The Great Canadian Baking Show S08E01 Cake Week
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00:00Hey everyone, it's season eight and we've got a very special announcement.
00:05That's right.
00:06This year, Anne and I have taken a few creative liberties.
00:08It's us.
00:09We're going to do all the baking.
00:10This is a bad idea.
00:13Very bad.
00:14Ignore them.
00:15Welcome to the Great Canadian Baking Show.
00:17Something's burning.
00:18Oh, my buttercream.
00:19Alan, go get it.
00:20Oh, my God, it feels like magical.
00:31I'm still like pinching myself.
00:34I have never been this nervous.
00:37I guess I'm used to my quiet life.
00:39Canada's top home bakers have arrived.
00:42I cannot wait to get in there and to be the first person from New Brunswick who gets to
00:46do that is, yeah, I'm going to cry again.
00:48To test their mastery of baking.
00:57Just things like this don't happen to me.
00:58They just don't.
00:59Yeah, I'm more nervous in this competition than proposing to my fiance.
01:04I feel excited and I feel queasy in a good way.
01:09Oh, my gosh.
01:10Is this not crazy?
01:11Energy.
01:12Hey, I might be a little older than the rest, but I bring pizzazz.
01:18We are season eight.
01:21The most excited person to see me be here is my dad.
01:25He's like, just get the crown.
01:27And I'm like, dad, there's no crown, there's a cake plate, though.
01:31First hurdle, apron on, no tears.
01:34I've been waiting eight years for this moment.
01:36So let's do this.
01:37Let's bake.
01:40Twenty four challenges will demand excellence.
01:43We'll see how that goes.
01:45You be good.
01:46I'm going to pray to baking God that it doesn't explode.
01:49Juggling the ups.
01:51That might be the best cake I've ever had.
01:54Thank you so much.
01:55And downs.
01:56It's not cooked enough.
01:57No.
01:58No.
01:59No.
02:00Got to hide the mistakes.
02:01Clean up on aisle nine.
02:04They will show off.
02:05I've never had anything like that before.
02:08And show up.
02:09I need a hug.
02:10You need a mom hug.
02:11To prove they deserve to win.
02:14Oh!
02:15Good God!
02:16Oh!
02:17There goes my heart.
02:45We're back at the Canadian Film Center, where our ten newest bakers will start their journey
02:50in the tent with three Cake Week baking challenges.
02:55Bakers, you've watched it on TV, dreamt of it night after night, and now you are finally
03:03here.
03:07Welcome to the tent.
03:08For your very first signature bake, you will be making a love cake.
03:12A magical cake that, on first bite, makes one fall in love with the baker.
03:17True to its roots, your love cakes will have to incorporate nut flours and the essential
03:21aromatics and spices.
03:23Bakers, you have two hours to make us fall head over heels in love.
03:26Ding!
03:27On your marks, get set, bake!
03:29Let's do this, guys.
03:32I'm here!
03:34Ah!
03:35I am in the tent.
03:36It's me.
03:37It's happening.
03:38It's season eight, and it's Cake Week.
03:40We've had so many bakers from across the country, and this year, we've found ten more
03:45who are incredible.
03:46This is a chance to build on traditions and to see some fresh new ideas.
03:50This is Rosie the mixer.
03:51We got the spices in here.
03:52We got the lemon zest in here.
03:54Today, it's all about flavors and aromatics and a story that is close to the heart.
04:01I'm making a pumpkin spice love cake for my fiancée.
04:06When I first started baking, I made a pumpkin pie for her, but she disliked it a lot.
04:10So this is kind of like a redemption.
04:12Vancouver native Marcus loves spending time with his fiancée, a fellow accountant.
04:17What do you think of this?
04:18That looks nice.
04:19And his parents.
04:20We're going to meet the deadline, you know?
04:21Who are also accountants.
04:24He hopes his bake will be as well-balanced as his books, with flavors of pumpkin spice
04:29and rose water.
04:32Thinking about this combination of flavors, the rose and the pumpkin spice,
04:37they couldn't compete, couldn't they?
04:38We'll see.
04:39Hopefully, it works out.
04:40I'm sweating already.
04:43The salt.
04:45The salt.
04:47A traditional love cake incorporates nut flour.
04:50I'm using ground hazelnuts.
04:52Come on, baby.
04:53There we go.
04:55And a bouquet of unique spices and aromatics.
04:59Oh, hello.
05:00Hi, Erica.
05:01Hello.
05:02What have you got in that pot?
05:03Distilled tonic water down to a syrup.
05:06Do you have a science background?
05:08I do, actually.
05:09Do you think that helps your baking?
05:11I don't, no.
05:15When they're not knee-deep in the swamp, Calgary ecologist Erica loves to hang out
05:20at the local coffee shop with their friends, both human and furry.
05:24Sitting so nice.
