Holiday Baking Championship - General Discussion

[RoxiP]

But Jennifer had the best story of the bunch, having been in the Twin Towers on September 11.  I'm sure she is a wonderful baker if she is given time to plan and not rush.  This just wasn't her competition.

I like Ashley and you can't argue with success - didn't she win both heats last night?  This is her second win.  I would have picked Greg to go up against also - and the vote was 2-1 so he obviously was successful, but I think her use of the cheese was what really won that round for her.  I do agree that his decorations were cuter but taste won out over looks (I also suspect her decorations just didn't look that great on television - they seemed a little chaotic).

I kind of liked the half-pie competition.  It really made the bakers think about their strategy and they definitely had to work together to ensure that their pies baked properly.  I think the baker who was teamed with Jennifer (either Bert or Javier?) almost lost it when she realized she didn't have enough apples and had to bake some more, delaying the time the pies were put in the oven, which makes the fact that both of them were blackened on top even more ironic.

[dewelar]

53 minutes ago, AZChristian said:

She seems to be a nice person, but this isn't "Holiday Nice Person Championship."  It's about baking.

 

34 minutes ago, RoxiP said:

But Jennifer had the best story of the bunch, having been in the Twin Towers on September 11.

Food Network has given me more than my fill over the years of the Best Story Championship on many, many other shows, so I would gladly take the Holiday Nice Person Championship, please.

[GeorgiaRai]

4 hours ago, mojoween said:

Ashley’s reason for choosing Greg was rather snotty.  I was so rooting for him to win the head to head.

Same!  It seemed to imply that he was automatically easier to beat than even, say, Jennifer, just because he was a "home baker".  I disliked everything she did, said & made after that (because I'm petty that way).

[libgirl2]

7 minutes ago, GeorgiaRai said:

Same!  It seemed to imply that he was automatically easier to beat than even, say, Jennifer, just because he was a "home baker".  I disliked everything she did, said & made after that (because I'm petty that way).

Exactly! It did come off as "I'm so much better than some home baker". I don't like her. 

[Pi237]

I wish they’d had the bakers watch the judging from the back room like on Project Runway.  Then, we could get their real reactions.  It was silly to expect them to just stand there and not react. Especially, after weeks of nodding and “ok”ing after each comment.
 

Didn’t enjoy the half pie challenge, and next week’s upside down cakes look ever dumber lol. Running out of idea I guess.  
 

I wish they’d pick a simple bake for one competition to let the decorating really shine. 
 

I also think someone who took a greater risk on flavors should’ve won.  Mascarpone raspberry is probably delicious, but not that original. I was surprised at how the judges gushed when she just scooped it out. They seemed to like the big trifle bowls better than the individual servings. 

[tennisgurl]

Its sad to see Jennifer go, you can tell how much the judges were rooting for her, but she was absolutely the right person to go home. She not only seemed overwhelmed during every bake so far, she seems miserable. Justine had one bad day while Jennifer has done consistently poorly, I'm honestly relieved by this outcome. Jennifer seems delightful and I bet she's a very good baker, but the time constraints and rules were clearly rough on her. 

Its hilarious that people here mentioned Carla's "DUUUUDE" catchphrase, I honestly never noticed it before now and low and behold, it appears this week! I wonder if that's just the sort of verbal tic that people get and don't even notice until someone points it out, I can picture Carla watching herself during Halloween Bake Off like "do I really say that all of the time?!" and making an effort to stop saying it so much. 

Ashley's pie must have tasted amazing because it certainly didn't look as pretty as most of the other pies. I thought several looked much better, I'm a sucker for a candy turkey. 

I noticed that Jesse wasn't pushing the baker cam as much this time, I wonder if they've already realized that this is a stupid idea.

Edited November 21, 2023 by tennisgurl

[libgirl2]

3 minutes ago, Pi237 said:

I wish they’d pick a simple bake for one competition to let the decorating really shine. 
 

