Tired of finding smushed jellybeans and headless Peeps all over the house post-Easter? Same. That’s why we’re skipping the store-bought stuff (besides Cadbury Mini Eggs, obvi) this year in favor of homemade sweets. Whether you gift your kids—and grown-up relatives—fudge, lollipops, caramels or chocolate bark, they’ll surely be thrilled to find any of these Easter candy recipes in their baskets. Read on for 32 festive ideas.
32 Easter Candy Recipes That Will Wow Your Guests This Spring
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Published Mar 10, 2023
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 40 minutes (includes chilling time)
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly, no bake, make ahead
This just might be the most riffable Easter candy of all time. It's studded with pastel M&Ms, crushed pretzels and peanuts, but you can easily add whatever sweet and salty snacks you'd like.
- Time Commitment: 2 hours
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients, special occasion-worthy, gluten free
Ah, meringues: They’re easy to make, naturally gluten-free and light as air. Here, they’re layered with chocolate, toasted coconut and teeny-tiny eggs for the occasion.
3. Easy Chocolate Marshmallow Cups
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients, kid-friendly
Can you believe these cuties are only six ingredients away? The marshmallow filling is courtesy of powdered gelatin and sugar, along with a dash of salt and vanilla extract for flavor.
4. The Easiest Raw Apricot Candy
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, vegetarian, gluten free
It’s almost apricot season, so there’s no better time to showcase the sweet-tart fruit. Substitute maple syrup or agave for honey to make it vegan.
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, <30 minutes, crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly
This treat is all about spring, from the bee pollen to the edible flowers. It comes together in a flash with the help of a microwave and baking sheet.
6. Strawberry, Cardamom and Pistachio Pavlova Bites
- Time Commitment: 3 hours and 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, special occasion-worthy, gluten free, <10 ingredients
Don’t tell the Easter Bunny, but these poppables are going to win best dressed at this year’s dinner. Topping them with cardamom whipped cream adds a touch of fragrant, herbaceous flavor to every bite.
- Time Commitment: 2 hours and 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients
Who knew humble saltines could be turned into a dessert this epic? We’re betting your kids would be happy to decorate with pastel M&Ms and sprinkles.
- Time Commitment: 4 hours
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients, make ahead
Eat your heart out, Cadbury. These decadent chocolates are made almost entirely from pantry staples, like corn syrup, butter and powdered sugar.
9. White Chocolate Peanut Butter Eggs
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, vegan, gluten free, make ahead
Speaking of copycats, these give Reese’s a run for their money—despite being vegan. (Really, the outer shell is mostly raw macadamia nuts, unsweetened coconut and cocoa butter.)
10. 3-Ingredient Bunny Butt Candy Pretzel Bites
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, make ahead
These chocolatier-level confections are only four ingredients away. The secret? Using candy melts and bunny molds for uniform color and shape.
11. 4-Ingredient Easter Egg Oreo Truffles
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients
Ready your piping bags, friends. These simple treats are only as Insta-worthy as their outer designs, which are made with melted white chocolate-almond brittle.
12. Easter Egg Peanut Butter Candies
- Time Commitment: 2 hours
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, make ahead
A flourish of flaky salt goes a long way in taking these timeless candies up a notch. If you find the chocolate is too thick when you’re dipping, thin it out with coconut or vegetable oil.
13. 3-Ingredient Easter Oreo Dessert Pops
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly
Just as fun for the kids to decorate as hard-boiled eggs—only with way less mess and waste. Buy a variety of colored candy melts so they can get creative with their dipping.
- Time Commitment: 1hour and 15 minutes (includes cooling time)
- Why We Love It: make ahead, kid-friendly, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients
Nothing beats a no-bake dessert, especially on a food-heavy holiday. Feel free to add whatever seasonal mix-ins you’d like, like jellybeans, freeze-dried berries or candied nuts.
15. Easter Egg Buttercream Candies
- Time Commitment: 3 hours
- Why We Love It: make ahead, special occasion-worthy, crowd-pleaser
Think thick, luxurious buttercream filling and rich, slightly bitter dark chocolate. The filling is flavored with vanilla and almond extracts, but you can go rogue by subbing lemon extract, cocoa, freeze-dried strawberry powder or even espresso powder.
- Time Commitment: 2 hours and15 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, kid-friendly, crowd-pleaser, make ahead
Did you know you can shortcut making fudge from scratch by using store-bought marshmallow crème? We did just that, plus upped the ante with an extra generous swirl of the stuff in this sweet-and-salty fudge.
