S10.E02: Biscuit Week

[andromeda331]

Another good episode. That chicken was amazing! Not surprised that Jamie left. I didn't like Amelia's because she just stacked things and the whale or whatever that was didn't look like it. I liked David's flowers they looked really great.

[hendersonrocks]

To continue the dragon analysis, I also thought Michelle's suffered from the backdrop she placed it on - it looked like a flame pattern or something? It was so much on its own that it made it difficult for her bake to pop. Her bake was on one end of the more is more scale and David's flowers were on the other. (I loved that he went colorless, myself.)

[Pepper Mostly]

On 9/5/2019 at 6:08 PM, Margo Leadbetter said:

I sometimes think it's less about THEIR ignorance and more about what they think the audience doesn't know. I've noticed it a number of times, where they feign ignorance about a particular ingredient so the contestant can explain. For example, there have been a number of time where they were all ???? about yuzu, bakers have used it since the second season. They've done it with other ingredients as well—pandan is another one that comes to mind. Ruby chocolate isn't exactly something that's well known so Paul and Prue's supposed cluelessness gave (insert baker's name here because I forgot) a chance to explain for the benefit of the viewers.

I will never forget Paul's consternation at Ugne's peanut butter and jelly ice cream roll. All "grape jelly?? with peanut butter?? how strange!" I was dying. That had to be for the benefit of British viewers, who apparently don't grow up on pb and j's!

On 9/6/2019 at 8:35 AM, dleighg said:

I have never understood the trend of putting matcha in stuff. To me it tastes like sawdust mixed with grass clippings. I can see why Paul said they tasted "stale." I think the color gets people thinking "this is cool."

Matcha is the kiss of death on this show! Like dusty rose on Project Runway or a salad on Top Chef. Why? Doesn't everyone know that Paul is not a fan? I get that people like it and want to be original and maybe win him over. But I'd pass in their shoes.

On 9/7/2019 at 5:47 PM, dleighg said:

I adore Noel. He makes me smile.

Noel is my absolute fave. He's so kind and nice to all the bakers and so funny. I'm crazy about him.

[cpcathy]

I'm enjoying the new season a great deal, but I have to laugh--the word "showstopper" means something so spectacular, and when we actually see the final products, they are teeny- I'm reminded of Stonehenge in Spinal Tap. "That cake was in danger of being trampled by a dwarf!"

[leighdear]

5 hours ago, cpcathy said:

I'm enjoying the new season a great deal, but I have to laugh--the word "showstopper" means something so spectacular, and when we actually see the final products, they are teeny- I'm reminded of Stonehenge in Spinal Tap. "That cake was in danger of being trampled by a dwarf!"

THE MOST AMAZING showstopper of all time would be somebody making a cake Stonehenge, as a tribute to the movie.  Crank it up to 11!  *LOL*

[Margo Leadbetter]

On 9/8/2019 at 1:38 PM, springbarb said:

David also rubs me the wrong way; I think he has resting smug face. Even when he's clearly legitimately happy about something, it looks like he's smirking.

David reminds me of Keira Knightly (something about the mouth). Phil is a seedy version of Martin Freeman and Henry is a dead ringer for Thomas Brodie-Sangster. Thank goodness there aren’t any more Love Actually lookalikes or I’d have to stop watching this season because I loathe that movie with the heat of a thousand suns. 

[Sharpie66]

Another example of the judges saying they have never seen an ingredient or technique before was when Nadiya made her marshmallow fondant, and just a few seasons earlier, someone else had done the exact same thing.

[AZChristian]

11 hours ago, Margo Leadbetter said:

Thank goodness there aren’t any more Love Actually lookalikes or I’d have to stop watching this season because I loathe that movie with the heat of a thousand suns. 

I have the Hugh Grant/prime minister dancing down the stairs sequence queued on my Netflix.  Whenever I need a good laugh, I go straight to it.

[PBnJay]

On 9/10/2019 at 12:08 PM, Pepper Mostly said:

I will never forget Paul's consternation at Ugne's peanut butter and jelly ice cream roll. All "grape jelly?? with peanut butter?? how strange!" I was dying. That had to be for the benefit of British viewers, who apparently don't grow up on pb and j's!

 

I found that so funny for an obvious reason. I am surprised Brits don't have peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I wonder what they feed their children.

