The Great British Bake Off: Dessert Week
November 7, 2023 3:30 PM - Season 14, Episode 7 - Subscribe
It's Dessert Week and the bakers take on a retro crème caramel and a classic treacle sponge, before creating a showstopping meringue bomb. Who will peak and who will wobble?
I can't believe after six years of hosting this show Noel still can't say "profiterole" right! It's like Benedict Cumberbatch trying to say penguin.
posted by babelfish at 5:47 PM on November 7, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by babelfish at 5:47 PM on November 7, 2023 [5 favorites]
I felt like they shortchanged Tasha in the technical, too, as the only one who realized the bain marie was going to prevent them from cooking in time and just went rogue. It didn't even sound like it hurt _that_ much.
posted by Kyol at 6:20 PM on November 7, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by Kyol at 6:20 PM on November 7, 2023 [5 favorites]
yea, when no-one can actually cook the challenge in the time given, it seems really mean to be all "it's disgusting I'm disappointed in all of you" I don't like Paul much. Just admit that you made a mistake when allocating the time and move on, don't make other people feel bad when you screw something up.
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 12:12 AM on November 8, 2023 [13 favorites]
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 12:12 AM on November 8, 2023 [13 favorites]
I'm kind of curious if Saku misread the assignment for the Signature challenge and made something egg custard adjacent but that set up harder than the Judges were expecting, or if it would have been acceptable if it weren't overbaked.
posted by Kyol at 5:21 AM on November 8, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by Kyol at 5:21 AM on November 8, 2023 [1 favorite]
I'm really tired of technicals that take too long for the time allotted. This is another Sussex Pond pudding fiasco, when they gave them a recipe that takes at least 3 hours to steam to dissolve the whole lemon inside and--shock and surprise--no one's dissolved! I really think you have to build in time for the bakers to read and understand the limited directions, and extra time to make everything, certainly more time than it would take Paul to make.
Here's Paul's recipe (difficulty level: needs skill). It takes about 40 minutes to make the caramel syrup, then you have to make the sponge batter (to make it and fill the tins, about another 20 minutes minimum), and it bakes for 40 minutes. The bakers would need extra time to figure out the limited directions, remake the caramel (which almost always goes wrong for someone), and time to cook the damn things.
If none of them turn out, then it's a Paul and Prue problem, not a baker problem.
posted by ceejaytee at 6:49 AM on November 9, 2023 [10 favorites]
Here's Paul's recipe (difficulty level: needs skill). It takes about 40 minutes to make the caramel syrup, then you have to make the sponge batter (to make it and fill the tins, about another 20 minutes minimum), and it bakes for 40 minutes. The bakers would need extra time to figure out the limited directions, remake the caramel (which almost always goes wrong for someone), and time to cook the damn things.
If none of them turn out, then it's a Paul and Prue problem, not a baker problem.
posted by ceejaytee at 6:49 AM on November 9, 2023 [10 favorites]
If we wanted to see a bunch of people fail tremendously, we'd be watching Nailed It
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 11:27 AM on November 9, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 11:27 AM on November 9, 2023 [5 favorites]
There's no excuse for the judges to give such shit timing. There clearly isn't enough time if bakers who are in the seventh episode of bakeoff can't execute.
posted by Carillon at 8:03 PM on November 10, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by Carillon at 8:03 PM on November 10, 2023 [2 favorites]
This has happened a few time on Bake Off, and it always pisses me off that Prue and Paul don't take responsibility for it. If all the bakers fail in the same way, clearly there's a problem with how the challenge was designed. And Paul joking about how disappointed he was just made it worse. If you don't want to be disappointed, work on making the challenges actually doable Paul.