I also think someone who took a greater risk on flavors should’ve won.  Mascarpone raspberry is probably delicious, but not that original. I was surprised at how the judges gushed when she just scooped it out. They seemed to like the big trifle bowls better than the individual servings. 

I agree. I don't feel we need so many gimmicks. 

I preferred the individual ones because you could see the layers clearly and I would think that would be important for the judges to see up close. 

[proserpina65]

13 hours ago, Madding crowd said:

I think I would try some the pies with mascarpone cheese but not blue cheese or goat cheese. 

I'd try the goat cheese depending on the other ingredients.  It can work really well with sweet elements if it's done right and goes well with cranberries, too.

10 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

Even though I like Justine, I probably would have sent her home as well if we're only going by the second bake. 

Yeah, unbaked pie crust to me was the greater sin, but I'm guessing Jennifer's pie really did not taste good.

10 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

Lady fingers and expresso does not make it a tiramisu.

Add in mascarpone, and that pretty much is tiramisu.  Not sure what Ashley included in her dish, though.

4 hours ago, rlc said:

I would have been very upset if Justine was sent home. She had one bad day vs. Jennifer having yet to have a good day.

The judging is supposed to be challenge by challenge, so one baker having more bad days is irrelevant.  I do agree about making them share pans, though.  That's just weird.

 

[MsVulcan]

Nancy said the Javier's lattice was perfect, but it wasn't woven.  The cross-strips were just laid on top of the others.  Bakers usually get dinged for that.

[Splashy]

18 hours ago, Grizzly said:

What is Ashley wearing?

I said the same thing! The little color blobs had eyes ... I think. ???

7 hours ago, mojoween said:

Oh crap. Duuuuude is back. 👎

Sadly.

7 hours ago, mojoween said:

You guys all summoned that like Beetlejuice.  Everyone mentioned it was gone, and here it comes.

I know. *sigh* I'll keep my mouth shut about it from now on. 😆

The thing about the team stuff is this: You could have 2 weak bakers teamed up, but you have to pick a winner (automatic keep), and you can have 2 strong bakers teamed up and you have to pick a loser (possible elimination). The weak baker is allowed to stay and the strong baker is on the chopping block. I hate these things.

 

 

 

[Irlandesa]

3 hours ago, GeorgiaRai said:

Same!  It seemed to imply that he was automatically easier to beat than even, say, Jennifer, just because he was a "home baker".  I disliked everything she did, said & made after that (because I'm petty that way).

Yeah but I guess I'm forgiving because that didn't bother me too much.

But I completely get why she would have avoided Jennifer.  Separate pies?  Choose her.  But there was an element of having to work together to make sure the bake time was both equal and enough. Jennifer not having enough filling is why I would have been glad to stay away from her in this challenge even if odds were good I'd beat her.

13 hours ago, CheshireCat said:

I'd rather have undercooked pastry than burnt one. The undercooked one is still edible, the burnt one isn't. For one, it would be bitter and ruin the taste and also, truly burnt pastry (when it's very dark brown or black) isn't healthy either.

Oh I love a bitter burnt note here and there.  Not pitch black ash but just a kiss.

[carrps]

1 hour ago, Splashy said:

The thing about the team stuff is this: You could have 2 weak bakers teamed up, but you have to pick a winner (automatic keep), and you can have 2 strong bakers teamed up and you have to pick a loser (possible elimination). The weak baker is allowed to stay and the strong baker is on the chopping block. I hate these things.

This. It's even worse on Top Chef when one of the pair (or team) has immunity from elimination.

1 hour ago, Irlandesa said:

Oh I love a bitter burnt note here and there.  Not pitch black ash but just a kiss.

Yes, me, too. Underbaked is disgusting.

 

[Bumblebee84047]

I really like Jesse as host.  He truly seems to want all the contestants to do well.  And he is a great balm during judging.  When a baker does well he is so happy for them, and when a baker has had harsh or unkind comments from the judges Jesse will say "thank you, (baker's name)" in such a warm kind tone of voice.

