S10.E05: The Roaring Twenties

[Rinaldo]

3 hours ago, magdalene said:

I miss the days when Selasi was on. He was too cool for melt-downs, ha!

Selasi stood out for that quality even in his own season, while others were melting down to the right and left of him. I recall many a freak-out in the past. Though I don't ever recall seeing such a pitiful showing for choux pastry on this show before.

Edited September 30, 2019 by Rinaldo

[bybrandy]

I hadn't heard of Choux before the first season of this show but tired making it by the second or third time it came up and then realized that I'd had it in all sorts of ways before I"d just never made it.  My mom said Choux based appetizers were huge in the 70s and she'd made LOADS before.  Obviosuly none of these bakers was making Choux swans in the 70s but it feels like learning to drive stick for Amazing Race... just do it.   

I thought Priya would go home.  I'm not overly upset by the result but it was a bit of a head shaker.  

I'm glad Rosie's staying, though.  Just because her rabbits comment slayed me... and those gel flower things were brilliant before they melted.   

[ElectricBoogaloo]

4 hours ago, magdalene said:

I miss the days when Selasi was on. He was too cool for melt-downs, ha!

Ha, I miss him for the same reason. No matter what happened, he didn't get flustered. I admire that because I'm the complete opposite (one of the many reasons I never had any desire to be on a reality show is because I know they'd have a field day with me yelling "OH CRAP!" every time I dropped something and having ridiculous reactions to everything).

But that's also why I can't get too upset with Michael for having a meltdown. Although GBBO is nowhere near as cruel as other reality shows (the ones where they deliberately make sure the contestants are sleep deprived, provide copious amounts of alcohol, and then create situations designed to cause drama and fighting), it's still upsetting when things don't go to plan.

If you were at home and you screwed up making something, you could just start over easy peasy. But if you screw up on GBBO, there usually isn't enough time to start over (unless you manage to screw up very early in the process), which means that something you KNOW you were able to make at home is going to look like a pile of crap on television. I totally understand that frustration. It's one thing to mess up the technical when it's something you've never made before, but it's another level of annoying when you screw up the signature or showstopper which most people have practiced several times at home.

Edited September 30, 2019 by ElectricBoogaloo

[biakbiak]

I have an 8 year old who I let pick something and I will teach her how to make it and she has already done a choux three or four times for various things she wanted to make so I was also surprised how flummoxed everyone was trying to make it.

i agree that the 20s theme wasn’t well executed.

Edited September 30, 2019 by biakbiak

[Quilt Fairy]

Were the Roaring 20's even the Roaring 20's in the UK, or is the show just appropriating a distinctive American period?  

[dleighg]

3 hours ago, Quilt Fairy said:

Were the Roaring 20's even the Roaring 20's in the UK, or is the show just appropriating a distinctive American period?  

Exactly. I was watching it with my daughter, and we noted that not only did they not have prohibition there, they were likely busy getting over, you know, the war, to a much greater extent than we here in the US were.

[Rickster]

5 hours ago, Quilt Fairy said:

Were the Roaring 20's even the Roaring 20's in the UK, or is the show just appropriating a distinctive American period?  

I think the short answer is the Roaring Twenties had a different flavor in Europe due to the lack of Prohibition, but it definitely existed, at least for the upper classes in London, Paris and Berlin and to some extent was a reaction to the horrors of the Great War.

Beignets are not normally made from choux (at least in New Orleans), but everyone on the show should know how to make choux.

I was surprised to see the reference to Kool Aid, which I wouldn’t have thought was known in the UK.

For some reason, after having been a huge fan of the show for years, I’ve found it getting tedious to sit through the episodes for these last two seasons. I don’t know if I’m just losing interest, or if it’s the move to Channel 4 that changed something intangible in the show (I have a British friend who thinks it’s the latter).