On 9/10/2019 at 12:08 PM, Pepper Mostly said:

Noel is my absolute fave. He's so kind and nice to all the bakers and so funny. I'm crazy about him.

I like him best too. 

[Rinaldo]

On 9/4/2019 at 2:12 AM, Aulty said:

I enjoyed the chocolate bars - although I doubt that any of them has a signature chocolate bar that they regularly make at home, which used to be the premise of the signature challenge. 

When was that? That's a serious question, I have faulty memory for past seasons. But my memory of Signatures includes only special preparations practiced for the competition, not usually things that someone might regularly make at home.

On 9/8/2019 at 1:38 PM, springbarb said:

David also rubs me the wrong way; I think he has resting smug face. Even when he's clearly legitimately happy about something, it looks like he's smirking.

That nails it for me -- in fact I had come to the same conclusion myself, except I called it "resting prissy face." (A bit like a past baker who was often knocked for her resting facial demeanor -- Candace?) And I think David genuinely doesn't mean anything by it, it's just how his facial features fall.

[dleighg]

12 minutes ago, Rinaldo said:

On 9/4/2019 at 2:12 AM, Aulty said:

I enjoyed the chocolate bars - although I doubt that any of them has a signature chocolate bar that they regularly make at home, which used to be the premise of the signature challenge. 

When was that? That's a serious question

I think the idea was (more or less) that they incorporate, somehow or other, a family favorite, or where they are from, or their favorite flavor, etc. 

[krankydoodle]

31 minutes ago, Rinaldo said:

That nails it for me -- in fact I had come to the same conclusion myself, except I called it "resting prissy face." (A bit like a past baker who was often knocked for her resting facial demeanor -- Candace?) And I think David genuinely doesn't mean anything by it, it's just how his facial features fall.

Candice is exactly who I thought of! They both seem to purse their lips a lot.

[bybrandy]

On 9/4/2019 at 1:12 AM, Aulty said:

I enjoyed the chocolate bars - although I doubt that any of them has a signature chocolate bar that they regularly make at home, which used to be the premise of the signature challenge. But there were several that I liked the look and sound of. They all were pretty large for a chocolate bar though, don;t you think?

Apparently, my mom's going to have one.  She started looking up chocolate bar recipes to adapt pretty much as soon as the episode ended and has just texted me her grocery list.  But learning to work with chocolate has been a life goal she's tried to inspire all of my nephews towards and as they have all grown up to have other careers, it is how she intends to be spend her retirement.  

[Quilt Fairy]

Just as an FYI, bringing this over from the media thread:

Quote

For those who are interested, Jane Beedle and Howard Middlebun are doing a podcast called "The Bake Down." The first episode was really nice, with some behind the scenes info and their take on the current series.

I've listened to the first 2 episodes and it's very informative.  Howard and Jane are 2 of my favorite contestants.  

[chaifan]

I feel like this episode was made for me!  I love fig bars, I made earl grey tea shortbread last christmas (fabulous!), and I've made witch finger cookies, too.

On 9/6/2019 at 12:36 PM, leighdear said:

And I've made those witches finger cookies for Halloween with sugar cookie dough & sliced almonds for years.  Not green though, But with red icing dabbed on the raggedy, cut end to simulate the blood. 

Mine were an almond cookie base, tinted with just a touch of green.  Instead of using the red icing on the cut end, I put a dab at the end of each almond sliver fingernail, so when it was pushed into the finger it looked like a bloody cuticle.  Took them to work, and people were really icked out by them (but still ate them). 

Thoughts on the episode:

I know I'm in the minority here, but I just don't like Noel and Sandy.  I've tried, and given them time to grow on me, but it's just not happening.  I rarely find either of them funny, just grating.  I really like Prue.

Helena does need to drop the spooky gal stchick.  It's already old and it's only the 2nd episode.  But, I liked her spider/egg showstopper.  She is talented, but she's getting one-note with that theme.

Jamie - I thought he should have gone last week.  I'm wondering how he made it to the show in the first place, he's clearly out of his league among the rest of the contestants. 

I loved how even in just the 2nd episode the contestants are already jumping in to help others - how many were helping others on the biscuit bar challenge?  At least 3-4, maybe more. 

Loved the animal showstoppers!  The sheep was my favorite, the chicken a very close 2nd.  Was surprised to see 2 dragons, and not a single peacock! 

