Summer Baking Championship - General Discussion

[MoonKitty]

5 hours ago, carrps said:

I was wondering why Kyle didn't flip his ParisBrest and cook it on the other side? It was like a giant doughnut anyway. That's probably why it didn't cook through. That was certainly a sad sad sad presentation.

 I hadn't seen enough of Kyle to develop a like or dislike of him, but WOW . . . his was one spectacular fail. 

That ring of pastry barely fit in the pot of oil. I was wondering how the hell he was going to flip it, but never mind--he wasn't even going to try! And when he repeated the same disastrous effort thinking the result was somehow going to be different? I give him credit for standing there during judging, thinking about how he'd tell his friends and family about his elimination. Oy. And props to the judges for allowing him to fail with respect. 

[Leeds]

11 hours ago, ruffy666 said:

Always have a Plan B, especially when you're attempting something so unusual!

There's gotta be like the 10 Commandments of going on a cooking/baking competition show... straight-up cooking skill is important, sure, but it's just as important to be flexible and understand the constraints of the specific challenge.  I don't know how many times I've seen contestants cook like a 6" deep cake in a 45 minute challenge and think to myself... welp, GOOD LUCK!  

A couple of the commandments in regular cooking shows would be never, ever attempt risotto, it always fails, and if asked to do two things, don't do three; thou shalt be dinged and thou shalt go home.  Unless your name is Buddha (Top Chef wunderkind.)

In any type of cooking show, learn to use a timer, and an icecream machine, preferably in tandem.

Never pick grapefruit on a baking show (see above).

Learn how to use rosewater - it will come up at some point.

[Pi237]

I start to get my patriotism up with the “this is very American..in my country we would never!” comments, and then, this stupid show makes them incorporate a slushy syrup.

[callie lee 29]

I'm fine with Kyle going home. Quite frankly he should have gone when he didn't complete the challenge on the first round. Granted the white chocolate (or whatever it was) flattened "water balloons" were dumb but at least it was something. 

 

I don't like apple but I like caramel apple. And I actually always think of grapefruit as winter since my favorite(& only one I love) grapefruit is only harvested in winter months, but I'm also on Florida so everything is summer comparatively. 

 

[Grizzly]

I wonder if Yohan's ears were bleeding like mine at the butchering of clafoutis? 

[MsJamieDornan]

On 5/24/2023 at 5:22 PM, MoonKitty said:

ParisBrest

I was so tired of hearing that repeated over and over I threw a shoe at the tv. Enough

[MerBearHou]

Well, darn — Ally was my favorite!  Between Yohann and Ally, that elimination could have gone either way, both messes.

Edited May 30, 2023 by MerBearHou

[Ohmo]

On 5/21/2023 at 1:32 PM, carrps said:

I know it has been in the past a cliche that pastry was for women. It wasn't manly or something. I thought we'd gotten over that, but maybe some of that attitude remains?

Particularly since Jesse or Ali has hosted most of these, I don't think Duff's been paired with another male judge because Jesse or Ali has sat at the judges' table.  I think it's about presence.  Jesse's not a judge, but he's a man. Duff, Jesse, and a male judge would be three men with one female judge.  I don't think the network wants that much imbalance.  Molly's been the only female host, and she only hosted for one competition.

[kathyk24]

1 hour ago, MerBearHou said:

Well, darn — Ally was my favorite!  Between Yohann and Ally, that elimination could have gone either way, both messes.

I don't understand why Ally was cut when the judges hated both of Yohann's dishes. I want to know who is coming up with these dumb twists feta cheese doesn't belong on a dessert.

[Salacious Kitty]

The judges only consider the Main Heat when booting a contestant. Ally's pavlova was a hot mess. Yohann made fewer mistakes. It seemed lime there were more missed than hits in the poorly conceived watermelon challenge.

[Rammchick]

I had to laugh at Yohan's repeated pronunciation of "macroon".  Of all people to pronounce it that way!

[Shenanigan7070]

That decision was...not my favorite. Ally took a wild swing and missed. But at least she took a wild swing. Yohan messed up MACARONS, for crying out loud. And while I know they don't necessarily consider the pre-heat results, since they both messed up their main heats, surely it could have come into play a little bit.

Edited May 30, 2023 by Shenanigan7070

[Maya]

1 hour ago, Shenanigan7070 said:

That decision was...not my favorite. Ally took a wild swing and missed. But at least she took a wild swing. Yohan messed up MACARONS, for crying out loud. And while I know they don't necessarily consider the pre-heat results, since they both messed up their main heats, surely it could have come into play a little bit.

I agree. From what we have seen so far, she seemed like one of the more talented ones in the group. Strange choice to eliminate her so soon. 

