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Holiday Baking Championship - General Discussion

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2soon2tell

2soon2tell

12 hours ago, Texasmom1970 said:

 

Every time I watch these shows I am always saying I don't want to hear your life story just bake. I want someone to come on and say I started baking to fund my drug addiction or something realistic not the happy, life stories!

I don’t want to hear the sob stories. A few years back there was a contestant who, I think, won. Her name was Maude or Mauve or something,  and every time she got in front of the judges she told some tale about how this was an authentic Irish recipe from her granny who died of cancer. And how she and every other woman in her family was a survivor of some dread disease. Meanwhile, she rolls her eyes when anyone else is praised, or at the very mention of the rather flamboyant gay contestant. Her bakes did not seem appetizing to me, and I can honestly say she is the only  contestant I have taken a visceral dislike to.

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kirklandia
kirklandia
TVbitch
TVbitch

Finally saw the first 2 episodes. Love the Baker Cam!! What can I say, I have just always really enjoyed watching bakers talk to a wall. And I felt like I really wasn't getting enough of the bakers ta

KayVeeTeeVee
KayVeeTeeVee

That looked like a wig, for sure.  As a Breast Cancer Survivor, bald for two years, that's where my mind went.  I'm six years cancer free now.  

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CrazyInAlabama

CrazyInAlabama

(edited)

Maeve, winner of either the first  season, and then Erin in season 2, who looked like a perky Christmas elf on steroids.    They show the judges are looking for a food personality, someone who is a big personality, and not just a baker and decorator.  

There have been others I didn't like either.   Julia, the dark haired woman who was on this show (or maybe another version), and was also on the Christmas Cookie Challenge too.  She was on the Cookie show twice, once as a regular contestant, and again on a redemption show for people who were eliminated, she was eliminated again.    

I enjoyed Jason, he had a lot more experience catering, and doing other high pressure cooking jobs, and I've always had a soft spot for someone who spends years running a quality high school cafeteria the way he did.   

Edited by CrazyInAlabama
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mlp

mlp

8 hours ago, 2soon2tell said:

I can honestly say she [Maeve] is the only  contestant I have taken a visceral dislike to.

She was supposedly dying of some kidney ailment back then but she's still around.  She was on The Big Bake not too long ago.  I loathed her so much that I was rooting for her team to lose.  They did.

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Biosynth

Biosynth

On 12/24/2023 at 6:33 AM, bilgistic said:

I've heard so many reality show contestants say they're "here for my kids", and I think, wouldn't your kids be better served if you were HOME WITH THEM? Like, there was a single mother (so she told us 1,000 times) who was eliminated early on. Who had her three young kids when she was on the show?

Don't mind me; I'm just a childfree, hateful shrew of a cat lady.

"What's your inspiration?"  "My Kids are my inspiration!"  If I hear that one more time...argh!  It's fine to love your kids, and have them inspire you, but aren't there other things that may inspire you?  Colorful sunsets?  Your Dog? The homeless people you helped last Christmas?  So annoying.

 

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laredhead

laredhead

I think the prize money should be higher.  $25,000 before taxes isn't a lot to accomplish what so many of the contestants say they want to do, especially the ones who want to start their own bakery.  After taxes, depending on where they live, they might get $18,000 - $20,000.  Also, a short feature in Food magazine is no guarantee that their careers will get a boost long term.   

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DEL901

DEL901

9 hours ago, laredhead said:

I think the prize money should be higher.  $25,000 before taxes isn't a lot to accomplish what so many of the contestants say they want to do, especially the ones who want to start their own bakery.  After taxes, depending on where they live, they might get $18,000 - $20,000.  Also, a short feature in Food magazine is no guarantee that their careers will get a boost long term.   

Agree.  Chopped, Christmas Cookie Challenge and even Forged in Fire you get $10,000 for winning a single episode.    But shows like Christmas wars are like thisv9ne an$ the winner gets just $25,000 for 7 or 8 episodes.   

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Suzn

Suzn

59 minutes ago, DEL901 said:

Agree.  Chopped, Christmas Cookie Challenge and even Forged in Fire you get $10,000 for winning a single episode.    But shows like Christmas wars are like thisv9ne an$ the winner gets just $25,000 for 7 or 8 episodes.   

