Halloween Baking Championship - General Discussion

[GaT]

53 minutes ago, Rammchick said:

It's just like all the other holidays that start way too soon -- I saw Halloween candy in the supermarket the second week of August.  

I saw Christmas things in Hobby Lobby in July 

[CheshireCat]

12 hours ago, GaT said:

I saw Christmas things in Hobby Lobby in July 

I can understand that to a degree. If you make any kind of craft that you plan to sell, you probably want to get started in late summer.

The baking shows have too many contestants to start later. Maybe it would be better if they did some shows with two less bakers (so, they could start two weeks later)?

[GaT]

15 minutes ago, CheshireCat said:

I can understand that to a degree. If you make any kind of craft that you plan to sell, you probably want to get started in late summer.

Christmas things as in lights and ornaments. Not anything crafty.

[Maverick]

 But for some crafty things, you need lights and ornaments.   The craft stores putting things out early doesn't bother me.  The other stores pushing sales, candy, etc in September does. 

 Halloween Wars originally had 5 teams and aired over four weeks starting the first week of October.  Eventually they added a team and started a week earlier but the show always ended before Halloween.  Last year is when they moved it up and it ended in mid October.  The Baking show does run for a few more episodes so it's not quite as bad. 

[oldCJ]

The names they give cereal to avoid copyright issues are a riot. Flaky corn? Fruit rings?

How are there still bakers who don’t blind bake the crust for a pie? Every time it trips someone up. The tropical fruit sounded delicious. Too bad the crust was inedible.

Tomato cake? Seriously? I know it’s a thing, but have they ever had such an out there ingredient for only one contestant? His vampire story in the first round did not make sense to me.

Surprised a pumpernickel cake beat out cake flavored cake. Her decoration was my favorite, so I guess I can see why. I was not a fan of tooth tentacle thing. It felt like sci fi to me more than horror, literally the sarlacc from Star Wars.

[tennisgurl]

I guess I should be shocked by how early these holiday cooking shows are starting...but I was just sticking witches hats and pumpkins all over my living room this afternoon, so who am I to judge? 

[Grizzly]

Doesn't seem like covid is a concern. Maybe everyone is vaccinated so they're not worried. Strange to have 2 bakers go home in first round. So glad to have John back as host, he does creepy well. And Carla can go back to being a reasonable judge instead of trying to do too much. Am liking Nicole, Adrina, and Guillermo. Even my husband was commenting what does that have to do with the lake at some of those designs (after hearing me say it so often). Knew Steven's bad first round would doom him when in the bottom for 2nd round.

[mlp]

I love love love John Henson so I'm very glad they brought him back.  He's witty and funny without going over the top.  I may be in a minority but I also like Zac Young a lot so I'm happy he's back too.

Most of the bakers have real world credentials.  Some handle time limits and the pressure of competition better than others.  I don't have any of their names straight yet but I think the pretty gal who won the first round will go far.  

 

[CrystalBlue]

That was a really cute scary start to this season of HBC.  The warning at the start of the show was humorous.  John Henson is such a great host who was in perfect form acting his way through the episode.  Carla is my favorite judge and the three worked well together.  Good costumes and makeup!  I enjoyed the creations although some missed the actual theme of Devil's Food Lake.  Who went home made sense but poor Stephen having to create a tomato-flavored cake was doubly cursed, so now he's part of the Lake.

[Guest]

5 hours ago, mlp said:

I love love love John Henson so I'm very glad they brought him back.  He's witty and funny without going over the top.  I may be in a minority but I also like Zac Young a lot so I'm happy he's back too.

Most of the bakers have real world credentials.  Some handle time limits and the pressure of competition better than others.  I don't have any of their names straight yet but I think the pretty gal who won the first round will go far.  

 

I believe that's Nicole. I like her calm, pleasant personality, and she's obviously a very good baker, but she seems to struggle with the "scary" part of the challenges. Though I liked her cute killer popping out of the lake to say hello! Zac's reaction to that is why I can't ever warm up to him. A little too sneery sometimes.

[CheshireCat]

8 hours ago, Grizzly said:

Strange to have 2 bakers go home in first round.

Yeah, I thought so, too. Why not just start with one less baker if they need to send two home?

I was underwhelmed by the winning pie of the first round. It looked kind of boring. I did enjoy think the judging had improved, though. It seemed to be a lot more constructive criticism rather than personal opinion.

