Summer Baking Championship - General Discussion

[2soon2tell]

15 hours ago, libgirl2 said:

Didn't they do Puss in Boots this past HBC? 

I remember that one, too. 

[meep.meep]

So they had to use a fruit that would be pink, and there was no raspberry?

Ahnika's eclairs were incredible!  They were huge, her filling was delicious, she did a good glaze, and even decorated beyond that.  Glad she finally won something before leaving.

[libgirl2]

22 minutes ago, meep.meep said:

So they had to use a fruit that would be pink, and there was no raspberry?

Ahnika's eclairs were incredible!  They were huge, her filling was delicious, she did a good glaze, and even decorated beyond that.  Glad she finally won something before leaving.

She also conquered grapefruit which is often the demise of a baker. 

[RoxiP]

34 minutes ago, meep.meep said:

So they had to use a fruit that would be pink, and there was no raspberry?

Ahnika's eclairs were incredible!  They were huge, her filling was delicious, she did a good glaze, and even decorated beyond that.  Glad she finally won something before leaving.

I do agree with Duff though - when she first pulled them out of the oven I thought they were potatoes.

[meep.meep]

Another random comment - Yohan put an aluminum bowl with ruby chocolate chips into the microwave?  Mine would have been spitting sparks all over.

[Guest]

26 minutes ago, meep.meep said:

Another random comment - Yohan put an aluminum bowl with ruby chocolate chips into the microwave?  Mine would have been spitting sparks all over.

Oh goodness, was it aluminum? I was too focused on the evil mass of pulsating darkness in the center of the bowl to notice what it was made out of.

[libgirl2]

55 minutes ago, tracyscott76 said:

Oh goodness, was it aluminum? I was too focused on the evil mass of pulsating darkness in the center of the bowl to notice what it was made out of.

It looked like something you would see on Dr. Pimple Popper. I never saw chocolate look so ugly. 

[MerBearHou]

1 hour ago, meep.meep said:

Another random comment - Yohan put an aluminum bowl with ruby chocolate chips into the microwave?  Mine would have been spitting sparks all over.

I saw that too and wondered HOW???  If it wasn’t aluminum, it sure looked like it!

[CrazyInAlabama]

On 6/22/2023 at 2:04 PM, meep.meep said:

Another random comment - Yohan put an aluminum bowl with ruby chocolate chips into the microwave?  Mine would have been spitting sparks all over.

Metal bowl in a microwave is probably the reason the chocolate was incinerated.  I've seen microwaves someone used aluminum foil in, and lightning was what I saw.    Thanks to other posters who told me that there are microwave sae metal bowls.   So, how did Yohann put the chocolate in for way too long?  Whatever happened it was unfortunate. 

Edited June 27, 2023 by CrazyInAlabama

[libgirl2]

1 minute ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

Metal bowl in a microwave is probably the reason the chocolate was incinerated.  I've seen microwaves someone used aluminum foil in, and lightning was what I saw.    

Shouldn't he have known you don't do that? 

[kirklandia]

58 minutes ago, libgirl2 said:

1 hour ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

 

Shouldn't he have known you don't do that? 

Perhaps microwave techniques were not included in the curriculum at the Baker & Pastry Chef Baccalaureate Apprenticeship at the CFA Cuzon in Quimper, France.  Or the Brevet Technique des Métiers Pâtissier (BTM) program at La Faculté Des Métiers in Rennes? 

(yup, I checked his résumé)

[Pattycake2]

To me, Damaris comes off as bitchy.  I’d rather have Nancy and that’s hard to say.  I shake my head when the criticism is that the dessert (of which they’ve taken too bites) is too sweet.  The pecan log from Stuckey’s or those horrible nougat Easter eggs are too sweet.  Otherwise, I want my dessert to be sweet.

[RoxiP]

Up until last year I always wanted my desserts sweet but now I can't eat a dessert that is too sweet.  

[CheshireCat]

15 hours ago, kirklandia said:

Perhaps microwave techniques were not included in the curriculum at the Baker & Pastry Chef Baccalaureate Apprenticeship at the CFA Cuzon in Quimper, France.  Or the Brevet Technique des Métiers Pâtissier (BTM) program at La Faculté Des Métiers in Rennes? 

(yup, I checked his résumé)

It's a possibility. I can easily see that students would learn to temper chocolate the traditional way. It is a lot more reliable than a microwave as the microwave heats unevenly and you can't monitor the temperature. (And someone who is more advanced and works with chocolate cheats: they have a machine that tempers chocolate for them. (Which is understandable as they use large quantities)).

