Aka Persian “Love at first bite” Cake. This cake exudes the rich, nutty, feminine flavours of the Middle East like rosewater, pistachios and almonds. The crumb is moist and sticky, with sides that caramelise lusciously in the baking process.
Persian love cake. Source: Murdoch Books
One.. two... five... but who’s counting? Truffles make a great festive season treat for any time of day, and these milk custard ones have a condensed milk base and a roasted peanut finish. They’ll keep well at room temperature in an airtight container for up to a week.
A delicious way to use leftover egg yolks. Source: Camellia Aebischer
If you’re after a dark, moist and luxurious chocolate cake - but without gluten - this recipe is for you. The richness comes from ground roasted pecans and olive oil, and because this cake also lacks dairy, it can be served to balance out other meat or dairy-heavy courses.
Dairy-free flourless chocolate cake. Source: Alan Benson
Layers of crisp, chewy cashew meringue and a creamy, boozy rum buttercream come together in this Filipino classic.
Layered cashew meringue cake (sans rival). Source: Alan Benson
Liquorice may be a love-it-or-hate-it flavour, but these meringues are ever-so-softly hinted with the sweet and exotic aroma of the divisive herb. The pairing with clouds of luscious chocolate cream and tart berries is bound to win over any doubters; plus, how many Icelandic desserts have you served?
Smashed liquorice meringues with berries and chocolate cream. Source: BBC Books / James Murphy
This cake needs little introduction, nor does it need much convincing to make: it’s charmingly easy and reliably pleasing. This version is light and moist, with burnt caramel flavours thanks to jaggery (Sri Lankan palm sugar), spice from the star anise, a nicely textured crumb from the polenta, and the characteristic zingy hit of pineapple.
Caramelised pineapple upside-down cake. Source: Benito Martin
The good old chocolate crackle gets a modern makeover with the use of coconut oil in place of cocoa, and an air of refinement with the addition of cardamom and topping of crushed pistachios and rose petals. These are chocolate crackles all grown up.
Cardamom, pistachio and rose chocolate crackles. Source: Emma Galloway
While semifreddo may be the name many of us give to that ice cream that doesn’t quite set, this softly frozen dessert is an Italian classic. In this version, salted roasted almonds, spicy ginger and herbaceous thyme give savoury and textural dimensions to the sweet, smooth honey ice-cream.
Honey, almond and ginger semifreddo with a hint of thyme (semifreddo di mandorla e miele, con zenzero e timo). Source: Skye McAlpine
You may have a shortbread recipe passed down through generations and by no means do we want to mess with that - but if you’re up for trying something different, mastiha is a musky, woody, incense-like spice used in Mediterranean cooking that brings a mysterious and exotic element to this shortbread.
Mastiha shortbread stars. Source: Helen Tzouganatos
Meaning fragile in Danish, this elegant cake features layers of delicate hazelnuts meringue and silky mocha buttercream.
Hazelnut meringue layer cakes with coffee buttercream. Source: Alan Benson
This cake is wonderfully straightforward to make, combining whole boiled and blitzed oranges with remaining batter ingredients. Incorporating the oranges in this way gives the cake a marmalade-like appeal, and the polenta provides a deliciously grainy texture and golden flavour of corn.
St Clements polenta cake with blueberries. Source: Bloomsbury / Simon Wheeler
Figs are in season during the festive season in Australia, and this elegant dessert is a great way to showcase them. It can be made up to two days in advance, so it's great if you want to get ahead with your party prep, and if you want to double the fig compote, it makes a great addition to a cheese platter.
Star anise yoghurt mousse with fig compote.
Want to make a dish look and taste festive? Sprinkle it with pomegranate seeds; these crimson seeds glitter like gemstones and burst with a sweet and tart juice. Here they provide the perfect contrast to a creamy baked custard flavoured gently with rosewater for a light and elegant dessert.
Pomegranate and rosewater caked custard. Source: Alan Benson
