content. Win-win.
4. Paleo Carrot Cake
- Time Commitment: 50 minutes
- Why I Love It: gluten free, dairy free, Paleo-friendly
- Serves: 12
I'm with recipe developer Stefani Pollack: Veggies make excellent cakes. Made with almond flour, sweetened with maple syrup and dates and crowned with whipped coconut cream, this riff on carrot cake is low in sugar and rich in protein and fiber.
5. Sugar-Free Sugar Cookies with Almond Flour
- Time Commitment: 6 hours and 25 minutes (includes chilling)
- Why I Love It: make ahead, beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser
- Serves: 24
This Christmas essential is perfect for decorating and devouring after Christmas Eve dinner while watching your favorite Christmas movie. With the help of almond flour, coconut flour and monkfruit, this holiday essential turns gluten free and low-sugar in an instant. Top the sugar cookies with powdered sugar or sprinkles to skip the frosting.
6. Skinny Maple Granola Yogurt Parfaits
- Time Commitment: 50 minutes
- Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, make ahead, vegetarian
- Serves: 4
Coterie member Monique Volz swears by these flawless dessert course options (which are also wholesome enough to have for breakfast, if you feel so inclined). The secret to this diabetes-friendly holiday dessert recipe is sugar-free maple syrup.
7. Sugar-Free Chocolate Cream Pie
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why I Love It: make ahead, crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
- Serves: 12
This nostalgic treat is the stuff of dreams. Unsweetened cocoa powder, sugar-free chocolate chips and chocolate liquid stevia deliver authentic flavor without taking the sugar content overboard.
8. Coconut “Snowball” Cookies
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, gluten free, dairy free, vegan
- Serves: 9 cookies
These poppables are made with just seven ingredients (including shredded unsweetened coconut, maple syrup and aquafaba, aka chickpea water). They come together in one bowl and are decidedly on-theme for any winter gathering.
9. Sugar-Free Cinnamon Candied Almonds
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why I Love It: <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly, make ahead
- Serves: 16
I'll be gifting these to all the neighbors, TYVM. Despite real sugar being used to candy the nuts, if you stick to a single serving, it only contains 11 grams of the stuff, as well as 3 grams of fiber and 6 grams of protein.
10. No-Bake Reindeer Energy Bites
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why I Love It: vegetarian, make ahead, beginner-friendly
- Serves: 16
How adorable is this diabetic holiday dessert recipe? Pitted dates, almonds and cashews get a festive makeover with the help of warm spices, cocoa powder, pretzel "antlers" and candy eyeballs.
11. Grain-Free Italian Wedding Snowball Cookies
- Time Commitment: 15 minutes
- Why I Love It: vegan, Paleo-friendly, make ahead
- Serves: 15
I'll pick this four-ingredient masterpiece over real snow any day. Almond flour is the key to the cookies' fatty texture, nutty flavor and wheatless charm, while powdered erythritol makes the holiday dessert diabetic-friendly.
12. Gingerbread Hot Chocolate
- Time Commitment: 5 minutes
- Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, one pot, dairy free
- Serves: 1
Forget the sugar—this souped-up hot chocolate is delicious enough on its own. Molasses, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg make it taste like winter bliss. The sweetener (honey or maple syrup) and the amount is totally up to you.
13. Easy Keto, Low-Carb Pumpkin Pie
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, low carb, keto-friendly
- Serves: 12
This classic dessert fits in on Thanksgiving, Christmas and every day in between. The almond flour pie crust makes it safe for gluten-free eaters, and the monk fruit allulose blend keeps the sugar to a minimum.
14. Sugarless, Low-Calorie Sugar Cookies
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why I Love It: <30 minutes, make ahead, crowd-pleaser
- Serves: 48
Whole-wheat pastry flour gives these better-for-you sugar cookies a touch of earthiness that will surprise you. They're begging to be dunked in eggnog, or any of your favorite holiday drinks if you ask me.
15. Apple-Cranberry Crisp
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, kid-friendly
- Serves: 6
The crunchy topping, starring oats, flaxseed meal and walnuts, is everything you want in a fruit crisp. There's only one tablespoon of added sugar in the base; the rest of the diabetic-friendly holiday dessert's sweetness comes from the apples and cranberries.
16. Keto Pecan Pie
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy, gluten free
- Serves: 14
A holiday classic, reimagined. The crust is made with mainly almond flour, coconut flour and monk fruit sweetener, while the filling is made nutty, rich and thick with vegan butter, almond butter and canned coconut milk instead of standard corn syrup.
17. Diabetic Snickerdoodle Cookies
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why I Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, make ahead
- Serves: 48 cookies
High in fat and low in sugar (thanks to lard, butter and stevia powder), these warm-spiced delights are a keto dieter's dream. I'd add an extra pinch of cinnamon to the dough for maximum winter magic.
18. No-Sugar Oatmeal and Raisin Cookies
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser, make ahead
- Serves: 24 cookies
This calls for a tall glass of milk. White and brown sugar alternatives make these timeless cookies fair game for folks with diabetes. The other ingredients are fairly standard.
19. Keto Pumpkin Doughnuts
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why I Love It: gluten free, low carb, keto-friendly, Paleo-friendly
- Serves: 12
Hello, Christmas breakfast. These keto pumpkin doughnuts are sweetened with granulated monk fruit instead of real sugar. They’re also grain-free and coated in sugar-free chocolate glaze.
20. Butterscotch Pudding
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why I Love It: <30 minutes, crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
- Serves: 12
This homemade spin is much better than the boxed stuff, promise. Coconut cream and egg yolks keep the texture luxurious and rich, even though it's only sweetened with stevia drops and a low-carb brown sugar replacement.
21. Healthy, Paleo and Vegan Chocolate Coconut Truffles
- Time Commitment: 10 minutes (plus chilling time)
- Why I Love It: beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients, make ahead
- Serves: 40 balls
Bet you can't eat just one. Keep the leftovers for up to a week at room temperature in a sealed container, for up to one week in the fridge or in the freezer for six months. (There's a good chance you won't have any to spare, though.)
