S14.E08: Party Week

[Athena]

Quote

It's Party Week and the bakes have a ball with a sausage roll and make an 'anything-but-beige' buffet. Who will put on a semi-finals-worthy spread and who will be a party pooper?

UK Original Air Date: November 14, 2023.

US Netflix Air Date: November 17, 2023.

[xfuse]

I'm so glad that Cristy is gone. It isn't that I didn't like her but I didn't like watching her because she was so anxious about her bakes and it wasn't enjoyable. To me she put so much self worth in the outcome of those bakes. IDK maybe I was reading her wrong. 

[Mellowyellow]

Matty!!!! Woooohooo!!!!! So thrilled for him! He’s so darn cheerful and likeable! I did not think he would make it this far (neither did he by the looks of it) so it’s absolutely lovely that he’s up there in the top 4! I love how he just chugs along in good humour, no matter what. He’s been one of my favourites this season.

Tasha’s caterpillar with Noel’s face is probably my favourite moment of the entire series. It looked exactly like him!!! It was so random and bizarre and utterly hilarious! 

Poor Cristy. I like her too but she stresses me out. She always seems to be teetering on the edge of being distressed.

I feel like Josh is always on the edge of winning star baker and then someone else does a slightly better overall job and he loses to them. He hasn’t won as much for someone who seems to be in contention much of the time. Loved his Christmas gear! My family are like that, we’re all running around in Christmas pyjamas now!

[TVbitch]

I am rooting for Josh, he just kind of quietly does his best. Cristy reminds me of the singer Jewel.

I've never heard of caterpillar cake. Am I out of touch with current cakery trends, or is this just a UK thing?

[magdalene]

I feel Dan should have gone over Cristy.  He came last in the technical while Cristy did very well. And this is the second time I believe he should have gone over another baker. Not fair to be judges pet who's being stirred towards the finale.

I am very happy for Matty who's been a joy to watch right from the start.  I hope he hasn't doomed himself now by peeking too early.

[Adiba]

3 hours ago, TVbitch said:

I am rooting for Josh, he just kind of quietly does his best. Cristy reminds me of the singer Jewel.

I've never heard of caterpillar cake. Am I out of touch with current cakery trends, or is this just a UK thing?

I like Josh, too—most of his bakes seem like the ones I would reach for on a dessert table.

Caterpillar cakes are apparently very popular for kid birthdays in the Uk and are sold by many food retailers.

Edited November 17, 2023 by Adiba

[Straycat80]

I only had a sausage roll once on vacation in London and it was pretty awful, these actually looked good though.

Good job Matty! I am rooting for Josh, he’s been doing a really good job and being calm and staying consistent. I think Dan should have gone over Kristy. but Dan has taken risks and tried different things which the judges like.   Still I won’t miss Kristy, she was always so stressed out and nervous. 

[Ellaria]

I love Matty. He has a great attitude and is fun to watch. I like Josh, He doesn’t get the credit that he deserves and I don’t understand why.

Dan annoys me to no end. He has been a bit overconfident. Maybe that will change coming out of this week.

Alison is a great addition. She is entertaining without being annoying or outrageous. Noel, on the other hand, is wearing out his welcome. 

[SnapHappy]

Dan made CHINESE sausage rolls.  With soy sauce dip.  For Paul Hollywood.  That's basically a "fuck you and your judging".  And SO MUCH BEIGE.  Yes, I can't stand him.  That gigantic, forced grin that's pasted on his face every second and the fake laughing make me want to slap him into next week.  Where he's sent HOME.

Cristy wasn't great, but she followed the brief and her flavors were good.  

I didn't get the squirrel in the freezer bit, but it was Noel and he can do no wrong with me.   And his face just belongs on a caterpillar cake.  Tasha did fantastic with it.  

[iMonrey]

If I had to pick a baker to go this week it would have been Cristy. Not that I dislike her, it's just that out of the five left she wasn't bringing much to the table in terms of personality. I know that shouldn't be a factor in a baking competition, but it's also a TV show, so there you have it.