05:27For this bake, Erica will brew up a coffee, orange, and tonic love cake.
05:34I'm smelling to see if my aromatics are done and are, in fact, aromatic.
05:38My flavors are very floral notes with the jackfruit and the lemongrass.
05:43Something smells cinnamony and delicious.
05:45Do you smell the cinnamon?
05:46Yes.
05:47Yes.
05:50As bold as her flavors.
05:52I'm a cancer survivor in both disease and relationships.
05:57Mom of three Patty dabbles in stand-up and loves a good sit-down with her family in Toronto.
06:03I just can't.
06:05I'm scarred.
06:06She'll use flavors of coconut, ginger, and jackfruit to represent her culture.
06:12Everybody thinks Filipino desserts is always just ube, and it's like there's more to Filipino
06:16desserts than that purple yam.
06:20Pamela also draws inspiration from her culture.
06:23I have lemon verbena, which is called cedron in Uruguay, where both my parents are from.
06:28It smells really citrusy, a little bit herbal.
06:31Hi, Lara.
06:32How are you?
06:33Good.
06:34Co-op teacher Pamela helps students get real-life job experience.
06:37Awesome.
06:38And spends her downtime in Stainer, Ontario, with her partner and her besties, mom and dad.
06:45En serio?
06:46Con bombilla y todo?
06:47Con bombilla.
06:48Pamela's love cake will be accented by lemon flavors and cedron leaves.
06:53Scrape like it's your Christmas bonus.
06:56I think I made it too wet.
06:58I'm praying to the baking gods that it works.
07:01You be good, and you cook well.
07:03No burning.
07:05Bye-bye, cake.
07:07Out of the way before company comes over.
07:10Hi, dad.
07:11Hi.
07:12I'm here because my mama was a big fan of the show.
07:15Wow.
07:16Mom taught me how to bake.
07:17Her brown sugar frosting was legendary.
07:20Back in Calgary.
07:21Hey, ladies.
07:22How's the water?
07:23Rita soaks up her retirement.
07:26OK, Jeff.
07:27And enjoys a little healthy competition with her husband.
07:30Let's see if your losing streak continues.
07:33Her mom's legendary frosting will top an orange and hibiscus brown sugar cake.
07:39This is a love cake for mama.
07:42We're clamped.
07:47Bakers, you have one hour left until we all fall in love.
07:52I have to make my topping.
07:54I put some ground saffron into my custard.
07:57This is my lime glaze.
07:59I'm zesting all the limes today.
08:01There's still lime juice in my eye.
08:04Off the clock, customer service rep Christine trades in her headset for a paintbrush.
08:09And loves to spoil her niece and nephew.
08:12Who wants a cupcake?
08:13Christine's zesty lime glaze will coat her hazelnut, lime, and coconut cake.
08:20We're putting lime in all the coconuts today.
08:22Let's do it.
08:23I have like three sugar pots to do.
08:26I'm pretty sure this is my caribou.
08:28And I'm pretty sure this one is for candying oranges.
08:31But it's a little wishy-washy.
08:33There's a few things I'm trying to balance now.
08:35It's a little tricky getting the right consistencies to make a syrup.
08:39Jen Saskatoon Berry Syrup will coat her almond, lemon, and elderflower cake.
08:45A BC bookkeeper.
08:47Do you have those receipts that I'm looking for?
08:49Oh, I've got receipts.
08:50Jen finds work-life balance on the water with family.
08:55My love cake is actually for the tent.
08:57I've applied every year of the show.
09:00It's taken eight years, but I think we're finally past flirting.
09:05What I'm making here is creme mousseline, which is flavored with roasted applewood.
09:09It's going to smell like the family cottage.
09:12A smoked applewood cream will top a nature-themed lemon, sweet clover cake.
09:18Quebec psychologist Guillaume enjoys collecting bugs and his next ingredients from nature.
09:27It's on the paler side, but I'm afraid the rest is going to be too dark.
09:31The whole is baked.
09:34Okay, we have a cake, people.
09:37It gets Marcus' stamp of approval. Judges' stamp of approval, we'll see.
09:41My cake needs another half an hour.
09:49Thirty minutes, bakers. Thirty minutes.
09:52I'm working on my decoration, meringue mushrooms.
09:56This is a coffee brittle. It's like all other brittles, except it's coffee.
10:00I am tempering chocolate right now. I wish I could dip my face in it.
10:04I'm pre-planning my decor, so I can just slap it on and go.
10:09What is happening here?
10:11It's a little sugar bowl I'm making for the top of my love cake.
10:15This will represent the maple syrup part of Réjean.
10:18He loves maple syrup. He makes his own maple syrup.
10:20Why am I talking in the third person?
10:21Réjean's maple sugar bowl will house a bouquet of apple roses and sit atop a maple spice cake.
10:31Back home in Ottawa, retiree Réjean taps into his many hobbies, like musical theater.