As far as the metal bowl is concerned: does the show have plastic bowls? I can't recall if I've ever seen one on the show. I would think that metal is more durable, so it would make sense for them to have at least a majority of metal equipment.

[Guest]

Even if Yohann didn't learn microwave techniques at his instructional institutions, knowing not to put metal containers in a microwave is a basic life skill that people should be told just in everyday life.

If that's really what he used (and wouldn't a producer be like "um do you really want to do that?"), I suspect he just got flustered and didn't realize what he was doing. He seems to be getting more overwhelmed than the others with the basic structure of the show. And I don't think it's just because he's a classically trained French baker who's somehow above a competition like this - Clement, for example, didn't seem to have these issues. Most people who struggle like Yohann has are gone early, so it is a testament to how good he is overall that he made it to the finale.

Still rooting for Alyssa or Zoe, though.

[MerBearHou]

I am absolutely rooting for Alyssa or Zoe to win the thing.  This Summer season indeed feels like it has flown by.  

[libgirl2]

2 hours ago, tracyscott76 said:

Most people who struggle like Yohann has are gone early, so it is a testament to how good he is overall that he made it to the finale.

Still rooting for Alyssa or Zoe, though.

Plus, I really think they want a Frenchman to win this time! I think he is going to, he just needs to keep a cool head going into the finale and not screw up. 

3 hours ago, RoxiP said:

Up until last year I always wanted my desserts sweet but now I can't eat a dessert that is too sweet.  

I don't mind sweet but I need something tart to cut it. I think that is why I don't care for French Silk pie... ugh, it is so overwhelmingly cloying. 

[CheshireCat]

11 hours ago, tracyscott76 said:

Even if Yohann didn't learn microwave techniques at his instructional institutions, knowing not to put metal containers in a microwave is a basic life skill that people should be told just in everyday life.

A friend of ours once put an egg into the microwave. Even I knew that you didn't put eggs into the microwave even though we didn't have one. 🤷‍♀️

(Although, what you're saying about Yohann not realizing what he was doing sounds plausible).

[AZChristian]

2 hours ago, CheshireCat said:

A friend of ours once put an egg into the microwave. Even I knew that you didn't put eggs into the microwave even though we didn't have one. 🤷‍♀️

Sure you can!!!

[Ohmo]

On 6/22/2023 at 11:41 PM, Pattycake2 said:

To me, Damaris comes off as bitchy.

MMV because i want judging to be Demaris, Duff, and Carla going forward.  We;ll see about the finale, but I like the judging better than the last two Spring Baking Championships.

[CheshireCat]

19 hours ago, AZChristian said:

Sure you can!!!

Well, let me rephrase: it is not recommended. 🙂 (Personally, I wouldn't try it because there are so many variables: how deep is deep enough for the bowl, the amount of salt has to be the right amount and the wattage of the microwave changes cooking time etc. And if you do it wrong, you either have a mess on your hands or worse, burn yourself. Why risk it when you can simply use a pot or egg cooker? 🤷‍♀️)

To go back to the show, I do find it interesting that nothing happened with regards to the microwave and bowl. Why were there no sparks flying? Sure, they could have edited it out but would Yohann have been so surprised that his chocolate burnt had there been sparks flying? He seemed genuinely puzzled.

[AZChristian]

1 hour ago, CheshireCat said:

Well, let me rephrase: it is not recommended. 🙂 (Personally, I wouldn't try it because there are so many variables: how deep is deep enough for the bowl, the amount of salt has to be the right amount and the wattage of the microwave changes cooking time etc. And if you do it wrong, you either have a mess on your hands or worse, burn yourself. Why risk it when you can simply use a pot or egg cooker? 🤷‍♀️)

To go back to the show, I do find it interesting that nothing happened with regards to the microwave and bowl. Why were there no sparks flying? Sure, they could have edited it out but would Yohann have been so surprised that his chocolate burnt had there been sparks flying? He seemed genuinely puzzled.

Just checked with my good friend, Mr. Google.  He tells me that there ARE metal bowls that are advertised as "microwave safe," but he doesn't recommend using them.

And I'm with you on the eggs.  We use an egg cooker for consistency.  

[carrps]

I was finding the Barbie movie ads a bit horrifying. They both (Gosling and Robbie) are too long in the tooth for the roles, but Gosling is a sabertooth tiger. Add a chubby Will Ferrell? I'm out. I never had a Barbie as a kid. I'm old, so she was new when I was in elementary school, and they had Barbie days, so I felt pretty left out. It was not really my thing, though, and I got over it by junior high. Now, I have two Barbies. One is a Nordstrom fashionista, and the other is a See's Candies store shop lady.