12 hours ago, oldCJ said:

Tomato cake? Seriously? I know it’s a thing, but have they ever had such an out there ingredient for only one contestant?

Funnily enough, I read just yesterday that it was a popular 1920s flavor. (For whatever reason, I guess).

Speaking of, I appreciated that none of the judges took an issue with the flavors. The other judges often seemed to take issue with it and not in a constructive criticism kind of way which I thought was unfair because the contestants have no say in it.

[libgirl2]

I knew the guy with the tomato cake was doomed. Why did he make it bright pink and yellow? If he would have gone more with the theme, he might have had a better chance, but he didn't and then it didn't taste as good. The slashes looked great, but if he could have made it more lake themed and still used them. 

[Spunkygal]

53 minutes ago, libgirl2 said:

I knew the guy with the tomato cake was doomed. Why did he make it bright pink and yellow? If he would have gone more with the theme, he might have had a better chance, but he didn't and then it didn't taste as good. The slashes looked great, but if he could have made it more lake themed and still used them. 

Regarding the pink and yellow, this isn’t Spring Baking Championship! That was a bad choice. 

I have all of my mom’s cooking books, including charming little recipe pamphlets from products like Baker’s Chocolate, Imperial Sugar, Wesson Oil, etc., and long ago I saw a chocolate cake recipe with tomato soup in one of them. I’m sure she never made it and why would she??!! 🤣

[crazycatlady58]

Cake with tomato soup in it can be good but the only way I have made it is a spice cake. You do not taste the tomato soup if it is  made correctly. Just because something is different doesn't make it bad.

[CrazyInAlabama]

I had to laugh at the disclaimer at the beginning of the show.  

Nicole looked very familiar, probably from another show? 

Edited September 14, 2021 by CrazyInAlabama

[Spunkygal]

8 minutes ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

I had to laugh at the disclaimer at the beginning of the show.  

I growled because my eagle eyes caught the misspelling of acute as “accute.” 

[Grizzly]

2 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

Regarding the pink and yellow, this isn’t Spring Baking Championship! 

When Guillermo put bourbon in his pie, I thought Nancy Fuller is not a judge on this show.

[Claire85]

I’m glad John now gets to sit down and have his own piece of the desserts. 

[Spunkygal]

OT: I have requested a forum for The Big Bake which airs after Halloween Baking Championship. I loved all the judges on episode 1 last night: Eddie Jackson (who just gets hotter every time I see him), Harry Eastwood (whose hair I love this season) and the great Ron Ben-Israel. I must say that last night’s creations were better than any from last season. 

[CrazyInAlabama]

I hated that the judges had to taste the raw pie dough entry.   That's disgusting.    Some of the bakers are so good.    

[dleighg]

2 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

I growled because my eagle eyes caught the misspelling of acute as “accute.”

closed captions had a "narrative ark" LOL

[Emkat]

2 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

Eddie Jackson (who just gets hotter every time I see him)

Right?! #fans self 😍

[RoxiP]

Not a fan of the dramatics and I also did not like kicking somebody off in the first round. And then they not picked everybody who didn’t follow the theme in the killer round and yet the woman who made a too short cake with a book on it that looked like skin (which was a cool cake but not the theme of the lake) was in the top two. Consistency?

I am having an on going discussion with the discovery people on Facebook about how bad their close captioning is  It is inexcusable and I can’t figure out how to turn it off so it drives me crazy  

 

Edited September 14, 2021 by RoxiP

[Grizzly]

6 hours ago, Spunkygal said:

OT: I have requested a forum for The Big Bake which airs after Halloween Baking Championship. I loved all the judges on episode 1 last night: Eddie Jackson (who just gets hotter every time I see him), Harry Eastwood (whose hair I love this season) and the great Ron Ben-Israel. I must say that last night’s creations were better than any from last season. 

I don't understand why they can't broadcast The Big Bake at a reasonable time. Last night's episode isn't available On Demand yet.

[Spunkygal]

4 hours ago, Emkat said:

Right?! #fans self 😍

I hope these are the same 3 judges on The Big Bake for the entire season. They could slap ganache on a pile of sparkly dog poop and I wouldn’t care! 🤣 Eddie is mighty fine! 

[libgirl2]

19 hours ago, crazycatlady58 said:

Cake with tomato soup in it can be good but the only way I have made it is a spice cake. You do not taste the tomato soup if it is  made correctly. Just because something is different doesn't make it bad.

