Holiday Baking Championship - General Discussion

[RoxiP]

1 hour ago, libgirl2 said:

Yes, I have seen that on so many competition shows even when it is apparent they are no where near the best. 

I can see the stress and time constraints being an issue, but sometimes you have a contestant who outright says the aren't great decorators. I do prefer something that tastes good (something home made maybe) but if I'm paying for it, it should look nice too. 

Why in the heck is he hosting this? he is the last person I expected to see on this network. Does he cook? Does he bake? 

Wasn't he on Worst Cooks in America (Celebrity)?  They have lots of hosts that don't have any cooking cred...look at that red-haired guy hosting the show where they use an ice sculptor and a cake decorator?  Does he have any credibility?  Does Jesse Palmer (except looking good)?  Jonathan Bennett?  Obviously they don't feel a host has to have any cooking experience.

[libgirl2]

15 minutes ago, RoxiP said:

Wasn't he on Worst Cooks in America (Celebrity)?  They have lots of hosts that don't have any cooking cred...look at that red-haired guy hosting the show where they use an ice sculptor and a cake decorator?  Does he have any credibility?  Does Jesse Palmer (except looking good)?  Jonathan Bennett?  Obviously they don't feel a host has to have any cooking experience.

True. It was just an unexpected choice. 

[RoxiP]

1 minute ago, libgirl2 said:

True. It was just an unexpected choice. 

Granted.  I guess Ian Ziering is looking for anything to get him a paycheck and keep him in the public eye - I mean, how many Sharknado sequels can there possibly be?

[jlc]

1 minute ago, libgirl2 said:

True. It was just an unexpected choice. 

In my opinion, it was a bad choice, and despite Challenge being one of my favorite shows, I am most likely not watching it. 

[libgirl2]

5 minutes ago, RoxiP said:

Granted.  I guess Ian Ziering is looking for anything to get him a paycheck and keep him in the public eye - I mean, how many Sharknado sequels can there possibly be?

Didn't they do the last Sharknado already? Maybe he has no acting gig lined up? 

3 minutes ago, jlc said:

In my opinion, it was a bad choice, and despite Challenge being one of my favorite shows, I am most likely not watching it. 

I'll watch it but he is just an odd choice. He doesn't strike me as a "host" type. 

[CoderLady]

39 minutes ago, RoxiP said:

Wasn't he on Worst Cooks in America (Celebrity)?  They have lots of hosts that don't have any cooking cred...look at that red-haired guy hosting the show where they use an ice sculptor and a cake decorator?  Does he have any credibility?  Does Jesse Palmer (except looking good)?  Jonathan Bennett?  Obviously they don't feel a host has to have any cooking experience.

I  kinda appreciate that they're trying to see if Casey Webb is good for anything besides Man v. Food where all it took for success was the willingness to huff down massive quantities of overspiced food in 45 minutes or less, but he doesn't fit the profile. I'll admit it's shallow of me, but I like the good-natured, good-looking guys hosting the other shows better even if their food expert credentials are a bit iffy.

Speaking of which, Nancy feeding Jesse bits of her food is adorable. It fits the family vibe I get from this show.

Edited December 17, 2019 by CoderLady

[trudysmom]

Hi, SpunkyGal and RoxiP, waving from South Texas, transplanted from East Texas.  If I could see the grass it would be as brown as the leaves and pine needles that currently cover it.  We used to rake, but well, yeah, not any more.  I'm intrigued by the whole notion of ice skating, period, but in your own back yard, wow. I was also impressed by how they all managed to get the ice to rest on the cake and not completely sag into it.

[chambers kid]

The judges always play favorites in this show. Sarah is clearly the favorite this season, and the other contestants can definitely tell and aren't happy about it. Dunno if the judges are colorblind, but Sarah's ice rink was GREEN, yet the judges were all like "wow, it really looks like ice!" No, it doesn't.

Another thing - Sarah's reaction when she was in the top two was so obnoxious, yet the judges are all just like "oh Sarah, you're so funny." Sarah, you're 29 not 12, act like it. Geez.

[mlp]

I've been rooting for Geoffrey all along but his cheesecake looked really bad.  And he knew it.  And didn't try very hard to fix it.  He deserved to be eliminated.  

I couldn't believe Duff said those last three are the best ever.  I can think of at least 10 people right off who could put all three to shame, even bakers I couldn't stand like Cheryl and Maeve.  They were much better all around.  I know Duff has to say positive things but he went way too far.

