Christmas baking ideas

Classic Christmas baking

Classic mince pies

Try these traditional mince pies with a delicious homemade mincemeat filling and topped with a dollop of brandy butter.

Classic mince pie recipe

Crumble mince pies

Diana Henry shares her recipe for lovely little crumble mince pies - a delicious twist on a classic mince pie.

Crumble mince pie recipe

Rich fruit Christmas cake

This is a gluten-free Christmas cake from Phil Vickery, who actually prefers it to the regular kind of Christmas cake. 

Christmas cake recipe

Boxing Day cake

This special cake for Boxing Day is lighter than a Christmas cake and has an unusual hint of almond and honey giving it a taste of North Africa. 

Boxing Day cake recipe

Christmas spiced tea buns

Hide the Christmas ‘to do’ list and take a moment to enjoy a cup of tea with these spiced fruit buns topped with butter. 

Spiced Christmas tea buns recipe

Cinnamon biscuits

These cinnamon biscuits are very easy to make and are ideal for baking with grandchildren.

Cinnamon biscuits recipe

Sweet treats

Clementine cake

If you find Christmas cake a bit heavy, or just fancy something different, then you might prefer a sweet and zingy clementine cake.

Clementine cake recipe.

Hazelnut praline log

A delicious chocolate log always goes down well at Christmas and makes a delicious dessert or luxurious treat.

Hazelnut praline loaf recipe

Snow angel cake

A three-layer sponge cake with four festive fillings, and topped with a pretty snow angel that children will love. A great alternative to a traditional fruit Christmas cake. 

Christmas snow angel cake recipe

Blackcurrant and apple mince pies

These mince pies made with blackcurrant jam and grated apple give a modern twist to traditional mince pies, which some people can find a bit heavy.

Blackcurrant and apple mince pies

Sticky ginger cake with clementine glaze

Not keen on fruity Christmas cake? Try this Scandinavian alternative - a sticky ginger cake with a clementine glaze a festive sprinkling of green pistachios and red pomegranate seeds.

Sticky ginger cake recipe

Perfect gifts

Pepparkakor

These traditional Swedish iced gingerbread shapes make perfect gifts for Christmas. Just wrap them in cellophane and tie with a festive bow and tag.

Pepparkakor recipe

Apricot and macadamia nut biscotti

These lovely little biscotti are great to have in the house for peckish visitors to enjoy with a cup of tea or coffee. They also make great gifts.

Apricot and macadamia nut biscotti recipe

Stained glass rounds

Create your own little works of art by baking boiled sweets into shortbread to create a lovely 'stained glass' effect. 

Stained glass rounds recipe

Jammy amaretti biscuits

These sweet and colourful biscuits make lovely handmade gifts when presented nicely in a little bag or box.

Jammy amaretti biscuit recipe

Viennese biscuits

These lovely biscuits dunked in melted chocolate make fantastic baked gifts for chocolate-lovers.

Viennese biscuits dipped in chocolate

Mini Christmas cake muffins

Cook up a batch of these delightful little Christmas cakes to give out to friends and family this Christmas.

Mini Christmas cake recipe

Spiced blueberry panettone

Panettone, the traditional Italian sweet bread, makes a lovely gift. This recipe makes eight individually wrapped spiced blueberry panettones.

Spiced blueberry panettone

Striking showstoppers

Gingerbread layer cake

This is a beautifully luxurious triple-layered gingerbread cake slathered in a salted honey buttercream icing.

Gingerbread layer cake

Gingerbread house

GBBO judge Paul Hollywood’s impressive gingerbread house is great to bake, decorate and, of course, destroy with the grandchildren.

Gingerbread house

Christmas tree

Heston Blumenthal’s towering tree of giant spiced Christmas biscuit is decorated with chocolate, dried fruit and a sprinkling of gold dust.

Christmas tree

Subscribe today for just £34.95 for 12 issues...

Subscribe today and save 51%