Experience the ultimate indulgence this season with this exquisite selection of Italian Christmas Desserts. Delight in 35 delectable recipes tailor-made for the holiday season.

Experience the ultimate indulgence this festive season with our exquisite selection of homemade Italian Christmas desserts. Delight in 35 simple and easy traditional recipes for the holiday season that include panettone, tiramisu, cannoli and much more. #dessertsonadime #ItalianChristmasDesserts #ItalianDesserts
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These traditional Italian Christmas desserts will be the perfect sweet treat for your family to enjoy. Christmas time is the perfect season to make Italian dessert recipes. We also like to make Ugly Sweater Cake for something fun.

Table of contents

Why We Love These

These authentic Italian recipes include something for everyone. From fried dough and sweet bread to Italian Cream Cake and more, there is so much to choose from. The recipes include easy to follow instructions and they taste amazing.

1. Italian Donuts

This deep fried treat is topped with powdered sugar for the best Christmas sweet treat. You can add dipping sauce and whipped cream if you prefer.

Italian Donuts Recipe
Italian Donuts Recipe is fried to perfection and rolled in sugar. This Zeppole recipe is light and fluffy while being easy to make.
Italian Donuts Recipe

2. Italian Easter Cookies

Swap out the pastel sprinkles with Christmas sprinkles and this traditional Italian dessert is perfect to eat around the Christmas tree.

Italian Easter Cookies
Italian Easter Cookies have a hint of sweetness with a delicious lemon glaze. These knot cookies are easy to make and topped with pastel sprinkles.
Italian Easter Cookies

3. Best Italian Cookies

These are the best Italian Cookies and have a tasty glaze on top with lots of sprinkles.

Italian Cookies Recipe
This Italian Cookies Recipe is so buttery and delicious with an amazing glaze. The sprinkles make the cookies festive, and each bite is decadent and tasty.
Italian Cookies Recipe

4. Italian Panettone

This classic dessert is a must have during the holiday season with candied fruit and so easy to make with these step by step instructions.

Italian Panettone
Step into the world of traditional Italian cuisine with this mouth-watering Panettone recipe! Perfect for any Christmas table, once you make it, I guarantee that you won’t want to go a single holiday without it! It’s truly that delicious!
Italian Panettone

5. Mini Chocolate Panettone

Individual Italian sweet bread is perfect to hand out to friends and family at Christmas. Everyone will love it!

Mini Chocolate Panettone
These mini Chocolate Panettone are delicious Italian sweet bread that are so cute and tasty you'll want to make them every holiday.
Mini Chocolate Panettone

6. Italian Tiramisu

This dainty dessert with sponge cake, chocolate and more is the epitome of Italian desserts.

Italian tiramisu
One of Italy’s most popular desserts, tiramisu is an elegant, rich layering of bold espresso and cocoa, creamy mascarpone, sweet Marsala wine, and delicate ladyfingers, a low-density sponge cake-like cookie.
Italian tiramisu

7. Tiramisu Semifreddo

Enjoy the flavors of tiramisu in this dessert that is best served cold.

Tiramisu Semifreddo
Rich and Creamy, this Tiramisu Semifreddo recipe has all the tiramisu flavor you love in a decadent cold treat!
Tiramisu Semifreddo

8. Italian Cannoli

The filling is rich and delicious in this Cannoli recipe. The chocolate make it even better.

Italian Cannoli
This recipe makes a crisp and flaky cannoli shell enclosing a lusciously creamy, sweet ricotta filling which is dotted with decadent dark chocolate chips. 
Italian Cannoli

9. Italian Chocolate Toto Cookies

The orange zest flavor, nuts and chocolate combine into a decadent cookie no one can resist.

Italian Chocolate Toto Cookies
Italian Chocolate Toto Cookies are spicy balls made with walnuts, mini chocolate chips, cocoa, and orange flavoring. 
Italian Chocolate Toto Cookies

10. Cannoli Dip

Everything you love about Cannoli’s is packed into this dip. The classic flavor can’t be beat and tastes amazing.

Cannoli Dip
Enjoy this no bake Cannoli dip recipe for a sweet treat any day of the week. This recipe turns a classic cannoli into a dip that is so easy.
Cannoli Dip

11. Torrone Italian Nougat

Nougat candy is so delicious, and this Italian version is so wonderful. It has nuts and more for the perfect crunch.