I don't think Matty has won Star Baker before this, has he? I think Prue said they had all won once but I don't think he had.

I've never had sausage rolls but the Signature made me hungry for one. Still, I don't know if I'd like the flavors, especially the two that had cranberries in them.

I'd never heard of a caterpillar cake either, I figured it must be a UK thing since Paul seemed so certain they were all familiar with them. Noel's face on Tasha's was hilarious.

I eventually get used to British slang but whenever I hear "dog's dinner" I have to Google it to remind myself what it means.

[buttersister]

A Josh, Tasha, Matty final is what I’m looking for. That way, I won’t be disappointed by who wins. They all did so well this week. And as the winners sometime go on to do more publicly, I’d look forward to that, too.

[magdalene]

44 minutes ago, buttersister said:

Josh, Tasha, Matty final is what I’m looking for. That way, I won’t be disappointed by who wins. They all did so wel

Exactly!   But I have the bad feeling that Matty will go next week and I will be stuck watching Dan smirk through the finale.  Dan is the only baker of this batch that I have come to dislike.  I do not want him in the finale.

[J-Man]

No, Paul -- you haven't made "millions" of sausage rolls.

[libgirl2]

1 hour ago, magdalene said:

Exactly!   But I have the bad feeling that Matty will go next week and I will be stuck watching Dan smirk through the finale.  Dan is the only baker of this batch that I have come to dislike.  I do not want him in the finale.

I do not like Dan. 

[HelloooKitty]

It’s nice that Matty won, but his caterpillar face was terrifying!!

 

Kristy seems like a nice person but the “frantically flustered” every week was beyond old. 
 

Tasha is still my favorite, but Josh quietly plugging away is growing on me. 

[peeayebee]

3 hours ago, iMonrey said:

If I had to pick a baker to go this week it would have been Cristy. Not that I dislike her, it's just that out of the five left she wasn't bringing much to the table in terms of personality. I know that shouldn't be a factor in a baking competition, but it's also a TV show, so there you have it.

Yes, I agree. I'm sure she's a lovely person, but her personality isn't as unique as the others.

Josh is a great baker and so precise. His Showstopper was beautiful. So professional looking. However, for me he doesn't have much of a personality. Again I must say that he's probably a very nice person, but I find him bland on camera. Maybe he's on the shy side.

I really thought Dan would be going home. I like him, so I was worried. I can see that it was very close betw him and Cristy.

Paul didn't like his sausage rolls because they weren't traditional, but it sounds like the flavors were actually good. Cristy's had the dreaded soggy bottom.

Cristy's caterpillar cake was #2, while Dan was at the bottom, I believe. I can't remember if his only looked bad or if the flavors and textures were bad.

And then the Showstopper. Cristy's Willy Wonka bakes didn't turn out all that great. Dan's had some good elements in his. So I guess I can see why he was spared.

Speaking of sausage rolls... My English mother made THE BEST sausage rolls. Oh my gosh. My mouth is watering thinking of them. Her pastry was perfect. One thing though: They were small, maybe 3-4" long and 2" wide? Anyway, they certainly weren't the monsters everyone here was making. I don't know if she changed the size (for whatever reason) or if they were small when she was a child.

Tasha's pigs were very cute.

[Jodithgrace]

I was expecting the sausage rolls to be the size of American “pigs in blankets, “ but these were enormous. Nobody seemed to think they were unusually large, so I guess that’s the standard. 
 

I never understand why contestants don’t listen to everybody’s advice and just do a few things well, instead of attempting too much, like Dan did. They are told over and over from season to season. 
 

I read loads of British literature, but have never heard of a caterpillar cake. It seems like such a specific design. It just struck me funny when Paul told them the technical was going to be something with which they were all familiar, “caterpillar cake,” and everybody nodded sagely, and I thought, “huh?”

Tasha almost screwed the pooch in her showstopper. Luckily, she’d had a very good first day. 
 

Matty’s hair makes me laugh, the way it’s straight across his forehead. He seems like a sweetheart, though, and I was glad to see him get star baker. 
 

