25 Green Desserts for a Color Themed Potluck

Your having a work potluck for St. Patrick’s day or going to an outdoor birthday barbeque, but the host has requested a green dessert. What are you going to bring?

No worries! We have compiled a list of beautiful green desserts that are perfect for a Green Color Themed Potluck Party!

What are green desserts to bring to a potluck?

Desserts for a potluck can get a little tricky because they need to serve a lot, easy to transport, and hopefully won’t break the bank as far as cost goes. Here is our list of the best green desserts to bring to an indoor or outdoor potluck.

(Not everyone wants to make or prepare foods for a party and that is totally fine. If that is you, check out our Ultimate List of Green Snack Foods at the Grocery Store.)

1. Lime Jell-O

If your not much of a cook, or just want to go with something super simple, try making some lime green Jell-O! You can add fruit to the Jell-O, or you can go fancy and make Jell-O shooter cups. For a shooter, you will basically make mini parfaits with the green Jell-O at the bottom, whipped cream on top, and then sprinkle with green sugar, sprinkles, or candy. (Pro Tip: make sure you have a cardboard box that will hold your cups for easy transport! Not every potluck has spoons, so make sure to grab a box of plastic spoons to bring with your dessert.)

2. Green Cupcakes

This is one of the few instances, where I would say using a little green food coloring is okay. Cakes come in a zillion colors, so seeing a green cupcake with green frosting would not be considered unappealing. (Pro tip: if you are adding the dye yourself, try to go for a bright happy green or a light pastel. Start with a few drops of color, stir well, and then add more. You can always add more but if you add too much you can’t take it back. You can also buy cake mixes and premade frosting in your desired color at the grocery store.)

3. Pistachio Cake

This cake can be as easy as you want it, or you can make your cake from scratch. For the easy version you will start with a yellow cake mix and a pack of instant pistachio pudding. To make the icing green, you can use another pack of pistachio pudding and mix it with a container of whipped topping and a little milk. The end result will be a beautiful light green cake with pastel green frosting. (Pro tip: if you make a sheet cake in a 9×13 pan, go ahead and pre-slice the cake so it is easier for guests to serve themselves. Go ahead and bring a small spatula, pie server, or large spoon too.)

4. Green Apple Crisp

Green apples are so tart and sweet but they pair really well with cinnamon! Start with a bag of bright green apples and cut into slices with the peel on. Mix the apples with some brown sugar and white sugar, and then top with your favorite crisp topping. The green of the peels will shine through and give this dessert the green it needs. (Pro Tip: if you want to serve your crisp with something extra, bring some vanilla ice cream or whipped topping. You can even dye the whipped topping green, but go for a light color because dark green whipped cream is very off putting.)

5. Pistachio Pudding

This is another simple green dessert that can be made the night before! Start with a couple boxes of instant pistachio pudding and make them. Find a nice large bowl to serve the pudding and make sure to include a spoon to serve. You can decorate the top with chopped pistachios and whipped cream or leave it plain. (Pro Tip: one box of pudding makes 8 small servings, so make sure you make enough boxes for the number of guests. For instance, if there will be 25 guests, you will want to use 4 boxes to make sure you have enough for everyone.)

6. Pear Cake

Pear cake has an awesome presentation and really isn’t that difficult to make. You can start with a homemade cake batter or using a box mix. The impressive part is slicing your pears with the skin on for the green color, and shingle them in a circle or design on top of your prepared cake batter. When the cake bakes, your pear pattern will look gorgeous on top! (Pro tip: make your pear slices thin or cut then into to chunks instead of slices. Thick slices are very difficult to cut into, so it will make the cake look horrible after cutting slices off. I like to make this in a 9×13 pan and run my pear shingles lengthwise. This makes cutting the cake so much easier!)

7. Kiwi & Grape Dessert Pizza

Dessert pizzas are so easy to make, and you can go crazy with a cool design on top! The basics of this dessert is to start with a sugar cookie crust. Once baked you can top the cookie crust with premade frosting, pudding, or whipped cream. Then comes the fun part of arranging kiwi slices and halved grapes in a cute pattern. (Pro Tip: for a pop of color, you can include other fruits like berries, but keep 80% of the fruit green. Skip fruits like green apples, because they will turn brown after cutting them.)

8. Green Grape Kabobs

If your pattern making skils are stellar for a dessert pizza, consider just bringing a big bowl of green grapes. You can also turn these grapes into kabobs, by mixing in green colored marshmallows or using something else that is soft but will hold it’s shape. (Pro Tip: unfortunately, there is not a lot of green fruits that work well for kabobs because they turn brown easily like pears and apples. You could also add a fun bit, by using green jelly beans or green gum drops!)