10:37Is it time for a dance number?
10:39And baking with his daughter, Courtney.
10:41That's looking good.
10:43For his husband, Chris.
10:45Everything's his favorite.
10:47Yes, it is.
10:48Okay, now we're going to work on making apple roses to represent the dozen roses that Chris got me when we were engaged.
10:55The roses were pink.
10:57Oh my God, my favorite, favorite color, pink.
10:59You go, girl.
11:01I love pink.
11:03Back in Edmonton, process assistant Allora loves gathering family around her very pink table and exploring her creativity with geode art.
11:14Her marzipan flowers will top a rose cardamom cake with a very special soak.
11:21I'm adding rasmalai syrup. It's kind of like home.
11:25Most bakers are moving on to soaking and glazing their cakes.
11:29It's way more glaze than I need.
11:31But Patty's playing catch up.
11:33I think we're good.
11:35Dry like the desert.
11:38Love may be blind, but it can still taste.
11:41Ten minutes left, bakers.
11:43Gloves are coming off.
11:45My mama was a knitter.
11:47Boop.
11:49There we go.
11:51Little bit more.
11:54It's still really warm.
12:01Oh, of course.
12:03We're going to make such a beautiful design out of this.
12:06I like things to be as perfect as they can be.
12:09Bakers, you have one minute left.
12:14I'm just going with the flow.
12:16It's so sticky.
12:19We don't have time to make everything perfect.
12:22I am trying to top my love cake, but it's still too hot.
12:27It's looking good.
12:29I can't see my tweezers, but I know they're somewhere around me.
12:35There's my dozen roses.
12:37The knife trick.
12:44Ah.
12:46Five, four, three, two, one.
12:51And time.
12:53That's your first signature challenge.
12:55Yay, great job, bakers.
12:57Congrats.
12:59We did it.
13:01It's time for the judges to taste the bakers' cakes.
13:05Will it be love at first bite?
13:07Well, look at the height you've created here.
13:10The coffee beans and the sugar looks almost like stained glass.
13:14I like that fight between the bitterness and the coffee and the sweetness.
13:19And it does linger like a cocktail in your mouth, so very nice.
13:22Oh, good.
13:24It's a stunning presentation.
13:26It's very vibrant, very colorful.
13:28Beautiful glaze.
13:30You just want to avoid pooling it.
13:32But you have a beautiful bake, nice coloration.
13:34It's not too tart.
13:36It's just the right balance of flavor.
13:38Thanks, guys.
13:41I love how you capture the wilderness.
13:44However, your cake looks a bit lost.
13:46It is.
13:48But just standing here, we have the aroma of that applewood smoke coming through already.
13:53That's a beautiful cream, silk, cloud-like.
13:57Oh, thank you so much.
14:00Right out of the gate, I mean, just the shine on your glaze, it just stands out.
14:05Great technique on the feathering.
14:07Yeah, and then is that the piece of the jackfruit that you can see all the way through?
14:10I love that.
14:12It's like little tiny jewels hidden in there.
14:14Baked right through really well.
14:16Oh, awesome.
14:18I mean, great moisture, very rich in a good way.
14:21I feel like I could sit and eat quite a lot of that cake.
14:25Oh, look at these roses.
14:28Oh, gorgeous.
14:30But this beautiful caramel work looks like it broke on you.
14:34We asked for aroma, we're getting it.
14:37You've got that waft of maple coming through.
14:41The cake has good flavor, but definitely on a dry side.
14:45Dry side, right.
14:48It's so beautiful that it almost looks like fine china.
14:53That custard is very good. I love the saffron.
14:56I actually wish that we had more of that inside the cake itself.
15:00We want to be overpowered by love.
15:06I love the softness of the presentation.
15:12But a traditional love cake would keep the sides more exposed.
15:16A bit on the dry side, but flavor-wise it's quite pleasant.
15:20It is lime and coconut.
15:25Look at how evenly baked it is. Well done.
15:30I can breathe now.
15:33Now, I think that the Cedron is adding a nice balance.
15:37It's not shouting.
15:38It's a little whisper. I love you.
15:43Wow. Beautiful, clean lines.
15:46I love the lace effect, but your borderline dry.
15:51A bit more butter will bind everything together.
15:55But I can see why that brown sugar frosting is legendary.
15:58Mama be proud.
16:01That looks like a perfect love cake for Valentine's Day.
16:05I have to say, I wasn't sure about the idea of rose water and pumpkin spice,
16:10but I think I'm in love now.
16:12Oh, wow. Thank you so much.
16:14Good job, Marcus. Thank you.
16:16When they said they liked it, I was like, thank you, thank you.
16:19Didn't know what else to say, except, am I saying too much thank yous?
16:22I feel super relieved.
16:24Time did get away from me at the very end,
16:26so I need to be mindful of that as I move into the technical.