Edited September 30, 2019 by Rickster

[Adiba]

3 hours ago, Rickster said:

I think the short answer is the Roaring Twenties had a different flavor in Europe due to the lack of Prohibition, but it definitely existed, at least for the upper classes in London, Paris and Berlin and to some extent was a reaction to the horrors of the Great War.

Beignets are not normally made from choux (at least in New Orleans), but everyone on the show should know how to make choux.

I was surprised to see the reference to Kool Aid, which I wouldn’t have thought was known in the UK.

For some reason, after having been a huge fan of the show for years, I’ve found it getting tedious to sit through the episodes for these last two seasons. I don’t know if I’m just losing interest, or if it’s the move to Channel 4 that changed something intangible in the show (I have a British friend who thinks it’s the latter).

Right, I think Cafe du Monde's in NO uses a yeasted dough? At any rate, the contestants should know how to make choux and how to deep fry doughnuts or churros (or something similar). Getting them to be the right shape and consistent would be the challenge, imo. 

They should at least be familiar with sabayon (zabaglione in the greater NYC area where I grew up)--it's just a frothy custard like sauce. Stabilizing it so it doesn't break before the judges taste it might be difficult, but I've had strawberries with zabaglione at Italian street fairs that seemed to hold.

[Deskisamess]

15 hours ago, magdalene said:

I miss the days when Selasi was on. He was too cool for melt-downs, ha!

He is pretty easy to look at as well.

[libgirl2]

10 hours ago, biakbiak said:

I have an 8 year old who I let pick something and I will reach her how to make it and she has already done a choux three or four times for various things she wanted to make so I was also surprised how flummoxed everyone was trying to make it.

i agree that the 20s theme wasn’t well executed.

No it wasn't. It could have been better or not used at all. 

[Danny Franks]

9 hours ago, Quilt Fairy said:

Were the Roaring 20's even the Roaring 20's in the UK, or is the show just appropriating a distinctive American period?  

I think Britain was still mired in the rigidity of the Edwardian class system in the 1920s. It was starting to break down, thanks to the Suffragettes and more progressive governments, but there still wasn't very much roaring, unless you were very wealthy.

We did have society types, like the Mitford sisters, Noel Coward and PG Wodehouse, who probably had a very good time and became quite famous, but I don't think it was comparable to the glamour of the flapper era in the US.

As Rickster and dleighg mentioned, there was no prohibition in Britain, so the idea of socialising was less rarefied. Working class blokes nursing pints of bitter in the pub after a hard day doesn't really lend itself to baking cakes and choux buns.

Edited September 30, 2019 by Danny Franks

[Yokosmom]

I was surprised so many of the bakers had never even heard of beignets, but I guess that I am in no place to judge, as I've never heard of a sabayon. (However, I have heard of zabaglione--thanks to the poster who pointed out that they are terms for the same thing.)

[bunnyface]

I'm also surprised so many bakers didn't know choux pastry.  I've never made it, but I'm not going on any competitions.

I was also surprised by whoever it was (I watched two shows this weekend, I don't remember which one) that said they had make a cake at home and "9 out of 10" didn't work.  THEN WHY WOULD YOU DO IT IN COMPETITION??  That seems like just asking for trouble you don't need.

[Rinaldo]

2 hours ago, Danny Franks said:

We did have society types, like the Mitford sisters, Noel Coward and PG Wodehouse, who probably had a very good time and became quite famous, but I don't think it was comparable to the glamour of the flapper era in the US.

This may be true (I'm in no position to be authoritative about it), but the picture in popular fiction of the period makes it sound pretty glamorous and flapper-ish, not that different from the US of that decade (even given the difference created by Prohibition). I'm talking about books like the early novels of Christie and Sayers, Benson's Lucia series, and certainly Wodehouse himself, all of whom create a picture (when focusing on London) of the idle rich enjoying themselves in daring new dress styles, fast cars, endless parties, drinking, and drugs that matches anything in, for instance, Fitzgerald.