As I said above, I absolutely love fig cookies.  I want to try making these now.  While I loved Helena's chalk outline of the missing 12th, I can't believe how far off she was on the basic execution of this bake.  Fig rolls.  Rolls.  Rooolllls.  Hers were like fig raviolis even before going in the oven.  There was no roll about it. 

I thought the "biscuit bars" were a stretch for a biscuit week challenge.  Very little biscuit in that challenge, it was more about the chocolate and other fillings.  Though some looked amazing. 

And I'll end with:  matcha.  ugh.

[Quilt Fairy]

18 hours ago, chaifan said:

Jamie - I thought he should have gone last week.  I'm wondering how he made it to the show in the first place, he's clearly out of his league among the rest of the contestants. 

I accept Paul's maxim that you don't get in the tent if you're not a good baker.  Jamie, however, didn't seem to take anything seriously.  I think he was just less mature than previous contestants who filled the "youngest in the tent" spot.

18 hours ago, chaifan said:

Loved the animal showstoppers!  The sheep was my favorite, the chicken a very close 2nd.  Was surprised to see 2 dragons, and not a single peacock! 

Animals weren't mentioned in the brief, it was just supposed to be a 3D biscuit sculpture.   Personally, I missed pagodas, and pirates and bridges with punts.  Although I grant you the lamb was cute. 

Edited September 13, 2019 by Quilt Fairy

[chaifan]

40 minutes ago, Quilt Fairy said:

I accept Paul's maxim that you don't get in the tent if you're not a good baker.  Jamie, however, didn't seem to take anything seriously.  I think he was just less mature than previous contestants who filled the "youngest in the tent

Animals weren't mentioned in the brief, it was just supposed to be a 3D biscuit sculpture.   Personally, I missed pagodas, and pirates and bridges with punts.  Although I grant you the lamb was cute. 

Just curious... anyone know what the process is to get on the show? 

Oh, yeah, I know animals weren't required for the showstopper.  I just meant overall I liked the animal ones over the non-animal ones.  The flower sculpture was neat, but the other non-animal ones were boring.

[Athena]

23 minutes ago, chaifan said:

Just curious... anyone know what the process is to get on the show? 

It's similar to most competitive reality shows. This article has a little summary.  You do a long application and then are called for auditions and a sort of screen test. The podcast the others posters mentioned with Jane and Howard have a lot of great insights on it too. Howard mentioned that he knew someone in his audition who didn't end up in his series but they ended up in the following one. The producers cast for the right mix. 

[theatremouse]

I enjoyed the chocolate bars - although I doubt that any of them has a signature chocolate bar that they regularly make at home, which used to be the premise of the signature challenge.

On 9/11/2019 at 2:51 PM, Rinaldo said:

When was that? That's a serious question, I have faulty memory for past seasons. But my memory of Signatures includes only special preparations practiced for the competition, not usually things that someone might regularly make at home.

I think colloquially when people refer to something as "their signature X" they do mean it's the version they make regularly and are sort of known for, but I don't think the show has ever explicitly framed the signature round as representing that. I think it's more like Round 1: give us your best whatever the brief is (and this may or may not be a very simple-but-good version of the thing; flavor and technique probably weighted more heavily in the judging of this round than decoration). Round 2: Technical, they don't know what it is in advance and have to prove skill with generic instructions. Round 3: Showstopper, not just your best whatever but also something amazing visually and shows off multiple skills usually.

You could sort of assume if they're experienced bakers they've made whatever it is many times, and thus theoretically may have one they prefer to do and might take out from their back pocket in the signature round, but I think as long as I've been watching the show everything has always been something they decided on specifically for the show and practiced, not just "the one of that I always do" and happen to do really well.

Or I guess a shorter way of saying that is: when other cooking shows do a challenge that says "make us your signature dish" it's a totally different connotation than what this show means by "signature". 

[rab01]

On 9/7/2019 at 2:29 AM, GaT said:

I'm having trouble connecting with this group. I don't know if I rewatched previous seasons too many times, so the other seasons are filled with people I know & these are all strangers, or if something is missing from this season.

I'm having a similar problem and I think it may be that this group is much more uniform in looks and age than prior groups. 