I won't be surprised if Melissa wins because it seems to me that they've been saving her for some reason from the beginning.  Her pining for wedding money gets no sympathy from me.  She's been living with someone for years and has kids.  If getting married is so important, she could get a marriage license and do it quickly and privately for less than the cost of a new tattoo.

[libgirl2]

56 minutes ago, mlp said:

I won't be surprised if Melissa wins because it seems to me that they've been saving her for some reason from the beginning.  Her pining for wedding money gets no sympathy from me.  She's been living with someone for years and has kids.  If getting married is so important, she could get a marriage license and do it quickly and privately for less than the cost of a new tattoo.

Maybe they keep her around because they need an underdog? 

Edited December 17, 2019 by libgirl2

[Dena0033]

On ‎11‎/‎25‎/‎2019 at 8:37 PM, trudysmom said:

Two weeks in a row I'm disappointed that a really nice guy got the boot.  I liked Kobe and Cedric, and Cedric seemed like a really talented baker.  Of course I had my doubts when he said the cake mix crust was a Sandra Lee tip, but it looked like the cranberry gelee was more of a downfall than the dark crust.  Now I'm pulling for Geoffrey or Dwight.

I just made a dessert this weekend with a cake-mix crust. It was great. It was nothing but cake mix, egg, orange zest, and butter.

[RoxiP]

1 hour ago, trudysmom said:

Hi, SpunkyGal and RoxiP, waving from South Texas, transplanted from East Texas.  If I could see the grass it would be as brown as the leaves and pine needles that currently cover it.  We used to rake, but well, yeah, not any more.  I'm intrigued by the whole notion of ice skating, period, but in your own back yard, wow. I was also impressed by how they all managed to get the ice to rest on the cake and not completely sag into it.

My parents were both from east Texas (Jefferson) and I went to college and Nacogdoches...you are definitely right about the pine needles!

[Eliza422]

I know I'm really late to the game about this - but last week's igloo / penguin thing.

I did a quick google search for igloo cakes - I would say over 90% of them include penguins. It must be a law or something. I guess other than polar bears they are the only cute ice-dwelling animal???  (although plenty of penguin species live nowhere near ice).

I dunno...it's a weird thing.

and this week - damn, Jeffrey, that was one hideous cake. I think if he hadn't put that disgusting meringue (ok, he doesn't decorate, but he can't whip egg whites!?!?!?) I think he might have squeaked by.

They were all ugly though.

I guess I'm rooting for Melissa - round glasses girl - I just couldn't stand either of the perky pair winning.

[omgtv]

I'm also rooting for Melissa, but only once has the person I liked won!

Was anyone else shocked by Sarah's wedding photos? I don't know, I pictured her in some sort of modest princess-y gown, like one from a Hallmark movie or something.

I think it should have been a double elimination, both the runny egg whites and that oversized alien-looking figure needed to be eliminated! 

[BigBingerBro]

These final three are all kinda meh.  I know Melissa is hoping to use her winnings for her long overdue wedding.  The long hair lady with the ice skater daughter (can't recall her name!) said she wants to win it for her daughter.  What is Sara planning to do with the money if she wins?  I must have mentally tuned her out if and when she said...

[Spunkygal]

2 minutes ago, BigBingerBro said:

These final three are all kinda meh.  I know Melissa is hoping to use her winnings for her long overdue wedding.  The long hair lady with the ice skater daughter (can't recall her name!) said she wants to win it for her daughter.  What is Sara planning to do with the money if she wins?  I must have mentally tuned her out if and when she said...

She’ll probably use it to buy lots of PIS-TAAAA-CHIO!

[littlebennysmom]

1 hour ago, Spunkygal said:

She’ll probably use it to buy lots of PIS-TAAAA-CHIO!

And PA-JAAAAAM-AS!

[hcs]

I wouldn't have bought any of those cheesecakes.. but I'm not surprised to see Geoffrey leave not from a baking perspective he and Jennifer have usually been in the top in what they have produced but both Melissa and Sara have been getting the most airtime and Sara is getting the same treatment as Jason "I'm just a home baker, Y 'all " so I'm sure she will win.

[mojoween]

Personally it would have been aces if Sarah went but I know that is my own personal bias.  Geoffrey was the right choice IMO.

