After decades of baking and countless New Year's Eve parties, I've learned that the best celebration desserts strike that balance between impressive and doable. These are the recipes I make year after year because people always ask for them. They're the kind of desserts that make hosting feel easy instead of overwhelming. These recipes will end your year on a sweet note.
Hazelnut Cake
This is seriously the best hazelnut cake, a festive cake consisting of melt-in-your-mouth buttery hazelnut sponge cakes, and a silky hazelnut mousseline cream that is enriched with hazelnut praline paste. This hazelnut layered cake recipe is easy to follow and results in a delicious, moist cake.
Go to the recipe: Hazelnut Cake
White Chocolate Cupcakes
Try these deliciously decadent white chocolate cupcakes with a moist sponge and silky smooth frosting. They're dainty and elegant, yet pack a punch of flavor while remaining balanced in sweetness.
Go to the recipe: White Chocolate Cupcakes
Italian Tiramisu
This Authentic Italian tiramisu features homemade, airy ladyfingers layered with light mascarpone cream, rich espresso, and a touch of cocoa. Dolce vita! You absolutely have to make this recipe, no excuse!
Go to the recipe: Italian Tiramisu
Lotus Biscoff Cake
This Lotus Biscoff cake recipe combines moist brown sugar sponge cake layers, Biscoff spread, and a luxurious Biscoff buttercream (mousseline cream to be exact). Caramel, cinnamon, brown sugar, and spicy flavor can be found in this Lotus Cake recipe that you can make easily following my step-by-step baking guide.
Go to the recipe: Lotus Biscoff Cake
Paris-Brest
Paris-Brest, a delicate ring-shaped choux pastry with hazelnut praline crème mousseline filling, is definitely the Queen of French pastries! Crispy pâte à choux bonds together with silky, nutty creme mousseline filling in my classic French recipe! Extra praline paste and roasted hazelnuts in the filling bring additional crunchiness, making this Paris-Brest one of the most impressive desserts of all!
Go to the recipe: Paris-Brest
Sacher Torte
Austrian Sacher torte cake is in the history books as one of Europe's best cakes, and I'm going to show you how to make it yourself. A moist chocolate sponge is coated and filled with a fine layer of apricot jam before being cloaked in a smooth chocolate glaze. It is a Viennese specialty that defines elegance, and this Sacher Torte recipe takes the famous classic Sachertorte to the next level!
Go to the recipe: Sacher Torte
Basque Burnt Cheesecake
Basque burnt cheesecake is a delicious dessert with a creamy, custard-like center and a beautifully caramelized top. The cake is cooked under high heat, which gives it its distinctive dark color and a slightly burnt flavor that contrasts perfectly with the creamy interior. This cheesecake is an excellent choice for novice bakers as it requires only five simple ingredients and does not need a water bath. Moreover, its rustic appearance also means that it's forgiving of imperfections.
Go to the recipe: Basque Burnt Cheesecake
Festive Gold Macaron
This gold macaron can be perfect for any special occasion or celebration, like birthdays, weddings, Christmas, or New Year´s Eve. Festive French macarons that also taste amazing; they are filled with caramelized white chocolate with a deep caramel note that's not overly sweet, and hazelnut paste with the most delicious natural nutty flavor. The Gold macarons are decorated with a very simple technique: gold glitter is painted on them.
Go to the recipe: Festive Gold Macaron
Chocolate Sheet Cake
If you love all things chocolate, you may have just found heaven on earth with this moist chocolate sheet cake recipe! With a fluffy chocolate sponge base and creamy double-chocolate fudge buttercream frosting, this irresistibly decadent dessert is the perfect go-to choice. Whether baking it to enjoy at home or whipping it up for a special occasion, it's sure to be a crowd-pleaser!
Go to the recipe: Chocolate Sheet Cake
Chocolate Hazelnut Macarons
Chocolate hazelnut macarons are a dream for chocolate and hazelnut lovers in a lovely, bite-sized French macaron format. The macarons are filled with silky chocolate ganache and hazelnut paste with the most delicious natural nutty flavor. These creamy, crunchy, chewy macarons are the ultimate afternoon tea snack that will impress everyone!
Go to the recipe: Chocolate Hazelnut Macarons
Profiteroles
Featuring a crisp choux pastry shell, luscious pastry cream filling, and a decadent, glossy chocolate glaze, every bite of these easy profiteroles is like a taste of heaven! Whether making them for a special occasion or just because, these fun, bite-sized treats are guaranteed to impress!
Go to the recipe: Profiteroles
German Chocolate Cupcakes
If you're searching for the ultimate German chocolate cupcakes recipe, this one ticks all the boxes! It's a handheld version of the classic cake, featuring moist chocolate cupcake sponges topped with decadent chocolate buttercream frosting and a rich pecan coconut frosting. It's an irresistible treat for any occasion!