[carrps]

30 minutes ago, Maya said:

I agree. From what we have seen so far, she seemed like one of the more talented ones in the group. Strange choice to eliminate her so soon. 

I dunno. She seemed good, but a lot of them seem good. And her dessert was definitely an overall fail. It didn't even read Pavlova to me. All that watermelon on top made me think it had to have gotten soggy underneath and been pretty nasty to eat.

 

[Salacious Kitty]

2 hours ago, carrps said:

I dunno. She seemed good, but a lot of them seem good. And her dessert was definitely an overall fail. It didn't even read Pavlova to me. All that watermelon on top made me think it had to have gotten soggy underneath and been pretty nasty to eat.

 

Especially given that it sits around for a while before being eaten. I bet it was really soggy. 

[mojoween]

My face when each baker explained their watermelon concoctions 

[Pallida]

I felt like Ally also didn’t really embrace the watermelon aspect of the challenge. She had fresh, unaltered watermelon and then some watermelon pearls. If she had done a watermelon jelly or gelee instead of the watermelon cutouts, I think she would have been judged more favorably. 

[springbarb]

I hate that kind of challenge--some of those flavors are definitely easier than others.

[libgirl2]

8 hours ago, springbarb said:

I hate that kind of challenge--some of those flavors are definitely easier than others.

The judges did say that this was a hard challenge, but feta cheese? Ugh. 

[KayVeeTeeVee]

11 minutes ago, libgirl2 said:

The judges did say that this was a hard challenge, but feta cheese? Ugh. 

Lots of  folks like watermelon and feta.  Not me, but lots!  :)

[libgirl2]

1 hour ago, KayVeeTeeVee said:

Lots of  folks like watermelon and feta.  Not me, but lots!  :)

But to incorporate it into a dessert?

[RoxiP]

I like watermelon and feta but I wouldn't want it in a dessert - I can't imagine pairing that combination with something sweet.  A good spinach salad on the other hand...

[mojoween]

13 hours ago, springbarb said:

I hate that kind of challenge--some of those flavors are definitely easier than others.

My hubby wandered into the room and when the judges were giving some negative feedback he was like “well then give them flavors that make sense!”  He was so annoyed and he doesn't even watch the show.

Why was the powder labeled “Chile powder?”  Shouldn’t it have been chili powder?

[pally]

I think the fact that Ally had gotten to use her preferred flavors acted as a mark against her in the main heat.  She had what amounted to the easiest flavor combination, one that she took from someone else,  to work with and screwed it up.  The minute she piped out that Pavlova, I knew she was in trouble.  One that big and deep was never going to dry out in the amount of time allotted.  She would have been better off building individual ones.

[libgirl2]

3 hours ago, RoxiP said:

I like watermelon and feta but I wouldn't want it in a dessert - I can't imagine pairing that combination with something sweet.  A good spinach salad on the other hand...

Exactly, a savory dish, yes..... 

23 minutes ago, pally said:

I think the fact that Ally had gotten to use her preferred flavors acted as a mark against her in the main heat.  She had what amounted to the easiest flavor combination, one that she took from someone else,  to work with and screwed it up.  The minute she piped out that Pavlova, I knew she was in trouble.  One that big and deep was never going to dry out in the amount of time allotted.  She would have been better off building individual ones.

I have seen these on shows before and that was very big. It looked soggy. 

[Catfi9ht]

I thought Zoe's watermelon dish looked like smoked salmon on avocado toast. When the judges kept talking about how "IT SCREAMS WATERMELON", I was out. Did it look appealing to anyone else?

[mlp]

11 minutes ago, Catfi9ht said:

I thought Zoe's watermelon dish looked like smoked salmon on avocado toast.

I thought the same.  I didn't understand that comment either.  

I liked Ally but her giant Pavlova was never going to work in that time frame.  The end result did look like a soggy salad.

[Catfi9ht]

11 minutes ago, mlp said:

I liked Ally but her giant Pavlova was never going to work in that time frame.  The end result did look like a soggy salad.

Completely agree. When I saw the fresh watermelon on top, I knew she was in trouble. Watermelon has so much moisture in it. When it sits around, it makes its own soup.

[libgirl2]

31 minutes ago, Catfi9ht said:

I thought Zoe's watermelon dish looked like smoked salmon on avocado toast. When the judges kept talking about how "IT SCREAMS WATERMELON", I was out. Did it look appealing to anyone else?

I thought they did comment about "lox". The white part was too thick. 

