LIAM: Last time on Bake Off: The Professionals...
Oh BLEEP.
...the chefs delivered souped-up savoury pastries...
My tongue is actually hip-hopping at the moment.
...and the circus was in town.
Roll up, roll up!
After a history of under performing...
It's choux time, baby.
..Ben and Jason...
There, stick those there.
...finally delivered the goods.
These set the benchmark. So, well clone.
Not great, not great at all.
Despite Ajay and Petra's tent taking a tumble...
This is gonna fall off.
...it was Nathan and Andrew who took their final bow.
Is it making me think circus?
Not by the slightest.
ELLIE: And now we meet a new set of teams...
Such a pressure.
...as they attempt to bake a Benoit favourite...
I can have this all day.
...and aim to baffle the judges...
Are you going to trick us?
Yes.
...with a deceptive trick-of-the-eye showpiece.
How do you do that?
ELLIE: But who will fall at the first hurdle?
Ooh. It's falling apart.
Oh!
Who will keep their nerve? Facing that way.
Ancl who will the judges send home?
Is it classy? Uh-uh.
LIAM: A fresh batch of professional teams
are about to tackle two brand new patisserie challenges,
after which, one of them will have to leave the competition.
Really excited to get going now.
There's been such, like, a build-up
and we're, like, finally ready to just get started.
So, super excited.
We're just gonna go in there, put our pastry caps on and, uh...
Yeah. "hopefully we can produce to a good standard.
Ready? As can be. John LAUGHS
LIAM: For their first ever challenge in the competition,
they have no idea what they are about to bake.
I don't think anyone enjoys the element of surprise.
A secret challenge is the one thing
that's kinda putting us on edge a little bit.
It's just you and your skills and if you are not good, out.
Good morning, chefs, and welcome to Bake Off: The Professionals.
And what better way to celebrate your arrival
by taking on a secret challenge
set by the Batman and Catwoman of the patisserie world,
Benoit and Cherish.
Catwoman! Oh, I love it, love it, love it.
Chef, along with the most basic recipe in front of you,
you have all the necessary ingredients and equipment
to make 36 identical coffee eclair.
Please do not mess it up, chef, or I may get my claw out.
Meow. ELLIE LAUGHS
BENOIT: But that's not all.
You must also make a chocolate amenity
inspired by this classic dessert.
And whatever design you're coming up with,
we must clearly see how it relates to the coffee eclair.
Right, we'd better crack on then.
You have two-and-a-half hours
to complete your coffee eclair secret challenge,
and your time starts now.
They're off.
OK.
HAYLEY: I just wanna get the eclairs on.
That's the main thing, just to get them started.
Choux pastry, should be fine, since I do it almost every clay.
Coffee eclair is your favourite.
I can have five or six in one sitting, no shadow of a doubt.
Mini guys? Big guys? Hmm, those kind of guys.
Eight inches? Yeah.
It's coffee eclairs, guys. Stay on coffee eclairs.
Sorry, OK. BENCH LAUGHS
Anyway, so let's get started.
We have six new teams waiting to be crowned
Bake Off: The Professional winner.
They have to make 36 coffee eclair.
One of my favourite things to eat, actually. Can't beat it.
CHERISH: For this, the chef need to make for me
a very nice light choux pastry, a coffee cream,
a coffee gel and a beautiful shiny glaze.
FAUSTO: What I'm making now is the choux.
In case this goes wrong, I have time to make another time.
BENOIT: As this dessert is a patisserie classic,
I will expect any chef in this kitchen
to be able to do this with relative ease.
We failed our first choux pastry assessment in college.
BENOIT: The key there is make sure you've got your coffee gel
and your coffee cream evenly spread out
to enjoy it at every bite.
CHERISH: If they cannot produce a beautiful coffee eclair,
they should get out of my kitchen.
Morning, chefs. Good morning. Morning.
Carlos, Spain. Fausto...
Italy. ..|talia forza.
You like the idea of making, uh, eclairs?
I didn't want choux. Why not? CHERISH: No?
Not as a first challenge, no.
Have you clone coffee eclairs before, you guys?
Yeah. We do it almost, uh, every week.
Why are you scared of doing choux pastry if you do them every week?
It can change a lot. The oven, the environment, humidity.
BENOIT LAUGHS They can collapse.
ELLIE: Fausto and Carlos know all the pitfalls of the eclair,
because French classics are their bread and butter
at Real Patisserie in Brighton.
Off duty...
CARLOS: No, please, don't shoot me.
...they make the most of the seaside entertainment.
ON VIDEO GAME: Game over. Oh.
Tell me about you two, then.
When we work together, a lot of music in the kitchen.
Oh, what kind of music are we listening to?
Whitney Houston is the star.
If you could play a Whitney song right now, what would it be?
# Wanna dance with somebody #
FAUSTO AND ELLIE: # I wanna feel the heat with some... #.
That's the remix everyone needs.
BHARAT: You need to be quick, so here I'm creating a choux pastry,
so I've added the flour to the butter and milk.
LIAM: Bharat knows all about feeling the heat.
He previously made it to the final with teammate Darryl,
representing Resorts World in Birmingham.