16:35Bakers, what do you know?
16:39We've arrived at your very first technical challenge.
16:42This is where we give you an incomplete recipe that will probably stress you out,
16:48but it's so, so fun to watch.
16:50Bruno, any advice for our bakers?
16:53Curiosity killed the cake.
16:55OK, well, don't say we didn't warn you.
16:58All right, judges, be gone.
17:00Take care.
17:01Be back really soon, OK?
17:02Bye.
17:04Bakers, for your first technical, you'll be making a schmoo cake.
17:08So, the schmoo cake hails from Winnipeg,
17:10and it's made up of layers of pecan, angel food cake, whipped cream, and ooey, gooey caramel.
17:15Schmantastic.
17:17Bakers, the clock is set for two hours on your marks.
17:20Get set, bake.
17:23Here we go.
17:25A schmoo cake?
17:27I have no idea what that is, and I am deeply frightened.
17:30For our first technical, I have chosen a recipe that is unknown outside of Manitoba.
17:36Well, it's certainly beautiful on the outside.
17:38An angel food cake inside?
17:40There is three layers of pecan, angel food cake, candied pecans, caramel, and whipped cream.
17:47It's really, really tasty.
17:50But angel food cake is tricky on its own to have that lift and rise,
17:53but adding pecans and all that weight to it, what a challenge.
17:55And if they are too curious and spend too much time opening the oven,
17:59you know it's going to be a disaster.
18:03This recipe is huge.
18:05Oh, there's a bag, awesome.
18:07Ah!
18:09We're starting with an angel food cake.
18:11So, I'm separating my eggs.
18:13It's the egg whites that's going to give a spongy texture.
18:15Oh!
18:17If you can get them cracked, which I'm having trouble doing right this second.
18:21Give me your egg shell.
18:23There we go.
18:25How are you feeling right now?
18:27I'm clueless. I'm like a dog in a bowling alley, if it makes sense.
18:30In French it does.
18:32The airy batter requires delicate handling.
18:35You need all the volume you can get.
18:37Especially when adding heavy nuts.
18:40You want to make sure that you fold gently.
18:42You don't want to deflate the air that you put into the eggs.
18:45But do not overmix.
18:47They're very temperamental, those egg whites, I tell you.
18:50And then it's going in the oven for an unspecified amount of time.
18:54Let's try 20 and see how it goes.
18:57Try 15 minutes for now.
19:01Bakers, one hour to get through your schmooze.
19:05I'm making brown sugar caramel.
19:08Oh, caramel. I love caramel.
19:10Boil, caramel, boil.
19:12Ooh!
19:14If I didn't know that that was going to be scalding hot, I would jump in.
19:17I would join you.
19:19Bakers will have to keep a careful eye on their caramel.
19:22It looks like it's supposed to.
19:25And their ovens.
19:27You don't want to test and have it not be set, because then it'll deflate.
19:31Oh, true.
19:33I think that's what Bruno meant by curiosity.
19:35Curiosity killed the cake.
19:37Do you know what that actually adds?
19:39Exactly.
19:41While the cake finishes baking, the multitasking continues.
19:44I am trying to coat my pecans in my egg sugar mixture, which apparently is candying them.
19:54So I'm just stirring them up so they get coated and crispy and crunchy.
20:00I can't tell if the cake is dark or if it's just the glass.
20:04How do we know when it's done?
20:06I'm looking for a golden top.
20:08Can we see golden top through the oven glass here?
20:11No.
20:12You scream at people when you watch the show not to open the oven, and all you want to do is open the oven.
20:19It's good.
20:21Much better than I anticipated.
20:23Okay, in the fridge.
20:25That's the freezer.
20:27This is the fridge.
20:29Bakers, you have half an hour left.
20:32Okay, I have to now make the stabilized whipped cream.
20:36Place the gelatin sheets in a corn bar. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
20:38Sheet gelatin is so fun.
20:41It's dangerously fun.
20:43Melt the gelatin, add it to the cream.
20:45Whoa, turn that way down.
20:47So, do you think you have enough time to finish this off?
20:51Hopefully.
20:53You sound confident.
20:55What am I doing?
20:58Now the moment of truth. Will it come out of the pan?
21:03Oh, it's good.
21:04It's good.
21:07Okay.
21:09I didn't wait long enough.
21:11Feels like I'm operating someone for an open-heart surgery.
21:14I think I should have cooked it a little more.
21:16Curiosity killed Réjean.
21:23I didn't know how long to cook this for.
21:26In the end, I don't think anyone will notice. Do you think?
21:29No.
21:31Fifteen minutes remaining, and you schmooze, you lose.
21:34I'm fast-walking, I'm not running.
21:36We are assembling now.
21:38Oh, that looks good.
21:40I am hyping a jam.
21:42Okay.
21:44We're going to put it all back together like Humpty Dumpty.
