Planning Your Christmas Dessert Menu
October is the time to settle your festive dessert menu. Here’s how to build one that covers every guest and keeps service simple through December.
Christmas menus come together earlier every year. Festive bookings start landing in October, and by the time the first party menus go out, most kitchens have already decided what they’re serving. If desserts are still on your to-do list, now is the right time to sort them.
Our Christmas range is handcrafted at our bakery in Buckfastleigh on Dartmoor, quick-frozen to -18°C and delivered across the UK and Europe. Here’s how we’d use it to put together a festive dessert menu that works for your guests and your team.
Start with the festive classics
Most guests want at least one dessert that tastes like Christmas. Mincemeat, spiced fruit, cherry and chocolate do the job without needing any explanation on the menu.
Mincemeat Frangipane Tart
A buttery pastry case with a layer of rich mincemeat, soft almond frangipane and a crunchy spiced streusel topping. Pre-sliced into 12.
Winter Spiced Apple & Mincemeat Tart
Gently spiced mincemeat and Bramley apples in a crisp cheddar pastry case, finished with demerara sugar. Pre-sliced into 12.
Both tarts work well served warm with cream, custard or ice cream, which makes them an easy swap for a traditional Christmas pudding.
Add something indulgent
The festive season is when guests are most likely to treat themselves. Liqueur-led desserts sell well on party menus and look great on the plate.
Baileys Cheesecake
A smooth cheesecake crème made with real Baileys and Irish whiskey on a digestive base, with a piped rosette and coffee bean on each slice.
Rum & Dark Cherry Sponge Roulade
Rich chocolate sponge rolled with rum-laced West Country dairy cream and dark cherry compote, finished with dark chocolate icing. 16–18 portions.
Make sure every guest has a choice
Big festive bookings almost always include guests who are gluten free or vegan. A dessert they can actually enjoy, rather than a fruit salad as an afterthought, makes a real difference to how a party remembers the meal.
Gluten Free Black Forest Cheesecake
Dark chocolate biscuit base, red cherry compote, Belgian chocolate crème and kirsch-infused vanilla crème. Pre-sliced into 16.
Gluten Free & Vegan Belgian Chocolate & Orange Tart
A gluten free pastry case filled with smooth Belgian chocolate ganache infused with zesty orange. Pre-sliced into 12.
Also worth a look: the Vegan Spiced Treacle & Orange Tart, the Vegan Espresso Martini Cheesecake, and our three gluten free meringue roulades: Baileys Millionaires Cocoa Caramel, Bucks Fizz and Black Forest.
Plan for the busiest nights
December service is no time for complicated plating. A few things make the dessert course much easier to manage:
- Choose pre-sliced. Most of our cheesecakes and tarts arrive pre-sliced into 12 or 16 portions, so every plate is consistent and portion costs are easy to work out.
- Use freezer-to-table products for late bookings. Selected cheesecakes and meringue roulades can go from freezer to plate, which helps when a party grows at the last minute. Look for the freezer-to-table label on our freezer-to-table range.
- Only defrost what you need. Because everything arrives frozen, you can take out a few slices at a time and keep the rest for later in the season, which means less waste.
- Keep the menu short. Three or four desserts is plenty: one classic, one indulgent, and a gluten free or vegan choice that works for everyone.
Order early
The closer we get to Christmas, the busier our bakery and delivery schedule becomes. Getting your order or price list request in during October gives you time to try products, finalise menus and stock your freezer before the rush.
Ready to plan your Christmas desserts?
Browse the full festive collection, or get in touch for trade pricing and our brochure.
