Gather your friends and raise a glass to the year gone by with recipes from Thomasina Miers, Honey & Co and Benjamina Ebuehi

When it comes to throwing parties, the world falls into two quite distinct camps: those who love to do so, and those who would rather do almost anything else. Getting organised early is key, and finding a few delicious recipes to start the proceedings will amuse your guests while you try to keep the show on the road.

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© Photograph: Laura Edwards/The Guardian. Food styling: Lucy Turnbull. Prop styling: Rachel Vere.

© Photograph: Laura Edwards/The Guardian. Food styling: Lucy Turnbull. Prop styling: Rachel Vere.

© Photograph: Laura Edwards/The Guardian. Food styling: Lucy Turnbull. Prop styling: Rachel Vere.

Have a very chewy yuletide with this sumptuously layered meringue smasher that pumps pavlova up a level

I’m switching up my usual Christmas pavlova this year for a slightly different but equally delicious meringue-based dessert. Discs of pistachio meringue are baked until crisp, then layered with pistachio cream and cherry compote. The meringue softens a little under the cream as it sits, giving it a pleasingly chewy, cake-like texture. A very good option if you’re after a Christmas dessert without chocolate, alcohol or dried fruit.

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© Photograph: Matthew Hague/The Guardian. Food styling: Aya Nishimura. Prop styling: Anna Wilkins. Food styling assistant: Laura Lawrence.

© Photograph: Matthew Hague/The Guardian. Food styling: Aya Nishimura. Prop styling: Anna Wilkins. Food styling assistant: Laura Lawrence.

© Photograph: Matthew Hague/The Guardian. Food styling: Aya Nishimura. Prop styling: Anna Wilkins. Food styling assistant: Laura Lawrence.

Spitzbuben-Stil: So nennt man zwei gestapelte Kekse, im oberen ein Loch. So sieht man die mexikanisch inspirierte Füllung aus fruchtiger Guavenmarmelade und Frischkäse.

Make all the individual elements ahead of time, then, on the day, as if by magic, you can conjure up this amazing tower of choux buns and smother it in boozy chocolate sauce

Christmas is the perfect time for something a bit more extravagant and theatrical. And a very good way to achieve this is to bring a tower of puffy choux buns to the table and pour over a jugful of boozy chocolate sauce and coffee caramel while everyone looks on in awe. To help avoid any stress on the day, most of the elements can be made ahead: the chocolate sauce and caramel can be gently reheated before pouring, while the choux shells can be baked the day before and crisped up in the oven for 10 minutes before filling.

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© Photograph: Matthew Hague/The Guardian. Food styling: Aya Nishimura. Prop styling: Anna Wilkins. Food styling assistant: Laura Lawrence.

© Photograph: Matthew Hague/The Guardian. Food styling: Aya Nishimura. Prop styling: Anna Wilkins. Food styling assistant: Laura Lawrence.

© Photograph: Matthew Hague/The Guardian. Food styling: Aya Nishimura. Prop styling: Anna Wilkins. Food styling assistant: Laura Lawrence.

A wholesome, versatile cake that’s perfect for the colder months – for breakfast or for pudding

I adore a good loaf cake. There’s something about them that’s just inherently cosy and wholesome, and this one in particular is perfect for the colder months, not least because it’s simple and sturdy in the very best way. It’d be right at home with a coffee for breakfast, as well as gently warmed in a pan with butter and served with hot custard on a rainy evening. A real all-rounder.

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© Photograph: Matthew Hague/The Guardian. Food and prop styling: Lucy Turnbull.

© Photograph: Matthew Hague/The Guardian. Food and prop styling: Lucy Turnbull.

© Photograph: Matthew Hague/The Guardian. Food and prop styling: Lucy Turnbull.