I have lived in the Syracuse area, which is a hop, skip and a jump from Rochester, my entire life and no one here sounds like that.  And the accent is WAY more prominent when she is speaking with other people than in her cheffessionals.

Once Octoberish hits grass goes dormant so it stays basically green all winter.  And climate change ensures that we get snow, and then melting, and then snow, and then melting etc. etc. until spring.  Backyard ice rinks are possible but not lasting!

[Girl in a Cardigan]

Every episode, I tell myself that I'm going to give Sarah a chance. But then she does something like proclaiming she's 6% Jewish in the background of Melissa's interview with Jesse and I want to smack her. That plus PiSTACHios and I was just done. She's probably going to win because she's just a perfect character, but man, I would NOT watch anything else she's on.

[rlc]

14 hours ago, trudysmom said:

The PEE-CAN I can forgive, but lordy her accent (NewYork?) drove me nuts.  The nasally way she pronounced "cherries" and "bars", just grated on me. I have an accent, heck sometimes I sound like Jason I'm so southern and back country, so I'd probably be just as irritating.  But that whiny through her nose thing, ugh.  Also, no one is that happy all the darn time.  She definitely took a page from Erin's over the top playbook. 

Upstate NY (says this NYC dweller who’s ears are bleeding from listening to Sarah).

[Rammchick]

12 hours ago, Girl in a Cardigan said:

Every episode, I tell myself that I'm going to give Sarah a chance. But then she does something like proclaiming she's 6% Jewish in the background of Melissa's interview with Jesse and I want to smack her. That plus PiSTACHios and I was just done. She's probably going to win because she's just a perfect character, but man, I would NOT watch anything else she's on.

I'm 97.6% Ashkenazi Jew (thanks, 23andMe), and no, sorry, I'm not welcoming her to our tribe!

[Adiba]

12 hours ago, rlc said:

Upstate NY (says this NYC dweller who’s ears are bleeding from listening to Sarah).

Yeah, Sarah has a sort of midwest Rochester accent (think Chicago or Detroit with the extended "a") combined with some things from Boston, where she now lives. Not a NYC accent at all--I could tell having grown up in north NJ just outside Manhattan. 

Funny, years ago, when Emeril was just starting to hit it big on FN, my old boss who was from Texas said, "I like the guy, but his NY accent is so heavy!" I told him no, it wasn't. I said it was a Mass. Yankee accent. He couldn't hear the difference. But then, I told him I couldn't really tell the difference between his accent and and Oklahoma one. He was shocked, lol.

Edited December 18, 2019 by Adiba
forgot to add info

[theatremouse]

I thought she was from Rochester, MN, not Rochester, NY.

[Adiba]

3 minutes ago, theatremouse said:

I thought she was from Rochester, MN, not Rochester, NY.

I thought ny, but I could be wrong! Maybe that's why her accent sounds so unusual!

[RoxiP]

I'm from Texas and I can't tell the difference between a Texas and Oklahoma accent...but I can tell the difference between someone who is from deep East Texas and West Texas.

[proserpina65]

On ‎12‎/‎12‎/‎2019 at 3:44 PM, bkathi said:

I like Sarah - I enjoy her delight in the things she makes.  It makes a great change from some of the negative attitudes you often see on these shows - that being there is such a burden and how dare they ask them decorate a cake!  I am also from Upstate NY and love hear the accent.   People really do talk like that.

I probably wouldn't enjoy being around her all the time, but for an hour once a week, I'm fine with her.

On ‎12‎/‎16‎/‎2019 at 10:02 PM, Frost said:

Sarah is wrong.  The hardest thing about making her making cheesecake is me not reaching through the screen to wring her neck every time she says PEE-CAN.  Is there some reason she has to use PEE-CANS every single episode?

Pee-can is a perfectly acceptable pronunciation.  It's how I say it, and a lot of other people as well.

On ‎12‎/‎17‎/‎2019 at 7:52 AM, eleanorofaquitaine said:

I am fine with all three finalists. Sarah is perky to the nth degree but she's clearly very talented. (Though I too was wondering what was going on with the green ice rink). I was glad to see Melissa pull it together. 

I am excited to see that the finale is three women, all of whom are pretty talented bakers.

I don't particularly like Melissa, but she's clearly talented, and her cheesecake was miles better than Geoffrey's.  Jennifer was damned lucky that Geoffrey put that horrible meringue on his cheesecake because otherwise she was toast.

