Showstopping Christmas Cake Recipes

By Southern Living

There's nothing more festive than our showstopping Christmas cake recipes. End your holiday meal with one of our beautifully garnished cakes. 

Sugar plum fairies will be dancing while you are devouring one—or more—of these showstopping Christmas cakes. In fact, these desserts are perfect for any time of the year. Think of them as holiday cakes—a Brown Sugar-Bourbon Bundt or an Acadian Syrup Cake with Roasted Pears and Caramel Sauce will sweeten any holiday. The Hummingbird Cake is a Southern classic, and is the most-requested cake recipe in Southern Living magazine history. The Eggnog Pound Cake and the Noel Pound Cake are simple takes on classic Christmas cakes that are as delicious for breakfast as they are a nighttime treat. These holiday cakes have the perfect recipes for adding layers of delight to any family event.

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White Cake with Peppermint Frosting

Photo: Hector Sanchez

Recipe: White Cake with Peppermint Frosting

Garnish with a fondant bow or Peppermint Meringue Cookies.

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Spice Cake with Cranberry Filling

Photo: Hector Sanchez

Recipe: Spice Cake with Cranberry Filling

Pipe a ring of frosting around the cake layer, just inside the top edge, to keep filling from oozing out.

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Chocolate-Peppermint Cheesecake

Photo: Hector Sanchez

Recipe: Chocolate-Peppermint Cheesecake

Don't worry if your cheesecake cracks; the light and fluffy layer of whipped cream will cover it.

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Coconut-Macadamia Nut Pound Cake

Photo: Hector Sanchez

Recipe: Coconut-Macadamia Nut Pound Cake

Lightly toasting the macadamia nuts brings out their rich, buttery flavor.

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White Cake with Bourbon Buttercream

Photo: Hector Sanchez

Recipe: White Cake with Bourbon Buttercream and Seven-Minute Frosting

Top this cake with Sugar-Coated Orange Slices and Sparkling Cherries.

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White Cake with Cranberry Filling and Orange Buttercream

Photo: Hector Sanchez

Recipe: White Cake with Cranberry Filling and Orange Buttercream

This cake will be the star of your holiday meal. Your guests will be begging for the recipe.

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Acadian Syrup Cake with Roasted Pears and Caramel Sauce

Photo: Hector Sanchez

Recipe: Acadian Syrup Cake with Roasted Pears and Caramel Sauce

A Cajun classic, this spice cake (aka Gateau au Sirop) gets much of its sweet flavor from a Southern staple, cane syrup. We love Steen's 100% Pure Cane Syrup, made in Louisiana. If you can't find pure cane syrup, don't sub a blended syrup; use honey instead. Roast the pears and make the caramel sauce while the cake cools. To dress up the cake for serving, we used a fleur-de-lis stencil to create a powdered sugar design atop this glorious dark and deeply delicious cake.

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Gingerbread Cake with Buttermilk Frosting

Photo: Hector Sanchez

Recipe: Gingerbread Cake with Buttermilk Frosting

Warm spices and molasses blend beautifully with tangy buttermilk frosting.

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Brown Sugar-Bourbon Bundt

Photo: Iain Bagwell

Recipe: Brown Sugar-Bourbon Bundt

The crowning jewel of your holiday dessert table, this bundt cake is all about subtle elegance. For this unique shape, we used Nordic Ware's Bavaria bundt pan.

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Chocolate Fudge Cheesecake

Recipe: Chocolate Fudge Cheesecake

Chocoholics are sure to love this ultra-rich cheesecake, which features traditional cheesecake filling sandwiched between a chocolate-pecan brownie base and a thick, homemade chocolate glaze.

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Robert E. Lee Bundt

Photo: Iain Bagwell

Recipe: Robert E. Lee Bundt

For a different twist on the General's favorite cake, try this moist and lemony Bundt recipe. It has its origins in an 1879 cookbook titled Housekeeping in Old Virginia.

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Rum-Glazed Sweet Potato Cakes

Photo: Iain Bagwell

Recipe: Rum-Glazed Sweet Potato Cakes

This mini Bundt cake recipe features pureed sweet potatoes, raisins, rum, and toasted pecans along with cinnamon and nutmeg and is a perfect pick-up treat for a holiday dessert party.

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Cranberry-Apple-Pumpkin Bundt

Photo: Iain Bagwell

Recipe: Cranberry-Apple-Pumpkin Bundt

The topping on this bundt—a maple glaze with sugared pecans and pumpkin seeds—will make your guests ooh and ahh.

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Chocolate Truffle Cheesecake

Photo: Jim Franco

Recipe: Chocolate Truffle Cheesecake

Let this elegant chocolate cheesecake be the centerpiece of your holiday tablescape featuring a gorgeous White Chocolate Snowflake in the center.

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Red Velvet-White Chocolate Cheesecake

Photo: Hector Sanchez

Recipe: Red Velvet-White Chocolate Cheesecake

Whimsy meets elegance in all five layers of this red velvet-white chocolate wonder.

Watch: Assembling Our White Layer Cake

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Hummingbird Cake

Photo: Lee Harrelson

Recipe: Hummingbird Cake

This ultimate recipe is the most requested in Southern Living magazine history and frequents covered dish dinners all across the South, always receiving rave reviews.

