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Best Christmas desserts to impress your guests
The best showstopping puds, as rated by The Good Housekeeping Institute
Tested by Joanna AnastasiouFood and Drinks Tester
From perfectly cooked turkey to crunchy roast potatoes, there’s quite enough to remember on Christmas Day, without having to make dessert from scratch. So, for ease, the Good Housekeeping Institute has tracked down the best Christmas desserts to round off your festive feast in style.
Whether you’re looking for an indulgent chocolate treat or a lighter, fruity pud, we’ve found the most spectacular centrepieces to impress your guests on the big day.
Best Christmas desserts 2024
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To earn a spot on our list, desserts needed a suitably festive flourish, whether presented as a snowy scene, wreath or bauble. And to ease the strain on our bank balance this year, these Taste Approved treats start from just £5.
Looking for a more traditional end to your meal? We’ve also lent our expertise to finding the perfect panettone, Christmas cakes, Christmas puddings and stollen, so you’re sure to find something that the whole family will enjoy.
How we test Christmas desserts
The GHI tested 17 Christmas dessert centrepieces from all the major supermarkets and independent brands. To avoid brand bias, all were presented without packaging and fully evaluated on their flavour and presentation.
Read on to see which came out on top for 2024.
Score: 88/100
Asda has executed this classic dessert perfectly, with a deliciously smooth, creamy texture and “comforting” vanilla flavour. It comes complete with a crunchy caramelised sugar topping (so no need for the blow torch to make an appearance!), making this our top pick for easy entertaining.
Available: 12th October 2024
Score: 87/100
Chocoholics are in for a treat with this indulgent dessert. With layers of creamy milk chocolate ganache, silky smooth caramel and biscuit pieces for added crunch, we can see this proving a big hit with little ones (and big ones) alike.
Available: 21st December 2024
Score: 86/100
Proving it’s never too early to start shopping for Christmas, this clever frozen meringue can be safely stored away in the freezer until you’re ready for it. The festive wreath design is beautifully piped and loaded with mixed berries, cream and finished with chocolate curls, ready to be presented at the table.
Our panel felt the light flavour would be particularly welcome after the heavy Christmas meal.
Available: 28th October 2024
Score: 83/100
This sherry trifle is a delicious take on the nostalgic pud. Testers were impressed by the balance of smooth vanilla custard, fresh cream and chunky berries, describing it as “vibrant and refreshing”. The separate layers held their integrity well too, which should make serving a doddle.
Available: 1st December 2024
Score: 82/100
For this year’s showstopping dessert, Waitrose has layered thick, creamy white chocolate mousse on top of tangy raspberry compote, crisp feuilletine and a light chocolate sponge base.
It’s finished with an eye-catching red lustre, and comes with decorative baubles to place as you wish. Decadent, yes, but light enough that everyone will find room for a slice.
Score: 82/100
Proving you needn’t spend a fortune for a festive feast to remember, Co-op’s simple double-layered chocolate cake will appeal to those with a sweet tooth. The springy sponge is finished with thick buttercream, chocolate curls and red baubles, and we’d serve with a drizzle of cream on top for good measure.
Available: 4th December 2024
Score: 80/100
Pronounced “jan du yah”, Melt’s simple, yet elegant dessert is comprised of decadent chocolate ganache and crunchy hazelnuts. A must for chocolate lovers, it’s sweet but not sugary, with salt crystals providing balance. It’s also incredibly rich, so a little will go a long way...
Score: 80/100
Why choose between two desserts when you can have both? Frozen food specialist COOK has combined the almond and berry flavours of a classic cherry Bakewell with the sweet meringue of a pavlova. It's light and fluffy, making it a great way to round off the big feast.
Score: 78/100
There’s tiramisu, and then there’s Waitrose tiramisu. Our experts thought this beautiful dessert looked similar to a Viennetta, with the same structural integrity, thanks to thick biscuit layers. As such, the cake-like centrepiece is far from sloppy, holding its shape well and making it easy to serve.
Testers loved the creamy custard, bitter coffee and vanilla note, and thought it would appeal to the whole family.
Score: 78/100
Nostalgic, festive and warming, Morrisons’ spruced up sticky toffee pudding feels ultra-Christmassy. The cascading element adds theatre to the table, while the melt-in-the-mouth sponge was a hit with all.
Score: 78/100
Choo-choo, the Lidl Polar Express is coming through! This glittery green and gold steam train wowed our testers with its beautiful design. Created with creamy chocolate mousse, caramel and chocolate sponge within a rich chocolate shell, it tastes every bit as good as it looks.
Available: 5th December 2024
Score: 76/100
Sure to be enjoyed by both adults and children alike, this festive dessert from Sainsbury’s is designed to look like a row of trees, finished with a sparkly golden lustre.
Made with indulgent butterscotch and caramel, it’s a great one for the whole family, with white chocolate coated biscuit balls providing contrast against the silky-smooth mousse.
Score: 75/100
Chococo’s show-stopping Christmas wreath may look like a classic dessert but delve deeper and you’ll discover it’s one kilo of dense chocolate tiffin. Packed with dates, apricots, dried cranberries and drizzled with white chocolate, it’s designed to serve 12 people.
You could save it for dessert; however, we can see us dipping into this throughout the festive period.
Score: 70/100
This stunning cake from modern patisserie Cutter & Squidge is reminiscent of a Victoria sponge, with light vanilla cake and tart raspberries. However, it’s finished with slices of yule log and topped with white chocolate shapes for extra wow-factor.
Score: 70/100
Few things evoke the feeling of Christmas quite like the combination of chocolate and orange. Meg Rivers combines both in this pretty wreath, topped with gold stars.
Testers loved the chunks of candied orange peel found throughout the rich sponge, and the hint of orange oil. It’s not overly sweet either, so one for true dark chocolate fans.
Stacey looks after all food and drink reviews — from coffee pods and veg boxes, to natural wine and tequila. Stacey is also founder of Crummbs, where she’s written nearly 2,000 restaurant and hotel reviews since 2013. Prior to this, Stacey wrote hundreds of in-depth buying guides for the Independent, i newspaper and BBC Good Food, as well as reviewing restaurants and interviewing celebrities in her column at Balance Magazine. Stacey has also appeared in BAFTA-nominated BBC documentary Blood, Sweat & Takeaways, where she investigated South East Asia's food production industry, appearing on both Newsnight and BBC World Service to share her findings. Regularly checking out the latest restaurants, bars and product launches, Stacey also loves experimenting with recipes at home, and is a WSET-certified wine and spirits expert, with over 10 years of experience in the business. You can follow Stacey on Instagram @crummbs_uk
Millie is freelance journalist and editor with five years’ experience writing product reviews, buying guides, breaking news and about the latest trends.
Millie has also reviewed countless restaurants and written travel features for British GQ, The Telegraph and the Independent, and has interviewed a number of leading chefs, including Jamie Oliver, Heston Blumenthal and Raymond Blanc.
Founder of creative catering brand @grazeandgorge, Millie also spends her time creating seasonal recipes and tablescape content, as well as planning her next golden retriever-friendly getaway and rearranging her own home bar cart (... again).
Joanna Anastasiou is our Food and Drinks Tester, and has completed certifications in Sensory Foundation and WSET Wine Level 2 training. Prior to this she studied geography with conservation biology at the University of Exeter and trained at Ballymaloe Cookery School in Ireland. Through this she has developed a passion for sustainability within the food and agricultural sectors. Joanna also volunteers in kitchens with FoodCycle, as well as on multiple wildlife conservation projects, where she formed a particular love for bees!
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