Easter nests formed of French meringue or blow-torched marshmallow; hot cross buns toasted and filled with raisin-studded ice cream; and of course, lots and lots of mini eggs to be found on cake or cookie dough; the hunt for London’s best Easter desserts has officially begun.
Hot cross bun doughnut: Crosstown
Soft, gently spiced dough with creamy cinnamon custard, a citrusy-sweet Seville orange glaze, a richly spiced cross and candied orange peel on top. Completely vegan too.
Multiple locations
Speckled egg cake: Brett & Bailey
Chocolate cake with speckled vanilla buttercream, oozy centres of vanilla caramel and Cadbury mini eggs on top. The sponge is dense yet moist, like a perfect pound cake, but bigger, richer, and layers of ultra-smooth frosting to boot.
London markets
Chocolate Easter nest: Wood Street Bakery
Layers of airy French meringue with silky chocolate cream, a coating of Land Nicaraguan dark chocolate and mini eggs on top. A deeply flavoured, double chocolate delight that just melts in your mouth.
21 Wood St, London E17 3JX
Hot cross bun cinnamon bun: Meringue Girls
Brioche dough rolled in a mix of spices (think cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg) with sour cherries, cranberries and mixed peel, plus a generously piped, lime-zested cream cheese cross on top. Squidgy like a cinnamon roll; fruity and citrusy like the Easter classic, this hot cross cinnamon bun has it all.
Unit 1 Broadway Market, London E8 4TS
Bunny butt: Meringue Girls
Crisp, mallowy French meringue disguised as a bunny butt, with a sprinkle of desiccated coconut on top. Meringue Girls offers this as a bake-at-home kit too.
Unit 1 Broadway Market, London E8 4TS
Crème egg choux: Le Choux
Choux pastry with a chocolate cream filling, a swirl of marshmallow and a toffee ‘yolk’ on top. A soft, light-as-air profiterole with a slight crisp outer, it’s certainly delicate, but with Valrhona packing the entire round, it definitely hits the spot.
332 Ladbroke Grove, London W10 5AH
Hot cross bun ice cream sandwich: Minus 12° Craft Ice Cream
The Easter classic toasted and filled with hot x bun gelato (featuring Estate Dairy milk), plump raisins and crunchy ‘hot x bun’ croutons. When generous scoops of ice cream seep straight into the dough, there really is no butter needed, just napkins. Lots of them.
Herne Hill Railway Station, London SE24 0JW
Mini egg cookie dough: Blondies Kitchen
Sweet, deliciously chewy cookie dough studded with mini eggs, served with an optional shot of milk.
Selfridges, 400 Oxford St, London W1A 1AB
Hot cross bun blondie: Brownie Box
Cinnamon-spiced blondie with raisins, mixed dried peel, big chunks of white chocolate and simple white icing on top. So buttery, a creamy vanilla flavour and just a gentle sprinkle of spice, this blondie might even please the most stringent of hot cross bun skeptics.
247 Old Brompton Rd, London SW5 9HP
Hot cross bun crumble: Humble Crumble
Shortbread crumble with apple and orange, sultanas and orange zest, plus an Easter nest featuring blow-torched marshmallow, chocolate shavings and mini eggs on top. Before you dive in, wait a few moments and enjoy swirls of melted, bitter-sweet chocolate sinking into a bottomless pit of custard underneath.
Old Spitalfields Market, 12 Commercial St, London E1 6EW or Borough Market, Winchester Walk, London SE1 9AG
Simnel cake: EK Bakery
Spiced cake packed with currants, sultanas, toasted almonds and cherries, a layer of citrusy almond paste in the middle and marzipan icing on top. A fruit cake undeniably similar to the Christmas pud, but with no booze, no hefty amount of spice and ground almonds playing their part, it’s sweeter and wonderfully light.
EK Bakery supplies the newly opened Potter & Reid or you can order online
Easter chocolate pie: Meringue Girls
Crisp shortcrust pastry with a satiny chocolate filling, a mountain of blow-torched Italian meringue and mini eggs on top. The billowy topping, firm enough to go soaring high yet ultra fluffy, you always think you can’t possibly finish it all, but you do. With ease.
Unit 1 Broadway Market, London E8 4TS
