If you are anything like me, you spend a good deal of time in December planning what to bake (or non-bake, for my raw friends) for the holiday season. You want recipes that are straightforward, healthy, simple, delicious, and produce results that are pretty, because, heck, if it’s ugly, no one wants to eat it. And, preferably, you want to find recipes that everybody can enjoy, including your family or friends who can’t have gluten, or need lower sugar recipes, or are allergic to nuts, or breakout in hives just thinking about soy, and so on.

And can I also say that so many people have a very specific concept of ‘indulgence’ around the holidays, and most certainly, the festive season IS a time to indulge in appreciation and gratitude and to really savour what we have available to us. But if your definition of indulgence results in digestive turmoil, weight gain, sluggishness, eating too much and feeling uncomfortably full, or just generally feeling like crap, then you need to redefine how you approach the season.

Desserts can be rich, indulgent, AND healthy, and they can give you all the joys you seek without the subsequent payment later.

So, with that all in mind, I’ve scoured the internet (well, not really, although I did look a bunch of places) to create a Delicious Holiday Dessert line-up for you. Indulgent, simple, beautiful, and tasty, these recipes should give you a good place to get started celebrating the season. This list covers all the holiday essentials: scones, pies, tarts, fudge, favourite squares, and a helluva lot of dark chocolate. All recipes are vegan, and the majority are gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free (and pretty darn clean as far as it goes). And while you’re checking out the recipes, just look at the beautiful photographs and appreciate the genius of these inspired bloggers. Stunning.

23 Delicious & Indulgent Clean Eating Dessert Recipes for the Holiday Season

1. Vegan & Grain Free Magic Cookie Bars – Eating Bird Food
2. Dark Chocolate & Pumpkin Pie Truffles – Kris Carr.com
3. Raw Coconut Lemon Bars – Pure Ella
4. Vegan Dark Chocolate Cookies – Vegan Richa
5. Clean Eating Chocolate Chip Bread Pudding – Chocolate Covered Katie
6. Gluten Free Banana Nut Bread Pudding – the Lean Clean Eating Machine
7. Maple Pecan Chocolate Bark – Clean Eating Chelsey
8. Dark Chocolate Bark with Cranberries and Pumpkin Seeds – Eat Well, Live Vibrantly
9. Coconut Chocolate Bark with Goji Berries and Pecans – Bit of the Good Stuff
10. Superfood Chocolate Bark – My Whole Foods Life
11. Festive Apple Cider Scones (gf) – Eat Well, Live Vibrantly
12. Banana Espresso Scones with Oat Maple Crumble (gf) – Eat Well, Live Vibrantly
13. Paleo Sugar Cookies – Elena’s Pantry
14. Almond Flour Sugar Cut Out Cookies – The Urban Poser
15. Perfectly Chewy Ginger Molasses Cookies (v, gf) – Eat Well, Live Vibrantly
16. Clean Eating Snickerdoodles – The Gracious Pantry
17. Easy Raw Chocolate Fudge – The Detoxinista
18. Vegan Raw Nanaimo Bars – Radiant Rachels
19. Vegan Gluten Free Apple Pie (with Coconut Oil) – the Fitchen
20. Sweet Potato Pie with Pecan Crust – Eat Well, Live Vibrantly
21. Chocolate Espresso Tart (v, gf) – Jennifer Katzinger
22. Raw, No-Bake Dark Chocolate Mint Thins – Pure Ella
23. Dark Chocolate & Almond Butter Cups with Sea Salt – Eat Well, Live Vibrantly