S12.E12: The Great Festive Bake Off

[Athena]

Quote

Four bakers from Bake Off past return for The Great Festive Bake Off! Featuring Jon, Hermine, Kim-Joy and Rowan.

Original UK Air Date: Jan 1, 2022

[TVbitch]

I enjoyed it. Everyone did so well! The steel drum sing along at the end was rather bizarre and awkward in an office holiday party kind of way.

There was a Christmas Bake Off episode also, with celebrities, but I didn't watch that one cuz I didn't recognize any of the celebrities, and two said right off the bat they had never baked before. And quite honestly, I've grown a bit tired of watching celebrities do things. : D 

[festivus]

Four very likable bakers. Loved the first challenge that everyone did their take on an egg. I liked the concept of Jon's the best. Kim Joy's showstopper was just the cutest thing ever and apparently tasted great as well. She also looked really cute, that hair color works for her. I think Hermine's would have been really pretty without the front and the too low roof which were hiding the best part. I liked Rowan's although it was not as nice as the picture. The concept was different and interesting. Jon's, well, he seems like a lovely guy, lol. 

Paul even seemed to be in a decent mood. All around, a nice episode.

[caitmcg]

As an American, I had to roll my eyes a bit at Paul's skepticism about KimJoy's Chelsea buns with caramelized pecans on top, given they were basically a bog-standard pecan sticky bun as we would know it.

[dleighg]

On 1/16/2022 at 5:59 PM, caitmcg said:

KimJoy's Chelsea buns with caramelized pecans on top, given they were basically a bog-standard pecan sticky bun as we would know it

I know! I make a monkey bread version of it for Christmas morning every year!

On 1/3/2022 at 12:23 PM, TVbitch said:

There was a Christmas Bake Off episode also, with celebrities, but I didn't watch that one cuz I didn't recognize any of the celebrities, and two said right off the bat they had never baked before.

They actually did quite well despite all that. (I didn't know any of them either) And Nathaniel was really cute!

[xander874]

Fun episode even if it was obvious KimJoy was going to win. I like seeing old bakers come back and I laughed when Matt said they were all going home. 

[SemiCharmedLife]

Another fun episode, which serves to emphasize that I will have to wait almost a year to watch the new shows.  So joyful while it lasted!

I thought the bakes for the showstoppers and signature seemed wonderful.  I would have loved to try Kim Joy's Chelsea bun.  I love nuts and caramel on anything!  I give props to Jon for trying some molecular gastronomy.  It seemed to work, although he didn't have time to complete all of them.  Congrats to Hermine on the Hollywood Handshake.  Her bun looked yummy.  Also, Rowan did a great job completing his bakes; I also loved his creativity.

I just loved Kim Joy's showstopper.  Every detail was perfect.  This was a case of "it's too pretty to eat!" (but they did anyway.)

[MisterGlass]

I enjoyed all the challenges and all the bakers.  I was surprised that in the technical challenge they used piped lemon curd dots to decorate the cake.  I don't think I've seen that before.

[dleighg]

9 hours ago, MisterGlass said:

I was surprised that in the technical challenge they used piped lemon curd dots to decorate the cake.  I don't think I've seen that before

yeah that looked pretty tricky to get just right. I wasn't surprised that a lot of them dripped (and it CERTAINLY didn't help that the cakes were probably still warm). Don't most recipes say to cool completely -- that is, for several hours -- before decorating?

Edited December 7, 2022 by dleighg

[blueray]

What a great group in the tent. I like when they bring back past contestants. I started watching the Christmas one and realized it was celebrities for a show that I never heard off and quickly switched to this one.

I'm glad they all did well, even though it was clear that Kim Joy was going to win, as it came down to decoration. Though I will say Hermine's signature was the only one I wanted to grab and eat through the screen ;).

[kirklandia]

5 hours ago, blueray said:

I started watching the Christmas one and realized it was celebrities for a show that I never heard off and quickly switched to this one.

I have noticed a number of versions of this comment.
I watched the last two years' holiday episodes featuring celebrities I had never heard of from shows I had never watched - and I was so glad I did!  Both were wonderful episodes.
The contestants were charming and delightful, had a great rapport and support for each other. Some of them were pretty decent bakers, and the ones who weren't put in  a great effort.  It made me want to watch both of the shows.
It seems to me that not wanting to watch someone you've never seen before is like not wanting to taste food you've never eaten before. 

Edited December 11, 2022 by kirklandia

[dleighg]

I really enjoyed the episode with the folks from "Sinners" (that's the name, right?) I've never seen the show and didn't know the actors, but it was so fun. And yes, the winner was not a bad baker at all, and they all were very engaged in trying to do well.

[blueray]

37 minutes ago, kirklandia said:

I have noticed a number of versions of this comment.
I watched the last two years' holiday episodes featuring celebrities I had never heard of from shows I had never watched - and I was so glad I did!  Both were wonderful episodes.
The contestants were charming and delightful, had a great rapport and support for each other. Some of them were pretty decent bakers, and the ones who weren't put in  a great effort.  It made me want to watch both of the shows.
It seems to me that not wanting to watch someone you've never seen before is like not wanting to taste food you've never eaten before. 

For the record I did watch and enjoy the Derry Girl's episode, to the point where I checked out the show. So maybe I'll go back and watch that one.

[ombre]

11 hours ago, dleighg said:

I really enjoyed the episode with the folks from "Sinners" (that's the name, right?) I've never seen the show and didn't know the actors, but it was so fun. And yes, the winner was not a bad baker at all, and they all were very engaged in trying to do well.

The show is called It's a Sin, a reference - I've always assumed - to the hauntingly lovely Pet Shop Boys song of the same name which was popular in the 80s queer/disco culture in which the show is set. I haven't seen the show but everything I've heard is that it's excellent. I think it streams on HBO.