[kirklandia]

You can keep your cakes. Team Pie for me!
I would have been happy to try all of them.  The seasonal fruit and cheese combinations sounded really interesting.

(Also, so happy the show is now only one hour.)

Edited November 22, 2023 by kirklandia

[kathyk2]

On 11/20/2023 at 12:19 AM, Suzn said:

I'm not young and thin either so neither her age or weight is the problem.  I dislike her because I also think she is obnoxious and she adds nothing useful to judging.  When she talks about not getting a particular flavor it seems more like a failure of her palate and her declaring something not holiday enough is somewhat her expectation of a stereotype decoration.

Nancy has favorites and if she likes a baker they will win. The bakers know that Nancy is the judge they have to please. She was so rude to the baker who was eliminated during the first episode.

[littlebennysmom]

Justine actually said to Jesse, "I'm going to make puff pastry...from scratch!"

Lmao, idk what to say.  

[Frost]

After Bert leaving tonight, there's still 8 bakers left!  There must be some double eliminations coming up.  Christmas is only 4 weeks away.  

The right person went home.  I haven't been able to complain about the eliminations this season.

[Grizzly]

I really liked Josh's design on his Mt Blanc. Too bad it wasn't set and Duff had to make that unfortunate comparison. Glad he was able to come back and win the main challenge. Thoa had a really good night, happy for her. Wish the editors wouldn't give us those "I want to win a challenge for once" talking heads. Takes away all the suspense. 

[HyeChaps]

Trying to decide which is a more stupid challenge--smushing a cake upside down on a piece of glass or smashing a cake on the floor, as done in Halloween Baking Championship.

[MerBearHou]

1 minute ago, HyeChaps said:

Trying to decide which is a more stupid challenge--smushing a cake upside down on a piece of glass or smashing a cake on the floor, as done in Halloween Baking Championship.

Agreed!  I thought tonight’s upside down cake challenge was so dumb.

[mlp]

2 hours ago, HyeChaps said:

Trying to decide which is a more stupid challenge--smushing a cake upside down on a piece of glass or smashing a cake on the floor, as done in Halloween Baking Championship.

I have to go with smashing a cake (or anything) on a floor for more stupid but I don't understand the point of doing either.  I think the producers must lie awake nights thinking up gimmicks.  

I was very happy for Josh.  I hope he and Kevin both make it to the finale.  

[DEL901]

7 hours ago, Grizzly said:

I really liked Josh's design on his Mt Blanc. Too bad it wasn't set and Duff had to make that unfortunate comparison. Glad he was able to come back and win the main challenge. Thoa had a really good night, happy for her. Wish the editors wouldn't give us those "I want to win a challenge for once" talking heads. Takes away all the suspense. 

I liked how he ran with it in the main challenge making the outside decora And even the inside with the same colour scheme as the one Duff laughed about.  

[Jillybean]

On 11/21/2023 at 11:34 PM, Bumblebee84047 said:

I really like Jesse as host.  He truly seems to want all the contestants to do well.  And he is a great balm during judging.  When a baker does well he is so happy for them, and when a baker has had harsh or unkind comments from the judges Jesse will say "thank you, (baker's name)" in such a warm kind tone of voice.

He's a great host! Anyone else notice he isn't sampling the desserts this season (at least, not on camera)? In past seasons he was digging in right next to the judges. Maybe trying to stay trim for his various hosting gigs (and his wife!).

[Popples]

10 hours ago, HyeChaps said:

Trying to decide which is a more stupid challenge--smushing a cake upside down on a piece of glass or smashing a cake on the floor, as done in Halloween Baking Championship.

It does seem like they are running out of ideas.

[libgirl2]

I didn't mind the upside down cakes. A few of them looked nice, but TBH they were all smushed. 

[MerBearHou]

2 hours ago, libgirl2 said:

I didn't mind the upside down cakes. A few of them looked nice, but TBH they were all smushed. 