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Tennessee Jam Bundt

Photo: Iain Bagwell

Recipe: Tennessee Jam Bundt

The best way to enjoy this blackberry and caramel confection is with friends—it makes 12 satisfying servings.

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White Chocolate-Cranberry Cheesecake

Photo: Iain Bagwell

Recipe: White Chocolate-Cranberry Cheesecake

This cake is the perfect ending to a meal—from the deep red cranberry topping to the velvety smooth comforting bites.

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Mama's German Chocolate Cake

Photo: Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Mama's German Chocolate Cake 

Pure Southern perfection! Layers of moist German chocolate cake and sweet-and-nutty Coconut-Pecan Frosting will make this dessert an instant favorite.

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Praline Bundt Cake

Photo: Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Praline Bundt Cake

This praline bundt cake gets raves for being moist, flavorful and beautiful! Something about it evokes a feeling of Southern nostalgia.

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Mrs. Billett's White Cake

Photo: Iain Bagwell; Styling: Vanessa McNeil Rocchio

Recipe: Mrs. Billett's White Cake

Think of this instant classic as the little black dress of white cakes. It's appropriate for every occasion on its own and versatile enough to show-case any of festive fillings and frostings.

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Peppermint-Hot Chocolate Cake

Photo: Iain Bagwell; Styling: Vanessa McNeil Rocchio

Recipe: Peppermint-Hot Chocolate Cake Recipe

Peppermint-Hot Chocolate Cake garnished with peppermint candies and rolled wafer cookies.

 

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Marbled Pumpkin Praline Cake

Photo: Iain Bagwell; Styling: Vanessa McNeil Rocchio

Recipe: Marbled Pumpkin Praline Cake

Marbled Pumpkin Praline Cake garnished with sugared pecans, kumquats, and bay leaves.

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Chocolate Roulade

Photo: Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Chocolate Roulade

If serving a crowd, roll up cake from the long side, jelly-roll fashion.

Step-by-Step Video: How To Make Chocolate Roulade

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White Chocolate-Almond Cake

Recipe: White Chocolate-Almond Cake

A decadent trio of dark chocolate cake layers is the delicious surprise inside this festive package. There's no need to worry about picture-perfect swirls of frosting—just spread it on. Then decorate like a pro simply by pressing finely chopped white chocolate and almonds into the top and sides of the cake. Tie on a ribbon, and you have a stunning dessert that tastes every bit as good as it looks.

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Red Velvet Cheesecake

Photo: Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Red Velvet Cheesecake

If you love both red velvet cake and cheesecake, this perfect sweet-meets-rich-meets-creamy concoction is bound to be your new favorite dessert.

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Sugar-and-Spice Cake

Photo: Jennifer Davick; Styling: Buffy Hargett

Recipe: Sugar-and-Spice Cake

Make a classic white cake for Christmas this year. This recipe starts with boxed mix, then adds a few key ingredients to make the end result light, fluffy, and totally delicious.

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Eggnog Pound Cake

Photo: Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Eggnog Pound Cake

Make an easy holiday pound cake by starting with a box of pound cake mix and adding eggnog and ground nutmeg. Not only is it perfect for holiday entertaining, you can also toast a few slices and top with jam or preserves for breakfast. You can also use the delectable batter to make Eggnog Cupcakes.

Step-by-Step Video: Festive Eggnog Pound Cake

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Snowy Chocolate Baby Cakes

Photo: Jennifer Davick; Styling: Buffy Harget

Recipe: Snowy Chocolate Baby Cakes

Make these mini chocolate cakes by starting with a devils' food cake mix and baking in muffin pans. The festive holly garnish is simply red cinnamon candies and fresh bay leaves. Top with a super-easy Winter White Glaze.

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Noel Pound Cake Loaf

Recipe: Noel Pound Cake Loaf

Still warm from the oven or tucked away to season in a secret hiding place, golden-crusted pound cakes are loved by everyone. We serve them any time of day or night, and have even been known to butter and toast a slice or two for breakfast. A colorful confetti of red and green maraschino cherries makes this merry little cake a hit with all ages.

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Chocolate-Citrus Cake With Candied Oranges

Photo: Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Chocolate-Citrus Cake With Candied Oranges

A rich Whipped Ganache Filling is the happy surprise when you slice into this decadent chocolate layer cake. Frost with a Seven-Minute Frosting and decorate with festive Candied Oranges, citrus leaves and cranberries.

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Fig Cake

Photo: Charles Walton IV

Recipe: Fig Cake

A delicious twist on our favorite Hummingbird Cake, this recipe is so simple to make you won't believe you started from scratch. This recipe can be made with fresh figs or with good quality preserves. Sweet cream cheese frosting covers the cake and is a nice balance to the spicy fall flavors.

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Chocolate Velvet Cake With Coconut-Pecan Frosting

Recipe: Chocolate Velvet Cake With Coconut-Pecan Frosting

A lavish amount of melted chocolate and sour cream gives these moist cake layers a tender, velvet-textured crumb. You'll find lots of imaginative ways to bake and frost the cake layers listed with the recipe for the batter.

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Caramel Cream Cake

Recipe: Caramel Cream Cake

This three-layer butter cake has a pecan-pie filling in between the cake layers, a rich cream cheese frosting, and a topping of sweet coconut and chopped pecans. It's a great dessert for holiday entertaining.

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