Andrika's eclairs were kinda ugly, but they looked damn tasty. I'm glad she got props for them before she was eliminated. She seems like a very good baker and a sweet person, but she's been more scattered than Yohan in the last few weeks.

I'm rooting for Alyssa. I can't get over Zoe's overly performative perky-to-the-hilt antics from the first few episodes.

Even when Damaris is complimenting someone there's a glint of poison in her eyes.

[mlp]

1 hour ago, carrps said:

I'm rooting for Alyssa. I can't get over Zoe's overly performative perky-to-the-hilt antics from the first few episodes.

 

I took an instant dislike to Zoe during the first episode but I haven't had any problem with her since.  I couldn't remember what I didn't like and you just reminded me.

1 hour ago, carrps said:

Even when Damaris is complimenting someone there's a glint of poison in her eyes.

Damaris had gained a lot of weight.  I saw her recently on a new GGG and she had slimmed down and looked great.  When they were filming this show, maybe she was just hungry.  :)

[carrps]

Heh, I get hangry often, so I'll cut Damaris some slack.

I don't hate Zoe. I'm sure contestants are always being coached to be 'up' and 'smiley.' I just thought she leaned into that a little too hard.

[Mellowyellow]

The toy cakes were awesome!!! They all looked like plastic props!

I love all three finalists so I'm a really happy camper here. All three seem to know what they're doing and I don't feel like anyone dodgy has limped into the final like the last two seasons of Spring Baking so I'm absolutely thrilled. 

[VanillaBear85]

I missed several episodes due to moving, but have the marathon on now. 

I remember Carlos from an episode of Sugar Rush on Netflix

Spoiler

(eliminated after the first round)

 

Yohann reminds me of Pauly D. At least what I remember him looking like. 

 

 

[Gramto6]

Is tonight the Finale? My guides just say New, usually for a Finale that is what it says in red. I thought this was the final three. Are they going to bring some back?? Please NO!

[RoxiP]

It has been called the Finale during the last show so I think it is the Finale.  They didn't put anything on there about there being any kind of a surprise.

[Grizzly]

20 minutes ago, Gramto6 said:

Is tonight the Finale? My guides just say New, usually for a Finale that is what it says in red. I thought this was the final three. Are they going to bring some back?? Please NO!

Supposed to be the finale. My guide shows next week is a night full of BBF reruns, then the week after is BBQ Brawl. I guess with only having the final 3 we don't need a 2 hour extravaganza. 

[libgirl2]

Did I miss something with that cookie? It had popcorn plopped on top of it. 

The cakes are gorgeous 

Edited June 27, 2023 by libgirl2

[Frost]

ZOE!!!! Yeah!  From the judge's comments, it wasn't much of a surprise.  I feel bad for Yohann.  If he had been able to use the star cutter, his cake would have been spectacular.  The broken tiles did not have the same effect.

[Guest]

Hooray! After the judges' comments, it seemed like Zoe was going to win, but I didn't trust them 😆 Happy to be proven wrong. She just seemed to get the summer vibe the most over the course of the season.

I do have to give all the finalists credit: those were three damn fine looking cakes. Feels like it's been awhile since we had such a good turnout from everyone in a finale.

Well this was fun. Now I guess it's time to wait until Halloween creaks into view!

[MerBearHou]

A very, very satisfying finale.  Delighted for Zoe!  I bet we see her again on FN.  She’s super engaging and very talented.  Yohann and Alyssa did so well in their final bakes — they can feel proud of those gorgeous cakes.  Zoe’s chocolate cake made me want to go through the TV and get a bite.

[Grizzly]

It's nice that there was no obvious third place finisher.

[mojoween]

The producers must have gotten tired of hearing bitching about the spring finale so they made sure to have Jesse say twice that the competition isn’t cumulative and the final bake stands on its own.

Chewy bacon with fat in my cake sounds like a nightmare.

[libgirl2]

20 minutes ago, mojoween said:

The producers must have gotten tired of hearing bitching about the spring finale so they made sure to have Jesse say twice that the competition isn’t cumulative and the final bake stands on its own.

Chewy bacon with fat in my cake sounds like a nightmare.

I thought the same with Jesse too. 

 

Edited June 27, 2023 by libgirl2

[littlebennysmom]

Alyssa's cake looked the best out of all of them.

 

Maybe I missed it, but I didn't see where Zoey used her advantage (thank God she didn't dump red white and blue sprinkles anywhere on it).