I didn't mind them -- the smushed mixed results were kind of interesting.  I just thought "what is the point -- who would ever do this in real life?" so as a challenge, it seemed odd.  

Edited November 28, 2023 by MerBearHou

[meep.meep]

I'd never heard of a Mt. Blanc dessert - seems like a shoe in for the Technical in the Great British Bakeoff/Baking Show.

Chestnuts are just horrid to eat.  Like the lima beans of nuts.

[libgirl2]

5 minutes ago, meep.meep said:

I'd never heard of a Mt. Blanc dessert - seems like a shoe in for the Technical in the Great British Bakeoff/Baking Show.

Chestnuts are just horrid to eat.  Like the lima beans of nuts.

Ugh, I do not like chestnuts. Every holiday when we went to DR to see family, they would have roasted ones. Every year my  mom would ooh and ahh and every year, I took a pass. I even pick water chestnuts out of my Chinese food. Blech. 

I do like lima beans though. 

Edited November 28, 2023 by libgirl2

[tennisgurl]

The effects of smushing a cake looked kind of cool and I can see why they want to get the bakers to think outside the box, but it does feel weird considering its something that no baker outside of a cooking contest would ever want to do.

Good for Josh and Thoa for winning, I always like when its not just the same people winning over and over again. Josh's cake looked amazing, I too am a huge slut for marshmallow so I was right there with Nancy. I wanted all of those marshmallows, perfectly toasted and delicious. 

Chestnuts seem like one of those foods that is more ceremonial than actually tasty, you have chestnuts roasting on an open fire more for aesthetic purposes than because anyone wants to eat them, like candy corn at your Halloween party. 

[Frost]

1 hour ago, MerBearHou said:

didn't mind them -- the smushed mixed results were kind of interesting.  I just thought "what is the point -- who would ever do this in real life?"

And why hang them so low the judges had to stoop to see them?  I guess they should have had those things mechanics use to roll under cars (apparently called "creeper seats"!).

[dleighg]

it was also a VERY hamfisted tie-in the movie Wonka. I mean, Wonka makes things fly, so you make the cake fly ...... upside down????

[carrps]

I have never eaten a chestnut. Other than a water chestnut, which I agree with @libgirl2 about -- yuck. Just happened to watch a movie set in France in 1953, and a little kid was so excited to see the chestnut roaster in the zoo. Guess the war privations were so tough chestnuts looked good!

I was happy with this episode. I even liked Ashley getting knocked down a tiny bit during the judging when she was standing there preening and trying to pry more praise out of the judges, and they basically shooed her away.

So many of those Mont Blanc insides looked like poop emojies!

[libgirl2]

3 minutes ago, carrps said:

I was happy with this episode. I even liked Ashley getting knocked down a tiny bit during the judging when she was standing there preening and trying to pry more praise out of the judges, and they basically shooed her away.

 

I did get a smile out of that. I just don't like her. 

17 minutes ago, dleighg said:

it was also a VERY hamfisted tie-in the movie Wonka. I mean, Wonka makes things fly, so you make the cake fly ...... upside down????

I told myself if it had to tie in with Wonka, I would have decorated it with schnozzberries! 

[bilgistic]

Almost all of the contestants used WAY too much frosting on their smushed cakes. Had they halved the amount (at least), the designs would've actually looked decent.

[AZChristian]

2 hours ago, carrps said:

I have never eaten a chestnut. Other than a water chestnut, which I agree with @libgirl2 about -- yuck. Just happened to watch a movie set in France in 1953, and a little kid was so excited to see the chestnut roaster in the zoo. Guess the war privations were so tough chestnuts looked good!

I was happy with this episode. I even liked Ashley getting knocked down a tiny bit during the judging when she was standing there preening and trying to pry more praise out of the judges, and they basically shooed her away.

So many of those Mont Blanc insides looked like poop emojies!

We've visited London several times this decade, and there were often vendors roasting and selling chestnuts in busy tourist areas. We didn't get any, but they seem to be popular. 