[hookedontv]

1 hour ago, Adiba said:

1 hour ago, theatremouse said:

I thought she was from Rochester, MN, not Rochester, NY.

I thought ny, but I could be wrong! Maybe that's why her accent sounds so unusual!

I just looked it up because to me she has such a midwest accent, but last night I saw Rochester NY, here's what FN has to say:

"Sarah Wallace — Boston Sarah is a bakery general manager from Boston. Originally from Rochester, NY, recently marries Sarah pushed back her honeymoon to be able to compete to become the Holiday Baking champion."

I don't hear a bit of Boston in it, it's an upstate NY (which also sounds like upper midwest) accent, but I swear, she over-emphasizes it to the nth degree. She probably thinks it makes her sound cute and relatable, but in reality, Sarah's voice makes my ears bleed. I think being around Sarah for an extended amount of time would be absolutely exhausting. 

And like other posters have already mentioned - I don't think this round of bakers is nearly as good as others I've seen on prior seasons. I like Melissa (I think that's her name, big glasses) - she's a bit quirky and unique without being over the top in my opinion. 

[Sarahsmile416]

15 hours ago, Girl in a Cardigan said:

Every episode, I tell myself that I'm going to give Sarah a chance. But then she does something like proclaiming she's 6% Jewish in the background of Melissa's interview with Jesse and I want to smack her. That plus PiSTACHios and I was just done. She's probably going to win because she's just a perfect character, but man, I would NOT watch anything else she's on.

This.   If I didn’t already strongly dislike her, this would’ve done it.  I wanted to slap her after that comment. 
 

I was not a fan of Erin in the slightest, but Sarah makes Erin almost palatable.  Almost.  This I cannot forgive. 

Edited December 18, 2019 by Sarahsmile416

[MerBearHou]

1 minute ago, Sarahsmile416 said:

This.   If I didn’t already strongly dislike her, this would’ve done it.  I wanted to slap her after that comment. 

Same here.  I was so mad that (a) Sarah eavesdropped on Melissa's interview moment, (b) chose to chime in loud enough for the camera to hear and (c) got competitive about how Jewish she is and that Melissa wouldn't be able to beat her on that score.  I mean reallllllyyyyyy????? Melissa's face showed it all.  I cannot stand Sarah.

[RoxiP]

Melissa for the win!  I think Jennifer is probably the best all-around baker, but her personality is flat.  Sarah has too much (annoyingly perky) personality.  If they are looking for someone to represent the network I would prefer Melissa any given day of the week!

[Dirtybubble]

22 hours ago, mlp said:

I won't be surprised if Melissa wins because it seems to me that they've been saving her for some reason from the beginning. 

The vibe I was getting was her backstory was simply to get her in the final 3.  I like her enough and I would be happy if she won but IMO Jennifer has been more consistenly good/great with her baking.

17 hours ago, mojoween said:

I have lived in the Syracuse area, which is a hop, skip and a jump from Rochester, my entire life and no one here sounds like that.  And the accent is WAY more prominent when she is speaking with other people than in her cheffessionals

Ok I was wondering about that.  I know a few people from Rochester and Buffalo and none of them sound anywhere close to her nasally annoying accent.  But then again none of them are as perky as she is either so IDK maybe it is a bit of Boston mixed in as well.

[Mrs. Landingham]

On 12/17/2019 at 12:11 PM, mlp said:

 

I couldn't believe Duff said those last three are the best ever.  I can think of at least 10 people right off who could put all three to shame, even bakers I couldn't stand like Cheryl and Maeve.  They were much better all around.  I know Duff has to say positive things but he went way too far.

 

I couldn’t believe my ears. Cheryl, Maeve, Jennifer with the rad Wisconsin accent who won with the six geese a-laying cake, Stephany from Santa Cruz, CA, can all run circles around the current three. 

[Spunkygal]

I’ve started a topic for Food Network Challenge here 

 

[RoxiP]

13 hours ago, Mrs. Landingham said:

I couldn’t believe my ears. Cheryl, Maeve, Jennifer with the rad Wisconsin accent who won with the six geese a-laying cake, Stephany from Santa Cruz, CA, can all run circles around the current three. 

Perhaps he was saying they were the best final 4 - not individually the best?  No matter, I think one of the judges says something similar to that every competition show.

