After the dramatic double elimination last week, we wondered what Paul and Prue would have next in store for the bakers. This week was the classic dessert week! But how did the bakers get on? Let’s find out.
Signature challenge: Layered meringue cake
Image source: The Great British Bake Off.
To start off dessert week, the bakers were asked to make a layered meringue cake. It needed to be a large cake with a minimum of three layers, sandwiched with a filling of their choice.
Paul’s top tip: We want the bakers to create a beautifully aesthetic meringue cake. You want definition, you want peaks, you want a bit of shape to your meringue, so when you look at it, you think, “Wow, I want to eat that.”
All the bakers went bold with their flavour combinations and choice of decoration.
Prue’s top tip: It seems quite simple, because they can all make meringue, they can all whip cream, they can all know about flavour. But the danger is because it’s simple, they will want to overcomplicate it.
Nearly all the bakers got a grilling from the judges, as they dove into the nuances of the meringue cakes. Henry was one of the only bakers to get mostly positive feedback.
Technical challenge: Verrines
Image source: The Great British Bake Off.
Prue had picked another fiendish technical for the bakers. For their technical challenge, the bakers were asked to make perfectly layered verrines; a layered dessert in a glass. It needed to consist of a mango compote, a creamy coconut panna cotta, a fresh raspberry jelly, topped with a coconut and lime streusel and a short sable biscuit.
Prue’s top tip: They could go wrong with not remembering to chill everything between each layer, and if you don’t get the measurements right, you won’t get the layers right.
All the bakers did really well considering how difficult the challenge they had been set was. At the end of the technical, Priya and Michael were in a precarious position as they came last and second to last. At the opposite end of the baking scales, David came in second, and Alice beat everyone to come out on top. It was all down to the show stopper challenge!
Show stopper challenge: Celebratory bombe dessert
Image source: The Great British Bake Off.
For their final challenge of the week, the judges asked the bakers to make a celebratory bombe dessert. It needed to be moulded into a semi-spherical or fully spherical shape; it needed to contain at least one baked element, and at least two other dessert elements such as ice cream or bavarois.
Paul’s top tip: It’s a little bit of luxury, a bombe. They’re probably going to build into a mould. The critical time is when they let it all out because you’re going to have so many different layers, so many different textures. They’ve all got to be set at the same time. If one layer collapses, the probability of all of them collapsing is very, very high.
It was nailbiting to watch all the bakers trying to put their bombes together, but they all managed to finish in time. There was a mixed response to the bakers’ creations, but at the end of the weekend it was time for Priya to leave the tent. Unsurprisingly, Steph succeeded in being crowned star baker for the third week in a row!
Next week…
It looks like next week the bakers will be diving into festive bakes with festival week! What did you think of their creative desserts? Did the right person leave the Bake Off tent? Let us know your thoughts over on our Facebook page!