Australian Christmas is all about adaptation. Grilled prawns and fruit salads grace our lunch spreads alongside — or in place of — the roasts and bread sauces of colder climes. Among all the ancient traditions that we’ve shed, one remains firmly in place: the Christmas pudding. The intensely rich, suety dessert was obviously designed for a world in which December is the dead of winter — not that that has stopped us from enjoying slice after slice every year. We love the harmoniously layered flavours of the classic pudding, but being the Brownie Pioneers we decided many years ago that it was time for some Aussie innovation. Inspired by memories of Christmas past, we’ve developed a line of Dello Mano Luxury Brownies that incorporate our favourite elements of this timeless treat.

The crown jewel of the 2017 Dello Mano Christmas Brownie collection is the Christmas Pudding Brownie, a lavish confection involving apricots, prunes, sultanas, currants and macadamia nuts, all nestled in our signature dark Belgian chocolate brownie recipe base. It’s not Christmas without a little tipple, so don’t be surprised if you catch hints of brandy and beer in your brownie. Those notes come from the heady brew in which we marinate our dried fruit for weeks — long enough for every currant to take on the fine character of a special local Australian craft beer and brandy.

To get that one-of-a-kind character, we rely on a special beer from Brisbane’s own Newstead Brewing Company. Newstead has a lot in common with Dello Mano; we’re both Brisbane-born brands that began with little more than a dream, some pluck, and plenty of perseverance. Newstead Brewery shares our passion for preserving hands-on techniques that result in high-quality, nuanced products. That dedication to craft doesn’t prevent them from experimenting with cutting-edge techniques and sophisticated automation, which allows them to create unique beers that stand out in a market glutted with breweries. We’re proud to be able to incorporate Newstead’s quintessentially Queensland beer into our brownies. After sampling their diverse range of brews, we settled on 21 Feet 7 Inches as the ideal brownie booster. 21 Feet 7 Inches is a dark, malty porter named after an infamous flood that hit Brisbane in 1974. The beer’s unmistakable notes of chocolate, caramel and spice perfectly complement our Belgian brownie recipe, both as an ingredient and as a beverage pairing.

With its rich, spicy flavours and refreshing, summer-ready buoyancy, 21 Feet 7 Inches might be the perfect beer for an Australian Christmas. It also happens to pair well with all three brownies in our Christmas collection: Christmas Pudding, Spiced Rum & Apricot, and French Brandy & Prunes. These festive brownies make a foolproof gift for the foodie in your family — even if that foodie is yourself. If you can’t choose just one flavour, try our Christmas Luxury Belgian Chocolate Brownie Sampler, which includes four of each Christmas brownie as well as four classic Belgian chocolate brownies. We’ll wrap them up for you in an elegant box tied with a bow, ready to sit pretty under the tree.

Dello Mano Christmas brownies make a stylish alternative dessert at any holiday gathering, from the lunch hour shindig at the office to the formal family dinner. However, we don’t blame you if you can’t bring yourself to part ways with the traditional pudding of your childhood memories. We hold no animosity towards the old-fashioned dessert; in fact, we happen to turn out some of the best Christmas puddings in Brisbane (with all due respect to your granny). Our puddings are as classic as it gets: redolent with warm spices, dappled with brandy-soaked fruits, and as unctuously dense as a good pudding should be. We love a slice topped with cooling ice cream or brandy custard, but it tastes just as good unadorned. We swaddle each pudding in a chicly understated cloth wrapper, evoking the brandied cheesecloths in which nineteenth-century bakers once aged their puddings for months on end. Our wrapper isn’t soaked in liquor, but it is tied with a red ribbon embossed with the Dello Mano name. The wrapped pudding makes a lovely centrepiece for the Christmas table, waiting to unveil itself for the grand finale.

Whether you fancy brownies, puddings, mince pies, or any other dainty in our wide range of Christmas treats, we hope you’ll invite Dello Mano to your celebration this year. We deliver Brownies Australia wide. Our Christmas Pudding and Christmas Cakes  can be delivered Australia wide as can most of our products with the exception of cakes – we offer Cake Delivery Brisbane for our cakes,  Visit our online store for more specific information, or stop in at our Merthyr Village – New Farm or Tattersall’s Arcade shops. And while you’re in Brisbane, don’t forget to visit Newstead Brewing Company at their flagship Newstead location or their new outpost in Milton. We can’t wait to be part of your Christmas traditions, both old and new! (Brownie and a beer at the beach, anyone?)

Dello Mano is open 7 days at both New Farm and Tattersalls Arcade in Brisbane CBD. Christmas Brownies can be ordered online delivered Australia wide or pick up at either store. New Farm or Tattersalls Arcade Brisbane CBD. Stock is carried in store and orders are also taken in store to reserve your brownie gift boxes.