BENOIT: You are working here with flavour I don't like.
But I love.
LOUD CRASH But catastrophe in the showpiece...
SIGHING ..saw his hopes of a win crumble.
CHERISH SNIFFLES Sorry.
Now with new teammate john from Soko Patisserie in Solihull...
There you go. There we go.
...Bharat is hoping to go one step further and win.
LAUGHTER
Bharat, because you got the final last time... Yeah.
...anything less than that...
Have to really win it, don't we?
You said it. I didn't. Yeah, I know.
But you've got an amazing partner here, so... Yeah, absolutely.
I've got john. One more step, champions?
Hopefully. Hope so. Early doors, early doors, early doors.
Take care, chefs. Thank you. Nice one.
I'm gonna pipe the choux dough.
ELLIE: The judges are expecting 36 identical
and perfectly-piped coffee eclairs.
Need a hand, give me a shout.
OK, coffee eclair. Have we done them before?
I've made eclairs before.
So make hundred and thousand,
you close your eyes, you can make it? Yeah.
What about the recipe? ls there any concern you have?
The concern, just our time management, really.
ELLIE: Cake Ninja, aka Kate and Hayley,
are self-taught pastry chefs based in Southport,
who met two-and-a-half years ago through TikTok.
I mean, I'm sure they can be a bit more professional.
What they sometimes lack in experience...
...they make up for in fighting spirit.
Cake Ninja, I love your name. Tell me about that, then?
I do martial arts. I'm actually a black belt in karate.
Oh. So... ELLIE EXHALES AND GRUNTS
Er, that's totally, you know...
You nailed it there. KATE LAUGHS
Right, OK, when you're not busy,
teach me how to put Liam in a headlock.
You've gotta stay in just for that. OK, that's a good motivation.
BHARAT: They need to be baked.
FAUSTO: Never worked with this oven,
so it's gonna be 50 minutes, 200 degrees
until I see the colour if I like or not.
ELLIE: If the ovens are too hot,
the teams' choux will be overcooked on the outside
but raw on the inside.
I'm gonna do 180... Yeah.
...and then at the end I'm gonna open the damper to dry it out.
Yeah. I think that's just the safest way.
Emese and Abi. Hello.
Welcome to the kitchen.
You've got some stuff going on, I see.
Yeah, we're a team of three, actually.
How preggo are you? I'm 30 weeks.
Have you had any, like, food aversions?
It's just at the beginning, like smells.
How did you deal with that in the kitchen?
just have to run outside. SHE LAUGHS
Emese and Abi met eight years ago
creating fine patisserie at The Pig at Combe...
Great.
...where, thankfully, Abi's aversion to particular odours has passed.
Oh, this smells so nice.
OK, I'm gonna do 16 minutes.
But maybe gonna do a bit longer just to crisp it up.
Cherish is here.
Chefs, half your time has gone.
If you're not working quickly enough, maybe have a coffee.
Or an eclair. Ooh, that is a good idea.
Yeah, just have an eclair.
Actually, I'm gonna go and do that right now.
Need to decide on what to do for the amenity now.
I think you should go coffee cup, huh?
LIAM: If creating 36 identical coffee eclairs wasn't challenging enough...
We're gonna make a mini coffee bag.
...the teams must also construct their coffee-themed chocolate amenities.
Shaky hands.
Chocolate amenity is like a miniature showpiece
which has a special little meaning.
I made this kind of mocha shape.
What I would make is a very nice coffee cup
that dance and swirl around.
I even would chip the cup, just to make it look real.
So we're doing a little chocolate cup and a chocolate spoon.
It doesn't have to be complex, it doesn't have to be complicated,
but it needs to be very visual.
Morning, chefs. Morning, chefs. Morning, morning.
So, amenities. Take us through your design.
I wanna make sure that it looks like a coffee cup.
It needs to look like you're having a cappuccino, basically.
That's the idea. Ancl we drink to that.
LIAM: Tj and Narayan met at the lnterContinental
at the O2 in Greenwich.
How's it going? It's good.
And they have a hard-earned reputation
for beautifully-finished desserts.
Done.
When not dreaming up his next creation...
...Tj indulges his other passion.
You've got a motorbike? Yeah. I've got a big boy.
Now, I heard you're a bit of a trainer collector? Yeah.
How many pairs of trainers do you have?
20-ish. But I don't wear any of them.
I like to keep them fresh in a box. I know it's weird.
I saw what you were wearing, as well, this morning.
Oh, you saw my Air Nike 5s? Yeah, the white ones, yeah.
Oh, you saw them! With your matching beanie hat.
I like drip.
I appreciate this so much.
Oh, my handle's too big.
Looks like a little octopus clinging on to the cup.
Morning, chefs. Good morning. Morning.
Neil and Nicole.
The amenities which will celebrate the coffee eclair,
what are we doing here? We are making a little coffee cup.
Many teams today are doing cup amenities. Yeah.
So, what will make yours stand out?
Dunno.
You don't know? We'll soon find out. NICOLE LAUGHS
ELLIE: Neil and Nicole met at Balbirnie House in Fife.
Beautiful.