Christy did make a dog’s dinner out of her showstopper. She was too emotional for me, so I wasn’t sorry to see her go. 

[MSterling]

16 hours ago, TVbitch said:

I've never heard of caterpillar cake. Am I out of touch with current cakery trends, or is this just a UK thing?

A YouTuber I watch, Emily D. Baker, covered a Colin/Cuthbert caterpillar cake lawsuit between Marks & Spencer and Aldi. I recommend her video which is how I knew about the caterpillar cakes. She entertains with their snarky tweets, social media, and online articles since she doesn't have the court documents to read.

[dleighg]

15 hours ago, iMonrey said:

I don't think Matty has won Star Baker before this, has he? I think Prue said they had all won once but I don't think he had.

 

yeah, the judges' comment about that, and his comment at the end, didn't seem to match.

I also had never heard of a caterpillar cake, but apparently all the bakers knew exactly what it was. The cutting out of the strips was definitely something that would trip me up (and even did Dan, who presumably knew what it was supposed to look like).

[sharifa70]

Dan isn’t my favorite but I don’t dislike him. I don’t read him as arrogant. I’ve been seeing him as ambitious, competitive, and very, very anxious for the praise, but that’s understandable. I think he just wears his heart on his sleeve a touch more intensely and it can be a bit much.

I’m okay with Christy’s exit, though I feel bad for her. My wish for her is that she learns to stop apologizing for minor things. “You didn’t like the flavors? Oh, well -I tried. Lesson learned.” I hope this experience gives her a confidence boost even though she didn’t win. She seems lovely.

Josh’s showstopper looked amazing, but I wasn’t surprised by Matty’s star baker win. 

The semi-final episode (next week) is always the hardest for me. SO close!

[blueray]

I'm glad Matty won star baker. He deserved it as he did great in the signature and show stopper.

That being said props to Tasha for making it actually look like Noel. Paul and Prue supposedly didn't know she was going for that and instantly knew it was supposed to be Noel. Which is impressive.

On 11/17/2023 at 9:26 AM, TVbitch said:

I've never heard of caterpillar cake. Am I out of touch with current cakery trends, or is this just a UK thing?

Me neither. But I can see this jumping the pound. As those are really cute cakes. And we have stuff similar but nothing exactly like that.

[dleighg]

I think Dan got a nudge (a la Project Runway) due to "which person do we want to see more from?" He's been more ambitious and "interesting" with his flavors than Christie.

Edited November 18, 2023 by dleighg

[chaifan]

This was a fun theme.  Have they done a "party" theme before?  I think the showstopper would have been fun for the finale, when they take their creations out to feed the friends/family who have come for the final award. 

I think Christy was a fair choice for elimination.  I really like Tasha and glad she's in for the semi final.  Her Noel caterpillar was really cute.  I was a little disappointed no one did an Allison face. 

Sausage rolls...  All of them looked great to me.  Yes, they looked huge, but in the UK they really are more like hand pies than appetizer bites.  I make a version that is appetizer bite size, it's a total cheat compared to what they did here, but it's a hit at parties.  Use pre-made puff pastry and breakfast sausage (the kind sold in a big roll/tube, that you're supposed to slice into patties).  Cut the puff pastry into 1/3's (at the fold/crease), put a thumb width line of sausage down the middle and roll like a sushi roll.  Cut into 1" bits, put on a rimmed baking sheet (to catch the grease) and bake at 400 for about 10 minutes.  Serve hot, if possible. 

[peeayebee]

1 hour ago, blueray said:

Me neither. But I can see this jumping the pound. As those are really cute cakes. And we have stuff similar but nothing exactly like that.

Chocolate, chocolate, and chocolate. What's not to love!

[kittykat]

Agree it was a fun episode.  I love when they do an episode where the Brits are all everyone knows what this is and us Americans are all huh!  I mean we're all about decorated triple chocolate cakes I guess just not of the caterpillar variety.