[GaT]

8 minutes ago, rab01 said:

I'm having a similar problem and I think it may be that this group is much more uniform in looks and age than prior groups. 

I thought about it a bit more & realized that this is the first time I've watched the show almost as it's happening, once a week & I wonder if that's it. All the other seasons I've seen I've basically binge watched, which means the previous episodes were still fresh in my mind.

[Rinaldo]

I almost always feel that at the start of a new series, and then it sorts itself out after a couple of weeks. With this bunch, I find that I know everyone's name after 2 episodes, which almost never happens. So, no problem here. I wonder if it's sometimes the issue of "familiar favorites" vs. newcomers.

[halopub]

15 hours ago, eliot90000 said:

Is it very different in sweets?  I drink matcha tea every day, and I find that it tastes quite a bit grassy.  I like the green tea flavor a bit better, but I’m not sure how I would feel about it in a biscuit.  

Your mileage may vary but I think so. Loooove it in cookies, cakes and other sweets. Back in the day I'd enjoy a matcha latte or frappuccino - both high sugar choices.

Nestle Japan accounts for different consumer tastes by offering at least 10 different kinds of matcha Kit Kats. Most are pretty assertive and actually dial down the sugar. Some flavors are sweeter and incorporate almonds, cranberries, white chocolate, etc., for those who want more of a balance.

[Quilt Fairy]

I just received a new Vermont Country Store catalog, and among the Halloween treats on page 5 there are witch's fingers cookies.  Green with almonds for the nails.  So not an original idea. 

[chaifan]

17 hours ago, Quilt Fairy said:

I just received a new Vermont Country Store catalog, and among the Halloween treats on page 5 there are witch's fingers cookies.  Green with almonds for the nails.  So not an original idea. 

Well, considering Helena used what appeared to be a commercially made mould, I don't think she was ever trying to claim the concept of witches finger cookies/bars were her idea.  As I commented above, I made some years ago.  If you google, you'll see a lot of recipes available.   

[ElectricBoogaloo]

As an American, biscuit week is always full of surprises because I'm never 100% sure what is considered a biscuit (versus what is considered a cookie or something else).

I loved that the bakers had to cover their signature creations in chocolate. That always makes everything better!

Michelle's Bakewell bars looked great. They were uniform, smooth, and colorful. I loved the little wrappers she made for them too. I think her decision to add a little tartness by using raspberries was a good idea too.

Amelia's pistachio, almond, and raisin nougat biscuit bars were a little messy looking. The chocolate didn't look like it was tempered well and her bars were a little blobby in shape. She should have used a mold like everyone else.

Henry's coffee, cardamom, and hazelnut bars looked so pretty. Between the rounded shape and the beautifully shiny chocolate, they looked really nice. And six layers!

David's coconut chocolate bars were a little messy. Again, this was due to not using a mold (in addition to the nougat sloughing out of the sides.

I liked the whole story behind Michael's gin inspiration (heh, his ginspiration!) for the lemon rosemary biscuit bars. They were, as Paul said, a bit chunky looking. The size made them look more like candy bars, but I'm okay with that. His flavor combination sounded like a nice balance too.

Steph's chocolate caramel macchiato biscuit bars looked nice. Interesting that Prue liked the crumbliness created by the semolina but Paul didn't.

Phil's orange, cranberry, and white chocolate fudge bars were messy, but I liked the white chocolate decorations on top.

Prue's wicked witch fingers looked like something a child made. I appreciate that she was trying to do something different, but they just looked so messy and amateur. Ha, and OF COURSE stodgy Paul doesn't like matcha. It's only been on trend for years (with all kinds of matcha dessert restaurants everywhere) but he thinks it tastes stale.

Alice's New Zealand inspired honeycomb peanut mallow bars looked very uniform. I agreed with Paul about the mixture of textures she used.

Priya's ruby barfi biscuit bars made me laugh because I would never use the word "barf" to describe any kind of food that I wanted people to like. Paul's ignorance annoyed me here. Ruby chocolate isn't exactly brand new. I mean, you can buy it at Trader Joe's which isn't known for being on the cutting edge of culinary trends.

Jamie's cherry caramel shortbread biscuit cookies were a mess. Sandy's description ("like biscuits after an earthquake") was accurate. I'm glad that Jamie was able to keep his sense of humor despite his mishaps.