Not only are they a formidable duo in the kitchen...
Are you gonna go first?
...they even team up on family clays out.
Oh, that's cheating, Neil. That's shocking.
Oh, dinnae call it that! I can't believe you did that.
TIMER BEEPS
ELLIE: The teams are looking for golden choux...
Behind you. ..with the perfect puff.
Tj: They look nice. I think we're OK, bro.
I'm pretty happy with the bake on the eclairs.
They've risen evenly.
ELLIE: If the choux hasn't risen enough...
They are a little bit flat, but I'm hoping they're gonna be OK.
...the chefs won't be able to pipe their filling into the eclair.
FAUSTO: What do you think? CARLOS: Ah, BLEEP.
Temperature was too high so shall we make again, eh?
Personally, I don't like how it looks,
so I have to redo the choux and re-pipe it,
and I might have to be really, really quick on that.
LIAM: While Fausto and Carlos remake their choux...
BLEEP. Milk is going.
...the other teams move on to their fillings.
Disaster.
Creating the perfect coffee cream filling
is key for the perfect eclair.
It's something that everyone can get wrong.
Too thick and they won't be able to pipe it into their choux.
You don't wanna put too much butter in, little bits at a time.
Too thin, and it will soak the pastry, leading to soggy eclairs.
Right now it's got that silky texture that I was looking for.
It's looking good.
This is our second attempt so hopefully this,
this will come out a little bit better than the first one.
I'm gonna try my best with this.
BHARAT: Uh, what did you set the blast chiller to, john?
JOHN: Maximum freeze. Thanks.
So the choux are in the oven.
I think we will have things to serve,
but I'm not sure how it's gonna play out at the end.
We will have to assemble with what we have.
I'm gonna start assembling the eclairs.
NICOLE: They are a little bit flat.
I'm hoping once they're filled they'll, uh, rise to the occasion.
Chefs, you have 30 minutes left.
Go for it, go for it.
Pipe like you've never piped before.
The judges are expecting 36 perfectly-filled eclairs...
They all look good. We're in the zone.
HAYLEY: These eclairs look like they've been on holiday, I think.
Slightly over baked.
ELLIE: "precisely filled with even amounts of coffee gel and cream.
Now I'm thinking maybe I made them too big,
because I don't know if I'm gonna have enough filling.
We'll see.
They're, like, so phallic.
Like, they're absolutely awful.
How we getting on?
QUIETLY: They look like penises.
Uhh... I've never seen any that look like that.
ELLIE: And Nicole isn't the only one...
CARLOS: Ah, BLEEP.
...not feeling cock-of-the-walk.
They are not ready. You think?
No, no, they are not ready, I'm telling you.
But we need to fill them, you know.
I'm worried that they are gonna be a bit raw inside
but the time is not enough now,
so we are gonna fill them with the cream and decorate.
NICOLE: Right, I am so unhappy with these.
It's just burst out the top. Cut them.
My creme pat is still a little bit too hot,
so I'm gonna get Nicole to open 'em up,
glaze the top of them.
Hopefully get this creme pat chilled back,
and hopefully it works.
Chefs, you have 15 minutes to go.
It's gonna be a speedy 15 minutes. SHE LAUGHS
We need to pipe this, yeah, outside?
So that's the gel, right?
Tj: It's almost there for the amenity.
Hopefully put some sort of design on top,
like you have on a cappuccino.
Our amenity is not coloured. It looks like my daughter made it.
CARLOS: Don't fill them up too much. That's the only cream we have.
We got any more gel? We run out?
Oh my actual god.
Ooh.
Right.
CARLOS: They look really rough.
FAUSTO: At least we are serving something.
NEIL:
Every last drop.
I'm improvising.
I'm piping the fondant glaze into the middle.
Melt the chocolate and do a swirl.
Oh, my god, the fondant has, uh, melted the decoration.
BHARAT: just be very gentle. We don't wanna drop any, yeah?
HAYLEY: just any kind of drizzle would be perfect.
NICOLE: They're so ugly.
I knew I'd eat my words if I went, "We do choux all the time."
Chefs, you have one minute left.
Go, we've got one minute.
EMESE: I just hope they taste good.
HAYLEY: These are far from identical.
FAUSTO: It is what it is, isn't it?
NICOLE: God, it's hard to tell which ones have the creme pat now.
This is gonna be like a Russian roulette.
BHARAT: How much eclairs do we need?
JOHN: 36.
ABI: Can you count them, please?
HAYLEY: We haven't clone the whole amount.
18. How many you got?
18. Perfect.
Chefs, your time is up. Please step away from your coffee eclairs.
Good job. Very good job.
FAUSTO:
CARLOS:
Yeah, really disappointed.
How many did we do?
KATE:
I don't wanna look at them.
No, me neither.
N El I: Absolutely brutal.
My heart is beating. I know. It's OK.
LIAM: The teams...
...will now face Cherish and Benoit for the first time.
Tanuj and Narayan
from the lnterContinental London, the O2, come on up.
Chef, you meet the brief.
QUIETLY: Yes.
For the first glance, I really like your chocolate decoration.
BENOIT: Though I wish it was a little bit more neatly glazed,
I like everything to be straight.