While I'm sad to see Saku go because I absolutely love her energy, from a baking perspective it was time. I hope next week brings less obnoxious challenges.
posted by miss-lapin at 1:16 AM on November 11, 2023 [7 favorites]
While I'm sad to see Saku go because I absolutely love her energy, from a baking perspective it was time. I hope next week brings less obnoxious challenges.
posted by miss-lapin at 1:16 AM on November 11, 2023 [7 favorites]
The Vulture recapper has a huge crush on Dan 😂 [Archive]
posted by ellieBOA at 12:33 PM on November 11, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by ellieBOA at 12:33 PM on November 11, 2023 [3 favorites]
Okay, I know everybody adores Tasha, but did they give her a cheat on the showstopper? Her orb was clearly falling over without that jar or whatever propping it up when they called time. And then she presented it, and... nothing propping it up suddenly?
posted by queensissy at 10:44 AM on November 12, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by queensissy at 10:44 AM on November 12, 2023 [1 favorite]
I thought Paul's comment after the technical, along the lines of "the boys are doing well but the girls are in trouble," was literal bollocks after Tasha was the only one to hack the impossible conditions of the technical to get her puddings actually baked.
Her hack, extracting the ramekins from the pan of water, was genius in the circumstances. No matter how hot the oven is, water cannot reach a temperature higher than the boiling point*. She knew she didn't have the necessary time for the puddings to bake at that temperature, so she took them out and placed them on the upper rack where they could heat up, keeping the water pan on the lower rack so they would still steam. It just about worked, and no one else thought of doing it.
Predictions: Josh to win. Tasha and Dan as finalists. Matty will either do brilliantly or flame out dramatically; his luck can't last forever. He or Kristy will exit next week.
posted by Pallas Athena at 3:25 PM on November 12, 2023 [7 favorites]
Her hack, extracting the ramekins from the pan of water, was genius in the circumstances. No matter how hot the oven is, water cannot reach a temperature higher than the boiling point*. She knew she didn't have the necessary time for the puddings to bake at that temperature, so she took them out and placed them on the upper rack where they could heat up, keeping the water pan on the lower rack so they would still steam. It just about worked, and no one else thought of doing it.
Predictions: Josh to win. Tasha and Dan as finalists. Matty will either do brilliantly or flame out dramatically; his luck can't last forever. He or Kristy will exit next week.
posted by Pallas Athena at 3:25 PM on November 12, 2023 [7 favorites]
*Pressurised water can reach higher temperatures, but absent a pressure cooker, ye canna change the laws o' physics Jim
posted by Pallas Athena at 3:31 PM on November 12, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by Pallas Athena at 3:31 PM on November 12, 2023 [2 favorites]
That technical summed up my problem with the show. They're supposed to be amateurs so they work with mostly amateur-level tools (fancy versions but still amateur)... no blast chillers or things like that I've seen on other shows. But then they give them professional level deadlines (and even then I imagine some pros would struggle). It's so silly and arbitrary. Yeah, Paul&Prue should have owned that one.
posted by kokaku at 7:13 AM on November 13, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by kokaku at 7:13 AM on November 13, 2023 [3 favorites]
I am SO tired of their constant "ratchet up the tension by not giving the bakers enough time" gimmick. Forcing them to rush doesn't do anything to show the bakers' skills, it just sets them up to fail. And Paul was especially rude to the bakers this week. It was really jarring. (I also deeply miss Mel and Sue and how they would rush over to an upset, crying baker and swear loudly to keep the camera crew from filming them. Leave the crying people alone!)
posted by maryellenreads at 8:04 AM on November 13, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by maryellenreads at 8:04 AM on November 13, 2023 [5 favorites]
If none of them turn out, then it's a Paul and Prue problem, not a baker problem.
Exactly. This was so frustrating to watch happen, and then continuing to see Paul complaining throughout the episode made me shout at the TV.
posted by oneirodynia at 1:32 PM on November 13, 2023 [4 favorites]
That technical summed up my problem with the show. They're supposed to be amateurs so they work with mostly amateur-level tools (fancy versions but still amateur)... no blast chillers or things like that I've seen on other shows. But then they give them professional level deadlines (and even then I imagine some pros would struggle). It's so silly and arbitrary.
This x infinity. It’s the Great British Baking Show, not the Great British Kitchen Manager Show. It’s especially cruel considering the technicals are often things that many of the bakers have never made. Add-in the meagre instructions, and the ridiculous time constraints are just fucking cruel, and proves nothing about the bakers’ skills.
The truly dirty part is that, unless things have gone horribly off the rails, no professional commercial kitchen would allow such a time crunch in which to make those desserts, because they know disaster awaits otherwise.