9. Key Lime Pie

Key Lime Pie is a great dessert anytime of the year. It’s light, cool, and refreshing with a tartness that is not overpowering. You can make a key lime pie from scratch or buy one premade in the bakery or frozen section of your local grocery store. (Pro tip: wonder if it is cheaper to buy one versus making one? Check out this cost breakdown of if you should buy or make a key lime pie!)

10. Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

Sometimes when you go to an outdoor potluck barbeque, the easiest desert to bring is ice cream! This works out really well if it is a family even with kids coming too. Mint Chocolate Chip is a huge fan favorite, and it has a beautiful green color! (Pro Tip: Ice Cream will not stay frozen in a cooler with regular ice so either use dry ice, or make sure there is a freezer to store the ice cream until dessert time!)

11. Green Marshmallow Bites

Ok, this one is not only easy but it is a huge hit with kids! First you need to dress up your marshmallows with a little green bling. I like to dip my marshmallows into a melted white almond bark or a white chocolate. Then before it hardens, sprinkle them with some green crystallized sugar or food safe glitter. These can both be found in the baking or cake section at your local Walmart or Michael’s craft store. (Pro Tip: It is easier to dip marshmallows if you put them on a toothpick first. You can also keep the toothpick and arrange them on a platter for easy serving for the other party guests!)

12. Grinch Cookies

Grinch cookies are really popular around Christmas, but you can make these work all year round by skipping the little heart candy. These cookies are made using a white or yellow cake mix, a little peppermint extract, and powdered sugar. For full recipe, check out MomOnTimeOut. (Pro Tip: one batch of grinch cookies, typically makes 30 cookies, but you can make them half the size and get 60. Depending on the number of people coming to the potluck, you may want to double the size of the batch!)

13. Lime Cake

Lime cake is a fresh and tangy dessert that is perfect for something other than chocolate. I love this recipe from LoveFromTheOven. It’s basically a cake mix that has sour cream, lime juice, and a simple glaze added on top. (Pro Tip: this kind of cake works really well in a Bundt pan, and then it is super easy to slice it based on the ridges. Make sure to bring a cake server or spatula with your cake for easy serving.)

14. Green Candies

If you are short on time and want to go super easy! Consider bringing an assortment of green candies. These can be piled together in a large candy mix, or you can arrange each kind in rows on a platter. Some suggestions for green candies are jolly ranchers, jellybeans, gummy apple slices, Andes mints, dessert mints, green airheads, and green skittles. (Pro Tip: if you don’t want to break the bank, check out your local dollar tree for the candy. Most stores have a huge aisle just dedicated to candy, so you could pick up 7-8 bags and still come out less than $10.)

15. Pistachio Pie

Similar to a banana cream pie, a pistachio pie starts with a instant pack of pistachio pudding. Once it firms up, you can scoop the pudding into a crust of your choice. I have seen a plain crust, a graham cracker crust or even one made with vanilla cookies or vanilla wafers. You can then top the pie with whipped topping and sprinkle the top with chopped pistachios. (Pro tip: an average pie will serve 8-12 small slices, so keep this in mind if you have a large number of guests.)

16. Mountain Dew Sherbet

This sounds a little weird, but mountain dew sherbet is actually very tasty and refreshing on a hot day! Simply take 3 cups green sherbet, 1 cup vanilla ice cream, 2 cups ice in a blender. Once combined, add mountain dew to thin the mixture. The desired consistency is a of a frosty or milkshake. Serve in cups or small bowls. (Pro Tip: This combo really needs to be made right before it is served, so make sure you have access to a plug for your blender!)

17. Chocolate Mint Cookies

Chocolate Mint Cookies can be made completely from scratch, or you can take some easy shortcuts. Basically, you want a rich chocolate cookie, and then you ice it with a mint green frosting. The easiest way to achieve the icing, is to use a white frosting and add a little green food dye and a few drops of mint extract. (Pro Tip: It take a little while for the frosting to harden, so go light on the frosting, and let harden before putting them on a platter. These cookies can actually be made a few days ahead of time and just freeze them. The night before you can defrost the cookies and they will come out perfect!)