Moving on to your coffee cup,
how I wish that you incorporate something that is
a little bit more flamboyant.
OK, let's see if you've clone a good job inside the eclair.
The coffee flavour is really, really nice
but your filling is so soft, it's very messy to eat.
The choux pastry is baked beautifully,
but for the borderline liquid cream you've got inside,
it's therefore under baked.
Thank you. Thank you.
OK, Bharat and John, pretty sharp.
They might be the best-looking eclair today in this kitchen.
Moving up to your chocolate amenity,
this doesn't really have the impact that I'm looking for. Yeah.
OK, let's see they taste equally as good inside.
Let's hope so.
OK, I think you've clone two holes under your eclair.
You should have gone for three... Hm.
...to try to get the more even distribution.
After that, everything else,
I can have this all clay.
Everything works together.
Well clone, guys. Thank you. Thank you.
The essence of coffee is really punchy.
The cream is smooth.
This is my cup of coffee. It's right up my street.
Well done. Thank you. Thank you.
OK, well, the choux pastry looks like it's been baked evenly.
My biggest issue here is your fondant glaze on top,
which is very, very scruffy.
The amenity itself...
If I don't know that this is supposed to be a coffee cup,
well, I don't know what it is, you know what I mean?
The proof is in the eclair.
Let's see if they taste a little bit better, perhaps.
BENOIT GASPS QUIETLY: Oh, god. It's empty.
Yeah, I think they're all the same.
OK, I'm very disappointed.
There is no cream and, when there is,
the cream is very pale, has no flavour.
Because there's so much sugar glaze on the top,
when you eat it's really, really sweet.
I think on this occasion, you missed the point.
Better luck tomorrow. Thank you. Thank you.
OK, chef, you did not meet the brief.
We asked for 36. What happened?
We struggled with the time frame.
The choux pastry looks like it's the right colour.
Beside that, hm, I'm struggling.
OK, looking at your chocolate showpiece,
it doesn't look impressive.
All in all, I'm a bit disappointed there, OK?
But let's hope they taste beautiful.
OK, it's not been filled up.
So certain part of your eclair is very sweet,
certain part of your eclair is not so sweet.
It's very inconsistent.
I would like to say something positive,
but I really don't like it.
Well, I'm gonna say something positive. It tastes like coffee.
But that cream, it's split.
It does taste a little bit like it looks, a bit messy.
Thank you very much. Thank you. We'll see you a bit later.
How many batches of eclair have you clone? Twice.
You've clone it twice? Yes.
Ancl how many eclairs do we have? 33.
BENOIT LAUGHS How did you manage that?
I think I piped them a little bit too thick.
I have to ask, is it classy? Uh-uh.
Is it identical? Uh-uh.
The amenity, it's a bit two-dimensional
but it's very visual.
OK, eating the eclair. Mm.
So we'll start with the positive. It tastes of coffee.
You have got the beautiful sweetness
combined with the coffee-ness of an eclair which I love so much.
Then the problem starts.
The cream is split. It looks scruffy,
and the cream inside make it unfortunately taste the same.
It's just not enjoyable eating it, so I would not have more.
A tough clay in the kitchen, we'll say, yeah?
But thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you.
OK, cutting the eclair and filling it is not five-star standard.
I also felt that your eclair collapsed.
They look more like paninis. They are too flat.
But let's hope they taste delicious.
The filling is so dense.
I would like something that is very silky,
very smooth and very enjoyable.
Let's put it this way, I would not go back for another slice.
The choux pastry is not too dry,
so at least that gives a little bit more softness.
Ancl it needs it, because the filling is very stodgy, OK?
Please come back stronger tomorrow. Yes, chef.
Horrendous.
NEIL: For something that we do all the time...
Aye. ..it was terrible.
BHARAT: They said it was best eclairs in the room. Yeah.
So, yeah, I think me and john have clone pretty well on that one. Yeah.
CARLOS: It was quite, quite tough.
We did what we can. Ancl we'll see tomorrow. Yes.
ELLIE: Before tomorrow's showpiece challenge,
the teams have a golden hour
to prepare any elements that need setting overnight.
So, six brand new teams in the kitchen.
BENOIT: The eclairs of Soko Patisserie,
Bharat and john, were pretty much on the money.
The rest, I'm actually quite disappointed.
We've got Cake Ninja, Kate and Hayley.
They had fun, those ladies, but it was borderline chaotic.
What about Neil and Nicole from Balbirnie House?
The choux pastry was like pancake
and worse, they did not make enough pastry cream.
Ancl then we have Carlos and Fausto.
They did not achieve the standard they were hoping for,
but they did the batch of pastry twice within two-and-a-half hours,
I couldn't believe.
What about Emese and Abi?
Not all their choux pastry was filled and, uh,
the amenity was unfinished business.
So we've got, let's be honest, four teams
which have a hard, long clay ahead of them to make it stick.
So tell us about tomorrow.
They've got to do a trompe I'oeil, trick-of-the-eye.
The theme is household objects which hide a cake somewhere inside.
Hm. But you don't where it is.
What would you do, Liam? I'd do a beanbag.