Rosie's mojito biscuit bars were messy looking too. They were a bit lumpy and uneven in size/shape.

Fig rolls with ginger and cinnamon? No, thanks! Oh, no. As soon as Helena said she used powdered sugar instead of muscavado sugar, I knew she was done for. But how did she manage to cut only 11 rolls out of two logs? No surprise that she came in dead last. I was cringing when Jamie decided to put egg wash on his fig rolls. Alice and David both did really well. If David's hadn't been sor round, he might have won. 

I liked that the showstopper assignment was vague enough to give the bakers a lot of freedom. I prefer that route (as opposed to very specific signature/showstopper challenges with a lot of requirements).

David's shortbread wedding flowers were so pretty. I loved the delicate dots.

Michael's Hamish the cow with chocolate orange fur, ginger tuile horns, and viennese whirl was an interesting idea. I wasn't sure how much the judges would like all the chili he added to the shortbread so it was a pleasant surprise that Paul liked it.

Henry's chapel organ with stained glass windows, almond tuile, and brandy snap pipes was worth it just for all the organ jokes. Ha, I had to laugh when Paul asked where the keyboard was and Henry said the lid was closed. Like Prue, I was a bit disappointed in how small it was. When he described it earlier, I thought it would be a lot taller and grander. I also thought it was odd that his windows weren't in a wall, just propped up three in a row.

Steph's gingerbread cat with shortbread fur and brandy snap tail looked like something out of a cartoon (I mean that in a good way!). The triangular fur pieces looked a bit like tortilla chips to me due to their size and color.

Phil's Tina the tortoise with sugar biscuit and florentine shell and brandy snap legs was an interesting idea but the way that he had the head, legs, and tail just flat on the ground made the turtle loo like it was dead. I didn't mind the colored icing he added but it seemed odd that he used bright yellow and orange instead of green.

Amelia's seascape with lemon shortbread was a good idea in theory but it was a bit simplistic in execution She just stacked a bunch of biscuits to make the waves and then stacked some more biscuits to make the palm tree. Loved that she stamped numbers into all of her shortbread pieces before baking them though. The dolphin was really blobby.

Rosie's gingerbread chicken was really ambitious. 212 biscuits? That is a lot to do! It really paid off though because her chicken looked great.

Priya's dragon with langues de chat biscuits and brandy snap flames was really colorful. My favorite part was the green on the head. The fire was also great.

Michelle's Welsh dragon with macarons, cardamom pistachio neck, gingerbread wings, and brandy snap looked too thick and clunky.

Alice's lamb with coconut macaron wool and coconut lime shortbread fence was so cute. I loved its face and the macarons were a fun way to create wool.

Jamie's chocolate gingerbread guitar with lemon shortbread and lemon royal icing was very simple and not executed well. If you're going to have a simple concept, you need to execute it very cleanly.

Helena's chocolate orange tarantula and Earl Grey/lemon zest shortbread egg was definitely memorable and well executed, but I also felt like in terms of the biscuit sculpture aspect, the egg was pretty simple.

Congratulations to Alice for winning star baker! Jamie had two bad weeks in a row so I wasn't surprised that he was the one to be eliminated. I always feel bad for the younger contestants when they're the ones to go because everything seems like the end of the world when you're younger. It's still disappointing to be eliminated no matter how old you are, but I think most adults are more emotionally equipped to deal with in the grand scheme of things.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Recipes

Signature challenge
Michelle's Bakewell bars
Henry's coffee, caradamom, and hazelnut bars
Michael's lemon & rosemary bars
Rosie's virgin mojito biscuit bars
Helena's wicked witch fingers

Technical challenge
Paul's fig rolls

Showstopper challenge
Alice's chocolate coconut New Zealand lamb
 

[bybrandy]

3 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Priya's ruby barfi biscuit bars made me laugh because I would never use the word "barf" to describe any kind of food that I wanted people to like. Paul's ignorance annoyed me here. Ruby chocolate isn't exactly brand new. I mean, you can buy it at Trader Joe's which isn't known for being on the cutting edge of culinary trends.

i'm not going to lie every time people do ruby chocolate on one of these shows like it is new information I'm like "But I bought some at Trader Joe's ages ago!".  

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Jamie's exit interview

[GaT]

23 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

As an American, biscuit week is always full of surprises because I'm never 100% sure what is considered a biscuit (versus what is considered a cookie or something else).