[Guest]

7 minutes ago, littlebennysmom said:

Maybe I missed it, but I didn't see where Zoey used her advantage (thank God she didn't dump red white and blue sprinkles anywhere on it).

The big star cut-outs and little gold sparkly star sprinkles were hers exclusively to use.

[MerBearHou]

38 minutes ago, littlebennysmom said:

Alyssa's cake looked the best out of all of them

It looked sooo fantastic, but that chewy bacon inside the cake was just not OK.  I can’t imagine having to really chew on bacon I found inside my cake.  Crispy bacon — yes, please, could be a tasty addition in small amounts, but chewy bacon would be such a turn-off.  

[Gramto6]

I think when she first took the bacon out of the oven and cut it, it was crispy. The frosting must have made it soggy/chewy. She probably should have diced it much finer and just used a small amount.

[VanillaBear85]

I am so happy for Zoe! 

All 3 cakes looked good, which isn't always the case.

I liked the colors of Alyssa's cake the most, but I think she did too much piping. 

[Leeds]

On 6/21/2023 at 7:17 AM, AZChristian said:

Do grown women still get all giddy about Barbie and Ken?  I thought that whole thing was a bit over the top.

Tragically, lots of women (and men) get giddy over Disney, so I wasn't surprised they do over Barbie and Ken too.

On 6/22/2023 at 1:33 PM, CrazyInAlabama said:

Metal bowl in a microwave is probably the reason the chocolate was incinerated.  I've seen microwaves someone used aluminum foil in, and lightning was what I saw.    

Microwaveable stainless bowls are not new in Europe and are coming to America.

https://bssa.org.uk/microwave-safe-stainless-steel-food-containers/

[CheshireCat]

3 hours ago, VanillaBear85 said:

All 3 cakes looked good, which isn't always the case.

I agree, these were finale cakes that really looked the part and that rarely happens.

I thought Yohann's cake was the best. Zoe's and Alyssa's cakes were pretty; they were clean, structurally sound, nicely stacked and well-decorated but I thought they looked like every other 4th-of-July-cake. Yohann's was something that you don't see every day. It also had a story/a theme and it showed and from an artisan (if that is the correct word to use) point of view, his cake was the most difficult/had the most variety of skill-sets and it was still well-executed.

[libgirl2]

The judges were blown away by the chocolate cake Zoe made. The other two each had flaws. That sealed it for me. I did think Yohann would win, but Jesse did say this bake, nothing previously counted. 

[CrazyInAlabama]

I liked the look of all three cakes.   Congratulations to Zoe for winning, and Yohann and Alyssa for being finalists, and doing a great job.   I guess it came down to taste, because all three cakes were spectacular. 

(Thanks for the information about the microwavable bowls, I didn't know). 

Edited June 27, 2023 by CrazyInAlabama

[pally]

I had no problems with Zoe winning as she apparently had the best-tasting cake.  I did have an issue with the "advantage" being so big for the finale.  In the past, it has been something like assigning the themes or being able to have an exclusive flavor.  To give someone, exclusive access to certain decoration elements, such as the star cutouts for the 4th of July, seems a bit heavy-handed, especially for the finale

[mojoween]

I liked Zoe’s stars, but hate that they were gold.  When I would look at her cake, those stars looked unbalanced, if that makes sense. Like they belonged on some other holiday cake.

Red, white and blue stars, to me, would have looked so much better.  Like what Yohann did with his tiles.

[Guest]

19 minutes ago, pally said:

I had no problems with Zoe winning as she apparently had the best-tasting cake.  I did have an issue with the "advantage" being so big for the finale.  In the past, it has been something like assigning the themes or being able to have an exclusive flavor.  To give someone, exclusive access to certain decoration elements, such as the star cutouts for the 4th of July, seems a bit heavy-handed, especially for the finale

I'm not sure that exclusive use of certain decorations is any more heavy-handed than exclusive flavor or assigning themes. Alyssa and Yohann could have made stars another way if they really wanted to. And at any rate, I think they ultimately thrived without the stars. Alyssa went all in with elaborate piping, and I think Yohann's "deconstructed" design was better served with his irregularly-shaped staircase.

Edited June 27, 2023 by tracyscott76
"at" not "an"

[carrps]

I don't hate that Zoe won. She's fine. I just feel a little disappointed. She seemed like the type of personality they push though (and the type that gets on my nerves -- I don't think I'd ever watch a show with just her). Too bad Alyssa and Yohan made small mistakes that kept them from winning.