Torrone Italian Nougat
Torrone isn’t your average nougat candy – it’s better than any other!! It’s light, sweet, and soft, with heavenly floral and citrus notes. Tiny bits of pistachio and almonds add just a slight crunch.
Torrone Italian Nougat

12. Panna Cotta

From the creamy middle to the fruit topping, this Christmas Italian dessert recipe is unforgettable and so pretty.

Panna Cotta
Rich and creamy Panna Cotta! It’s an easy to make dessert that is undeniably delicious. Especially when it’s enhanced with a vibrant and gorgeously red, tempting, fresh raspberry sauce!
Panna Cotta

13. Struffoli Recipe

The soft center and sticky sweet outside give this treat the perfect blend of textures and flavors.

Struffoli Recipe
Struffoli have a sweet citrus flavor, a sticky honey glaze, a crispy exterior, and the softest center imaginable
Struffoli Recipe

14. Italian Almond Cookies

With only 5 ingredients, it is super easy to make Italian Almond Cookies. Each bite is delicious.

Italian Almond Cookies
These 5 ingredient Italian almond cookies (amaretti cookies) are such an easy recipe to make, and so delicious! They are also known as Sicilian almond paste cookies, paste di mandorla, and ricciarelli
Italian Almond Cookies

15. Panettone Bomb

Everyone loves ice cream and this classic cake is an Italian Ice Cream Cake. The outside is coated in chocolate for a decadent dessert.

Panettone Bombe
Impress your guests with this showstopping Panettone Bombe. It’s a Christmas Ice Cream Cake made with chocolate, ice cream and panettone.
Panettone Bombe

16. Canestrelli

These cookies have the perfect hint of lemon for a delightful shortbread cookie.

Canestrelli Delicious Italian Cookies
Canestrelli are a wonderfully delicious Italian Cookie, an almost shortbread type cookie but with a crunch, fast and easy. The perfect afternoon tea cookie. A touch of Lemon makes them irresistible.
Canestrelli Delicious Italian Cookies

Not only does each cookie smell heavenly but it tastes splendid as well. The cookies consist of finely ground almonds and the perfect blend of seasoning.

Italian Mostaccioli Cookie
These soft, two bite cookies are chock-full of finely ground almonds and filled with a lovely aromatic essence from both ground cloves and cinnamon.
Italian Mostaccioli Cookie

18. Italian Cream Cake

Layers of luscious cake with cream cheese frosting in between each layer make the perfect Italian Cake.

Italian Creak Cake
Italian Cream Cake is a southern-style cake is bursting with pecan, coconut, and almond flavors. It’s frosted with a cream cheese frosting and beautifully decorated to make one impressive and ridiculously tasty dessert!
Italian Creak Cake

20. Italian Rainbow Cooking

The colorful layers in this cookie recipe make a gorgeous dessert and it tastes great too.

Italian Rainbow Cooking
These Italian Rainbow Cookies are soft, fluffy almond cake layers with tart raspberry jam in the middle, all covered in a smooth layer of rich chocolate.
Italian Rainbow Cooking

21. Homemade Panforte

Candied fruit, nuts and honey make this cake sweet and delicious. The cake is easy to make and everyone will enjoy it.

Homemade Panforte
Panforte is a delicious Italian fruit cake from Siena, made with honey, nuts and candied fruit. The perfect Christmas cake to share with friends and family.
Homemade Panforte

22. Italian Lemon Olive Oil Cake

If you love the flavor of lemon zest, this Italian Lemon Cake is the one to try. The cake is moist and delicious with the best frosting.

Italian Lemon Olive Oil Cake
Everyone needs a vibrant, light, fluffy, moist lemon cake recipe up their sleeves. Easter is coming up and it wouldn’t be complete for me without a beautiful, seasonal lemon cake.
Italian Lemon Olive Oil Cake

23. Classic Italian Pizzelle

Crispy Pizzelle Cookies are easy to make and the design is gorgeous.

Classic Italian Pizzelle
This classic Italian pizzelle recipe is a really easy and delicious recipe that makes crisp pizzelle cookies every time. 
Classic Italian Pizzelle

24. Zuppa Inglese

Display these gorgeous layers in a trifle dish and enjoy the array of flavors. It is packed with chocolate, pastry cream and more yummy ingredients.

Zuppa Inglese
a classic Italian trifle made with Savoiardi biscuits (ladyfingers) soaked in liqueur and layered with a heavenly vanilla pastry cream and a rich and fudgy chocolate custard. Super easy to make and perfect for special occasions.
Zuppa Inglese

25. Struffoli Italian Honey Balls

These delectable dough balls are fried to perfection, coated in honey and decorated with sprinkles.