I'm also an American, & I've seen every season of GBBO, & I'm still not sure if something is a biscuit or a cookie. I thought it was that biscuits were crunchy & cookies were soft, but then what are chocolate chip cookies (in the US) which can be crunchy or soft? It's very confusing.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

56 minutes ago, GaT said:

I'm also an American, & I've seen every season of GBBO, & I'm still not sure if something is a biscuit or a cookie. I thought it was that biscuits were crunchy & cookies were soft, but then what are chocolate chip cookies (in the US) which can be crunchy or soft? It's very confusing.

Ha, I'm glad it's not just me!

[Eliza422]

On ‎9‎/‎17‎/‎2019 at 6:41 AM, bybrandy said:

i'm not going to lie every time people do ruby chocolate on one of these shows like it is new information I'm like "But I bought some at Trader Joe's ages ago!".  

I've only just learned about ruby chocolate this year, when watching the 2nd season of Netflix's Sugar Rush. I think they had a whole challenge around it? I had to look it up because I couldn't figure out what they were referring to.

Unlike Yuzu and other nonsense they have to pretend not to know about, I think this is honestly a relatively new thing so I gave them a pass this once.

[Rinaldo]

8 hours ago, GaT said:

I thought it was that biscuits were crunchy & cookies were soft, but then what are chocolate chip cookies (in the US) which can be crunchy or soft?

With the specific example of chocolate chip cookies, that's easy -- it's an invention from those ghastly Americans. It's not something to nibble (just one) with tea, it's something to stuff your gut with for a snack. 

[Adiba]

Just re-watched this episode and Henry's "prepubescent American schoolboy" comment struck me. Being a Yank myself, I struggled to think of many schoolboys who dress like that--a tie and sweater pullover. Perhaps in a private or parochial school? Certainly not in the public schools! Made no sense to me as to why he would add the "American" label to his comment.

Edited September 18, 2019 by Adiba

[Athena]

1 hour ago, Adiba said:

Just re-watched this episode and Henry's "prepubescent American schoolboy" comment struck me. Being a Yank myself, I struggled to think of many schoolboys who dress like that--a tie and sweater pullover. Perhaps in a private or parochial school? Certainly not in the public schools! Made no sense to me as to why he would add the "American" label to his comment.

I think the reference is to the young Mormon American missionaries that some Brits encounter. They often dress similar to Henry's outfit: button down, tie, sweater. This stereotypical Mormon has been joked in a couple of UK comedies and also popularized by the musical Book of Mormon which did open up in London a few years ago. 

[Adiba]

43 minutes ago, Athena said:

I think the reference is to the young Mormon American missionaries whom Brits encounter. They often dress similar to Henry's outfit: button down, tie, sweater. This stereotypical Mormon has been joked in a couple of UK comedies and also popularized by the musical Book of Mormon which did open up in London a few years ago. 

Yeah, I just wondered where he was coming from. It wasn’t offensive  to me, but the comment made me go “Huh?” 

Mormon schoolboys are past puberty when they do go on missions, though. Perhaps Henry should just stick to baking and leave America out of it, lol. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I am an American who went to a Catholic school that required us to wear uniforms and the boys wore polo shirts (even in the winter), not button down shirts with ties and sweaters.

The stereotypical Mormon look is a short sleeved white button down with a black tie.

I don’t know where Henry got the idea that his outfit was American schoolboy because none of the boys I encountered in school wore collared shirts with ties and sweaters! 

I had the same reaction though - I was confused but not offended. I started wondering what tv shows or movies he watched to make him think that’s what American schoolboys wear. 

Edited September 18, 2019 by ElectricBoogaloo

[Mabinogia]

7 hours ago, Eliza422 said:

I've only just learned about ruby chocolate this year, when watching the 2nd season of Netflix's Sugar Rush

I learned about ruby chocolate this year when watching this episode of GBBO. lol Never heard of such a thing before. Of course I'm not a professional baker so I'm not up on all the new ingredients, but I was glad for the brief explanation. 

[Athena]

I think the prepubescent remark was Henry making a joke about his own very youthful features. 

In the UK, the missionaries have less opportunity to wear short sleeve shirt as it is generally milder and cooler. 

This youtube clip from Mrs Brown illustrates the stereotype.

