Who says Christmas desserts have to be big, bold, and over the top? Good things do come in small packages, as our recipes for dangerously delicious, diminutive treats demonstrate. Don’t let their small size fool you: These mini Christmas desserts are destined to make a big impression at your holiday party.
Strawberry Dust Meringues
Each of these lighter-than-air bites takes a turn away from rich decadence. The recipe calls for grinding freeze-dried strawberries or cranberries into a powder as a finishing sprinkle atop baked meringue bites,
Mini S’mores Cookie Cups
Think of s’mores as a summer treat? Think again. These easy-to-make minis look great on a Christmas dessert buffet, but take a picture: They disappear quickly.
Chocolate “Salami” With Hazelnuts and Figs
If you’re planning a Christmas dessert charcuterie board, this mini treat is a must. Disguised as a savory slice of salami, each sweet chocolatey bite is laced with toasted hazelnuts, jammy dried figs, and spiced Biscoff cookies.
Nutella Cones With Hazelnut Praline
What’s the secret to these miniature “ice cream” cones that don’t melt? Store-bought mini-sugar cones are filled with a hazelnut-Nutella mixture and topped with a homemade hazelnut praline. After a bit of freezer time to set, serve these no-drip cones at room temperature.
Chocolate Peppermint Shortbreads
These bite-sized treats are really just chocolate-covered shortbread cookies disguised as a fancy mini bite. Nevertheless, the chocolate-and-peppermint combo is always a crowd-pleasing addition to any Christmas dessert offering.
Chocolate Pecan Fudge Balls
If you’re a fan of “easy” and “no-bake,” this Christmas dessert recipe is for you. Simply make chocolate fudge, shape it into balls, and roll those balls in chopped roasted pecans. The only hard part is not eating them all yourself.
Brownie Batter Babka Bites
Combine a chocolate babka loaf with a tray of brownies, miniaturize it, and you get these little numbers. For maximum decadence, serve them warm, right out of the muffin tin.
Buckeyes
These little morsels look like they fell off the state tree of Ohio but taste like they came straight from heaven. Disguised as a seed, they’re actually creamy no-bake peanut butter balls dipped in bittersweet chocolate.
Chocolate Banana Bites
Can a Christmas dessert be rich, decadent, and healthy-ish? This three-ingredient recipe is all three. It sandwiches your favorite nut butter between frozen banana slices, then surrounds them in dark chocolate.
Dark Chocolate Truffles
This dessert recipe is actually seven-in-one. In addition to directions for basic dark chocolate truffles, it offers six creative variations: peanut butter and jelly, Earl Gray, maple pecan, cardamom coconut, lavender raspberry, and sesame. Pick one to suit your guests, or try them all.
M&M Popcorn Balls
These colorful bite-sized balls are easy to make and universally loved. To make these treats match your Christmas tablescape, buy a bag of Christmas-colored M&Ms or several standard-colored bags and eat all but the red and green ones.
Mini Pumpkin Pies With Speculoos Crust and Whipped Cream
There are plenty of us who, by Christmas, haven’t yet had our fill of pumpkin pie, so this dessert is for them. It’s a speculoos cookie crust and a traditional baked pumpkin pie filling topped with homemade whipped cream and crystallized ginger. What makes these special is they’re baked in a muffin pan and everyone gets their own mini-pie.
Dark Chocolate Coconut Tartlets
Grab the mini-muffin pan to craft these mini-tarts with a shredded coconut-based crust. Their no-bake filling—mostly melted chocolate, cashew butter, cocoa, and maple syrup—turns out rich and sweet. Make these up to a day ahead if you can trust yourself to leave some for guests.
Mini Chocolate Olive Oil Cakes
Victor Protasio
With help from a mini Bundt pan and this recipe, you can make these single-serve wreath-shaped cakes that are also vegan. A dose of brewed Earl Grey tea and olive oil (instead of butter) gives each a rich moistness that makes them taste as good as they look.
Chocolate Espresso Truffles
Chocolate and coffee is a proven winning combination, so it shouldn’t surprise you how addictive these little morsels are. Dangerously easy to make, this recipe yields four dozen sophisticated, not-too-sweet truffles that’ll make you swear off boxed chocolates forever.
Pumpkin Cream Puffs
If pumpkin pie was a cloud, it would look and taste just like one of these little delights. Inside these light, airy choux pastries is a dreamy pumpkin cream that’ll make pumpkin fans forget all about pie.
Marshmallow and Chocolate Shortbread Slices
A candy bar taste in a homemade dessert: That’s what this recipe brings to the table. With layers of a crunchy cookie base, jammy spread, marshmallow filling, chocolate coating, and nutty topping, the only thing missing is a wrapper. Instead of slices, cut them into two-bite squares for fun-sized treats.
Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Brownies
As the title implies, a trifecta of dessert favorites—Oreos, cheesecake, and brownies—join forces for this irresistible bite. Rich hardly begins to describe these. Pour batter into a muffin or mini muffin pan for perfect individual portions.
Chocolate Bark With Dried Fruit and Spices
For this dessert recipe, the chocolate doesn’t need to be tempered, thanks to a bit of shortening that makes it shiny and smooth. Swap out the chopped dried apricots with dried cranberries for a Christmassy twist.
Golden Grahams Peanut Butter Truffles
This recipe enlists a breakfast cereal to add a little crunch to a peanut butter-cream cheese center and again as a dusting atop its chocolatey coating. The result is a gift-worthy bite that holiday guests will love.
Pecan Logs
These cute little bites look troublesome to make, but are really super simple. The recipe starts with a homemade sugar cookie dough—but use a store-bought roll if time’s an issue. Add three more ingredients, bake, and you have out-of-the-box cookies to serve, swap, or gift.
Puff Pastry Cinnamon Rolls
Equally suitable for dessert, breakfast, or brunch, these cinnamon roll minis come together in 30 minutes with no rising, proofing, or kneading required, thanks to a puff pastry shortcut. A smooth vanilla glaze finish makes these little treats taste just like the baker’s buns.
Sweet Tahini and Date Truffles
Victor Protasio
With only six ingredients, you could be indulging in these fruity chocolate-covered truffles. (And in less than an hour!) Elegant and decadent, these truffles won’t last long, whether you make them for a holiday party or a cozy self-care night-in. Dates, tahini, and almond flour are wrapped in a rich, melted chocolate mix, and garnished with flaky salt.
Chai-Flavored Snowball Cookies
Fred Hardy
Are you dreaming of a white Christmas? Make all of your marshmallow-world dreams come true by whipping up these beautiful mini snowball cookies. The best part? They taste just as good as they look. These buttery two-bite cookies are full of chai flavor.
Pistachio and White Chocolate Cookie Bark
Fred Hardy
Melted white chocolate coats a pistachio cookie with notes of citrus in this best-of-both-worlds recipe. Simply break the cookie bark into smaller bits to serve as a bite-sized dessert. Thinly spread the dough on a cookie sheet for the ultimate crisp cookie texture.
Who says Christmas desserts have to be big, bold, and over the top? Good things do come in small packages, as our recipes for dangerously delicious, diminutive treats demonstrate. Don’t let their small size fool you: These mini Christmas desserts are destined to make a big impression at your holiday party. Strawberry Dust Meringues Caitlin Bensel Each of these lighter-than-air bites takes a turn away from rich decadence. The recipe calls for grinding freeze-dried strawberries or cranberries into a powder as a finishing sprinkle atop baked meringue bites, Mini S’mores Cookie Cups Grace Elkus Think of s’mores as a summer treat? Think again. These easy-to-make minis look great on a Christmas dessert buffet, but take a picture: They disappear quickly. Chocolate “Salami” With Hazelnuts and Figs Caitlin Bensel If you’re planning a Christmas dessert charcuterie board, this mini treat is a must. Disguised as a savory slice of salami, each sweet chocolatey bite is laced with toasted hazelnuts, jammy dried figs, and spiced Biscoff cookies. Nutella Cones With Hazelnut Praline Johnny Miller What’s the secret to these miniature “ice cream” cones that don’t melt? Store-bought mini-sugar cones are filled with a hazelnut-Nutella mixture and topped with a homemade hazelnut praline. After a bit of freezer time to set, serve these no-drip cones at room temperature. Chocolate Peppermint Shortbreads Johnny Miller These bite-sized treats are really just chocolate-covered shortbread cookies disguised as a fancy mini bite. Nevertheless, the chocolate-and-peppermint combo is always a crowd-pleasing addition to any Christmas dessert offering. Chocolate Pecan Fudge Balls Caitlin Bensel If you’re a fan of “easy” and “no-bake,” this Christmas dessert recipe is for you. Simply make chocolate fudge, shape it into balls, and roll those balls in chopped roasted pecans. The only hard part is not eating them all yourself. Brownie Batter Babka Bites Brie Passano Combine a chocolate babka loaf with a tray of brownies, miniaturize it, and you get these little numbers. For maximum decadence, serve them warm, right out of the muffin tin. Buckeyes Raymond Hom These little morsels look like they fell off the state tree of Ohio but taste like they came straight from heaven. Disguised as a seed, they’re actually creamy no-bake peanut butter balls dipped in bittersweet chocolate. Chocolate Banana Bites Azurita/Getty Images Can a Christmas dessert be rich, decadent, and healthy-ish? This three-ingredient recipe is all three. It sandwiches your favorite nut butter between frozen banana slices, then surrounds them in dark chocolate. Dark Chocolate