That's my favourite household object.
Do you have a beanbag? I've got, like, three.
How old are you?
Uh, 26. THEY LAUGH
LIAM: just one more challenge remains
before Cherish and Benoit crown this week's winners
and decide who will be leaving the competition.
Welcome back, chefs.
It's time for your first showpiece challenge.
Ancl this year, the judges have something new in store.
So, Benoit, tell us more, s'ilvous plait.
Chefs, today we want you to create a trompe I'oeil showpiece
in the shape of a household object.
Trompe I'oeil is French for trick-of-the-eye.
Ancl the trick we want you to play is to successfully disguise a dessert
within the showpiece you build.
So, for example, you may decide to make an armchair
but, unbeknown to us, the cushion is the dessert.
And, chef, the dessert we would like you to make today is
an all-time classic, tarte tatin.
But we do not want any old ordinary tarte tatin.
We want you to experiment the flavour,
texture and appearance,
and turn your tarte tatin into something truly extraordinary.
Chefs, I can't wait to see what you do with this one.
You had an hour last night to prep
and now you have a further four hours to complete your,
bear with me, household object, trick-of-the-eye
ordinary to extraordinary tarte tatin showpiece challenge.
LIAM EXHALES Good luck, and your time starts now.
QUIETLY: Go.
HAYLEY: We've made illusion cakes before.
She's quite nifty with an airbrush. KATE LAUGHS
So this is gonna be fun, then?
What's your favourite household object?
There's a question you don't get asked enough in life.
My lovely little coffee machine.
Do you grind your beans? Yes. Do you?
I grind my beans. I'm very proud of that.
You're proud of your beans.
Of grinding my own beans, yes.
That's lovely. BENOIT LAUGHS
HAYLEY: Main focus is to start with dessert.
LIAM :The teams must prioritise their desserts...
This is the secret dessert.
The outer shell is a caramel chocolate.
...to give them enough time
to disguise them within their household object showpieces.
What's your favourite household item?
Can the bed be one? The bed can be one, for sure.
It's where the magic happens. Yeah, exactly.
My PlayStation. It's how we take our stress out after a long day at work,
killing people on Call of Duty.
Uh, my coffee machine.
How many coffees do you have a clay?
15.
Sorry, 15 coffees?
At the ready, at all times.
I imagine if we cut you, you would bleed espresso.
But then she would drink it. ELLIE LAUGHS
We've asked the chef to do a trompe I'oeil showpiece.
I want them to trick my eyes.
NEIL: Whatever happens, it's been fun.
The tarte tatin needs to serve 12,
and needs to be totally concealed in the shape of a household object.
Ancl we have to discover it.
Hopefully, it's a trick to the eye for them.
We've asked the chef to enhance the tarte tatin.
This is one of our favourite rurns from Devon.
We make them drunk and they more liked our showpiece, yeah?
But crucially the essence need to be prominent,
caramelised apple and buttery, flaky puff pastry.
I want my palate to be dancing with your creation.
Morning, chef. Good morning. Morning.
What a great, great day yesterday.
Today, you need to trick our eyes.
So, what household object have you chosen?
We've decided to go with a side table.
We've encased a tarte tatin somewhere. I'm gonna stop there...
OK. OK, so... ..uh, surprise you guys.
Well, that's the name of the game, uh? Yeah. Speaking of which,
you are supposed to elevate that beautiful tarte tatin of ours.
Yeah, so... Maybe you can share that to us?
Yeah, caramelised apples, very key, but I haven't clone the puff pastry,
so we've gone with a cinnamon sable Breton.
So it's just gonna be tarte tatin in the flavours?
Well, you're gonna get texture from the Breton,
as you would from a puff pastry.
LIAM: Bharat and john will be disguising their dessert
as a clock on a side table,
and inside their cinnamon sable will be the base
for caramelised Braeburn apples
and a creme fraiche and vanilla mousse.
Yesterday, you lot absolutely smashed it.
Thank you. Don't tell anyone, but Benoit had about six after.
Oh, nice.
So how are we feeling about today? How comes you've gone for a clock?
I think it's just part of our lives, isn't it? Especially as chefs.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Timing is everything, isn't it? Yeah.
HAYLEY: Chocolate's looking good.
ELLIE: And Bharat and john won't be the only team
keeping an eye on the time today.
We're gonna be making a grandfather clock.
And we've also got a meadowsweet mousse with...
Don't tell us what is it. You're not gonna know.
We're not giving anything away, so...
We've even got our special time for our clock.
Oh, what time is that?
Champagne o'clock at six o'clock.
ELLIE: Hidden as cylindrical panels on top of a grandfather clock,
their meadowsweet mousse will sit atop caramelised Braeburn apples,
pecan praline, and a smoked cinnamon base.
You've got a hell of a lot of chocolate there.
Have you worked with chocolate a lot before?
I'd never tempered chocolate until about six weeks ago.
So this is the first time that you will be doing a chocolate showpiece?
Yeah. Oh, gosh. KATE CHUCKLES NERVOUSLY
LIAM: Kate and Hayley aren't the only ones
without much showpiece sculpting experience.