I've thought for a long time that winning $25k is a chintzy amount for the time put in this competition.  I'd be surprised if the after tax amount is over $15k.  It's a nice bonus but not a life changing amount.  I've wondered if they get any pay for the time they are in the competition, because I don't know how they can be off work unpaid for all that time.

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DEL901

DEL901

(edited)
1 hour ago, Bobcatkitten said:

do we know how long it takes to film though? It could be only a few weeks.

My guess is 2 weeks max.  But performers normally get paid per episode they appear in, regardless if all the appearances were filmed in a single session.  Of course this is a competition series, not acting, but the finalists are on something like 8 episodes so $25,000 seems like peanuts. 

IMG_2354.jpeg

Edited by DEL901
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SemiCharmedLife

SemiCharmedLife

On 12/30/2023 at 5:17 AM, laredhead said:

I think the prize money should be higher.  $25,000 before taxes isn't a lot to accomplish what so many of the contestants say they want to do, especially the ones who want to start their own bakery.  After taxes, depending on where they live, they might get $18,000 - $20,000.  Also, a short feature in Food magazine is no guarantee that their careers will get a boost long term.   

I'm a big fan of Great British Bake-off where the prize is a cake plate!  Such a difference between the competition shows here. 😊 I do like a cash prize for the contestants, though.  I would even love to see compensation for each contestant who participates, with those lasting longer into the competition earning more.

Since they base the win on the final bake, I feel Ashley deserved that win.  However, I would like to see track record feature more prominently into the final choice, since there is so much at stake.  I really enjoyed Kevin and Toa's bakes throughout the season.  

Ashley was reminded not to bake so many cakes, but Justine was never cautioned about using cookies as her primary decor.  I completely agree that blind judging may be the way to go in the future. Nancy's favoritism is not a good look.

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CrazyInAlabama

CrazyInAlabama

After the first few episodes, I bet the judges could still figure out who baked what.   I'm not sure blind judging is really all that anonymous by the time you get down to half of the original contestants. 

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Gramto6

Gramto6

4 hours ago, DEL901 said:

One thing I do like about the judging is that the other contestants aren’t in the room at the time.  

Yes! That is a big plus for the one being judged. Plus it doesn't allow the others to learn things about what the judges want and any errors they may look for. 

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mojoween

mojoween

Ina Garten is on the cover of “People” this week, and the hubby saw the magazine and came in and said “hey is that lady on the cover the one who gets excited about drinking on that cooking show you watch?” That description just made me laugh.

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CrazyInAlabama

CrazyInAlabama

(edited)

"Holiday Open House"

New, Season 11, Episode 1, 11/4/2024

 

To kick off, host Jesse Palmer honors the tradition of making tasty treats for family and friends at a holiday open house. In the preheat, Jesse asks the 12 bakers to create holiday cheese ball desserts featuring a type of cheese and either nuts or dried fruit. Then, host gifts are the theme for delicious bites as the bakers create holiday bark inspired desserts that are both inventive and large scale to impress judges Carla Hall, Duff Goldman and Nancy Fuller.

Bakers-

1. Megan-Home-Wash

2. Courtney-Pro-NJ

3. Andre-Pro-FL

4. Jer-Pro-NV

5. Jonathan-Pro-PA

6. Karen-Pro-CA

7. Natasha-Pro-Mass

8. Steven-Home-Ontario (was on Great Canadian Baking Show)

9. Julian-Pro-CA

10. Delna-Pro-Toronto

11. Rafi-Pro-CA

12. Wolf-Calgary-Pro

Preheat: Holiday Cheese Ball Desserts, with nuts or dried fruit ($1,000 cash bonus for winner of preheat)

Preheat winner: Andre ($1000 cash bonus)

Elimination Round: Host gifts, holiday bark in a large scale

Top Two: Rafi and Courtney

Winner: Rafi

Bottom three: Delna (raw dough), Jonathan, Julian

Eliminated: Julian

(I would have eliminated Delna, raw dough can really hurt you, the other two were just subpar.)

(There are eight episodes this season) (Food Network hasn't posted the names of the bakers yet.  I've read the FN FB page has the names). (I'm looking forward to everyone's posts about this, due to a conflict with another show, I can't watch this until tomorrow afternoon).  (Strangely, I thought this was a short season, but last year only had 8 episodes too). 