Truffles Samantha Seneviratne This dessert recipe is actually seven-in-one. In addition to directions for basic dark chocolate truffles, it offers six creative variations: peanut butter and jelly, Earl Gray, maple pecan, cardamom coconut, lavender raspberry, and sesame. Pick one to suit your guests, or try them all. M&M Popcorn Balls Samantha Seneviratne These colorful bite-sized balls are easy to make and universally loved. To make these treats match your Christmas tablescape, buy a bag of Christmas-colored M&Ms or several standard-colored bags and eat all but the red and green ones. Mini Pumpkin Pies With Speculoos Crust and Whipped Cream Jennifer Causey There are plenty of us who, by Christmas, haven’t yet had our fill of pumpkin pie, so this dessert is for them. It’s a speculoos cookie crust and a traditional baked pumpkin pie filling topped with homemade whipped cream and crystallized ginger. What makes these special is they’re baked in a muffin pan and everyone gets their own mini-pie. Dark Chocolate Coconut Tartlets Jennifer Causey Grab the mini-muffin pan to craft these mini-tarts with a shredded coconut-based crust. Their no-bake filling—mostly melted chocolate, cashew butter, cocoa, and maple syrup—turns out rich and sweet. Make these up to a day ahead if you can trust yourself to leave some for guests. Mini Chocolate Olive Oil Cakes Victor Protasio With help from a mini Bundt pan and this recipe, you can make these single-serve wreath-shaped cakes that are also vegan. A dose of brewed Earl Grey tea and olive oil (instead of butter) gives each a rich moistness that makes them taste as good as they look. Chocolate Espresso Truffles Hector Sanchez Chocolate and coffee is a proven winning combination, so it shouldn’t surprise you how addictive these little morsels are. Dangerously easy to make, this recipe yields four dozen sophisticated, not-too-sweet truffles that’ll make you swear off boxed chocolates forever. Pumpkin Cream Puffs Max Kelly If pumpkin pie was a cloud, it would look and taste just like one of these little delights. Inside these light, airy choux pastries is a dreamy pumpkin cream that’ll make pumpkin fans forget all about pie. Marshmallow and Chocolate Shortbread Slices Caitlin Bensel A candy bar taste in a homemade dessert: That’s what this recipe brings to the table. With layers of a crunchy cookie base, jammy spread, marshmallow filling, chocolate coating, and nutty topping, the only thing missing is a wrapper. Instead of slices, cut them into two-bite squares for fun-sized treats. Cookies and Cream Cheesecake Brownies Alison Miksch As the title implies, a trifecta of dessert favorites—Oreos, cheesecake, and brownies—join forces for this irresistible bite. Rich hardly begins to describe these. Pour batter into a muffin or mini muffin pan for perfect individual portions. Chocolate Bark With Dried Fruit and Spices Josh Wand For this dessert recipe, the chocolate doesn’t need to be tempered, thanks to a bit of shortening that makes it shiny and smooth. Swap out the chopped dried apricots with dried cranberries for a Christmassy twist. Golden Grahams Peanut Butter Truffles Grace Elkus This recipe enlists a breakfast cereal to add a little crunch to a peanut butter-cream cheese center and again as a dusting atop its chocolatey coating. The result is a gift-worthy bite that holiday guests will love. Pecan Logs David Prince These cute little bites look troublesome to make, but are really super simple. The recipe starts with a homemade sugar cookie dough—but use a store-bought roll if time’s an issue. Add three more ingredients, bake, and you have out-of-the-box cookies to serve, swap, or gift. Puff Pastry Cinnamon Rolls Betty Gold Equally suitable for dessert, breakfast, or brunch, these cinnamon roll minis come together in 30 minutes with no rising, proofing, or kneading required, thanks to a puff pastry shortcut. A smooth vanilla glaze finish makes these little treats taste just like the baker’s buns. Sweet Tahini and Date Truffles Victor Protasio With only six ingredients, you could be indulging in these fruity chocolate-covered truffles. (And in less than an hour!) Elegant and decadent, these truffles won’t last long, whether you make them for a holiday party or a cozy self-care night-in. Dates, tahini, and almond flour are wrapped in a rich, melted chocolate mix, and garnished with flaky salt. Chai-Flavored Snowball Cookies Fred Hardy Are you dreaming of a white Christmas? Make all of your marshmallow-world dreams come true by whipping up these beautiful mini snowball cookies. The best part? They taste just as good as they look. These buttery two-bite cookies are full of chai flavor. Pistachio and White Chocolate Cookie Bark Fred Hardy Melted white chocolate coats a pistachio cookie with notes of citrus in this best-of-both-worlds recipe. Simply break the cookie bark into smaller bits to serve as a bite-sized dessert. Thinly spread the dough on a cookie sheet for the ultimate crisp cookie texture.
Blueberry Ginger Cupcakes with Honeyed Mascarpone Frosting