[Splashy]

2 hours ago, bilgistic said:

Almost all of the contestants used WAY too much frosting on their smushed cakes. Had they halved the amount (at least), the designs would've actually looked decent.

Yes, I kept saying, "Make a flat design, then it won't smoosh and get misshapen when you turn it upside down!"

[dleighg]

They sell roasted chestnuts in NYC in the wintertime as well. Or at least they used to :) They smell good-- but I've never had any. My mom once bought some and roasted some of them. A few days later, after they had eaten them, she saw some worms (wrong word I'm sure) crawling out of the unroasted ones!

Anyway, the original Mt Blanc (they've done that on GGBO) is totally unappealing to me. I didn't particularly care for the idea of most of these either.

1 minute ago, Splashy said:

Yes, I kept saying, "Make a flat design, then it won't smoosh and get misshapen when you turn it upside down!"

But that would defeat the whole idea of a "transformation" LOL. It was a totally dumb idea all around. 

[Splashy]

I got really worried for Javier after the main heat judging. I wasn't sure he fulfilled the challenge. Were they still supposed to demonstrate "whimsical"? The side of his cake was gorgeous and the design/execution was so clean. The top was a little weird and was unidentifiable when smooshed (was it holly leaves?). I thought he also used a pretty basic flavor combo, too. 

It was cute when he messed up his hair, though!

1 hour ago, dleighg said:

But that would defeat the whole idea of a "transformation" LOL. It was a totally dumb idea all around. 

Ohhh, I missed the "transformation" part. Ok, well, most of them did transform, for better or worse!

Edited to fix a messed up word order.

Edited November 28, 2023 by Splashy

[Salacious Kitty]

Javier described his cake as "classic" several times. Maybe something was lost in translation? 

[dleighg]

10 minutes ago, Splashy said:

Ohhh, I missed the "transformation" part.

I don't know if they said that explicitly. But if not, why bother to squish it? Like I said, dumb idea.

[Madding crowd]

I never heard of Mont Blanc but I don’t like chestnuts so I would never order one. I wonder if the bakers are told ahead of time what desserts they might make; they all seemed familiar with it. I didn’t mind the smushed cakes, this has been on long enough that they have to come up with different challenges.

[tennisgurl]

3 hours ago, dleighg said:

it was also a VERY hamfisted tie-in the movie Wonka. I mean, Wonka makes things fly, so you make the cake fly ...... upside down????

I almost forgot about that hilariously cringe bit of cross-promotion, which is what I assume this was with the movie coming out soon. You could almost see Jesse, the judges, and the contestants struggling trying to find ways to mention this movie without sounding totally forced, it was like they were all reading off of poorly written cue cards. They didn't even come up with anything all that Wonka-ish!

At least there weren't any references to baker cam this week. 

[Salacious Kitty]

One of the women used the Baker Cam. Can't remember who. I think Thoa. 

[Splashy]

51 minutes ago, Salacious Kitty said:

Javier described his cake as "classic" several times. Maybe something was lost in translation? 

Yes, I guess that would be the best description - classic. Apparently they didn't want classic on this one lol. He does do beautiful work, very clean and definitely classic. 

I think Josh is adorable and I'm glad he was able to turn things around from the  pre-heat to the main heat. 

[rlc]

Guess I’m the lone chestnut lover in the group. They can be delicious when they are fresh. Maybe you’ve only tried really dry ones? One of my families absolute favorite Thanksgiving sides that I make is roasted Brussels sprouts with chestnuts and maple syrup. So good!

I’m enjoying this season so far. It’s the first time in a while that I don’t feel like I know who will be top 3 already.

Edited November 29, 2023 by rlc

[Pi237]

7 hours ago, Frost said:

And why hang them so low the judges had to stoop to see them?  
 

I really felt for their knees during that part. After a certain age, crouching down just isn’t done without a lot of snap, crackle, and pop on the way back up. 

[jcbrown]

8 hours ago, Frost said:

And why hang them so low the judges had to stoop to see them?  

