Hosting Christmas dinner (or any holiday party) can be stressful. While I love the planning process and coming up with a menu several weeks in advance, there are always curveballs on the day you may not expect.
When you’re hosting a party, the last thing you want is to be stuck in the kitchen for hours while everyone else is having fun.
One of my favorite hacks to prevent this disappointment is to make dessert in advance. Not only does this save you time, but it also lets you be part of the party at its peak. There’s nothing worse than having a lovely conversation or party game cut short so you can make dessert alone in the kitchen.
This is my go-to holiday dessert to make ahead of time, guaranteed to satisfy your guests, no matter their age.
Dinner and a Show
There is an almost endless list of classic Christmas desserts to choose from. So why should you choose this one?
The first reason is time. Although your desserts will need a couple of hours to set, the actual prep and process time is super quick—around 10 minutes if you plan well. This leaves you more time to focus on the main meal or decorate your home with festive crafts rather than spending hours baking a complicated dessert.
Speaking of complicated, that’s one thing this recipe is not. I’m not a big baking fan (savory snacks are my weakness), so you can be sure this no-bake recipe is accessible to all home cooks. Some recipes use sugar snow globes made from scratch, but to reduce stress and time, I’ve stuck with the regular clear baubles you can purchase at a Christmas supply store.
When it comes to flavor, the Christmas classics are covered. The ginger cookie base has that warm festive feel, while the cream is light and smooth. It leaves you satisfied without feeling completely stuffed (unless you eat more than one, which I have been known to do).
You only really need four ingredients. The hardest thing to find on the presentation side is the baubles, but those are easy to purchase online. The level of decoration on top is totally up to you.
Besides all these wonderful benefits, there is one major reason why I love this Christmas dessert—theater. Everyone is excited to see these desserts come out of the kitchen, young and old. They top off your Christmas dinner with a bit of whimsy and a theatrical touch.
If this is your first time hosting Christmas dinner, this dessert will make a big impact with very little effort.
What You’ll Need
As I mentioned, there are only three base ingredients in this recipe. Those are:
- Ginger cookies
- Cream liqueur (or milk for a non-alcoholic version)
- Cream
- Castor sugar
You can add a few more festive spices to your cream mixture (like cinnamon or nutmeg) if you want to bring out the Christmas flavors. But the spices in ginger cookies are usually more than enough.
The presentation part requires a few more supplies, the most important of which are the clear fillable baubles. This is what creates the snow globe effect. You can make this dessert in a regular glass if you prefer, but it doesn’t have the same ‘globe’ impact. If you do, choose a glass with a narrow opening and wider base for that rounded look.
This base dessert will look like layers of snow, but what you place in that snow is up to you. You can use Christmas cookies, tiny tree ornaments, or festive cake toppers to create a miniature snow globe landscape. I like to dust the tops with icing sugar to give all the decorations the same snowy effect.
The kitchen tools needed are a rolling pin and a hand mixer. You can use a regular whisk to whip the cream by hand without a hand mixer. However, it will take a lot longer to get to the right consistency, cutting into your 10-minute time cap (and your arm may hurt the next day). Also grab a clear plastic sandwich bag and a mixing bowl.
Variations
If you’re not a fan of ginger puddings or want something a little richer, you can make any fridge dessert variation in the same container. I chose this ginger pudding for simplicity and Christmas flavor, but you can use a no-bake cheesecake mix or even a chocolate mousse.
To create the edible snow globe effect, I recommend choosing a cookie base for the ‘soil’ and a white fridge dessert for the snow. But even if you go the chocolate mousse route, you can still cover the top with a layer of icing sugar to look like snow.
Edible Slow Globe Recipe
This no-bake dessert is best made the day before serving to give the cream time to set. You can also make it early in the morning if you’ll only be hosting later in the evening. Grab these ingredients to get started:
- 1 pack of ginger cookies
- 1/3 cup cream liqueur (or milk)
- 1 cup cream
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
Before you start, also grab these items so you’re well-prepared:
- Hand mixer
- Clear sandwich bag
- Rolling pin
- 2 Mixing bowls
- Clear baubles, opened
- Glasses or mugs (to rest the baubles on)
Steps
Follow these easy steps to make this no-bake Christmas dessert:
- Place the ginger cookies in the clear sandwich bag and seal it. Using the rolling pin, crush the cookies into small pieces to create a soil-like texture. You can also use a food processor if you have one.
- Pour the cookie crumb into the mixing bowl and add the cream liqueur. The crumbs should stick together without becoming soggy. Add the liquid slowly to make sure you don’t overdo it, as different brands may have different textures.
- In another mixing bowl, whisk your cream until it forms soft peaks.
- Balance half of your clear baubles on a glass or mug to hold them still. Then, add the crumb and cream in layers to fill the bottom. The cream layers should be about double the thickness of the cookie layers.
- Place the glass or mug in the refrigerator. Leave to set overnight before adding decorations.
Once the dessert is set, decorate the top layer before closing the baubles to create your snow globes.
Decorating Your Snow Globes
The decorating part is where you can flex your creative muscles. Create tiny landscapes from cookies, candy, or any other decorations you can find.
If you really want to go all out, you can create different edible snow globes for different guests. I only recommend this route if you don’t have many people to serve, as it can be quite time-consuming. But it does add a cute personal touch.
Make sure you only add your decorations when your dessert has set. This ensures they stay put and look good when you’re ready to serve.
Serving Edible Slow Globes
Since these snow globes don’t have a flat base, serving can be a little tricky. The weight of the bottom generally does hold them upright alone, but they don’t stay in place when disturbed or while eating. If you want more stability, you have a few options.
For starters, you can keep them on the glass you set them on. It does detract from the look a little, so I would fill the glass with a complementary Christmas cocktail, eggnog, or after-dinner coffee to go with the pudding.
Alternatively, if you have some cookies left over, you can add a crumb to the bottom of the plate and nestle the bauble on that. It’s not the most stable solution, so you may need some help carrying plates to the table when you are ready to serve.
Because the dessert should be completely set, you serve it as is. The only concern is the decorations moving around, so make sure they are anchored into the cream if you go this route.
What to Do With Clear Baubles
Although the best part of this dessert is definitely eating it, reusing the clear baubles is an added bonus. Once they have been thoroughly cleaned, you can fill them with decorations to add to your holiday tree or around your home.
Use kitchen items like star anise, traditional Christmas decorations like tinsel, or even dried flowers and foliage—whatever matches your holiday décor. Or, you can wash them and try another fridge dessert variation to make even more edible snow globes.
Leave a Reply