I watched a baking show where someone did this. I don't know if it was this one or another. I remember it came out really good. 

[Rammchick]

16 hours ago, RoxiP said:

Not a fan of the dramatics and I also did not like kicking somebody off in the first round. And then they not picked everybody who didn’t follow the theme in the killer round and yet the woman who made a too short cake with a book on it that looked like skin (which was a cool cake but not the theme of the lake) was in the top two. Consistency?

That skin book thing is hardly original -- it's the Necronomicon from The Evil Dead movies.

[libgirl2]

4 hours ago, Rammchick said:

That skin book thing is hardly original -- it's the Necronomicon from The Evil Dead movies.

Exactly! Glad I'm not the only one who noticed this. I was hoping the baker would have mentioned that. 

[RoxiP]

12 minutes ago, libgirl2 said:

Exactly! Glad I'm not the only one who noticed this. I was hoping the baker would have mentioned that. 

But it had nothing to do with the lake theme, which the judges criticized other bakers on.  

[libgirl2]

9 minutes ago, RoxiP said:

But it had nothing to do with the lake theme, which the judges criticized other bakers on.  

No it didn't. And it wasn't tall enough. It was done really well and I think that is why they let her slide. 

[RoxiP]

11 minutes ago, libgirl2 said:

No it didn't. And it wasn't tall enough. It was done really well and I think that is why they let her slide. 

I agree.  I thought they would at least mention the height but at this point in the competition there were enough inferior (at least in these two cases) bakers that it wasn't an issue...and she didn't win.

[dleighg]

I was so confused when one of the judges was introduced as "80s pop star" and she gave the song lyric "just a small town girl on a Saturday night." I thought the judge actually WAS an 80s pop star.

Took me way to long to realize she was supposed to be that gal from Flash Dance. I really should have recognized her-- I started grad school in 83 and that was a movie our crowd watched more than a few times (on VHS LOL)

[Spunkygal]

New forum for The Big Bake! 

[Rammchick]

19 hours ago, libgirl2 said:

Exactly! Glad I'm not the only one who noticed this. I was hoping the baker would have mentioned that. 

If they couldn't even say Corn Flakes, I suspect they certainly couldn't say Necronomicon!

[GeorgiaRai]

I didn't like the double elimination, but those horror movie yellow raincoats made me LOL.

[Grizzly]

20 minutes ago, GeorgiaRai said:

I didn't like the double elimination, but those horror movie yellow raincoats made me LOL.

A nice parting gift.

[ruffy666]

On 9/15/2021 at 12:39 PM, libgirl2 said:

No it didn't. And it wasn't tall enough. It was done really well and I think that is why they let her slide. 

This always bothers me because sometimes it seems like the baker didn't even ATTEMPT to hit the challenge and they still get a pass.  Now I'm not saying tomato cake boy deserved to continue in the competition since he bombed both challenges, but... I feel like if there is willful dismissal of the challenge, even if what you churned out is excellent quality, you should be the next one out the door

[GaT]

On 9/14/2021 at 9:17 AM, crazycatlady58 said:

Cake with tomato soup in it can be good but the only way I have made it is a spice cake. You do not taste the tomato soup if it is  made correctly. Just because something is different doesn't make it bad.

What is the point of the tomato soup in the cake if you don't taste it? This isn't Chopped, people shouldn't have to try & force foods into recipes that it doesn't belong in.

[crazycatlady58]

4 minutes ago, GaT said:

What is the point of the tomato soup in the cake if you don't taste it? This isn't Chopped, people shouldn't have to try & force foods into recipes that it doesn't belong in.

I think the recipe was put out by the Campbell soup co..   I would not swear to this though.  You cannot taste tomato but you do get a unique taste you can't identify.  It is also very moist. It is a novelty recipe,  something different and fun. It's like sauerkraut cake..it turns out better than you think it would.  I have used the tomato soup cake in Sunday school as  lesson on not judging something/ someone.  Of course I did this after talking with the parents to avoid food allergies. 

[dleighg]

I also had a thought about the "red" ingredients that they had to add: currents, raspberries, strawberries, cranberries, (tomatoes)..... and apples. But with apples, despite the "apples are red" thing, once you peel them, they are seriously not red anymore. Just seemed a bit strange to have a brown ingredient as "blood."

[GaT]

4 minutes ago, dleighg said:

Just seemed a bit strange to have a brown ingredient as "blood."