And for Paul to chastise the bakers like that was just the height of assholishness. After he did that, I was quietly wishing the bakers would band together, and do a proper “fuck you” and not show-up the next day.
Fuck Paul.
posted by Thorzdad at 2:27 PM on November 13, 2023 [2 favorites]
This x infinity. It’s the Great British Baking Show, not the Great British Kitchen Manager Show. It’s especially cruel considering the technicals are often things that many of the bakers have never made. Add-in the meagre instructions, and the ridiculous time constraints are just fucking cruel, and proves nothing about the bakers’ skills.
The truly dirty part is that, unless things have gone horribly off the rails, no professional commercial kitchen would allow such a time crunch in which to make those desserts, because they know disaster awaits otherwise.
And for Paul to chastise the bakers like that was just the height of assholishness. After he did that, I was quietly wishing the bakers would band together, and do a proper “fuck you” and not show-up the next day.
Fuck Paul.
posted by Thorzdad at 2:27 PM on November 13, 2023 [2 favorites]
On another note, I'd really prefer less showstoppers that require some elaborate finicky building challenge - I'd rather have challenges that relate more to home baking, or at least something home bakers might aspire to - I can dream about one day making a fancy multi-layered cake, but I have zero ambitions to make a marshmallow orb or whatever.
posted by coffeecat at 3:19 PM on November 13, 2023 [7 favorites]
posted by coffeecat at 3:19 PM on November 13, 2023 [7 favorites]
I agree, coffeecat. I feel like the whole showstopper concept needs to be rethought. It really has become more a contest of overwrought construction than top-level baking. If you think about it, the showstoppers have become more akin to gaudy table centerpieces than anything for eating (though, of course, they are edible.)
Chocolate week is sort of the same thing. Build something with chocolate. Again.
posted by Thorzdad at 6:11 PM on November 13, 2023 [1 favorite]
Chocolate week is sort of the same thing. Build something with chocolate. Again.
posted by Thorzdad at 6:11 PM on November 13, 2023 [1 favorite]
And Paul was especially rude to the bakers this week. It was really jarring.
I did a quick search for any British media review of this episode, to see if they also noted the problem. But, nope, it was all rainbows and unicorns as far as the britpress was concerned (at least as far as I could find.)
posted by Thorzdad at 4:43 AM on November 14, 2023
I did a quick search for any British media review of this episode, to see if they also noted the problem. But, nope, it was all rainbows and unicorns as far as the britpress was concerned (at least as far as I could find.)
posted by Thorzdad at 4:43 AM on November 14, 2023
Not sure if this is paying subscribers only but Samantha Irby loves Dan too!
As a lesbian I’m normally ok at seeing which men are appealing to others but this one really surprised me!
Here’s the text in case it’s paywalled:
thank you god for the return of the great british baking show!!!! you don’t need me to explain to you why a show about processed sugar with no yelling appeals to me but rest assured it really does. i cry when their chocolate collars melt! i cry at the handshakes!! i cry when they call their mums to say they got star baker!!! now saku is who we were rooting for in this house, BUT: if i could wake up one (very late) morning and pad groggily to the kitchen in search of a freshly-baked flaky something to find dan’s thick rugby thighs making me some kind of pastry item??? i could die happy. yes, i have had bakeoff spouses in the past (chigs, janusz, ruby, antony, steven, benjamina, selasi, other ruby, briony, rav, liam, PAUL FUCKING HOLLYWOOD) but dan is so hot, so solid, so kind, so charming, and also just so hot and nice that he might just eclipse them all. i texted my friend john, who is so disgusting i had to redact him for fear of getting both of us kicked off the internet, and of course he feels the same way because we are hopeless romantics ie pathetic losers. anyway this season is a delight, and also i am smitten with alison because she is simply the best.
posted by ellieBOA at 8:14 AM on November 14, 2023 [2 favorites]
As a lesbian I’m normally ok at seeing which men are appealing to others but this one really surprised me!