Edited by CrazyInAlabama
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MerBearHou

MerBearHou

Great to have the show back.  No one is better than Jesse at hosting.  And Carla is just a gem — I adore her humor.

Having said that, what kind of BS elimination was THAT?  How????

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libgirl2

libgirl2

5 minutes ago, MerBearHou said:

Great to have the show back.  No one is better than Jesse at hosting.  And Carla is just a gem — I adore her humor.

Having said that, what kind of BS elimination was THAT?  How????

I missed the elimination. What happened? 

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mlp

mlp

2 hours ago, libgirl2 said:

Having said that, what kind of BS elimination was THAT?

That was the worst one IMO.  The sea of green didn't look good and, worse, the judges said the matcha taste was too strong.  Matcha is bitter so I guessed it didn't taste good at all and Carla's expression sort of confirmed that.  The woman had some underbaked dough in the middle of her babka but it was mostly OK.  The other guy (haven't learned names yet) served a messy "trifle" because he dumped his cake into a dish at the last minute but it apparently didn't taste bad.  I wasn't surprised by the elimination.

So far, I like all of the contestants.  I could do without the woman who keeps almost breaking into tears because I don't like that behavior but I don't actually dislike her.  I think the season is off to a good start.

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Rammchick

Rammchick

There are several faces that look familiar in this year's crop of bakers.  I know Steve Levitt from The Great Canadian Baking Show (he was a baketestant last year) but does anyone recognize anyone else?

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libgirl2

libgirl2

3 minutes ago, Rammchick said:

There are several faces that look familiar in this year's crop of bakers.  I know Steve Levitt from The Great Canadian Baking Show (he was a baketestant last year) but does anyone recognize anyone else?

A couple did look familiar to me too. 

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MerBearHou

MerBearHou

I agree that it was a close 1a and 1b between the two guys in the bottom 3 with the babka woman a very close 1c with her raw dough.  But I found the "trifle" glop a total joke and an insult to the other bakers that he got to stay, even if the muddled, gross combination of flavors were marginally better than the matcha tart.  Both guys did horribly -- I just thought the non-trifle, non-cake, blob of food was a no-brainer to go.

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libgirl2

libgirl2

1 minute ago, MerBearHou said:

I agree that it was a close 1a and 1b between the two guys in the bottom 3 with the babka woman a very close 1c with her raw dough.  But I found the "trifle" glop a total joke and an insult to the other bakers that he got to stay, even if the muddled, gross combination of flavors were marginally better than the matcha tart.  Both guys did horribly -- I just thought the non-trifle, non-cake, blob of food was a no-brainer to go.

I was pretty sure it would come down to those two but I thought that trifle mess would send the guy home, so I switched channels (What We Do in the Shadows started0. Sure the matcha didn't taste good but it looked okay  compared to the gloppy mess. 

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AZChristian

AZChristian

1 hour ago, libgirl2 said:

Sure the matcha didn't taste good but it looked okay  compared to the gloppy mess. 

And it complied with Nancy's weekly admonition to "make it look holidayish."  Not sure what holiday the "trifle" brings to mind other than "garbage day."

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mojoween

mojoween

Julian had terrible comments from all three judges.  Jonathan’s flavor saved him.

Megan and Steven are a lot to take.

Andre is my favorite by far, but I really like Rolf a lot too.

Rafi’s main heat really was gorgeous inside and out.

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tennisgurl

tennisgurl

One day, some contestant will get so tired of Nancy getting on everyone for not being "festive" enough for her AKA dripping in red and green, they're going to dump a whole can of red sprinkles over her head. 

This was a good start to the show, even if I am still very much in Halloween mode right now. I like everyone so far, not much to set them apart quite yet, except for maybe the guy who's the official pastry chef to the Pentagon or something, and they all seem to be talented. I enjoy the trio of Duff, Carla, and Nancy, they usually balance each other out well. Plus, Jessie is back to talking about cakes instead of dating, which is what I always prefer. 

Those bottom three bakes were all pretty bad, but I think I think they made the right call on who was going home. Normally something being that raw would be a big exit home but they did like the rest of the flavors and appreciated the ambition, and the other guy's "trifle" thing looked like bad modern art, but it apparently tasted good while the other one didn't look great or taste great.