21:49I forgot to save some cute pecans.
21:52It is what it is.
21:54Don't really have a third layer.
21:56Oh my God, this cake.
21:58Oh, this is ridiculous.
22:00We're just going to put lipstick on the pig.
22:02Bakers, you have five minutes left.
22:06Oh, he's stressing.
22:09It's very tight for time.
22:11I feel like I'm just going to keep piling on caramel.
22:13Oh!
22:15I see some caramel sneaking out.
22:18All right, clean it up.
22:21Oh no.
22:23Pecans.
22:25Five, four, three, two, one!
22:28Hands up, bakers, you're done!
22:31Great job, everybody!
22:34That's it.
22:36Please bring your shmoo cakes up to the gingham altar and place them behind your photos.
22:42The judges are looking for an airy cake with a good distribution of nuts and caramel.
22:48Baker number one.
22:50Fairly uniform with their rosettes, but they're a bit small in proportion to the overall cake.
22:56Nice height in there.
22:57The cake itself is quite light and delicate.
23:00Great pecan flavor coming through.
23:03Moving to our second baker.
23:05We've got those nice pecans.
23:07Presents really well.
23:09It's got a nice structure to it when you cut through.
23:12The texture is a little bit tight, but the flavor of it is there.
23:17Caramel is a good flavor.
23:19I wish we had more of it.
23:21Moving to our third baker.
23:23Some seepage coming out.
23:24It looks like they didn't build a very strong dam.
23:27But that caramel is well constructed.
23:29Great job on the whipped cream.
23:31Perfect amount of sweetness.
23:33Moving to our fourth baker.
23:35Even distribution of the nuts.
23:37Caramel is just sneaking out the sides there.
23:42The cake feels a bit wet.
23:44Slightly gummy.
23:46Moving to our fifth baker.
23:48Beautiful rounded rosette.
23:50Beautiful pecans on the top.
23:51You can see this is a really well constructed angel food cake.
23:54It has the right light touch.
23:56Caramel has good flavors.
23:58Moving to our sixth baker.
24:00Well, this is a new interpretation of the challenge here, we can see.
24:04It's missing a lot of the structure and height that we're looking for.
24:08Unfortunately, the cake is very dense.
24:10It lacks aeration, but it has good flavors.
24:15Now let's move to our seventh baker.
24:17Those nice striations with the caramel.
24:19Great texture, good flavors.
24:21The whipped cream is a bit thin, but right amount of sweetness.
24:25Moving to our eighth baker.
24:27It has a nice height, but the top looks a bit messy.
24:31The flavor of the cake is quite nice.
24:34However, it just needs to be so much gentler on the folding.
24:39Moving to our ninth baker.
24:41Here we have a lot of pecans.
24:43A very generous amount.
24:44It's so important that we have the pecans on the cake.
24:46For that baker, it's all about balance.
24:48Way too much whipped cream inside, should have been more on the outside.
24:51Same for the caramel.
24:53And finally, our tenth baker.
24:55Definitely generous on the pecans.
24:57We've got two solid layers here, but that top layer is almost missing.
25:01Whipped cream is very thin, but it does have great flavor.
25:04Bruno and Katya are still trying to figure out how to make the perfect cake.
25:08They're still trying to figure out how to make the perfect cake.
25:10Whipped cream is very thin, but it does have great flavor.
25:13Bruno and Kyla will now rank the Schmoo Cakes from bottom to top.
25:18In tenth place,
25:20Rizzo, you've just lost your structure here.
25:25In ninth place,
25:28Christine, your Angel Fruit Cake needed some work.
25:32In eighth place is Marcus.
25:34Pamela is seventh.
25:36Sixth is Patty.
25:38Fifth is Elora.
25:40She is in fourth place.
25:42And Guillaume is third.
25:44And in second place,
25:48whose is this?
25:50Erica. Great work, just needs some finesse on the details.
25:54And in first place,
25:57Jen, congratulations.
26:04I won the first technical bake.
26:06And I'm going to make it for my family.
26:08Schmoo's left, right, and center.
26:10My cake, I'm feeling a little deflated.
26:13But you know what? It's okay.
26:15You can only go up from here.
26:25It's showstopper day.
26:27I think if you go in with the idea that it's going to be fun,
26:30you can handle whatever catastrophe is coming your way.
26:34I have to be ambitious today.
26:36There's no playing it safe when it comes to the showstopper.
26:39And I just got to bring it.
26:41Bakers, it is the culmination of your cake week,
26:44the showstopper challenge.
26:46Today, you're going to crack it wide open
26:48as you make a split cake.
26:50Split cakes are cakes that are cut open
26:52and then decorated and dazzled inside and out.
26:55You have four hours on the clock on your marks.
26:58Get set, bake.
27:02I've got the first day under my belt,
27:04so I'm feeling excited.