NEIL: This is the first sculpture we've ever built,
and, in practice, I snapped one of the legs
with the tempered chocolate when I tried to stick it down.
Hello, how it's going? Good, thank you.
They're actually leaves, aren't they? Yeah.
I won't have a bite of those.
I'm gonna cover it in chocolate.
We've chosen an avocado plant.
See, I think it's a really interesting choice. Yeah.
Have you clone anything like this before?
No showpieces.
You haven't clone a showpiece? No. ABI GIGGLES NERVOUSLY
You seem like you're in quite good spirits.
Yeah, but this happened yesterday, and then we had a last minute dash.
LIAM: Determined to improve on yesterday's performance,
Emese and Abi's avocado plant will contain
the tarte tatin's classic puff pastry and apple elements
surrounded by ginger sponge,
almond tuille, and spiced rum cremeux.
So, literally elevating the dessert. Yes.
But have you chosen the right, uh, household object?
If you take a plant and it's in a pot, it's a little bit obvious.
Are you going to trick us? Yes.
I'm passing the apples and I'm trying to make sure
that they are really nice and smooth for the compote.
LIAM: While the teams are all looking to elevate the tarte tatin...
Caramelised apples on top of creme fraiche and vanilla mousse.
...they must ensure its classic flavours and textures shine through.
Tj: Puff pastry is one of the main components of the tarte tatin.
But Balbirnie are doing something very different
with their puff pastry element.
We're gonna do a copper pot. Nice.
And, uh, we're making a rough puff pastry mousse.
How do you even do that?
We wanted to do something completely different. OK.
So what better than doing something that nobody's ever heard of
and putting puff pastry into a mousse? All right.
It's so weird, but it's so good. I'll keep a bit aside for you.
Don't worry. Give me a whole bowl.
Concealed inside a copper kitchen pot,
their puff pastry mousse will sit between
a pecan and calvados caramel and a Granny Smith apple compote,
all set in a pecan and almond dacquoise sponge.
So are we going to look around for your dessert much?
It's a surprise.
But saying that, I'm actually quite excited
to taste your puff pastry mousse.
It's a bit crunchy? No. It's a bit flaky? No.
But it's gonna taste like it. Yeah. Is that gonna trick our mind?
Well, that's the name of the game,
so maybe the trompe I'oeil is in the trompe tongue.
Oh, I like that. LAUGHTER
We need to layer it as soon as we can.
ELLIE: The teams need to get their tarte tatin elements chilling...
In the fridge they go.
...to give them enough time to focus on their showpieces.
I'll be very surprised if the judges find where the dessert is.
And T) and Narayan have every confidence
in their dessert-disguising design.
Is it the radio, is it the lamp,
or is it the table that's the dessert?
So, let's see if it goes to plan.
It's not the table or the lamp
but their radio that will be concealing their dessert.
Fennel will feature in each soft layer,
and their compote and jelly will contain two types of apple.
I went ahead with Granny Smith and Pink Ladies,
a bit of sweetness from the Pink Lady
and Granny Smith is to give you that tanginess.
OK. And why do you choose fennel? Does it bind together beautifully?
Yes, cos cause apple and fennel actually do go well together,
so that's why we chose fennel as the spice.
You guys seem to be confident. Yes.
I want it to be a good surprise, hopefully.
NEIL: That's not flat, is it?
This one's, like, over the edge a little bit.
KATE GASPS It's too short.
Don't know what's happened there. The base plate isn't big enough.
HAYLEY: Don't worry, we just have to trim everything down now.
LIAM: While some of the teams struggle with chocolate work...
On the chocolate, we try to incorporate an element of,
uh, of sugar, as well.
...Carlos and Fausto have the bottle to attempt another tricky element.
What's that gonna be? It's gonna be a bottle.
Ah. Oh, wow. I'm gonna make a bottle of calvados.
Benoit loves calvados. Perfect.
What about you, Fausto? Have you made any illusion cakes before?
Not really. Nah? Such a pressure.
LIAM: The only team to be incorporating sugar work,
their isomalt bottle will sit on
a marble top table alongside their desserts,
hiding in plain sight as apples,
each containing a Granny Smith and Gala apple compote
with cardamom and calvados.
FAUSTO: I need to see the position of the legs.
They have to be straight. We don't want, uh, anything wonky.
Chefs, you are halfway through.
The task, not your lives.
Although I'm not a doctor, so who knows?
Keep it light. Sorry, yeah. Cakes.
Two hours. Half-an-hour to do this. It needs to be ready. Yeah. Done.
While it's all hands on deck for the chocolate showpiece work...
KATE: Are you ready to go? just one minute.
...Hayley has noticed a problem with her dessert.
I can just about taste the meadowsweet in that.
Ancl if the meadowsweet doesn't come through in the mousse,
their hopes of elevating the tarte tatin will be in tatters.
Kate, I might do that again.
There's meadowsweet at the bottom of the bowl.
I can fold it in. It's all right, I'll take...
You can't do the mousse again.
Have you got one minute if I just do that? Do what?
Take some of the mousse out and put some of the meadowsweet in.
I'm, like, ready to go. Can't help it, gotta just do it.