Tasha putting Noel's face on her cake was too damn funny.  This technical was just as fun as last weeks but this time for the right reasons and no epic fails.  Paul and Prue were giddy little kids eating those cakes.

Hooray for Matty.  He really has grown each week.  I know his showstopper wasn't the greatest but he had a great first day.  Glad Josh the perpetual bridesmaid had a fantastic showstopper and that was an A+ shirt, all those treats looked delicious.

I liked that this showstopper was less build a sculpture and more showing off of the baking disciplines.  We saw bread, pastry, biscuits, custard.  Overall Party week delivered and after last week's mess it was well timed.

I'm not too miffed that Cristy is gone but I still think that Dan is getting a pass for things others get dinged for.  His whole showstopper was style over substance but Paul didn't use the dreaded comment once. Cristy didn't have great presentation but better flavors.  Part of me wonders after the Laura backlash from a few years ago that they're not letting flavors be a free pass for bad presentation, especially in the later weeks. I don't know, I'm not disputing the elimination but I still think Dan just skated by and had last week's win to fall back on.

I also give Cristy a pass on her fretful behavior because if I were on that show I would totally be the Cristy.  Also I wouldn't finish anything on time.

 

[welshmuse]

3 hours ago, dleighg said:

yeah, the judges' comment about that, and his comment at the end, didn't seem to match.

I also had never heard of a caterpillar cake, but apparently all the bakers knew exactly what it was. The cutting out of the strips was definitely something that would trip me up (and even did Dan, who presumably knew what it was supposed to look like).

Matty won star baker during Chocolate Week. 

[MagicEyes]

I think it’s time for both of the judges to go. Paul can’t stop whining when someone makes something he doesn’t like. As the judge of a baking show, he needs to judge what the bakers choose to make on its merits, not on whether he likes it or not. He should not have said one word about Dan using curry flavors (and I don’t remember him ever saying anything like that about people who have a cultural heritage that includes curry flavors). I’m including Prue in this because I’ve never liked her and I like her less with every season of the show. The Hollywood Handshake needs to go away, too. 

[Ancaster]

"Even if it does have Noel's face on it!" sneakiest snark of the week from Prue this week.

Edited November 19, 2023 by Ancaster

[Ancaster]

On 11/17/2023 at 3:27 PM, iMonrey said:

 

I don't think Matty has won Star Baker before this, has he? I think Prue said they had all won once but I don't think he had.

 

 

I'm pretty sure Prue probably knows what she's talking about and sure enough, Matty won with his chocolate box.

I bet Matty's students love him!

Edited November 19, 2023 by Ancaster

[iMonrey]

23 hours ago, kittykat said:

Hooray for Matty.  He really has grown each week.  I know his showstopper wasn't the greatest but he had a great first day. 

Part of me thinks he maybe just lucked out with his sausage rolls. Everyone else either underbaked them or overbaked them or used fillings Paul didn't like. Matty found the Goldilocks sweet spot with the perfect bake and the right fillings. He was third in the technical and his showstopper was just so-so, although the judges found fault with everyone's. 

I did, however, notice the judges pointing out that Matty seemed very organized during the showstopper challenge. I haven't heard any reference to this before. That's a good sign for him going forward.

[Sesquipedalia]

I'm really enjoying this season, and I like all the bakers. But I have to say, they don't seem quite as talented as bakers of many seasons past. The showstopper challenge seemed pretty easy in the sense that they could make almost anything they wanted, which should allow them to play to their strengths. Yet no one did amazing. Josh's was the only display that looked at all show-stopping. The one main directive was to make it colorful, and yet there was so much beige. When I think about what someone like Kim Joy would have done with that, these bakers are not quite at the same level.

[Mittengirl]

I was picturing a caterpillar cake to be one of those things where they arrange cupcakes and frost them to look like one cake..

[Deskisamess]

Overall, I've enjoyed this season, especially after that train wreck that was last season. But...they've almost gone too far too easy I think. And man, can't they give the them enough time to complete the bakes? I understand the desire to keep it closely timed, but it seems to be way too tight timing wise on many of the challenges.