27:05I love making big showstopper cake.
27:08Today's face is kind of like determination.
27:11I like that. I like that.
27:13The split cake is a perfect opportunity for the bakers
27:16to really tell us an amazing story,
27:18but also to exhibit great baking skills.
27:21The visual aspect is critical.
27:23Essentially, you're decorating the inside,
27:26even more elaborate than the outside would be.
27:31We want the bakers to show us all their ambition,
27:33but manage it within the time we've given.
27:36Whoo! Let's do this!
27:38The first thing I'm making is my cake batter.
27:40I need so much butter for this. It's wild.
27:42I need to manage my time better.
27:44It's what I'm committed to do today
27:46as I mash these bananas by hand.
27:48Awkwardly.
27:50Banana will be Pamela's star flavor,
27:53accompanied by a pineapple-strawberry sauce
27:55and ice cream-sundae toppings.
27:58I've practiced this four times at home,
28:00and the best I've done
28:01is half an hour overtime.
28:03This is not sports,
28:05and we don't go into overtime.
28:07No, it's not a pile of dirt.
28:10I'm making an earl grey tea cake.
28:13Fresh strawberries.
28:15We is hoping for the best.
28:17I don't know what's gonna happen.
28:20A show-stopping split cake
28:22starts with great flavor.
28:24New Brunswick blueberries
28:26are some of the best in the country.
28:28Unique to the baker's story.
28:29I'm chopping up my fresh sage.
28:31We're going to be making a cake
28:33with some indigenous roots
28:35to honor my daughter's heritage.
28:37Bréjean's sage pumpkin cake
28:40is a celebration of his daughter
28:42and her adoption into their family.
28:44Today is for my daughter,
28:46so it's easier to bake today.
28:49All right, we're gonna go in the oven
28:51as soon as I get these a little smooth.
28:53Okay, cake.
28:55Do what you're supposed to do.
28:56Do what you're supposed to do.
28:58I have to make sure
29:00my cakes are baked properly today.
29:02I want to get the star baker.
29:04I have my eye on it.
29:06I'm making Italian meringue.
29:09I've never made it before, so
29:11I'm just throwing caution to the wind.
29:13I'm doing my lemon cremeux.
29:15That's gonna go between my layers.
29:17It's a lot of lemon.
29:19Lemon flavor is my favorite.
29:21A little extra fruit.
29:23Today's cake is black forest cake,
29:24but half my family prefers raspberries,
29:27so we're gonna do half with raspberry filling
29:29and half with cherry filling.
29:31Jen's raspberry twist on this classic
29:34will look like it can be found
29:36in a black forest.
29:38Now it turns into a sauce,
29:40and you get a steamed facial
29:42at the same time.
29:44So this is the passion fruit puree.
29:46I'm cooling it down.
29:48Whatever you guys are putting in there
29:50smells so good.
29:52It's Marcus.
29:55Marcus's fragrant passion fruit puree
29:58and Almond Genoise cake
30:00will take shape as a brilliant sun.
30:02I'll split it open,
30:04and you'll see kind of the core inside.
30:06There's some sparkle in there.
30:08I hope it's sparkly inside the sun.
30:10Me too.
30:12All right.
30:14That's good.
30:16This is a pumpkin maple filling.
30:18Smells like Thanksgiving.
30:21My mango lassi filling is cooking,
30:24and I'm making Italian buttercream.
30:27I'm gonna lose my marbles.
30:29Erica's mango lassi coconut cake
30:32will burst with isomalt crystals
30:34to depict first frost at the pumpkin patch.
30:37One time I saw a pumpkin patch
30:39and went, oh my God,
30:41how have I never seen a pumpkin patch before this?
30:43You're like, that's just nature?
30:45You did that on your own?
30:47Dang, dude.
30:48For free?
30:50For free?
30:52Yeah, you crazy, nature.
30:54Bakers, two hours left.
30:56Could you bake more, maybe?
30:58Oh, no.
31:00My thermometer baked into my cake.
31:02Worst things happen.
31:04I don't want to over bake it.
31:06Good.
31:09This is falling apart.
31:11There was just too many blueberries,
31:13and it got wet.
31:15I'm gonna have to start over.
31:18Christine hopes to salvage her blueberry butter cake
31:21and showcase her family's Irish and Scottish roots.
31:25You're not supposed to do it this fast,
31:27but time is not on my side today.
31:31All right.
31:34We're just making some chocolate bark texture,
31:37and hopefully it comes out looking like
31:39something you want to eat.
31:41I'm going to be making a little tree
31:43as a decoration on top.
31:45This represents our family
31:46and our daughter.
31:49Oh, it's hot, babies.
31:51I'm making a black and white marble fondant.
31:55I want my split cake to look like rock.
31:58The marbled fondant will envelop
32:01Allura's lemon-forward geode cake,
32:03split open to expose its crystal interior.