[Johnny Dollar]

I don’t understand how Jamie even made it on to this show. When he said he didn’t have much experience baking cookies, I nearly choked on my fig Newton. 

I was surprised that Paul never heard of ruby chocolate. I work in confection/baking industry, and it was all the rage when it first came out. I guess he’s too busy reading the tabloids and doesn’t keep up with industry journals. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

10 minutes ago, Johnny Dollar said:

I was surprised that Paul never heard of ruby chocolate. I work in confection/baking industry, and it was all the rage when it first came out. I guess he’s too busy reading the tabloids and doesn’t keep up with industry journals. 

I do NOT work in the confection/baking industry and I heard about it a while ago. If I've heard of it, there's no reason why someone like Paul should be clueless about it.

But for the record, I don't think it tastes amazing so for anyone who hasn't had the chance to try it and thinks they're missing out on something amazing, you aren't.

[ombelico]

44 minutes ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I do NOT work in the confection/baking industry and I heard about it a while ago. If I've heard of it, there's no reason why someone like Paul should be clueless about it.

I think there's merit to the theory that a lot of the judges' questions about unusual ingredients are encouraged by the producers for the benefit of the audience. I'm sure Paul has heard of ruby chocolate, and I also think that sometimes the judges use these questions to get the bakers to justify their choice of ingredients. In this case, for example, the vast majority of the time presumably regular chocolate would work fine, so the baker should provide a good justification for using the unusual ingredient beyond just, "It's different." Can they describe the different flavor profile the ingredient provides? A different texture? And so on.

[chaifan]

1 hour ago, ombelico said:

I think there's merit to the theory that a lot of the judges' questions about unusual ingredients are encouraged by the producers for the benefit of the audience. I'm sure Paul has heard of ruby chocolate, and I also think that sometimes the judges use these questions to get the bakers to justify their choice of ingredients. In this case, for example, the vast majority of the time presumably regular chocolate would work fine, so the baker should provide a good justification for using the unusual ingredient beyond just, "It's different." Can they describe the different flavor profile the ingredient provides? A different texture? And so on.

So why feign total ignorance?  Paul could easily say, "oh, ruby chocolate.  That's somewhat new to most bakers.  Why did you choose it?" 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

5 hours ago, chaifan said:

So why feign total ignorance?  Paul could easily say, "oh, ruby chocolate.  That's somewhat new to most bakers.  Why did you choose it?" 

Exactly. Paul can ask about ingredients in a way that gives the bakers the opportunity to explain it to the audience WITHOUT saying he’s never heard of it (which makes him sound like a willfully ignorant professional in his own industry). There are so many different ways he could ask the bakers about stuff like that but he always goes the “duhhhh, I’ve never heard of that!” route. 

[MisterGlass]

Agreed.  It could just be, "Tell us a bit more about that."  I think Mary Berry used that a few times.

[Danny Franks]

16 hours ago, ombelico said:

I think there's merit to the theory that a lot of the judges' questions about unusual ingredients are encouraged by the producers for the benefit of the audience. I'm sure Paul has heard of ruby chocolate, and I also think that sometimes the judges use these questions to get the bakers to justify their choice of ingredients. In this case, for example, the vast majority of the time presumably regular chocolate would work fine, so the baker should provide a good justification for using the unusual ingredient beyond just, "It's different." Can they describe the different flavor profile the ingredient provides? A different texture? And so on.

You can buy ruby chocolate Kit Kats in the UK, and have been able to for quite a while now. I agree that Paul was probably just playing dumb for the benefit of the audience, and to let the baker explain what it was.

I think it's a better look for him to profess ignorance than for him to take the opportunity to explain what the baker is doing to the baker that's doing it. He's done that before, and it came across like he was the kid at school who wouldn't let anyone else answer a question. That's not to say that he doesn't enjoy throwing people off their game, in different ways, and I wouldn't be surprised if he also thought that acting like he'd never heard of it would challenge the baker in some way.

Edited September 20, 2019 by Danny Franks

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Some info about ruby chocolate

[Clanstarling]

On 9/8/2019 at 10:38 AM, springbarb said:

I wish they had been more colorful. They seemed a bit too plain for me, I think. David also rubs me the wrong way; I think he has resting smug face. Even when he's clearly legitimately happy about something, it looks like he's smirking.