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libgirl2

libgirl2

4 minutes ago, tennisgurl said:

One day, some contestant will get so tired of Nancy getting on everyone for not being "festive" enough for her AKA dripping in red and green, they're going to dump a whole can of red sprinkles over her head. 

This was a good start to the show, even if I am still very much in Halloween mode right now. I like everyone so far, not much to set them apart quite yet, except for maybe the guy who's the official pastry chef to the Pentagon or something, and they all seem to be talented. I enjoy the trio of Duff, Carla, and Nancy, they usually balance each other out well. Plus, Jessie is back to talking about cakes instead of dating, which is what I always prefer. 

Those bottom three bakes were all pretty bad, but I think I think they made the right call on who was going home. Normally something being that raw would be a big exit home but they did like the rest of the flavors and appreciated the ambition, and the other guy's "trifle" thing looked like bad modern art, but it apparently tasted good while the other one didn't look great or taste great.

I did understand the remark when it pertained to that one cake/tart, that had the oranges on it. Oranges is more of a summer feel. For every one time she has a point, she has several that she doesn't. 

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libgirl2

libgirl2

8 minutes ago, CrazyInAlabama said:

I'm guessing the two who weren't send home will be going home on episodes very soon.   

I think the young guy will but I'm not sure about her (Delna?). I think she has potential and just bit off more than she could chew with the time on a babka. 

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MerBearHou

MerBearHou

It's funny -- even I now will say "oh that looks too brown, needs color, too autumn, too springy" for this baking championship.  I'm surprised the bakers don't focus more on that and steer away from the pastels, etc.  It doesn't have to be all red and green, but at least wintry festive.  

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libgirl2

libgirl2

1 minute ago, MerBearHou said:

It's funny -- even I now will say "oh that looks too brown, needs color, too autumn, too springy" for this baking championship.  I'm surprised the bakers don't focus more on that and steer away from the pastels, etc.  It doesn't have to be all red and green, but at least wintry festive.  

Like blue, white, gold and silver colors? 

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2soon2tell

2soon2tell

(edited)
2 hours ago, libgirl2 said:

Oranges is more of a summer feel

In the olden days (my childhood), oranges were often included in your Christmas stocking, so I think of them as a winter fruit.

I really thought the raw babka would send the baker home. Raw dough has usually lead to elimination in the past .

 

Edited by 2soon2tell
Grammar correction
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libgirl2

libgirl2

1 hour ago, 2soon2tell said:

In the olden days (my childhood), oranges were often included in your Christmas stocking, so I think of them as a winter fruit.

 

 

Great point. 

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Pi237

Pi237

I like Andre, but thought he was really over qualified for this show until I saw his second bake. He might end up having the problem of wanting to show too many techniques at once. The ‘can’t self edit’ problem.  
 

I like this group and am excited to see what they come up with. Also, enjoy that they’re not being forced to make this face 😲every time the host speaks. Halloween killed me with that over the top, Corny stuff. 
 

As always, I hope for no more pistachios lol (and add matcha to that list.) 
 

Nancy and her ‘not holiday enough’. The pastels aren’t my thing, but I’ve noticed pink has begun to invade Christmas decorations. Lighter colors can look classy if they’re done simply and are not just a mess of mushy piped flowers.  Everything doesn’t have to be neon red and green to be holiday (I hated those tangled sugar balls the one lady did)  

Love Jesse and his awful Dad jokes. Glad this show is back. 

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Maya

Maya

$1000 for the preheat winner and nothing for the main heat winner? Interesting.

Also I have never heard of farmers cheese before. 

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cowgirlwen

cowgirlwen

I felt this main heat was extremely unfair to the two contestants who received Mozzerella as their cheese.  All of the other cheeses were those often found in baking.  But mozzerella has completely different qualities than the others.  It's very watery and doesn't melt/blend well into creams or fillings.  I commend the two bakers who seemed to handle it well, and both did outstanding jobs with their desserts.  But this is yet another example of why I don't care for these baking shows.  The assignments/twists are always ridiculous and unfair.  Everyone should be on a level playing field with the same ingredients and challenges.  Or at least let the contestant choose their own ingredients.  One more reason that I prefer GBBO!

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DEL901

DEL901

 

40 minutes ago, mojoween said:

Yeah I would rather have immunity in the main heat than a thousand bucks, TBH.

I think “nothing” is better than those silly magnets or pins or whatever they gave out one season.  

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