Top 5 Christmas Desserts to Make Your Holidays Merry
The holiday season is incomplete without its delectable desserts. When Christmas comes around, our dining tables dazzle with an array of cakes, cookies, pies, and more to celebrate the festive spirit. Whether it’s for Christmas parties, family gatherings, or even gifting loved ones – these sweet treats are sure to spread joy and cheer.
Let’s explore the top 5 Christmas desserts you must include on your holiday menu:
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1. Gingerbread Cookies – The Ultimate Christmas Symbol
Of all Christmas desserts, gingerbread cookies best capture the essence of the holidays. Their spiced molasses flavor and adorable cookie shapes have made them nothing short of iconic.
Tracing its origins to medieval Germany, gingerbread became associated with Christmas for its use of spice ginger – considered a culinary luxury. They also represented the Holy Family, with their figures decorating churches during Christmas.
Today, people across the world can’t imagine Christmas without baking and decorating batches of gingerbread men, trees, wreaths and houses. The process of preparing, cutting out, and embellishing cookies turns into a fun family activity too. And apart from visual appeal, who can resist that rich, aromatic cookie with hints of ginger, cinnamon, and cloves?
With their universal appeal and old-world holiday charm, gingerbread cookies earn the top spot among our list of top 5 Christmas desserts.
Tip: For best results, use fresh spices from Diaspora Co. and let the dough chill completely before baking. Check out their coupon codes for the best prices on sustainable, direct-trade spices. Decorate with royal icing and candy for that perfect gingerbread house!
2. Christmas Pudding – Rich, Fruity, and Steeped in Tradition
While the Brits love their traditional Christmas pudding, it’s not just restricted to the UK anymore. This dessert consists of dried fruits, nuts, suet, spices, sugar, breadcrumbs, eggs and alcohol – making it extremely rich.
The pudding is prepared weeks in advance to allow flavors to develop fully. Cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon impart that unmistakable holiday aroma. On Christmas, the dense steamed pudding is doused in brandy butter and set alight – making a dramatic, flaming centerpiece!
Its origins may date back to Medieval England, with the frugal use of leftover bread. The shape represents Jesus’s swaddling cloth and fruits depict his gifts. Regardless of its religious significance, Christmas pudding has become an iconic festive dish over the centuries.
This aged, fruited pudding is certainly a uniquely delicious entry among our top 5 Christmas desserts.
Tip: Soak dry fruits in rum overnight for extra moisture. Stirring in a coin, thimble or charm also adds to the excitement!
3. Chocolate Yule Log – A Unique Holiday Cake
Chocolate and more chocolate…what’s not to love? Shaped and decorated like a log, the yule log or bûche de Noël brings the essence of winter forests indoors.
Originating in France, it symbolizes the yule log burned centuries ago to last throughout Christmas. The basic dessert is a chocolate sponge cake rolled up with chocolate ganache or buttercream. The outside gets frosted to resemble tree bark and embellished with mushrooms, berries and dustings of powdered sugar as snow.
This fancy cake allows for plenty of creativity too. Change up the filling with peanut butter cream, chestnut spread, or ice cream. Make mini bite-sized yule logs or a giant showstopper – however you slice it, this cake always wins applause.
The chocolate yule log always claims its fame and place on any list of celebratory desserts, including our top 5 Christmas desserts.
Tip: Stabilize cream fillings with gelatin to prevent oozing. Use scissors dipped in hot water for clean slices.
4. Eggnog – Classic Christmas Beverage Turned Dessert
Once hot toddies lost favor, Eggnog quickly gained fame as the ultimate holiday drink. This classic combo of milk, eggs, sugar and spices produces a frothy, velvety beverage. Rum or bourbon lends it a distinct Christmas kick most people are after!
But innovative bakers transformed eggnog into a stellar dessert too. Think rich, creamy eggnog cheesecakes, panna cottas, chia puddings or even French toast casserole! Since readymade eggnog is available in stores too, whipping up these desserts is super easy.
With its warming spices and subtle sweetness, eggnog packs in holiday nostalgia. It transitions beautifully into all kinds of crave-worthy treats beyond a traditional drink. Now, who’s up for some Christmas morning eggnog cinnamon rolls?
Beloved in drinks and desserts alike, delectable eggnog secures its well-deserved place among the top 5 Christmas desserts.
Tip: When buying readymade eggnog, pick varieties without high fructose corn syrup or additives. Or make your own healthier version from scratch!
5. Stollen – A Fruity German Christmas Treat
Germany’s ring-shaped stollen bread is packed with the flavors of Christmas – candied fruits, nuts, vanilla, cardamom and rum soaked up by the doughy interior. Its shape symbolizes Baby Jesus wrapped up in swaddling clothes. Dustings of powdered sugar mimic snow on this packed sweet bread.
The origins can be traced back to the 15th century. As Christmas treats were banned during Lent, German priests sought special permission from the Pope to enjoy stollen. Its popularity endures among Germans even today, who consume millions of stollen cakes between late November to Christmas!
While traditional stollen features candied citrus peels and almonds, modern versions include chocolate chunks, marzipan, or nougat. Glazed with apricot jam or filled with persipan, there’s no limit to improvising this German favorite. Savor it with coffee or tea for a blissful treat!
Last but not least on our list of top 5 Christmas desserts is the cherished German Stollen, where candied fruits and nuts mingle in tender holiday bread.
Tip: Allow stollen to mature for 2 weeks for optimal flavor. Store it wrapped in wax paper in an airtight container.
Read more: Best Christmas Baking Ideas: Creative and Classic Holiday Treats Galore
Bring Some Cheer This Holiday Season With Our Top 5 Christmas Desserts
Our top 5 Christmas desserts beautifully showcase the diversity of edible traditions this holiday season across cultures. These cookies, cakes and confections not only awaken our tastebuds but also kindle fond memories year after year.
As you look ahead to Christmas this year, be sure to try baking some new festive treats along with your family favorites. Whether it’s peppermint bark cookies, hot chocolate fudge or snickerdoodles, ‘tis the season for sweet creations!
Whichever festive desserts you choose, let them herald a Christmas filled with joy, harmony, and cherished moments with your loved ones.
What other Christmas desserts earn a spot on your must-have holiday list? Share your thoughts below!