[Quilt Fairy]

I really wish Netflix had bleeped Henry's f-bomb as was apparently done when the show aired in the UK.   

[lh25]

38 minutes ago, bunnyface said:

I was also surprised by whoever it was (I watched two shows this weekend, I don't remember which one) that said they had make a cake at home and "9 out of 10" didn't work.  THEN WHY WOULD YOU DO IT IN COMPETITION??  That seems like just asking for trouble you don't need.

Exactly!  I don't get that either.  They can't do it in their familiar kitchen, but think in the tent, with all the pressure and weather they get, it will be easier?

[Bad Example]

9 minutes ago, Quilt Fairy said:

I really wish Netflix had bleeped Henry's f-bomb as was apparently done when the show aired in the UK.   

It made me laugh... especially because he looks like such a choir boy.

[Ilovepie]

On 9/25/2019 at 1:59 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Ooh, custard pies. What's not to like?

Well, if you are me, all of it. I absolutely detest eggs, so most custards are a nightmare for me. This includes creme brulee and flan. Blech. And don't even get me started on that cup of frothy eggs from the technical. I don't care if it has a fancy name - that is exactly what it looked like to me. I wouldn't touch that with a ten foot pole.........

Between the Dairy Week and Now 20's week, I think they are really circling the drain in terms of new themes. Why can't they just stick to tried and true themes and give different challenges around those? There was absolutely nothing 1920's about the Showstopper challenge. All  these people making Pina Colada cakes - a drink that wasn't invented until the 1950's! It should have been either based on 1920's cocktails, or the decoration should reflect the era (Art Deco?). Or both. That challenge could have been for any decade. Just dumb.

Priya should absolutely have been out. I cannot believe Michelle went but Priya stayed. I think she was hands down the worst this week - heck, Helena even came in first in the Technical! Boo!

[Athena]

4 hours ago, bunnyface said:

I was also surprised by whoever it was (I watched two shows this weekend, I don't remember which one) that said they had make a cake at home and "9 out of 10" didn't work.  THEN WHY WOULD YOU DO IT IN COMPETITION??  That seems like just asking for trouble you don't need.

3 hours ago, lh25 said:

Exactly!  I don't get that either.  They can't do it in their familiar kitchen, but think in the tent, with all the pressure and weather they get, it will be easier?

I believe it was Michael who said this. They have to produce most of the recipes before filming for the home economists to gather supplies and ingredients. I think they change recipes a little but he probably couldn't have changed it out right easily. Jane and Howard also think this was the case. Still, the contestant would have had time to make at least one cake before sending the recipe. 

[Mabinogia]

5 hours ago, bunnyface said:

I'm also surprised so many bakers didn't know choux pastry.  I've never made it, but I'm not going on any competitions.

They do some form of choux pretty much every season. If I wanted to go on a show like this, when I got picked I would practice all the basics at the very least. Choux, Victoria sponge, etc. I am in no way a baker so most of the terms go right over my head so that's all I can think of at the moment but the Bakers' lack of basic knowledge is astounding. 

2 hours ago, Ilovepie said:

Priya should absolutely have been out. I cannot believe Michelle went but Priya stayed. I think she was hands down the worst this week - heck, Helena even came in first in the Technical! Boo!

This is the second week I thought Priya should go. I do like her, but I don't like that she seems to have some kind of Teflon armour on her that keeps protecting her from elimination. One of the things I always loved about this show was that the most obvious person went home. That feels like it's been changing the past couple seasons. Sometimes it's true, but not always. 

Priya, was it last week, had a technical so bad the judges wouldn't even eat it, and got sub par ratings this week. And she's still coming back to the tent. WTF? She's nice and all but she really should be gone. 