Here’s the text in case it’s paywalled:
thank you god for the return of the great british baking show!!!! you don’t need me to explain to you why a show about processed sugar with no yelling appeals to me but rest assured it really does. i cry when their chocolate collars melt! i cry at the handshakes!! i cry when they call their mums to say they got star baker!!! now saku is who we were rooting for in this house, BUT: if i could wake up one (very late) morning and pad groggily to the kitchen in search of a freshly-baked flaky something to find dan’s thick rugby thighs making me some kind of pastry item??? i could die happy. yes, i have had bakeoff spouses in the past (chigs, janusz, ruby, antony, steven, benjamina, selasi, other ruby, briony, rav, liam, PAUL FUCKING HOLLYWOOD) but dan is so hot, so solid, so kind, so charming, and also just so hot and nice that he might just eclipse them all. i texted my friend john, who is so disgusting i had to redact him for fear of getting both of us kicked off the internet, and of course he feels the same way because we are hopeless romantics ie pathetic losers. anyway this season is a delight, and also i am smitten with alison because she is simply the best.
posted by ellieBOA at 8:14 AM on November 14, 2023 [2 favorites]
After he did that, I was quietly wishing the bakers would band together, and do a proper “fuck you” and not show-up the next day.
As far as I know Ruby is the only baker to really go all in on Paul (long after she left the show), but it's wonderful and inspiring and it's one of the reasons why no matter how charming Tasha may be, Ruby's my permanent favorite. (Tasha is VERY charming though! Dan does nothing for me but I'm glad everyone is having fun.)
posted by babelfish at 7:22 PM on November 14, 2023 [2 favorites]
As far as I know Ruby is the only baker to really go all in on Paul (long after she left the show), but it's wonderful and inspiring and it's one of the reasons why no matter how charming Tasha may be, Ruby's my permanent favorite. (Tasha is VERY charming though! Dan does nothing for me but I'm glad everyone is having fun.)
posted by babelfish at 7:22 PM on November 14, 2023 [2 favorites]
Okay, I know everybody adores Tasha, but did they give her a cheat on the showstopper? Her orb was clearly falling over without that jar or whatever propping it up when they called time. And then she presented it, and... nothing propping it up suddenly?
Yeah, that was odd. It suddenly was sitting on a stand of sorts. And we didn't see her carry it up to the front as is usually the custom. Hmmm....
Not that I'm angry about it - they just are quite obvious about their favorites.
posted by hydra77 at 10:51 AM on November 15, 2023 [2 favorites]
Yeah, that was odd. It suddenly was sitting on a stand of sorts. And we didn't see her carry it up to the front as is usually the custom. Hmmm....
Not that I'm angry about it - they just are quite obvious about their favorites.
posted by hydra77 at 10:51 AM on November 15, 2023 [2 favorites]
I dunno, I've noticed in the past the producers will step in to make sure a showstopper is presentable if it's otherwise done and just needed another minute to get it on a plate that could be carried up to the judges. Still, the obvious issues with a bombe would seem to be the "how do you plate something spherical?" problem, yeah.
The ones I always sort of wonder about are when a baker like drops their cake on the floor and picks it up and dusts it off all OH WELL let's just make sure they don't eat that bit.
posted by Kyol at 8:47 AM on November 16, 2023 [2 favorites]
The ones I always sort of wonder about are when a baker like drops their cake on the floor and picks it up and dusts it off all OH WELL let's just make sure they don't eat that bit.
posted by Kyol at 8:47 AM on November 16, 2023 [2 favorites]
I agree, coffeecat. I feel like the whole showstopper concept needs to be rethought. It really has become more a contest of overwrought construction than top-level baking.
Agreed. And the meringue bombes were incredibly ugly to me as well. Not the least bit appetizing or attractive. On the other hand, the chocolate boxes the previous week were quite nice. I wish there was a bit more attention paid to what looks delicious vs. what took a lot of effort and food coloring.
posted by oneirodynia at 2:06 PM on November 16, 2023
Agreed. And the meringue bombes were incredibly ugly to me as well. Not the least bit appetizing or attractive. On the other hand, the chocolate boxes the previous week were quite nice. I wish there was a bit more attention paid to what looks delicious vs. what took a lot of effort and food coloring.
posted by oneirodynia at 2:06 PM on November 16, 2023
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posted by ellieBOA at 3:57 PM on November 7, 2023 [28 favorites]