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Let's just all agree to eat our way through December with these sweet treats
We won’t sugarcoat it, 2020 has been a tough year! But, if there’s one thing we can rely on this Christmas, it’s the soothing feel of a creamy hot chocolate on a chilly winter morning or the satisfying snap of a gingerbread before it’s dunked into a good ‘ol English breakfast. And to keep things merry and bright this season, we’ve complied a list of festive treats in and around the city you’ll definitely want to enjoy this season.
Check out this year’s delicious offerings…
This Christmas, Faubourg has launched an array of delicious and mouthwatering treats to satisfy all needs. After dinner, select one of their festive yule logs, choosing from white chocolate mousse, cherry bavarian cream, chocolate joconde sponge and more. Or opt for something from their Christmas specials, including gingerbread loaf, candy cane macaron and Christmas ornament delicacies.Faubourg, 175 – 628 Kent Avenue Southeast, Vancouver; Details and prices online; Get 10 percent off as an early bird offer from now until Sunday, December 13th
For the second year in a row, Temper is bringing back the showpiece chocolate advent calendar, featuring a colourful countdown display that reveals miniature chocolates and confections behind each window. Signature advent calendars are priced at $65 or can be customized with an assortment of your preferred chocolate flavours for $70 and up. They’ll also be celebrating the season with festive Bûche de Noël yule log cakes, authentic German Christmas stollen and novelty chocolate creations like candy cane bark, mini Santa Clauses and Christmas trees, eggnog truffles and an assortment of cookies. Temper Chocolate and Pastry, 2409 Marine Drive, West Vancouver; Advent calendar pre-orders are required and must be placed before Friday, November 27th; Details online
Bring a taste of Paris home this holiday season, and indulge in the stunning creations from Elena Krasnova at Mon Paris Pâtisserie. From gorgeous chocolates to delicious cakes and cookies, choose between pistachio raspberry, hazelnut, and orange creme brulee yule logs, or select holiday treats like chocolate trees, ornaments, poinsettia flowers and so much more. 4396 Beresford Street, Burnaby; Available online and in-store now; Yule logs must be ordered in advance for pick-up from Tuesday, December 22nd to Thursday, December 24th or delivery on Tuesday, December 22nd and Wednesday, December 23rd
Take a moment to relax with the family this holiday season and treat yourself and your littles to The Lazy Gourmet’s Snowman Hot Chocolate for Four Gift Set ($70). The set comes with four enamel mugs, real hot chocolate ganache mix, and four snowman marshmallows that are almost to cute to eat. They also have beautiful gift boxes like the Grazing Box, which includes vegan cheese and rosemary caramel popcorn, the Savoury Gift Basket offering thyme dark chocolate dipped cookies and homemade herbed focaccia, and A Little Bit of Everything Box, with rustic tapenade and homemade chocolate bars.1545 West 3rd Avenue, Vancouver; Order online
This year, the beloved Canadian chocolatier has launched a holiday collection filled with whimsical chocolate showpieces and artisanal confections guaranteed to add some fun and sparkle to the festive season. Enjoy classic items like Flake the snowman—a decadent chocolate filled snowman filled with crunchy rocky pop—or holiday chocolate bombs that feature smooth truffle-like centres infused with seasonal flavours. You can also take your pick of either 11- or 17-piece limited edition holiday boxes, featuring a hand-selected assortment of confections and more.Various locations; Available in-store and online until Thursday, December 24th
Ladurée Canada celebrates the season with a stunning collection of French treats, including their signature line of Bûche de Noël (from $68 for six people), mini Bûchette de Noël (from $11), limited edition macaron boxes, as well as new macaron flavours. Although we don’t know when we can travel freely again, people can still enjoy a piece of Paris right here in Vancouver,” says Olesya Krakhmalyova of Ladurée Canada.The Bûchette de Noël Flavours include La Favourite, which is a pistachio macaron base, buttercream infused with roasted Iranian pistachios, and delicately flaked praline; and the Marie-Antoinette, Ladurée’s iconic yule log, with a macaron base, rose-infused buttercream and a raspberry and lychee jam.Yule logs available for pre-order online with Canada-wide shipping offered for purchases by December 20th; In-store/curbside pick-up available
Buttermere Patisserie is offering up a distinctive Christmas lineup with enchanting seasonal flavours throughout the month of December. The collection includes teatime sugar cookies, Christmas-print butter cookies, a Christmas macaron box and much more. As of December 1st, stand-alone cakes are available, including Silent Night, a limited edition seven-inch Oreo and chocolate cheesecake ($68) and Canadian Woodland, a six-inch maple bacon cake dedicated to Canada’s raw beauty and playing on classic, traditional Canadian flavours ($65). Available online
A collaboration between locals Jenny Bakes and Butter and Botanicals, these gorgeous cookie boxes from the Flour Girls come in three sizes for your various gifting needs: small ($45), medium ($80) and large ($120). Boxes include an assortment of decadent treats, including Nanaimo bar truffles, eggnog s’mores, chocolate snickerdoodles with dulce de leche (are you drooling yet?), plus much more. The bonus? The Flour Girls will be donating a percentage of their final sales to Kids Help Phone, so you’ll be supporting a great cause with your purchase.Pre-sales available online until December 11th; Pick-ups and deliveries are available from December 17th to December 19th
Just in time for the holiday season, Beaucoup Bakery has launched a new line of artisanal chocolates. Handcrafted using premium French Valrhona chocolate, ‘The Maison Collection’ features a selection of pastry-flavoured bonbons, such as cinnamon scroll, raspberry brioche, almond croissant and more (available in boxes of six or 12; at $15 and $30 respectively), and two limited edition holiday sculptures. The holiday sculptures feature a dark chocolate star ornament ($15) filled with crispy chocolate pearls and an eight-inch tall dark chocolate Christmas tree ($29) in a beautiful deep red ombre with gold flakes.