[dleighg]

6 minutes ago, Mabinogia said:

Choux, Victoria sponge, etc. I am in no way a baker so most of the terms go right over my head so that's all I can think of at the moment but the Bakers' lack of basic knowledge is astounding. 

puff and rough puff pastry. short crust. creme patisserie. Not that I can do those this minute out of my head, but for sure I'd memorize them.

Edited September 30, 2019 by dleighg

[bybrandy]

30 minutes ago, dleighg said:

puff and rough puff pastry. short crust. creme patisserie. Not that I can do those this minute out of my head, but for sure I'd memorize them.

And a genoise sponge and various buttercreams, I think.

[killer.noona]

2 hours ago, bybrandy said:

And a genoise sponge and various buttercreams, I think.

And all the meringues - French, Italian, Swiss...

[Rickster]

If I were a suspicious sort, I might think they sometimes cast people with holes in their technical knowledge on purpose, for greater drama in the tent.

[meep.meep]

On 9/30/2019 at 10:57 AM, Rinaldo said:

This may be true (I'm in no position to be authoritative about it), but the picture in popular fiction of the period makes it sound pretty glamorous and flapper-ish, not that different from the US of that decade (even given the difference created by Prohibition). I'm talking about books like the early novels of Christie and Sayers, Benson's Lucia series, and certainly Wodehouse himself, all of whom create a picture (when focusing on London) of the idle rich enjoying themselves in daring new dress styles, fast cars, endless parties, drinking, and drugs that matches anything in, for instance, Fitzgerald.

The portraits of young lovelies in Galsworthy's Forsyte novels, especially the ones about Fleur, and in Trollope's Brideshead Revisited certainly indicate that the Roaring 20's in England were full of flappers and their beaus.

This theme, like last week's, fell flat for me.  I don't think they need to stray too far from the themes of previous seasons.  One of these would have been fine, two in a row is too much.

I thought Phil was wronged last week, and think that Michelle and Helena were this week.  At least they were gracious losers.

[Ceindreadh]

https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/great-british-bake-off-michael-panic-attack_uk_5dc293c6e4b0f5dcf8fd9664?ncid=tweetlnkukhpmg00000001&guccounter=1

Michael’s meltdown was a full blown panic attack. 

[Dobian]

This was the first episode where I called BS.  Helena's kraken signature was creative and original, and she won the technical..  They didn't like the look of her showstopper, but said it tasted pretty good.  How does that get you eliminated?  They clearly have bakers they favor and want to stay in it...Priya, cough, who had a poor signature, middling technical, and middling showstopper.  Nothing against Priya, I like her, but Helena didn't deserve to go home.  I liked Helena and her goofy goth thing, and hoped she would be around a few more shows.  Oh well.

Edited November 21, 2019 by Dobian

[romantic idiot]

On 9/28/2019 at 2:32 PM, Danny Franks said:

I do wonder why there seems to be less Sandi than in the last two years

Maybe she had QI duties at the same time.

On 9/28/2019 at 9:40 AM, Eliza422 said:

I’m shocked at how many of the bakers didn’t know choux or sabayon. These are not obscure things. This really does seem like an unqualified group this year. This would seem to support my thought they were cast for their youth and looks, not Baking skill! 

Nothing has wowed me, and apart from that one perfect cake (which didn't sound all that perfect), nothing seems to have wowed the judges as well. The flavors haven't sounded particular interesting as well.

[QuantumMechanic]

On 9/30/2019 at 6:22 AM, Rickster said:

Beignets are not normally made from choux (at least in New Orleans), but everyone on the show should know how to make choux.

Continental French beignets often are, though.

[caitmcg]

On 10/2/2019 at 2:22 PM, meep.meep said:

The portraits of young lovelies in Galsworthy's Forsyte novels, especially the ones about Fleur, and in Trollope's Brideshead Revisited certainly indicate that the Roaring 20's in England were full of flappers and their beaus.

I realize it’s three years later, but Brideshead Revisited is by Evelyn Waugh, not Anthony Trollope (who died before the turn of the twentieth century).