Or why not put a mirror underneath? So many less-stupid options.

I make a chestnut, apple, and pancetta ravioli that is tasty and I've had roasted chestnuts in Europe that were okay. The revelation for me in this episode was I had a similar dessert to the Mont Blanc on a trip to Switzerland and looked for a recipe under the Swiss-German name without success. Now I now how to find it!

Edited November 29, 2023 by jcbrown
edited to hyphenate compound adjective, as you do

[Mellowyellow]

4 hours ago, rlc said:

Guess I’m the line chestnut lover in the group. They can be delicious when they are fresh. Maybe you’ve only tried really dry ones? One of my families absolute favorite Thanksgiving sides that I make is roasted Brussels sprouts with chestnuts and maple syrup. So good!

I’m enjoying this season so far. It’s the first time in a while that I don’t feel like I know who will be top 3 already.

Another chestnut lover here! My favourite cake in the world is a chestnut cream cake!

I boil my chestnuts when they’re in season! I prefer them boiled to roasted, I find them more tender that way.

[allirish47]

When we're in Paris we always head for Angelina's on the Rue Rivoli for their classic Mont Blancs, which are heavenly, although over the years they've shrunk in size but not in price. And didn't Jesse say that they're a holiday, or winter, favorite? We've enjoyed them year round there.

[CheshireCat]

19 hours ago, MerBearHou said:

I didn't mind them -- the smushed mixed results were kind of interesting.  I just thought "what is the point -- who would ever do this in real life?" so as a challenge, it seemed odd.  

I said the exact thing to my dad when Jesse told the bakers what they had to do. Why?

I also thought it was very confusing how Jesse explained what they had to do. At first, I thought they had to bake an upside down cake and then turn it upside down (which would have made it right side up again, I guess 😂).

What was up with the judges oohing and aahing at some of the cakes after they were cut? They were cakes with even layers which they basically all were. That was really weird.

13 hours ago, Splashy said:

I got really worried for Javier after the main heat judging. I wasn't sure he fulfilled the challenge. Were they still supposed to demonstrate "whimsical"?

I keep wondering about that, too. It's not the first time that they mention that they want something for the first challenge and then someone (usually Nancy) points out that it's missing in the elimination challenge. So, either the show isn't clear that the theme is supposed to be for both challenges or Nancy's just looking for something she can critique. I wouldn't be surprised at either.

 

13 hours ago, Madding crowd said:

 I wonder if the bakers are told ahead of time what desserts they might make; they all seemed familiar with it.

This was a very particular dessert that doesn't seem to be popular outside of certain areas in Europe, so they must have.

 

16 hours ago, dleighg said:

it was also a VERY hamfisted tie-in the movie Wonka. I mean, Wonka makes things fly, so you make the cake fly ...... upside down????

It was definitely a weird challenge. If Wonka makes things fly wouldn't it have made more sense if they had done one of those illusion cakes where something is suspended in the air?

9 hours ago, jcbrown said:

I make a chestnut, apple, and pancetta ravioli that is tasty and I've had roasted chestnuts in Europe that were okay. The revelation for me in this episode was I had a similar dessert to the Mont Blanc on a trip to Switzerland and looked for a recipe under the Swiss-German name without success. Now I now how to find it!

I'm German, so if you can't find what you're looking for, PM me the German name and I can look for a German-language recipe and translate it.

6 hours ago, Mellowyellow said:

Another chestnut lover here! My favourite cake in the world is a chestnut cream cake!

I've made chestnut cookies a couple of times for Christmas. They're a bit of a pain to make because they're supposed to be braided and the chestnuts make it difficult but they're delicious!

Is it just me or is Duff a bit annoyed with some of Nancy's comments? Due to editing we have no idea if it's always been like this but in this season especially, whenever Nancy makes one of her predictable comments, Duff says something along the lines of "what a surprise". And he doesn't sound all amused. I mean, I'm with him, it's just something I noticed.