I wasn't surprised to see Cristy go, she didn't seem to be enjoying the process and was always so stressed out. Josh is very good, just a little quiet, so he doesn't stand out. Dan needs to go, I'd like to see Tasha go all the way. I've no thoughts either way about Matty, I can't get past his Moe Howard haircut.

26 minutes ago, Mittengirl said:

I was picturing a caterpillar cake to be one of those things where they arrange cupcakes and frost them to look like one cake..

Wow, I really hate those. 

[RoxiP]

Regarding the timing issue - at least one the first day where they do two bakes - I wonder if they are limited by union rules on how long the tradespeople (camera, sound, etc.) can work?  

[BookEater]

If anyone's curious about the caterpillar cake it's based on Colin the caterpillar. I haven't had one since I was a kid and I've never met a kid who didn't like Colin. In my neck of the woods it was normally the birthday boy/girl who got the slice with the white chocolate face 😛

[paramitch]

I know that many viewers dislike Dan and find him villainous, but after forum browsing, I've been watching for it for three episodes and I just don't see it. He's intense and stressed, but he's also genuinely smart and funny, and every week I have seen him do something kind.

This week? He unhesitatingly helped Cristy and gave her his "chocolate dirt" for her caterpillar and then actively helped her with it. He never even paused.

So I'm just mystified by the extreme feelings he seems to cause. He's not my favorite, but I've enjoyed watching him, he seems genuinely nice, and I wish him well.

I found it ironic that Cristy left on an "anything but beige" showstopper since I find her very beige generally (and her showstopper was too). She seems nice, but she's also quiet, undemonstrative, and kind of boring because she is so introverted. I was glad she left since I enjoy the rest of the contestants more.

I also thought she had clearly come in last, which helps. Loved Tasha's "Noel" caterpillar face! 

I'm fine with any of these folks winning, but I guess I'm also rooting a bit more for Tasha.

[festivus]

That caterpillar cake is cute but it seems like a lot of work. I like the bunny cake I used to make for my kids. Two round cakes, cut out the ears and bowtie from one, frost and boom you're done. 

I knew Cristy wasn't making no final so it was a fine time for her to go. Josh's showstopper looked so nice and I actually could see that in a shop window. Half the time when they say that I'm like ummmm, no. I think I'm rooting for him just slightly above everyone else.

Tasha's little pigs were just the cutest thing. I don't remember the rest of what she had so it must have been boring. 

On 11/19/2023 at 7:16 PM, Deskisamess said:

I've no thoughts either way about Matty, I can't get past his Moe Howard haircut.

I quite like him, he seems a good chap. That haircut is the worst though. There are some things I just don't get about this decade. And people dare to think that 80s hair was bad. 😼

[Ancaster]

On 11/20/2023 at 1:51 PM, BookEater said:

If anyone's curious about the caterpillar cake it's based on Colin the caterpillar. I haven't had one since I was a kid and I've never met a kid who didn't like Colin. In my neck of the woods it was normally the birthday boy/girl who got the slice with the white chocolate face 😛

Yumm, Smarties!  I'd eat all those and a couple of white chocolate feet and I'd be good to go.

 

[Jordan Baker]

I was surprised by several things in this episode.

• I was almost sure Dan would go home. Wrong.
• I thought Josh would win Star Baker. Wrong.
• When Paul and Prue were discussing who was in line for Star Baker and who was in trouble, I thought they'd include Tasha in the in-trouble group. Wrong.

I'm assuming Dan was spared, as others have said, because he tries more unconventional flavors. I'm not exactly sure why Matty won Star Baker over Josh, but it was a close call, and I like them both. And I'm still unclear about how much the Showstopper counts because Tasha's Showstopper was deemed "disappointing" and yet she wasn't mentioned along with Christy and Dan.

 

[Dobian]

I thought Pru and Paul missed the mark a little bit when judging Cristy's showstopper.  She commented that things are supposed to be a little askew because it's Wonka, and I could see how she misshaped the candy canes to make them appear Wonkaesque.  There were other parts she could have tightened up, though.