Alongside these festive treats, Beaucoup is bringing back their popular grand apple pie croissant and holiday cookie tins (8 pieces for $17.95 or 16 pieces for $35), including delicious new flavours: Tonka pecan wreaths, black sesame cigarette russes and Kinako macadamia toffee snowballs.Pre-orders available online, with a limited amount also available on-site daily
This year Legends Haul has launched an array of themed and customizable festive gift boxes that are chef-curated, consciously sourced and made exclusively for you! Perfect for those with a sweet tooth, the Sugar gift box ($40), features Nightingale pistachio nougat and cranberry orange biscotti, Cadeaux Bakery rum balls and shortbread, Go Bio gummies, Beta5 holiday bar and a $10 complimentary Legends Haul gift card. More information can be found online
Baking up a taste of home this holiday season, The Bench is offering some classic desserts rich in tradition and flavour. Mouthwatering, bite-sized shortbread cookies dipped in chocolate and pistachios are available, and you can purchase this popular treat in three gift box sizes: mini, $14.50; medium, $24.50; and large, $32. A vegan box is also available with ginger tahini and oatmeal hazelnut chocolate sandwich cookies ($14). Traditional German stollen ($20) made completely from scratch—right down to the candied fruit— will also be available at the Commercial Drive bakehouse, plus so many more festive treats. Head to 1641 Commercial Drive to visit the cafe or order online
Launching brew-at-home coffee kits and new cookie boxes, Kafka’s two new additions are perfect for the holiday season. The Kafka’s Cookie Boxes feature a variety of flavours, like snowflake sugar cookies, Linzer cookies, ginger chews, chocolate Baileys snowballs, Kafka’s famous chocolate chip, and cranberry oatmeal (6 cookies, $18; 12 cookies, $36). The Brew At-Home Coffee Kits come with a bag of freshly roasted single-origin beans, and the new BLOOM Pour Over Coffee Brewer by ESPRO ($65 or $90 with two classic Kafka’s mugs).Order online or by emailing info@kafkascoffee.ca; A limited number of cookie boxes and coffee gift sets will be available each day for walk-ins
If it’s a gourmet gift basket you’re after, look no further. Railtown Catering has launched the ultimate holiday basket ($100) filled with house-made items, such as mulling spice, gingerbread cookies, rosemary and lemon crackers, spiced nuts, jams and more! And if you’re looking for something that packs a punch, their cocktail gift basket ($120) with house-made syrups, garnishes and glassware may be the answer for you. All information online
Supporting local has never been more important, and these meaningful gifts made at East Van Roasters not only help the community, but they’re pretty damn delicious too. Bringing back festive favourites and award-winning confections, their holiday lineup features a holiday bar trio ($22 for a three-pack or $8 each) with flavours like gingerbread toffee, white chocolate with blood orange and mint cookies. Holiday confection boxes can also be purchased ($20 for 8 pieces or $35 for 16 pieces), including flavours like chocolate caramel, cranberry spruce truffle, mayan-spiced truffle and a bunch more. A vegan holiday box ($20) is also available with an assortment of quality vegan treats like ginger mendiant, fruit and nut mendiant and single-origin truffles.Visit 319 Carrall St or order online