The 13 best recipes to bake in June
Celebrate summer baking with cobblers, cakes, and calzones.
It’s finally summer, which means it’s time to reacquaint yourself with the simple pleasures of warm-weather baking. These include ripe, juicy fruits to play with, recipes that require breaking out your ice cream maker, and some new picnic must-haves. So put on your apron, grab your mixing bowl, and let’s dive into some fun summer bakes.
1) Grilled Calzones
The best calzones are the ones you cook on the grill. The dough takes on a hint of smoke and char, the cheese melts beautifully, and, best of all, you don't have to turn on your oven and heat up your house. Fill them with spinach and cheese, but don't skip the garlic basting oil, which adds another layer of savory flavor.
Get the recipe: Grilled Calzones
Shop the recipe: '00' Pizza Flour
2) Lemon Blueberry Cake
This recipe is the perfect marriage of sweet and tangy, with homemade blueberry jam sandwiched between layers of tender lemony cake. A lemon cake soak and blueberry-streaked lemon frosting take the citrus flavor to the max. If you’re short on time, store-bought blueberry pie filling can be used as a 1:1 volume replacement for the blueberry filling.
Get the recipe: Lemon Blueberry Cake
Shop the recipe: Blake Hill Blueberry Pie Filling
3) Ultimate Brown Butter Rice Krispies Treats
We took a good thing (Rice Krispies Treats) and made them great. How? Well, we use more butter (and brown it for extra depth of flavor) and more marshmallows, plus we add toasted milk powder (for nuttiness) and lots of pure vanilla extract and salt. Then we pack the marshmallow-coated cereal into a smaller pan, resulting in super-thick bars. Maybe you've had Rice Krispies Treats before, but you've never had them like this.
Get the recipe: Ultimate Brown Butter Rice Krispies Treats
Shop the recipe: Dried Whole Milk
4) Pretzel Biscuits
It's a buttery, flaky biscuit with a twist: It's been pretzel-fied. A baking soda solution brushed on the biscuits before baking (plus a generous showering of pretzel salt) bronzes the biscuits and gives them that signature pretzel flavor. Eat these biscuits on their own, just like soft pretzels, or split them in half to spread with jam or load up with breakfast sandwich fillings.
Get the recipe: Pretzel Biscuits
Shop the recipe: Bench Knife
5) Persian Date Halva
Medjool dates replace the sugar in this iconic Middle Eastern snack, adding caramelly sweetness. There’s plenty of options for shaping and flavors depending on your mood. Roll into a log then slice like cookies, or shape into individual bite-sized pieces. Start with the sesame and toasted coconut base, or add cardamom and pistachios for a nutty, spiced version.
Get the recipe: Persian Date Halva
Shop the recipe: Cloud Forest Cardamom
6) Bourbon and Brown Butter Peach Cookies
These special cookies from baker Lasheeda Perry are fit for any Juneteenth celebration. Each starts with a brown butter cookie base, then gets dressed up with bourbon-spiked cream cheese frosting and a dollop of spiced, boozy peach compote. Lasheeda recommends Uncle Nearest Bourbon to pay homage to Nathan “Nearest” Green, the first known African-American master distiller.
Get the recipe: Bourbon and Brown Butter Peach Cookies
Shop the recipe: Tablespoon Cookie Scoop
7) Berry Cream Tart
This simple stunner highlights the very best of summer berries. Tender tart crust combined with velvety pastry cream is the perfect vehicle for heaps of fresh berries straight from the U-pick farm.
Get the recipe: Berry Cream Tart
Shop the recipe: Fluted Tart Pan
8) Easy Ice Cream Pie
Are you the type of person who abandons your oven once the weather hits 80 degrees? Enter Easy Ice Cream Pie. With its no-bake crust and no-churn ice cream filling, this no-fuss bake is one you’ll want to make on repeat all summer. Start with the basic vanilla flavoring, then get creative with mix-ins and extracts.
Get the recipe: Easy Ice Cream Pie
Shop the recipe: Pie Pan
9) Fresh Fruit Cobbler
Fruit cobblers are the epitome of laidback summer baking. The batter for this cake-style cobbler comes together by hand in a mixing bowl, and it’ll complement whatever fruit you have available. A scoop of ice cream on top is non-negotiable.
Get the recipe: Fresh Fruit Cobbler
Shop the recipe: Square Pan
10) Strawberry Shortcake
It’s not really summer until you have a strawberry shortcake. This beloved bake is a classic for a reason. Mile-high flaky biscuits, homemade whipped cream, and juicy strawberries at their peak will always be a winning trio.
Get the recipe: Strawberry Shortcake
Shop the recipe: King Arthur Pure Vanilla Extract
11) No-Knead Cheese Burger Buns
Impress everyone at the cookout with homemade burger buns. This recipe goes beyond the regular burger bun format with addition of cheese in the dough. Plus, it only requires two minutes of mixing. Spend less time prepping, and more time outside!
Get the recipe: No-Knead Cheese Burger Buns
Shop the recipe: Better Cheddar Cheese Powder
12) S’more Granola Bars
S'mores are the perfect campfire treat; S'more Granola Bars, on the other hand, are the ideal on-the-go way to enjoy the iconic combination of graham crackers, chocolate, and marshmallow. Rolled oats give the bar some heft, and a quick run under the broiler at the end of baking roasts the marshmallows to golden-brown perfection.
Get the recipe: S’more Granola Bars
Shop the recipe: Vietnamese Cinnamon
13) Strawberry Ice Cream
Look no further: This is the only strawberry ice cream recipe you need. (If you don’t believe me, look to the reviewer who made this four times last summer.) Pro tip: Soaking the strawberries in a high-proof liquor prevents them from becoming unpleasantly icy once frozen.
Get the recipe: Strawberry Ice Cream
Shop the recipe: Cuisinart Ice Cream & Gelato Maker
Gearing up for pie season this summer? Here's everything you need to know.
Cover photo (Pretzel Biscuits) by Rick Holbrook; food styling by Kaitlin Wayne.
Additional contributions by Laura Scaduto.
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