35 Festive Desserts for Any Level of Dedication

This December at Kitchen Stories is all about feel-good festive food! No matter what you’re celebrating or with whom, our December recipes have something for every one and for every occasion. Best of all, they’re fun and unfussy, so you can focus on winding down for the year. Stay tuned throughout the month by bookmarking this article, where we’ll collect all our recipes and articles. Don’t forget to follow us on Instagram for even more. Happy December!

Desserts are surely the highlight of any festive meal. The sweet finale rounds off the evening and everyone quickly makes room for more, no matter how many courses came before. The choice of what dessert to serve, however, is not always as easy as saying yes to a second helping. So to make your search for the right holiday treat that much easier, we’ve put together a broad selection of cakes and desserts for special occasions for any level of dedication. There are the all-time classics, super simple desserts, impressive cakes from around the world, and even great desserts to pack and take along—so not matter what you're looking for, there's something for everyone!

The classics

Classics are classics for a reason. Prepared since time immemorial and loved for generations, you absolutely can't go wrong with these desserts.

Our top tips:
— Chocolate lava cake
— Crème brûlée
— Pear strudel with vanilla ice cream
— Baked apples with marzipan filling

Easy and festive desserts

If relaxing, low-effort holidays are your goal, these Christmas desserts can all be prepared in advance. Better still, they’re simple and elegant in appearance.

We love these recipes:
– Chocolate truffles
– Mixed berry and speculaas cookie crumble
– Tonka bean and baked apple parfait
– Super easy mixed berry slab pie

Festive cakes from around the world

These cakes are the perfect end to a feast. We’re looking forward to our new recipe for speculaas cheesecake with pecans, chosen by you, the community!

Try these recipes:
— Cherry chocolate rum cake
— Gingerbread loaf cake
— American apple pie
— Goan Bebinca (layered coconut cake)
— Five-spice flourless chocolate cake

Fancy festive desserts

Of course, for special occasions, you may crave special dishes, too. If so, this is the perfect opportunity to venture into more elaborate recipes. Our personal favorite? Hanna's new recipe for poached quinces with mascarpone.

Choose from:
— *New* Upside-down orange and mulled wine cake
— Tiramisu layer cake
— Cinnamon Pavlova with apple-pear compote and mascarpone
— Candied kumquat and caramel cake
— German crown cake (Frankfurter Kranz)

Desserts served in a glass

Desserts in a glass are a super easy way to end a meal. Since they’re already portioned out, you can easily make them and store them in the fridge in advance.

Our top recipes:
— Gingerbread trifle with spiced oranges and cinnamon cream
— Cinnamon panna cotta with mulled wine cherries
— Zabaione with sour cherries
— Vegan aqua faba chocolate mousse
— White chocolate and orange parfait
— Lemony tiramisu in a glass

Light and airy desserts

Especially after a hearty, substantial feast, you might just be after a lighter dessert. These recipes are just the thing.

Stay fresh with these recipes:
– Passionfruit cheesecake
– Matcha ice cream
– Soy vanilla pudding with blueberry sauce