I guess that ingredient was "dried" blood 🤢

[CheshireCat]

8 hours ago, GaT said:

What is the point of the tomato soup in the cake if you don't taste it?

I did a quick search because I was curious and apparently, it became popular during the Great Depression because recipes didn't call for eggs and many didn't call for butter either.

[Rammchick]

8 hours ago, CheshireCat said:

I did a quick search because I was curious and apparently, it became popular during the Great Depression because recipes didn't call for eggs and many didn't call for butter either.

It belongs in the genre with the mock apple pie and all the other "desperation" foods that popped up at the time.

[mojoween]

20 hours ago, GeorgiaRai said:

I didn't like the double elimination, but those horror movie yellow raincoats made me LOL.

I giggled at how the first guy’s hair ended up popping out of the space between the hood and the jacket.

[CheshireCat]

I had the volume very low at the beginning. Did they say why they brought back two bakers from last? season?

I don't remember which pairing it was but the cookies of the bakers who cut them out after baking looked burned. I guess they weren't though since the judges didn't say anything.

Otherwise, there were a lot of cookies which looked so good (before they were decorated) that I wanted to taste them!

How can a cake with compote inside be dry? Unless you spread a thin layer of buttercream or chocolate on top and on the bottom of the cake, it makes absolutely no sense that something that is moist won't seep into the cake. Would the laws of physics even allow for that not to happen?

How can a cake that didn't match (on the outside) be better than a cake that did match on the inside and outside and had only one half that may have had cake that was a bit too dry? Makes no sense to me especially since having two halves of a cake that fit together as one was the task. So clearly, the two guys didn't entirely meet the challenge entirely and it's not like the two from last season only had a well-decorated cake going for them. The judges liked everything except for that one cake (where they even liked the filling).
It almost seemed as if either TPTB or judges wanted that either the pairing that was brought back wasn't in the top two again after winning the challenge or that they wanted one of the pairs that they had split up to finish ahead of them.

I thought the baker who they said had the best cake had the worst decoration. (If memory serves, her decorating skills impress me the least anyway).

Nicole looked like she was a serious contender for winning the entire competition, so I'm a bit bumped that she was eliminated.

[GaT]

2 hours ago, CheshireCat said:

Nicole looked like she was a serious contender for winning the entire competition, so I'm a bit bumped that she was eliminated.

I thought she was the leader too, I very surprised she got eliminated.

Two hours of this show is too much, I wish it was just one hour.

[Guest]

4 hours ago, GaT said:

7 hours ago, CheshireCat said:

Nicole looked like she was a serious contender for winning the entire competition, so I'm a bit bumped that she was eliminated.

I thought she was the leader too, I very surprised she got eliminated.

Two hours of this show is too much, I wish it was just one hour.

Also a bit sad that Nicole went out, but I'm just glad both she and Adina didn't go. That would have dampened my enthusiasm quite a bit. Though I do find this to be a pretty likable group overall, I always have my rooting interests.

They've been running ads at the bottom for a Hersheypark-based Halloween candy show which premieres next Monday at 10, so perhaps the show will go down to an hour from now on.

[Taeolas]

Not sure if Food Network Canada mixed up, but it seems they didn't show the tasting of the winning cake in the second half. They announced the winner, and showed the monster mouth cake; and I realized that I hadn't seen the judging of that cake. Rewound the ep and still didn't see it. 

So did they actually not show the judging? Or did Food Network Canada mess up and manage to cut a segment somehow? 

[Pi237]

The producers’ influence on judging seems more obvious this season.  Some of their critiques were really inconsistent. Carla would say, “Dude!” Then, another judge would say the same cake was too dry & you’d see Carla nodding in agreement. Plus, the heavy handed repeating of how the one team’s story was ‘confusing’ when I thought others were much more convoluted. Just seemed the winners were pre-chosen, and the critiques edited to match.

[Nicmar]

On 9/14/2021 at 11:05 AM, Spunkygal said:

Regarding the pink and yellow, this isn’t Spring Baking Championship! That was a bad choice. 

I have all of my mom’s cooking books, including charming little recipe pamphlets from products like Baker’s Chocolate, Imperial Sugar, Wesson Oil, etc., and long ago I saw a chocolate cake recipe with tomato soup in one of them. I’m sure she never made it and why would she??!! 🤣

my grandmother had that same cook book  lol and also a recipe for a chocolate cake that had mayo in it 🤢