32:07Are you a fan of crystals and geodes and rock?
32:10Yes, love crystals.
32:12Anything is sparkle.
32:14I mean, that's me.
32:16Banana?
32:18I'm just making more colors while I'm waiting.
32:20My cake is still hot, hot, hot.
32:23Patty's pastels will transform her strawberry chunk cake
32:27into an impressionist work of art.
32:30My daughter is in art school.
32:32She taught me how to use palette knives for this.
32:34Let's hope I do her proud.
32:38This is all edible.
32:40I am making my isomalt crystals.
32:43That's so cool.
32:45Good morning, Rita.
32:47Smells wonderful.
32:49I'm making mousse bubbles,
32:51and I'm going to have a mousse straw
32:53coming out of the top of the cake.
32:55Oh, this is risky, though.
32:57Do you think it will stand up?
32:59No risk, no reward.
33:01Well, it has stood up, but it also has fallen.
33:03Rita's mousse decorations
33:06will transform her chocolate cake
33:08into a bubbling glass of chocolate milk.
33:11I'm going to put them in the fridge.
33:12Okie dokie.
33:15One hour left, bakers!
33:17I'm starting to get stressed.
33:19Time is ticking.
33:21It's been a point of contention amongst us
33:24if you split the cake before you ice
33:26or after you ice.
33:28I'm going to cut it
33:30after I finish decorating the cake.
33:32I've decided to split.
33:34I could work on one while the other is cooling.
33:36While the rest of the bakers
33:38are split on when to cut their cakes...
33:40We got a split cake.
33:42Oh!
33:44One baker is taking a different approach.
33:47It's an eight-pieces cake
33:49that looks like a moth.
33:51This is going to be a very unconventional cake,
33:53if I may say so myself.
33:55Guillaume's unique
33:57earl grey and lemon cake
33:59will take shape as the gynandromorph moth
34:01tattooed on his arm.
34:03This moth is part female, part male,
34:06so the split is actually the gender splitting.
34:08I want to show something
34:10that's just proud of who it is,
34:12because it's beautiful.
34:14Yeah.
34:16Oh, my goodness.
34:18Any beaver will tell you a dam isn't important.
34:20Oh, you've been too generous.
34:22Bring it in.
34:24My cream cheese frosting
34:26is very soft right now,
34:28so I have to put it in the freezer again.
34:30I think we're good.
34:32Whoop!
34:34Oh, no!
34:36Oh, no!
34:38Where's my other cake?
34:40Oh!
34:42Remember, it's what's on the inside that counts.
34:44Hopefully, because my outside's
34:46going to look like mess.
34:48I think I made a concept
34:50that was much too complex for the time.
34:52I've never painted with frosting in my whole life.
34:54We can save this.
34:56We can save this, yeah.
34:58You can save this.
35:00Yeah, yes.
35:02If I do everything fast, I can pull this out.
35:04I just took my cakes out of the oven.
35:06They look good.
35:08I'm going to have to make time.
35:10Get something done.
35:12I'm piping back too big.
35:14I'm struggling.
35:16Why am I too big?
35:18I'm freeze-spraying this.
35:20Hopefully, like, hard enough
35:22to cover up with fondant.
35:24These last details are pretty critical.
35:26You're just going to do some graffiti on it?
35:28Yeah, yeah, yeah.
35:30Bakers, you have ten minutes left.
35:32This isn't how I would normally do this,
35:34but...
35:36Desperate times.
35:38It is time for bubbles.
35:39Oh, that's nice.
35:43So it's a rock, right?
35:45So rock should be, like, uneven.
35:47I'm trying to get the split.
35:53Look at my thing.
35:55I dropped the head of the moth,
35:57and I'm trying to make it happen.
36:00Okay, I have had to pivot.
36:02Because of heat and time,
36:04I'm not going to split it.
36:06It's not the challenge
36:07the way we were supposed to do it.
36:09But I have to present something.
36:12Ice cream for my banana split.
36:15I saved it.
36:17It's been released.
36:19Some flowers.
36:22We're just improvising at this point.
36:24Ten, nine,
36:26eight, seven,
36:28six, five,
36:30four, three,
36:32two, one!
36:34You're done, Bakers!
36:35Great job!
36:37You finished your showstopper challenge!
36:40You're wild, dude.
36:42I didn't get the last two cherries on,
36:44but they're all beautiful.
36:46Can I give you a hug?
36:48I'm so sorry.
36:55Bruno and Kyla
36:57will now taste the Baker's split cakes.
36:59Jen, please bring your cake
37:01up to the front.
37:06Jen,
37:08I really like the way you captured
37:10the BC forest.
37:12It looks so real.
37:14It's fantastic.
37:16This is a hike I'd go on.
37:18Would you like cherries or raspberry?
37:20You get cherry.
