Regional Desserts You Need To Try

All-American desserts like apple pie and ice cream sundaes can be found from sea to shining sea. But other dessert foods take some seeking out. For example, you'll have to travel to Key West to get your hands on a real key lime pie. And you'll need recipes straight from a Southern grandma's cookbook to get some of America's best desserts right. Many of the most nostalgic desserts from the West Coast are still unheard of in the East. But why not spread the love? From pies to cookies to cakes and so much more, here are some of America's best regional dessert foods you need to try.

When you think of Alaska and dessert, your brain might go right to baked Alaska, one of the most retro desserts out there. But as anyone who knows better will tell you, baked Alaska isn't from Alaska at all — and the state has a few fabulous desserts of its own. Akutaq, also called Eskimo ice cream or Alaskan ice cream, is made by mixing together oil, shortening, a variety of berries, sugar and, traditionally, whitefish or tallow. "Akutaq" is a Yup'ik word that means "something mixed." Original recipes from long ago were created by natives of Alaska to bring on long hunting trips for survival, and often didn't include sugar. Recipes have adapted over time, and now many Alaskan families will have a recipe of their own that's been passed down for generations.

Famously originating at Cafe du Monde in New Orleans, beignets are a type of French doughnut every Louisiana visitor should try. They're fluffy and look like small, powdered sugar-dusted pillows. Typically, these Southern treats are made from deep-fried choux pastry, but other types of dough can be used as well. For a fresh twist, try this recipe for blueberry beignets that are too good to pass up.

True to its name, Boston cream pie is one of the most iconic desserts in America and is cherished by residents of the city. Boston cream pie is a yellow butter cake filled with custard and frosted with a chocolate glaze. You could try making your own at home, but no one does it better than Massachusettsans. Residents of the state love the dessert so much they passed an ordinance in 1996 declaring it their official "Dessert Emblem."

Chess pie was first invented in England before migrating to New England and Virginia where it became popular in part because of its simplicity. Chess pie is known as the "ultimate pantry pie" since the recipe is so simple. You just need a pie crust and can make the filling with items you probably already have in your pantry: flour, butter, sugar and eggs. The result is a sweet, dense pie that inspires plenty of variations. Some popular flavors of chess pie are buttermilk, lemon and chocolate.

You probably know this Kentucky dessert by a different name: Derby pie. However, Kern's Kitchen, the Louisville bakery that invented Mayday pie, copyrighted the name "Derby pie" and has earned a reputation for protecting the name quite aggressively, so it's often referred to by the more generic title "Mayday pie" or "that horse race pie." The pie — which is similar to pecan pie and chess pie — is made with bourbon, chocolate and walnuts. Here's how to make a version of your own at home. We encourage pairing it with one of the best Kentucky Derby cocktails.

Gooey butter cakes are gooey and, yes, loaded with butter. They were supposedly invented by accident when a baker in St. Louis, Missouri, mixed up the amounts of butter and flour that were called for in a cake recipe. If you know how to make it right, the consistency should be similar to that of a brownie. This cake is so delicious, you can eat it any time of day. That's why it's one of the dishes you just might find on a Midwestern breakfast table.

New Jersey and New York have no shortage of Italian bakeries, most of which sell a variety of cute little Italian cookies. Spumoni slices, butter cookies, biscotti, spritz cookies, pignoli cookies, pizzelles and biscotti are just some of the array of treats you'll find behind bakery windows. Some are covered in sprinkles, others are chocolate-dipped. You really can't go wrong; families in the Northeast will bring home a variety in a box or stop in a bakery to grab a few as a midday treat.

Alabama's lane cake, also called a prize cake or Alabama lane cake, is one of the most famous foods in America. It's made from layers of white sponge cake held together by layers of bourbon-soaked raisins and coconut and a white meringue frosting. The dessert was made famous after being mentioned in Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird," and was named Alabama's official state dessert in 2016.

Mississippians love their mud pie, and it's easy to see why. The crust is made from chocolate cookies and chopped pecans, while the smooth filling is made with coffee-flavored liqueur, vanilla extract and chocolate. All of this is topped with a generous portion of whipped cream and, often, a few extra chocolate shavings. The pie gets its name because the chocolatey interior is dense and messy-looking enough to resemble the murk of the Mississippi River.

Scotcheroos are one of the greatest foods to come out of the Midwest. A scotcheroo is a dessert bar made from crisp rice stuck together by butterscotch, chocolate and peanut butter. They require zero baking and can keep for hours without being refrigerated, making them the perfect summertime treat. Here's how to make a batch for yourself (and more than a few friends).

Shoofly pie originated in the 1880s from the Pennsylvania Dutch, whose families needed to find a use for shelf-stable ingredients such as lard, molasses and flour during harsh winters. The molasses-based pie rumoredly got its name because the sweet, sticky mix of molasses would attract flies to the kitchen. Try making this tried-and-true dessert at home. After you make the crust, the sweet filling comes together in close to 10 minutes.

Sugar cream pie goes by many names: Hoosier sugar cream pie, Indiana cream pie and Indiana farm pie, to name a few. And, if you couldn't tell, it's the pride and joy of Indiana. Residents will tell you that sugar cream pie was first invented the year the state was established in 1816. The custard filling is made with vanilla, sugar and heavy cream.