[MoonKitty]

Maybe I'm not paying close attention, but the season seems like one big bunch of "take this specific main flavor and this bizarre other flavor and make a dessert  with some other random-ass tacked on requirement without making it suck too badly." Yes, I know that really just sums up the majority of the FN baking championship genre--and maybe I've reached my saturation point--but when a contestant has to bake something with  . . . say . . . matcha and coffee (last week), it's just screwy. 

And, I never, ever thought I would agree with one of Nancy's favorite critiques, but a lot of the desserts don't look very summery! (There. I said it. Please don't hate me. 😇)

[libgirl2]

23 minutes ago, MoonKitty said:

Maybe I'm not paying close attention, but the season seems like one big bunch of "take this specific main flavor and this bizarre other flavor and make a dessert  with some other random-ass tacked on requirement without making it suck too badly." Yes, I know that really just sums up the majority of the FN baking championship genre--and maybe I've reached my saturation point--but when a contestant has to bake something with  . . . say . . . matcha and coffee (last week), it's just screwy. 

And, I never, ever thought I would agree with one of Nancy's favorite critiques, but a lot of the desserts don't look very summery! (There. I said it. Please don't hate me. 😇)

Watermelon did. I did notice in the preview, some of those desserts they showed didn't seem so summery. 

[GeorgiaRai]

That was not even fun to watch.  Watermelon dessert is a no for me.  The bonus flavor made it a heck no, and the feta made it a hell no.  I could barely stand to watch the judges eat it.  ::hork::

The gimmicks have taken over the baking and Jesse's role gets goofier by the day.  (Yep, I went there!)  I was happy to see a summer version of the show, but it's been a letdown so far.  ("It" as in the show, not necessarily the bakers.)

[KayVeeTeeVee]

I would prefer to watch a show that gives ALL of the contestants the SAME ingredients/choices.  No running for favorite or dreaded choices.  And for the record, its pronounced KONK erd, not CON CORDE grapes, explains someone who lives next to Concord, Massachusetts.  That KONK erd, Massachusetts.

[RoxiP]

12 hours ago, KayVeeTeeVee said:

I would prefer to watch a show that gives ALL of the contestants the SAME ingredients/choices.  No running for favorite or dreaded choices.  And for the record, its pronounced KONK erd, not CON CORDE grapes, explains someone who lives next to Concord, Massachusetts.  That KONK erd, Massachusetts.

I think sometimes the way words are pronounced is regional - for instance there is a Lancaster, PA and a Lancaster, TX and they are pronounced differently (and the residents of Lancaster, TX will definitely tell you so!).

[Starry-Eyed]

Watermelon is already such a challenging flavor to work with (I like fresh watermelon, but can't think of any dessert I'd want to try it in) it definitely didn't need the added challenge of an accent flavor. Plus, some of those accent flavors were SO strange. Watermelon and curry? Watermelon and chili? Who is putting those together? Something like watermelon and hibiscus or watermelon and grapefruit would have made a LOT more sense.

[carrps]

Well, the watermelon and chili is similar to Mexican street snacks, so it's not a weird combination to me, but, yeah, the desparity among the contestants is a real issue.

[Guest]

On 6/1/2023 at 10:16 AM, RoxiP said:

I think sometimes the way words are pronounced is regional - for instance there is a Lancaster, PA and a Lancaster, TX and they are pronounced differently (and the residents of Lancaster, TX will definitely tell you so!).

So will the residents of Lancaster, PA (says someone who grew up in Lancaster County, PA).

Well *#&%*...not naming my favorite didn't help keep her around 🙁 At least I still have Alyssa, my back-up favorite. She seems to be killing it.

Ally may have messed up her dessert, but she was bringing it in commentary.

Ally, presenting her pre-heat dish: "I got blueberry crumble"

Jesse: "And what did you make for us?"

Ally: "I made you a blueberry crumble"

---

Ally, planning her main heat dish: "I don't know what to do with watermelon, except to...eat the watermelon"

She will be missed.

[lgandkihei]

You're so right with the Lancaster pronunciation issue.  I grew up in Pennsylvania, and there, it was Lank-a-ster.  (There's also a very long stretch of Route 30 which runs all through the Main Line region, also, obviously, known as Lank-a-ster Pike.

One of the major grocery store chains in those parts was Acme Markets, and one of their store brands was named Lancaster.  It was always so funny on TV and radio ads for Acme when the hired voiceover would talk about savings on Lan-cas-ter brand items.  You just knew that the person came from elsewhere in the country and definitely wasn't local.

Regional accents and customs are one thing.  Incorrect pronunciations, on the other hand, like macaroon vs. macaron and marscapone vs. mascarpone are just ignorance.  Don't they teach phonics in school anymore?

