Christmas is coming, and when you’re not admiring the pretty lights and dazzling trees, or browsing through the Christmas markets, it’s time to think about your appetite. If you’re not coming out of the holiday season a little bit heavier than you were before, then you’re doing the holidays wrong. After indulging in savoury classics like ham and turkey, don’t forget to try dessert. Thankfully, Melbourne is full of lovely bakeries and patisseries, serving up a wide range of Christmas desserts. From panettone to pudding, there’s heaps of amazing things to try. In no particular order, here are some Christmas desserts around Melbourne to add to your festive feast.
1. Tarts Anon
Beloved dessert shop, Tarts Anon, is pulling out all the stops for Christmas. For all of December, they’ve got a stacked festive menu, with flavours like Eggnog & Fruit Mince, Gingerbread & Sour Cherry and Mulled Wine & Pear. They’ve also got an intriguing pavlova tart, with passionfruit custard, strawberry jam and meringue to keep you cool during the summer. These tarts are available by the slice, and you can also pre-order them in half and whole sizes.
For something fresh on Christmas Day, pre-order the Bake A Lil’ Bit At Home Eggnog and Fruit Mince Tart. It’ll come with instruction, and all you have to do is pop it in the oven to bake. Cooking time is approximately 30 minutes, including cooling time.
To check out the full Christmas menu, click here.
📍 29A Gwynne Street, Cremorne VIC 3121 and 44 Sackville Street, Collingwood VIC 3066
2. Tokyo Lamington
This famous Sydney bakery opened in Carlton just a couple of months ago. And now, they’re spreading the Christmas cheer with their range of festive-themed lamingtons. Treat yourself to tasty Christmas flavours, like gingerbread, brandy pudding, peach trifle and candy cane lamingtons.
For something different, try their new Umeshu Mince Tarts. The team made a private stash of Umeshu back in 2021, and after 12 months, are now using them in their Christmas tarts. See more here.
📍258 Elgin Street Carlton VIC 3053
3. Piccolina Gelateria
Looking to impress your Christmas guests? Look no further than Piccolina’s Budino Di Natale. This massive gelato pudding serves 14 to 16 people. The multi-layered dessert features Panettone, Better Than Nutella and Crema Ricca gelato, as well as a biscoff layer, pain de gênes sponge, 70% dark chocolate and a chocolate sauce topping. This decadent dessert comes in a handmade stoneware bowl, and is wrapped in a limited-edition Piccolina canvas bag for easy transportation. This giant costs $120, and ordering in advance is strongly recommended.
📍Melbourne CBD, Richmond, Collingwood, Hawthorn and St Kilda. Find further store info here.
4. Miss Trixie Drinks Tea
Alice Bennett of Miss Trixie Drinks Tea has created eight marvellous Christmas desserts for you to choose from. Feast on an OTT Christmas wreath, admire Mrs Claus’ Vintage Cake and enjoy Miss Trixie’s classic pun cakes, with messages like ‘Happy Kissmas’ and ‘Claus for Celebration’. They come in wonderfully festive flavours, like gingerbread caramel, pavlova and chocolate cherry. If you’re not feeling cake, there’s also Santa cookies for you to try. See the full range here.
📍Order online for delivery or pick up from West Footscray
5. Glazed Gluten Free
Want to indulge, but have dietary requirements? Look no further than this patisserie in Elsternwick. All of their desserts are free from gluten, dairy and nuts, so everyone in the family can join in on the sweet fun. This year, they’re serving up a festive black forest cake, a brownie in the shape of a Christmas tree, a festive fruit pudding with spiced liquor and a box of gingerbread cookies. Order these goodies by December 12 for collection from December 21 to 23. See the range here.
📍Shop 2/1-3 Carre St, Elsternwick VIC 3185
6. Moon Cruller
Lune’s sister store Moon Cruller is getting in on the Christmas action with their limited wild card flavours. Snap up a candy cane cruller on December 10, or enjoy the pavlova cruller on December 17 and 24. Pre-order the festive wildcards here.
📍 50 Rose St, Fitzroy VIC 3065
7. Cannoleria
Cannoleria is taking you on a journey around Italy with a different festive flavour every week. These flavours are available from select dates, until sold out. From December 9, enjoy a taste of Tuscany with their Panforte cannoli. Inspired by the classic cake, also known as Italian Christmas pudding, this cannoli is packed with spices, dry fruits and nuts.
From December 16, head to Piedmont and try the Paste di Meliga. This cannoli flavour was inspired by the Paste di Meliga biscuits, made from polenta flour, wheat and corn flour, sugar, vanilla, gratede lemon zest, egg yolks and butter.
Finally, from December 23, visit Abruzzo and try the Caggionetti cannoli. Caggionetti is a popular ravioli-like biscuit that is traditionally handed out after Mass during the festive season.
📍Find these limited-edition flavours at Cannoleria stores and That’s Amore The Cheesery. See their locations here.
8. Victor Churchill
Award-winning butcher and artisan grocer Victor Churchill has plenty of delicious Christmas desserts on offer, including pavlova with mixed berries, Buche de Noel with chocolate & cherry, and a massive Christmas pudding with brandy sauce that weighs one kilo. Pre-orders for these festive treats close at midnight on Sunday December 11. See more here.
📍953 High St, Armadale VIC 3143
9. To Be Frank
This bakery in Collingwood is serving up a wonderfully fluffy panettone. Their traditional panettone is made with organic sultanas and house-made candied citrus peels. Their panettone weighs 850 grams, perfect for sharing or for binging on your own. The To Be Frank team have hinted that other flavours might come in the near future, so stay tuned on their socials for updates. They’re making panettone every day, from now until December 24. See more here.
📍Shop 1/4 Bedford St, Collingwood VIC 3066
10. Black Star Pastry
This iconic cake shop is blessing our eyes and our taste buds with their gorgeous First Snow cake. This dreamy cake has layers of elderflower cream, white chocolate, milk sponge and a Griottine and cherry compote. It’s dusted with white chocolate to mimic forest snow, and is garnished with hand-carved chocolate and pine flavoured pinecones, fondant snowflakes, local cherries and white chocolate ice shards. These are available to order for pick up on December 22, 23 and 24.
Looking for more Christmas desserts? Add on a half dozen of their fruit mince tarts. Check out their range here.
📍2C Acland St, St Kilda VIC 3182 and 1341 Dandenong Rd Kiosk 0105 Lower Ground Chadstone Shopping Centre, Chadstone VIC 3148