18. Grasshopper Pie

Grasshopper pie is named due to hits color and hoppy (alcoholic) parts and does not actually include grasshoppers. A really nice recipe of Grasshopper pie can be found over at SimplyRecipes. (Pro Tip: since this pie does include creme de cacao and creme de menthe liqueur, you will want to leave this option for an adult dinner party. Skip the family events with kids and work parties.)

19. Lemon Lime Poke Cake

I’m not sure if poke cakes are just a southern thing, but they can make for some interesting flavor and texture combinations. For this cake you will start with a basic lemon cake, and once it is baked and cooled, you will poke holes into the cake. The poke filling is made with green lime Jell-O that is not quite fully firm. The icing is a mixture of lemon pudding mix and whipped topping. When you cut the yellow cake, you will see the green Jell-O mix inside the cake. (Pro tip: to bump up the green in this cake, add a drop of green food coloring to the icing so you have a pretty light green color!)

20. Pistachio Bread

Pistachio bread is a simple quick bread that can be made from scratch, or you can go the easy route with a yellow cake mix and instant pudding mix. It seems like everyone brings super sweet desserts, so this dessert is a nice a change. If you want a little pizzazz on your quick bread, you can top the bread with some green sprinkles or crystallized sugar before baking. This will give a little green shimmer to the top of the cooked bread. (Pro Tip: Slice the pistachio bread once cooled and arrange on a platter. You can add some more green by putting bunches of green grapes to the platter.)

21. Green Tea Yogurt Cake

Green Tea or Matcha is very trendy right now, so it would be very easy to incorporate it into a cake. The yogurt in the cake gives it a moistness and it is very dense and flavorful. For a full recipe, check out MotherThyme. (Pro Tip: You can make this cake in a loaf pan, or make it as a sheet pan. Once cooked, it has a very lovely green color, so to show that off, pre-slice the cake so the inner part shines!)

22. Green Rice Krispie Treats

Rice Krispie Treats are always a big hit as potlucks, and they are very versatile as well! You can add green candies, a touch of coloring to the marshmellow, use green peeps, or sprinkle with green sugar on top! (Pro tip: Run your knife under hot water between slicing rice krispy treats, so the treats cut nice and clean.)

23. Green Chocolate Dipped Pretzels

The flavor combo of salty and sweet and is always a nice treat, so that is why chocolate covered pretzels work so well! There are a lot of options here so just pick the one that works for you. You can start with white chocolate and then use green sugar on top, or you can use milk chocolate and use green sprinkles. (Pro Tip: It is hard to fully coat a pretzel stick from top to bottom, so leave the last 1/3 of the pretzel without chocolate. This gives you a place to hold without getting messy. You can also make this with all different kinds of pretzel shapes, so get creative!)

24. Green Pear Tart

Similar to the pear cake, the slices of green pear are really what make this dessert look like a million bucks! We start with a sheet of puff pastry that can be found in the freezer or dairy section of your local grocery store. Next, we make a simple filling of applesauce and cinnamon, and then place our sliced green pears on top in a nice pattern. Before we bake, we will sprinkle the top of the pears with some sugar and brush the edges of the puff pastry with an egg wash. Once this bakes in the oven, we can add a little more sweetness by melting apple or pear jelly down and brushing the top of the pears with it. (Pro Tip: Use a super sharp knife to cut this tart, or you can end up with lots of tears. I like to pre-slice the whole tart like a pie and have a cake server so each party goer can easily take a slice. Since this is a potluck, make smaller slices!)

25. Green Velvet Cake

This is one of the few times, that I will recommend using lots of food coloring in a dish and the only reason I am okay with this is because regular red velvet is really just chocolate cake with red food coloring. I would probably only dye the cake or the frosting and not both unless you opt for a very light green icing and a dark green cake. (Pro Tip: Personally, I would just add food coloring to the cake, and leave the cream cheese frosting white. I would then do some green sugar or food grade glitter on top for a pop of green.)

Green Desserts for a Color Party

You may be wondering why this list is not miles long for green potluck desserts. I like to use fruits and foods that are naturally green and try to avoid a ton of food coloring. There are two main reasons for this.

First, artificial coloring adds nothing to a dish. In fact, food coloring can aggravate food allergies and make a dish look very unappealing.

Lastly, when food looks unappealing because it is unnaturally green, people are just not going to eat it. So why waste my time, effort, and money if my dish doesn’t get eaten.

I know that potlucks are fun, and a color theme is supposed to up the fun, but I still want to bring good food that people actually eat.

Hopefully this list has inspired you for your next Green Color Potluck. If you need more ideas, check out our list of green side dishes!