Go to the recipe: German Chocolate Cupcakes
Chocolate Tiramisu
This easy chocolate tiramisu is pure bliss for chocolate lovers! It's made with coffee-soaked ladyfingers layered with a luscious chocolate mascarpone cream that blends rich cocoa powder and smooth melted chocolate. The flavor and texture are incredible! After one bite, you may not want to go back to classic tiramisu!
Go to the recipe: Chocolate Tiramisu
Baklava Cheesecake
This delicious baklava cheesecake recipe is a must-try for baklava and cheesecake lovers. It's the rich and creamy flavor of a traditional cheesecake but wrapped in a nutty phyllo crust drizzled in honey and rosewater syrup. What's more, it's actually very easy to make!
Go to the recipe: Baklava Cheesecake
Rum Baba
Rum baba (baba au rum), this classic yeast bundt cake soaked in delicious rum syrup, decorated with a light vanilla bean whipped mascarpone frosting, is the ultimate brioche-like boozy dessert! My rum baba recipe is super fluffy and moist, and the rum-based soaking syrup makes it even creamier without making it soggy.
Go to the recipe: Rum baba
Ferrero Rocher Cake
This Ferrero Rocher cake is the ultimate celebration cake with moist chocolate hazelnut sponges, silky Nutella mousseline cream (cooked chocolate pastry cream enriched with Nutella and butter), lots of crunchy hazelnuts, and crushed Ferrero Rocher chocolates.
Go to the recipe: Ferrero Rocher Cake
Cream Puff
This easy cream puff recipe is the perfect combination of fancy and simple! With a crisp choux pastry shell, a silky chantilly cream filling, and a dusting of sweet powdered sugar, this French-style favorite is just as perfect for a cozy night at home with friends and family as it is for an elegant dinner party or special event.
Go to the recipe: Cream Puff
Peanut Butter Cake
If you have been searching for the ultimate peanut butter cake recipe that will be the talk of the town, look no further! This showstopper peanut butter cake is made with moist, fluffy sponge cakes and topped with smooth and creamy peanut butter cream cheese frosting. Equally old-fashioned and modern, this peanut butter cake is perfect for a special occasion or a casual afternoon snack. Who knew that putting peanut butter in cake could be so good?
Go to the recipe: Peanut Butter Cake
New York Cheesecake
A classic New York cheesecake is one of the most iconic desserts around. A crisp Graham cracker crust is filled with the creamiest, richest vanilla cheesecake filling with the perfect silky texture and just the right amount of tang. Many cheesecakes out there tend to look dry, which usually means they were overbaked. A proper New York cheesecake should be dense without being airy, but still creamy rather than dry.
Go to the recipe: New York Cheesecake
Butterscotch Pie
This butterscotch pie is a rich and comforting take on the classic custard-style pies. A flaky homemade crust is filled with silky butterscotch pudding, resulting in its golden color and creamy texture. This pie is a guaranteed crowd-pleaser. It’s a nostalgic dessert that feels both homely and refined.
Go to the recipe: Butterscotch Pie
Creme Brulee Macarons
Crème brûlée macaron is a dream for Crème brûlée and macarons lovers! This macaron recipe delivers on all the key Crème brûlée attributes without compromise: lovely bite-sized macaron shells are sandwiched together with creamy custard filling while a crunchy caramelized sugar is added on top as decoration. This Crème brûlée macaron is smooth, silky yet crunchy and chewy, full Crème brûlée experience in a lovely French macaron format.
Go to the recipe: Creme Brulee Macarons
Napoleon Cake
Napoleon Cake is a perfectly moist and deliciously creamy dessert made of crunchy puff pastry and silky pastry cream that can be a great fit for any occasion. This recipe will show you how to make Napoleon cake that is flaky, elegant, and overflowing with homemade goodness.
Go to the recipe: Napoleon Cake
Croquembouche
Croquembouche is a very famous sight in French patisserie windows. Have you ever seen a tower of profiteroles wrapped in a delicate cobweb of spun sugar? It's certainly a showstopper! A beautiful and impressive croquembouche is traditionally served at weddings as a grand centerpiece; it's no wonder.
Go to the recipe: Croquembouche
Tiramisu Cheesecake
This tiramisu cheesecake is the perfect blend of two iconic desserts. A creamy, rich cheesecake filling sits atop a buttery graham cracker crust, creating the ideal base for the coffee-soaked ladyfingers and silky mascarpone cream that make this dessert so irresistible. Find out why this is one of my most requested desserts among my friends and family!
Go to the recipe: Tiramisu Cheesecake
Nutella Cake
This Chocolate Nutella cake is a perfect dessert for chocolate and hazelnut lovers! It's a gorgeous combination of moist chocolate sponge cakes, luxurious Nutella mousseline cream (German buttercream) as filling and frosting, and chopped hazelnut as decoration!
Go to the recipe: Nutella Cake
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