17. Jolly Rancher Hard Candy Lollipops
- Time Commitment: 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly, <10 ingredients
The recipe for these pretty lollies—made with nothing but Jolly Ranchers—is almost more like a craft than a real recipe. (That means even the kitchen-averse will be up to the task.)
- Time Commitment: 2 hours and 30 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, kid-friendly, make ahead, gluten free
Because they’re made from itty-bitty meringues, we consider these cookie-candy hybrids. Even better, the chocolate-hazelnut filling is as easy as opening a jar.
19. Rose Levy Beranbaum’s Chocolate Phantoms
- Time Commitment: 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly
Why are they called phantoms, you ask? Because they’re bound to vanish before your eyes. The handhelds have a uniquely waxy crunch, thanks to macadamia nuts.
- Time Commitment: 25 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, <30 minutes, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients, gluten free
Sort of like low-lift buckeyes, these cups are a cinch to make ahead. Pipe the tahini filling straight into the chocolate for a swirly, marbled finish.
21. Chocolate Coconut Almond Bars
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients, gluten free
The bars start with a classic macaroon base, which is topped with toasted almonds and all the melted chocolate your heart desires. Make ’em once and you’ll never buy an Almond Joy again.
22. Baileys Chocolate Truffles
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 40 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, make ahead, <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly
You know that bottle of Irish cream that’s been collecting dust on your bar cart since last St. Patrick’s Day? Put it to good use by making these irresistible, five-ingredient candies.
- Time Commitment: 35 minutes
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, make ahead, beginner-friendly, <10 ingredients
Behold: a sweet-and-spicy masterpiece. Because the popcorn is enrobed in a simple butter caramel, this snack qualifies as candy in our book. (We’d take it over a chocolate bunny any day.)
24. Rose Levy Beranbaum’s Bourbon Balls
- Time Commitment: 1 hour
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, no bake, make ahead, beginner-friendly
Because booze could only make your Easter shindig better, no? If you do want to skip the bourbon, substitute water and vanilla extract.
- Time Commitment: 20 minutes
- Why We Love It: <30 minutes, crowd-pleaser, make ahead, beginner-friendly
This Philadelphia staple tastes just as divine on St. Patrick’s Day as it does on Easter, since it’s stuffed with cream cheese and sweetened shredded coconut.
- Time Commitment: 10 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, <30 minutes, no bake, beginner-friendly
When in doubt, take a bunch of your kids’ favorite Easter candies, pile them into festive cups and call it ‘jarcuterie’. Might we suggest filling the bottoms with edible grass?
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 45 minutes
- Why We Love It: kid-friendly, special occasion-worthy, make ahead
By the looks of the peanut-studded nougat and extra-thick caramel, the store-bought kind could never. Keep the bars in the fridge until dessert time so they don’t get too gooey.
28. Turtle Candy
- Time Commitment: 50 minutes
- Why We Love It: beginner-friendly, crowd-pleaser, make ahead
Since the recipe uses store-bought caramel instead of homemade, you’ll be able to assemble the candies in no time. (And you’ll only need three additional ingredients to do it.)
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: make ahead, crowd-pleaser, <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly
Why not fill this year’s plastic eggs with tiny baggies of cinnamon-sugar nuts? (OK, maybe your picky kids won’t go for it…but hey, then there’ll be more for the grown-ups.)
30. Bacon Almond Brittle with Vanilla Beans
- Time Commitment: 1 hour and 15 minutes
- Why We Love It: <10 ingredients, beginner-friendly, gluten free
One saucepan, one baking sheet and enough homemade candy to gift all your relatives—sound easy enough? All the sweet-and-salty stans at the party will beg you for the recipe.
32. Potato Chip Salted Champagne Caramels
- Time Commitment: 45 minutes (plus cooling time)
- Why We Love It: crowd-pleaser, make ahead, special occasion-worthy
Snacks, candy and bubbly, a trifecta that all but guarantees a good time. Finish the caramels with chic metallic sprinkles or extra potato chip crumbs.
Taryn Pire is PureWow’s associate food editor. A former bartender and barista, she’s been writing about all things delicious since 2016, developing recipes, reviewing restaurants and investigating food trends at Food52, New Jersey Family Magazine and Taste Talks. When she isn’t testing TikTok’s latest viral recipe, she’s having popcorn for dinner and posting about it on Instagram @cookingwithpire.