[Guest]

I kind of love Sarah. I understand how she could be somewhat annoying, but I don't really agree that she's done anything to rate this level of vitriol. She may be dialed up a bit for the show (as many are), but I think her enthusiasm is genuine. She just cracks me up when she gets so excited about her little decorations, and I find her pronunciations cute. Also, regardless of whether or not green ice is true-to-life, she's damn good at this baking thing and would deserve the win. I'm rooting for her or Jennifer. (Melissa I'm not as enamored of, but she'd be fine, too. It was a good crop of bakers this go-round, I thought.)

[trudysmom]

2 hours ago, tracyscott76 said:

she's damn good at this baking thing

That's for sure, TracyScott76, whatever else I think of her voice or personality, she can bake, and she doesn't seem rattled or thrown off by strange flavors or the insane twists.

[Omeletsmom]

On 12/17/2019 at 7:49 PM, mojoween said:

Personally it would have been aces if Sarah went but I know that is my own personal bias.  Geoffrey was the right choice IMO.

I have lived in the Syracuse area, which is a hop, skip and a jump from Rochester, my entire life and no one here sounds like that.  And the accent is WAY more prominent when she is speaking with other people than in her cheffessionals.

Once Octoberish hits grass goes dormant so it stays basically green all winter.  And climate change ensures that we get snow, and then melting, and then snow, and then melting etc. etc. until spring.  Backyard ice rinks are possible but not lasting!

It depends on what kind of grass it is.  Heat tolerant grasses go brown pretty early and stay that way until it warms up in the spring.  The cool tolerant grasses tend to stay green in the winter.

My sister's kids (raised in Rochester) have an accent similar to Sarah's, but nowhere near that exaggerated,  It's gotten worse as the season has gone on.  IDK if it is stress or if production is encouraging it, but it is like nails on a chalkboard to me.

[jlc]

2 hours ago, Omeletsmom said:

It depends on what kind of grass it is.  Heat tolerant grasses go brown pretty early and stay that way until it warms up in the spring.  The cool tolerant grasses tend to stay green in the winter.

My sister's kids (raised in Rochester) have an accent similar to Sarah's, but nowhere near that exaggerated,  It's gotten worse as the season has gone on.  IDK if it is stress or if production is encouraging it, but it is like nails on a chalkboard to me.

Everything with Sarah is like nails on a chalkboard for me right now. UGH, I just don't  want her to win.

[eleanorofaquitaine]

On 12/18/2019 at 2:17 PM, Dirtybubble said:

The vibe I was getting was her backstory was simply to get her in the final 3.  I like her enough and I would be happy if she won but IMO Jennifer has been more consistenly good/great with her baking.

Ok I was wondering about that.  I know a few people from Rochester and Buffalo and none of them sound anywhere close to her nasally annoying accent.  But then again none of them are as perky as she is either so IDK maybe it is a bit of Boston mixed in as well.

There is no part of Sarah's accent that is Boston. 

[dleighg]

1 minute ago, eleanorofaquitaine said:

There is no part of Sarah's accent that is Boston. 

I wish I could like this more than once.

[omgtv]

Anyone watching the season one marathon right now?  My sister said it was obvious that Erin is faking being nice!!

[BigBingerBro]

Cinnamon Caw Fee cake 🙄

[susannot]

Vey well deserved winner!  Her cake was unbelievable and perfect.

[LizBug]

HOORAY!!!   

[MerBearHou]

If you need to put in Spoiler, let me know who won!  I didn’t watch on purpose because I didn’t want a certain annoying person to win.  If that certain annoying person did not win, I will watch later.  Dying to know.

[BigBingerBro]

If she hadn't done matcha, she would not have won.  Bold move.

[jlc]

4 minutes ago, MerBearHou said:

If you need to put in Spoiler, let me know who won!  I didn’t watch on purpose because I didn’t want a certain annoying person to win.  If that certain annoying person did not win, I will watch later.  Dying to know.

She did not win, thank you Jesus!!! It is a true Christmas miracle.

[susannot]

I disagree.  It wasn't the matcha.  Her plaid layers were perfectly square and aligned and her cake colors perfectly matched her blanket.  Those colors were difficult to do.  All in all, that is the most impressive cake I can remember seeing on any of these shows.  Maybe some of you will remind me of a better one, but I doubt it.

[Guest]

A well-deserved win, even if she was the one I wasn't rooting for XD. Oh well! I'm just glad that all three bakers did really well in both rounds. Made it a clean contest decided purely on merit rather than someone screwing up. (And Sarah is still adorable to me!)