Oh, Hayley, dammit.
If you go to the right a little bit, yes? Little bit more.
LIAM: The teams are all working together
to construct their trompe I'oeil showpieces.
HAYLEY: Kate, meadowsweet, ready to go.
But with Hayley needing to add more flavour to rescue their mousse...
What I've done is, there was a bit of residue left in the bowl,
so I've just folded it in.
KATE: Is that why it didn't taste of meadowsweet?
I'm just glad I noticed.
...Cake Ninja haven't yet been able to begin any of their assembly...
I think you need to be an octopus in this kitchen.
Are we ready to put it up?
...and find themselves up against the clock.
Kate and Hayley had a difficult clay yesterday
and they are not familiar with working with chocolate.
Today, there's a lot to play for.
Feel nervous. We've got this, you know. You've got it.
The cylinder is gonna be the actual sort of leg for our side table.
Bharat has been in this competition before. Exactly. He knows the game.
Well, a table is not exciting me that much,
but the name of the game is to be surprised.
Ancl tricked. And trick our eyes.
Neil and Nicole. What really caught my attention
is the puff pastry mousse. I can't wait to taste it.
NEIL: If nothing else, if they say the puff pastry mousse is nice
we'll be héIPPY-
Carlos and Fausto, yesterday they didn't do very well.
Looks realistic.
But I think today they're on it.
I need to do the label now. This is rice paper and edible pen.
Emese and Abi.
I like the fact that they kept the traditional tarte tatin,
but on top they're layering to elevate, literally,
the actual dessert.
Let's see if they elevate the flavour or the texture.
Tj and Narayan. I can see that the lamp is up now.
Wow. They are here to win.
Is it covered? Yes, that's it.
Chefs, one hour until we see these household showpieces.
ELLIE: That cup could be one.
That timer could be one. You could be one.
I'm not. How do I know?
BHARAT: Check the dessert.
It's time for the teams' desserts to come to life...
It's ready.
It's pretty much coming out exactly as it did in practice.
NEIL: Don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing.
...and be decorated and disguised in a trompe I'oeil effect
to trick the judges.
Beautiful.
Here's our clock. This is the secret dessert.
Feeling pretty good. The apples, they're coming out.
This is what I'm gonna clip the apples into.
Tj: We have a radio, that's gonna be the illusion.
just gonna add some detailed decoration onto it
to give it more of a retro look.
NICOLE: I'm gonna cover it in the butter cream.
Hopefully, by the end of it, we have a realistic hammered copper pot.
It's falling apart.
I need to just put the collar around, so you hold it.
ELLIE: But before Emese and Abi can make their dessert
look like the pot of their avocado plant...
I'm not sure why it's falling apart.
...it first needs to keep its own shape.
It's quite soft.
I think maybe we should've put more caramel
to, like, stick it all together.
KATE: We're gonna be hiding the dessert at the top of the clock,
so it's gonna look like ridges.
Lovely. And this is sort of up your street.
So your business, Cake Ninja, is illusion cakes. Yeah.
Have you clone any sort of cheeky ones before?
Ooh, OK, so I won't reveal what it is
cos it's kind of rude, but it was for a hen party.
It was, like, in working order. It's what you're thinking.
Is it what I'm thinking? It's what you're thinking. It is.
I made it live online, and I got banned for, like...being rude.
Banned for explicit baking. LAUGHTER
How long do we have left?
Chefs, you have 30 minutes to go.
We need to move a bit now.
With the desserts on their way to being disguised...
NICOLE: We're spraying it with bronze cocoa butter.
...the teams need to put the finishing touches to their showpieces.
Our side table is looking like we sort of envisioned it,
so, yeah, happy with this.
I must say, this table doesn't look like it's made out of chocolate.
FAUSTO: It has three kinds of chocolate. I think because...
Three kinds of chocolate? Yeah. What we talking?
White and milk and dark. All three?
But while things seem to be taking shape for half the teams...
I'm sorry, these leaves aren't great.
Lot of details have not turned out how we wanted.
...for the three less experienced in chocolate work...
NEIL: Disaster again.
NICOLE: He knows it's not straight and he's annoyed about that,
so we need to put more chocolate on it
to kind of balance them out a bit.
...things aren't running quite so smoothly.
Enable the pendulum to, like, float in the centre of the clock.
It's not usually this delicate. OK.
KATE SHRIEKS OK, don't worry. Come on.
Oh.
It's fine. It's fine, it's fine, it's fine, it's fine.
Chefs, you have 15 minutes to go.
NICOLE: That's going on last thing.
Kate, you've got the chocolate...
Do I have it all over my face?
No, you've got it over the clock face.
KATE GAS PS Not good.
What song would you be listening to on this radio?
Bollywood old school classics.
Bangers. Bangers, you know how it is. You know how it is, come on.
Can't get nothing to stick. Can I move it?
Before we put it there, let's get our stand on there. Yeah.
ABI: I'm not looking at anyone else's.
OK, leave it like that, don't touch it. Don't move it, nothing.
Oh, dammit, that's so annoying. Kate, don't worry.
Chefs, you have five minutes to go.
