Sweet, Delicious Recipes That Can Be Baked in a Cast-Iron Skillet

Skillet Cookie

Our food editors treasure cast-iron skillets for their durability, nonstick quality, and the fact that they can be passed down from one generation to the next. They're not just used to make pan-fried steak or breakfast casseroles. They can be used to make skillet cookies, cobblers, cornbread, and so much more—here, we're sharing our favorite cast-iron skillet baking recipes that put this beloved piece of cookware to good use.

One of our favorite things to bake in cast-iron is a skillet cookie—in fact, we love this dessert so much that we included three different recipes for a skillet cookie: a regular chocolate chip, a double chocolate chip, and one that features coconut and oats, as well as chocolate. They're all sweet, family-friendly desserts that everyone will love. Pro tip: They're best served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top.

Another cast-iron skillet baking recipe that we love is cornbread. We have a classic version, as well as one that calls for fresh sage and honey, which adds sweetness and an earthy, herby quality to this all-star Thanksgiving side dish. Plus, the perk about baking something in a cast-iron skillet is that you can serve it directly in the same piece of cookware because in addition to being functional, it looks good, too.

Looking for something to end your meal on a sweet note? We offer inspiration for making use of seasonal fruit like plums, peaches, figs, and berries galore. From skillet cakes to cobblers, buckles, and grunts, these cast-iron skillet recipes will take your dessert to new, delicious heights.

01 of 18

Chocolate-Chip Oat-Coconut Skillet Cookie

chocolate chip skillet cookie served with ice cream
The Ingalls

Loaded with sweet chocolate, shredded coconut, and oatmeal, this rich skillet cookie is family-friendly and will surely disappear before you know it. The cookie dough is pressed into a cast-iron skillet and bakes until it's crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside.

02 of 18

Martha's Plum Skillet Cake

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Mike Krautter

Let fresh plums shine in this one-bowl, one-skillet cake recipe that couldn't be easier to prepare. The cake batter is poured into a cast-iron skillet, then topped with plums and baked until cooked through.

03 of 18

Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Skillet Cookie

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Bryan Gardner

Nothing will compare to eating a slice of this rich, double chocolate cookie warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. You can both bake and serve the cookie directly in the same cast-iron skillet.

04 of 18

Fruit Skillet Cake

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Christina Holmes

No matter the season, you can use this skillet cake to let seasonal fruit shine. Try juicy peaches and apricots in the summer or rich figs in the fall for this simple, one-skillet cake.

05 of 18

Skillet Chocolate Chip Cookie

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Lennart Weibull

Consider this your new go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe. Instead of forming individual balls of dough, why not form it into one crowd-friendly skillet cookie which you can bake, then slice into pieces for serving.

06 of 18

Blackberry Skillet Cake

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Caramelized brown sugar, tart blackberries, and a sweet and soft cake are three irresistible elements in this cast-iron skillet dessert recipe.

07 of 18

Sage and Honey Skillet Cornbread

skillet cornbread
Anna Williams

Cornbread baked in a cast-iron skillet is one of our favorite recipes to make all year long, but especially on Thanksgiving—this recipe features fresh sage leaves, which bring earthy flavor, and honey for sweetness.

08 of 18

Cast-Iron Huckleberry Cobbler

huckleberry cobbler
Linda Pugliese

Here's a genius use of frozen fruit huckleberries—they top this one-skillet cobbler that's made with a combination of flour and cornmeal. It bakes in a cast-iron skillet until the cobbler is golden brown and fruit is bubbling.

09 of 18

Plum Skillet Cake

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Tara Donne

All you need for this cast-iron skillet baking recipe are basic pantry staples (think flour, sugar, baking powder, and baking soda), butter, buttermilk, and two ripe plums. It's best served warm, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a friendly dollop of whipped cream.

10 of 18

Apple-Buckwheat Pancakes

apple-buckwheat pancakes
Armando Rafael

Just ¼ cup of buckwheat flour adds a nutty quality to this buttermilk pancake recipe. Before flipping the pancakes, thinly sliced apples are added to the top of each.

11 of 18

Skillet-Cooked Mixed-Berry Grunt

berry grunt
Tara Donne

Think of a grunt as somewhere in between a fruit cobbler and crisp. The filling is made from cooked mixed berries, sugar, and lemon juice, and is topped with buttermilk biscuit dough and sprinkled with cinnamon sugar.

12 of 18

Skillet Cornbread

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Consider this your go-to recipe for a cast-iron skillet cornbread. A combination of yellow cornmeal and all-purpose flour are used for the base of this northern-style cornbread, plus buttermilk which adds tang.

13 of 18

Dutch Baby with Apples and Honey

dutch baby with apples and honey
Lennart Weibull

This family-friendly Dutch baby is made with sliced Granny Smith apples tossed with a blend of cinnamon and sugar. The apples are sprinkled over the batter, which is baked in a cast-iron skillet until it becomes golden brown and puffy.

14 of 18

Martha's Peach Buckle

peach buckle martha bakes
Mike Krautter

Our buckle recipe consists of fruit and cake baked together, topped with sanding sugar for a crystallized finish. Here, juicy summer peaches hide just below the surface of this tempting dessert.

15 of 18

Sweet Snowflake Crisps

snow angel cookies
Pernille Loof

For this festive holiday treat, wonton wrappers are cut into a snowflake-like shape, then shallow fried in a cast-iron skillet until crispy. Dust with confectioners' sugar for serving.

16 of 18

Buttermilk Pancakes

buttermilk pancakes
Armando Rafael

You don't need a griddle to prepare our test kitchen's favorite pancakes—the natural, nonstick properties of a cast-iron skillet works just as well for preparing this all-star breakfast recipe.

17 of 18

Apple-Cardamom Brown-Butter Dutch Baby

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Stephen Kent Johnson

We love this cast-iron skillet baking recipe year-round, but it's especially delicious as the temperature drops. The combination of nutty brown butter, warm cardamom, and sweet apples is a match made in autumnal heaven.

18 of 18

Southern-Style Individual Peach Cobblers

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Small cast-iron skillets are a fun baking vessel for these single-serve cobblers. Peach wedges are tossed in cinnamon and sugar, then spooned atop the cobbler batter to bake for 25 minutes.

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