Struffoli Italian Honey Balls
These Italian honey balls are nothing more than small fried balls of dough, caramelized in honey and decorated with rainbow sprinkles and candied fruit.
Struffoli Italian Honey Balls

26. Sicilian Cassata Cake

The ricotta filling is so luscious and the chocolate make it absolutely decadent.

Sicilian Cassata Cake
Sicilian Cassata Cake – A short-crust cake made with the cream of sweetened sheep’s ricotta, and dark chocolate drops.
Sicilian Cassata Cake

27. Pandoro Verona Christmas Cake

If you are looking for a cake that looks stunning, this will definitely be the star of the dessert table. This star shaped treat is beautiful.

Pandoro Verona Christmas Cake
The famous star-shaped sweet Christmas bread from Verona, Italy!  This pandoro recipe takes some time to make but the effort is well worth it to enjoy this delicate vanilla-infused cake-like bread with its beautiful appearance, delicious flavor, and wonderful texture!
Pandoro Verona Christmas Cake

28. Nutty Nougat Caramel Bites

The rich caramel in these bites is so creamy and decadent. Each bite is addictive.

Nutty Nougat Caramel Bites
This Nutty Nougat Caramel Bites recipe was a finalist winner of the Nestlé Toll House 
Nutty Nougat Caramel Bites

29. Italian Anise Cookies

Everyone looks forward to these Italian Anise Cookies. They are perfectly flavored and decorated to perfection.

Italian Anise Cookies
These anisette cookies will have all your guests swooning. These classic Italian goodies are a holiday favorite, make a batch for your next gathering!
Italian Anise Cookies

30. Pangiallo Romano

This is also called Roman Yellow Bread and is typically prepared on the Winter Solstice.

Pangiallo Romano
The Pangiallo Romano Recipe, literally “Roman Yellow Bread,” is a Roman dessert typically prepared on the Winter Solstice day as a good omen hoping that the sun will return soon. For this reason, it has a golden crust. It has a lot of ingredients, but it is effortless and fast to prepare.
Pangiallo Romano

31. Italian Pignoli Cookies

Each bite is chewy and crunchy all in one for the best cookie ever.

Italian Pignoli Cookies
Classic Italian Pignoli Cookies Recipe – soft, chewy almond flavored centers with a crispy, crunchy exterior that’s covered in golden, toasted pine nuts.
Italian Pignoli Cookies

32. Christmas Gingerbread Tiramisu

Gingerbread Tiramisu is perfectly spiced and so amazing. The sweetened coffee mixture is divine.

Christmas Gingerbread Tiramisu
Give your holiday dessert table an elegant spin with this show-stopping Christmas gingerbread tiramisu! Italian ladyfingers are soaked in a dark rum-spiked, sweetened coffee mixture and then layered with a perfectly creamy spiced mascarpone filling.
Christmas Gingerbread Tiramisu

33. Italian Rum Cake

Each layer of this rum cake is soaked in flavor and topped with decadent icing.

Italian Rum Cake
This fabulous rum soaked layer cake is a great dessert for any festive occasion. If you need a showstopper, look no further. This Italian rum cake recipe is the one for you!
Italian Rum Cake

34. Zabaglione

With basic ingredients, this is an easy dessert comes that comes together quickly without much work.

Zabaglione
Zabaglione is a marvel of a dessert—with three basic ingredients and a bit of practice at whisking over a water bath, you are rewarded with a warm, boozy, egg-y cloud of deliciousness, the down comforter of the dolci universe.
Zabaglione

35. Raspberry Panna Cotta

The combination of gelatin and cooked cream create this yummy Panna Cotta with raspberry. The presentation is stunning.

Raspberry Panna Cotta
Panna Cotta is a simple Italian dessert made by adding gelatin to cooked cream. Our version is sweetened with lots of fresh raspberries, a bit of sugar, and a hint of lemon juice.
Raspberry Panna Cotta

More Christmas Desserts

There are so many delicious recipes to try for the holiday season. Make some for the holidays and leave a comment sharing your favorites. I love hearing from you.

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About the Author

Hi, I’m Carrie. Welcome to Desserts on a Dime!

I’m on a mission to help you create delicious desserts on a budget and do not require a ton of time. Together, we are going to make something sweet that the entire family will love!

About Carrie

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