As for this show, add me to the list of viewers who's tiring of the stupid twists and the big race to grab ingredients.  I really think there'd be enough drama if they all had the same stuff to work with, because they'd all still have to put their own spins and talents to play.  I think it would even make for better/more fair judging if the judges truly were comparing like for like.  Individual bakers' skill and talent would then be more important than just the luck of the draw.

I'm also not missing the stupid flower and butterfly sticker presentations, because they made no sense to me in previous iterations.  Granted, the winning baker got to have those things hanging on their station for bragging rights, but so what?  Plus, in my head, I somehow lump them in with the whole Molly sprinkle debacle, and that's not something I care to revisit!

Edited June 4, 2023 by lgandkihei

[littlebennysmom]

45 minutes ago, lgandkihei said:

 

I'm also not missing the stupid flower and butterfly sticker presentations, because they made no sense to me in previous iterations.  Granted, the winning baker got to have those things hanging on their station for bragging rights, but so what?  Plus, in my head, I somehow lump them in with the whole Molly sprinkle debacle, and that's not something I care to revisit!

Right, the stickers/butterflies as bragging rights are really only appropriate for the Kids Baking Championship.  

[Rammchick]

22 hours ago, lgandkihei said:

You're so right with the Lancaster pronunciation issue.  I grew up in Pennsylvania, and there, it was Lank-a-ster.  (There's also a very long stretch of Route 30 which runs all through the Main Line region, also, obviously, known as Lank-a-ster Pike.

One of the major grocery store chains in those parts was Acme Markets, and one of their store brands was named Lancaster.  It was always so funny on TV and radio ads for Acme when the hired voiceover would talk about savings on Lan-cas-ter brand items.  You just knew that the person came from elsewhere in the country and definitely wasn't local.

I lived in that area for 15 years, on the Main Line.  I learned very quickly to say "LANK-a-ster" 😂

I wonder what makes them decide that there will be no twists in the Spring Baking Championship heats, but to bring them back for Summer?

[libgirl2]

41 minutes ago, Rammchick said:

I lived in that area for 15 years, on the Main Line.  I learned very quickly to say "LANK-a-ster" 😂

I wonder what makes them decide that there will be no twists in the Spring Baking Championship heats, but to bring them back for Summer?

Maybe because there are no flowers and butterflies? Count me in as finding those too close to molly's ribbons. 

[Salacious Kitty]

I could swear I read somewhere that Jesse said that Spring DID have twists, but they edited the announcements out. 

Am I high? 😂

[RoxiP]

28 minutes ago, Salacious Kitty said:

I could swear I read somewhere that Jesse said that Spring DID have twists, but they edited the announcements out. 

Am I high? 😂

Well I can't make a conclusion about whether you are high or not but you are correct...LOL!  Although I think it was Molly that said there were twists (Molly the baker on this past season, not the dreaded Sprinkles Molly).

[Salacious Kitty]

Was it Molly? I'll take your word for it. I was hesitant about saying it was Jesse, but I couldn't think of who else could have said it! 😂

[laredhead]

Yes, Molly the baker said there were twists, and those were evidently edited out.

[Guest]

Jesse failing to yell out "OOHH YEAH" as he burst through the brick wall was unforgiveable.

Edited June 6, 2023 by tracyscott76

[Grizzly]

I want to eat Zoey's pie!

[MsMalin]

On 6/4/2023 at 1:04 PM, lgandkihei said:

You're so right with the Lancaster pronunciation issue.  I grew up in Pennsylvania, and there, it was Lank-a-ster.  (There's also a very long stretch of Route 30 which runs all through the Main Line region, also, obviously, known as Lank-a-ster Pike.

One of the major grocery store chains in those parts was Acme Markets, and one of their store brands was named Lancaster.  It was always so funny on TV and radio ads for Acme when the hired voiceover would talk about savings on Lan-cas-ter brand items.  You just knew that the person came from elsewhere in the country and definitely wasn't local.

LOL yes! I live in the area and certainly identify with is. It is NOT pronounced the same.as Burt Lancaster's name. I cringe when I hear it pronounced incorrectly.

People in Nevada are quite touchy too about the pronunciation of their state name.

[libgirl2]

8 hours ago, Grizzly said:

I want to eat Zoey's pie!

I am not a cookies and cream person. Overall, I don't eat cream pies either. I do like key lime but not if it is soupy. 

[Guest]

I thought Alyssa's trifle had by far the best layers - they looked just like those tropical sand art things you can get in bottles or jars. A bit confused by the judges' comments about her cake texture. Does the texture of cake change that much when you crumble it up, as she did? I guess that makes it easier for other things to soak into it and make it soggy?

Zoe is going to get runner-up complex.