37:22It's like the fruit
37:24just kind of elevates the spices
37:26and lifts that up.
37:28Really delicious cake.
37:30Team cherry say good job.
37:32What does team raspberry say?
37:33Team raspberry all the way.
37:35New favorite.
37:37Thank you so much.
37:39The palette knife work
37:41that you've done here,
37:43it's so Monet.
37:45We can see nice even layers there,
37:47and we can see the strawberries.
37:51Fantastic strawberry flavors,
37:53but the cake tends to be a bit gummy.
37:55Okay.
37:57But nice job on the Italian meringue buttercream.
37:59It's very smooth,
38:01not overly sweet.
38:03Erica,
38:05I feel like there's actually
38:07ice coming out of the cake.
38:09It's such a clever use
38:11of the split cake.
38:13I love the details,
38:15how minute and well done it is.
38:17I love the flavors
38:19of the mango lassi.
38:21Very bright, very sharp.
38:26Rita,
38:28I wasn't sure if your bubbles
38:30were going to be holding,
38:31but they are.
38:33Yeah, I'm surprised too.
38:35You are.
38:37But I'm not sure
38:39if I see the overall concept.
38:43It's a classic chocolate cake recipe,
38:45and it's just decadent.
38:49Raison,
38:51I'm floored
38:53with how well you executed on this.
38:55This moment here,
38:57it just tells the story
38:59of a beautiful family.
39:01The orange and the pumpkin,
39:03I think it's gorgeous together.
39:05However, the texture of the cake,
39:07it's gummy.
39:10Elora,
39:12the cake does not look perfect,
39:14but it looks like
39:16a real stone split open
39:18that reveals gems.
39:20It's really stunning work.
39:23It's a very refreshing cake.
39:25I love the tang on the lemon curd.
39:27Marcus,
39:29I could see the sun just shining.
39:31What a gorgeous use of colors here.
39:33I love the blend
39:35of different form of piping.
39:37The cake has a beautiful texture.
39:39Look at that.
39:41That filling
39:43is bright in color,
39:45but very bright in flavors.
39:47I love the tartness of it.
39:49Thank you so much.
39:51Christine,
39:53if we had asked for a wedding shower cake,
39:54I think this is exactly
39:56what I would dream of.
39:58But this is the tent,
40:00and things happen.
40:02And the tent got me today.
40:04Your distribution of blueberries
40:06is lovely.
40:08Very tasty,
40:10but unfortunately,
40:12not a split cake.
40:14No.
40:16Guillaume,
40:18I love your intellectual
40:20and meaningful approach.
40:24Well, maybe.
40:30The lemon and the tea
40:32plays very well.
40:34There's something addictive
40:36about those flavors.
40:40Holy bananas!
40:42Pamela!
40:44You got it done.
40:46I'm gobsmacked.
40:48These drips of chocolate,
40:50like I just want to scoop them up
40:52and give it a try.
40:54I think we have to taste it.
40:57I love the way
40:59the flavors remind you
41:01of ice cream.
41:03It's just rich and delicious.
41:07So it's Season 8,
41:09we're three bakes in.
41:11What are your first impressions?
41:13This group of bakers
41:15are very talented,
41:17definitely a lot of passion.
41:19So who's left a lasting impression?
41:21Look at Jen,
41:22and her showstopper.
41:24Tasty and very well done.
41:26And Marcus,
41:28the flavors he brought to the table,
41:30you really look forward
41:32to tasting more of his bakes.
41:34And Pamela's struggle
41:36in the technical.
41:38But that showstopper was just wow.
41:40I hate that we already
41:42have to lose someone.
41:44Yeah, they really are
41:46such good bakers all around.
41:48Some people just didn't land
41:50on their ideas.
41:53Bakers, wow.
41:56You really started off
41:58Season 8 with a bang.
42:00But one person's hard work
42:02and determination
42:04really paid off.
42:06Our very first star baker is...
42:11Jen.
42:13Oh!
42:15Finally!
42:23And this is the difficult part.
42:26The person going home today is...
42:33Christine.
42:35We'll miss you.
42:42I am extremely honored
42:45to bake in our tent.
42:47Very few dreams I've had
42:49actually come true.
42:50And this one did.
42:52I'm just really gonna miss them.
42:54Now I have a reason
42:56to go visit New Brunswick.
42:58Yay!
43:00I worked really hard to get here
43:02and practiced a lot.
43:04And it's been a really long journey.
43:06Congratulations!
43:08Thank you so much!
43:10It just shows my kids
43:12what perseverance really does.
43:15Next time...
43:17Mom, please be with me today.
43:18The bakers have their fill
43:20This is my winning flavor.
43:22during an intense cookie week.
43:24Oh my God, so aggressive.
43:26Who will be tickled pink?
43:28Neon!
43:30It's fun!
43:32And who will sing the blues?
43:34Let go and let God!