I thought I wouldn't like them because of the lack of color - but I loved them despite myself. They were so delicate and well shaped.

On 9/8/2019 at 5:35 PM, snarktini said:

I absolutely loved David's flowers. I get the criticism of not enough color, but there was something so delicate and restrained...I think I liked it BECAUSE it was monochromatic. (Lol that's my art school training showing.) Often the biscuit towers are heavy and blocky and glued from here to eternity, for good reason. Instead, he found a way to make something so delicate and pretty! Those leaves were perfect. I'm not sure what I think about him as a person, but I think that's because he came out of the gate with "It has no fat! I love healthy baking!" ugh. Don't dislike him, but also haven't connected.

I must admit, the healthy baking thing turned me off. But it's early days yet, like Candace, I may well warm up to him.

On 9/10/2019 at 8:47 PM, Margo Leadbetter said:

David reminds me of Keira Knightly (something about the mouth). Phil is a seedy version of Martin Freeman and Henry is a dead ringer for Thomas Brodie-Sangster. Thank goodness there aren’t any more Love Actually lookalikes or I’d have to stop watching this season because I loathe that movie with the heat of a thousand suns. 

You nailed it! Though he was in Love Actually, I saw him first in Doctor Who where he made quite an impression on me.

On 9/11/2019 at 2:51 PM, Rinaldo said:

That nails it for me -- in fact I had come to the same conclusion myself, except I called it "resting prissy face." (A bit like a past baker who was often knocked for her resting facial demeanor -- Candace?) And I think David genuinely doesn't mean anything by it, it's just how his facial features fall.

I occasionally am told that I smirked in reaction to something, when I wasn't having any smirk-worthy thoughts. So I try not to judge solely on that - but it can be an uphill battle.

On 9/13/2019 at 9:30 AM, Quilt Fairy said:

I accept Paul's maxim that you don't get in the tent if you're not a good baker.  Jamie, however, didn't seem to take anything seriously.  I think he was just less mature than previous contestants who filled the "youngest in the tent" spot.

I took his laughter and seeming lack of seriousness as a way of protecting himself from disappointment.

On 9/18/2019 at 10:34 AM, Adiba said:

Just re-watched this episode and Henry's "prepubescent American schoolboy" comment struck me. Being a Yank myself, I struggled to think of many schoolboys who dress like that--a tie and sweater pullover. Perhaps in a private or parochial school? Certainly not in the public schools! Made no sense to me as to why he would add the "American" label to his comment.

It struck me too. But I'm willing to bet we Americans have stereotypes of Brits that have little to do with reality and everything to do with TV or other media. Perhaps he's a Gilmore Girls fan from the prep school years.

This season has been more fun, I think. I got really tired of seemingly impossible tasks that I would never in a million years even attempt. Not saying I'd do a showstopper, but I am interested in a few less sensational recipes this season.

And as for Matcha, I don't care for it. If that makes me stodgy, so be it.

Edited October 7, 2019 by Clanstarling

[Harry24]

David reminds me of Adam Rippon, although now it occurs to me that it may be more that they share grooming techniques and not so much that they have similar features.

[Oldernowiser]

On 9/5/2019 at 8:16 PM, jpgr said:

I personally did not get all the love for Helena's spider. I didn't think it was all that original, and I'm already tired of her "witchy/goth/spooky" schtick. She made two different types of biscuit for that sculpture, and spiced nuts for the other little eggs spilling out, whereas most others used several types of biscuits to create different elements, or used other baking skills to create confectionary elements. OK, she had spun sugar and made caramel to stick it together.

Her signature was TERRIBLE compared to everyone else's - she's the only one who didn't have any layers at all, just her simple green finger made in a mold with an almond and a squiggle of "blood." Super lame even compared to Jamie who at least had several elements in his bars.

Come sit next to me!

I find that Goth Chick thing really only works if one is eighteen or under. Same way with Goth Guy...looking at you, Eyeliner Noel. I have zero interest in eating a tarantula (plus spider eggs), let alone a severed finger. It’s both creepy and overly precious at the same time.

I thought David’s towers were gorgeous and actually something I would want to eat. Jamie is adorable and I’m sorry he’s gone so soon, but he’s still just a kid. I know I would discombobulate in that tent in roughly ten minutes and I’m much older than he is!