A bit stressed now.
OK, we just need to get this over now.
Go on the top, have the spray.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's all good.
Brilliant. Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant, brilliant. Well done.
Right, then. Go over, then, go.
Right, you put the lid on. Oh, it's a tiny bit small.
Right let's get the... Dessert on.
Tj: See a little bit here, same here, same here, that's it.
No need to put more, just the details.
I hear what they're saying.
"You have no leaves on, it looks messy, not looks real."
A bit dark but other than that, looks more or less all right.
I think I should scratch it, because the paint's not...
No, we need to just wipe it off. just wipe it off.
It's too high, I can't reach it.
Yeah, yeah, that's it. Stop, stop.
This is like when you mess a cake up
and you tell people that it's rustic.
How long do we have left?
Chefs, you have one minute left.
That's enough, Kate, we have to go.
Facing that way, yeah?
FAUSTO: Do you like the corkscrew, yeah? CARLOS: It's not that bad.
Final thing, the dessert, going right at the top.
Make a mess. BLEEP.
Right, we're really just polishing a turd at this...
BLEEP it, leave it.
This beading's not sticking. It's not.
Sorry.
Chefs, your time is up.
That is the end of the challenge. Well clone.
Yes. It will take them a minute to find where the dessert is.
Well done. Hm.
Do you know what? We've got it all on.
Nothing more we can do about it.
I knew it wasnae gonna be pretty.
I didn't think it would be that...monstrosity.
LIAM: Six tremendous trompe I'oeil showpieces,
made in just five hours.
CARLOS: So we decided to do a granite effect side table,
with a bowl with apples, calvados bottle and a corkscrew.
This table, I can see myself walking into a flea market
and say, "Oh, my goodness, this table actually look quite nice."
It looks real, and what makes it work is the bottle. Mm.
You put a real bottle next to this one, yeah, OK it's the same.
Shall we guess where is the... Maybe it's the bottle?
You think so, it's the bottle?
The apples? There are 12.
Would there be something inside the apple? Let's find out.
Would you please take us through your dessert, please?
Yeah, white chocolate mousse,
compote made of Granny Smith
and Gala apples, shortbread at the bottom.
Your chocolate mousse is not as smooth as I like it to be.
The apple is OK.
But I expected a little bit more oomph.
Is it a apple tarte tatin,
or is this just an apple dessert? I'm not too sure.
It's a good attempt to elevate the tarte tatin.
But we haven't break ground of innovation yet.
But, good effort. Thank you very much. Thank you.
Well, the job is very neatly clone,
but I wish we could see one or two little details which confuses you.
Did it trick my eyes?
I think probably not.
I can see that the clock is the dessert.
OK, well, let's taste the dessert, now we know it's in the clock.
So the dessert consists of a cinnamon sable Breton,
a creme fraiche and vanilla mousse.
Thank you. Um, caramelised apples.
I really like the cinnamon Breton,
it blends together very well with your apple and your mousse.
How I wish you just put a layer of puff pastry in between.
I totally agree. The creme fraiche mousse is light.
The cinnamon touch is delicious.
A little bit of puff pastry in there, and we are there.
Elevation of the beautiful tarte tatin. Mm.
So not far, but not quite there.
Thank you, chef. But thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
QUIETLY: It wasn't too bad. JOHN EXHALES
Sha-la-la.
It's an avocado plant. I think it's a bit bare looking.
I expect it to look a little bit more natural.
At the moment, it's just one stick.
I think it's pretty obvious that the dessert is hidden in here.
Am I right? Yes. Thank you. Let's taste.
So, on the bottom, a ginger sponge
and then we have some caramelised apples.
And a layer of puff pastry, almond tuille,
and then we did a spiced rum cremeux.
Some part of the sponge is actually quite nice.
But this is very, very dry.
And then your puff pastry, oh-la-la-la, it's so chewy.
It's just not a dessert for me, at all.
You are good chefs, because the cream has got the right texture.
Cream? Ah. There you go.
The major issue here with your dessert,
other than the fact that the puff pastry is not protected enough,
your design is wrong and it's not very appealing for a dessert.
But you're working very hard. Mm.
We thank you for that, and we catch up a little bit later.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, thank you.
QUIETLY: I didn't even think about the soil.
So much soil on their plate.
The execution is a little bit, um...
Rough. But where is the dessert?
I think it's obvious.
Ha! OK. It's in the pot, innit?
It's in the legs. LAUGHTER
So we've layered it with pecan ancl almond dacquoise sponge,
pecan and calvados caramel, puff pastry mousse,
and then we've clone an apple compote.
It looks very heavy, but, weirdly, I like it.
Oh, phew. Yay!
That puff pastry mousse is a revelation.
I taste the puff pastry when I eat the mousse.
Ancl that fudgy base is beautiful.
It works for me. I don't like it.
Because I love it. Oh, my god! LAUGHTER
It was gooey, chewy, tasty puff pastry mousse.
It's delicious.
Did you put this to the next level? Yes, you did.
Well clone, we'll see you later. Thank you. Thank you very much.
Can die happy. SHE LAUGHS
Does it look real?
I would say yes. And the thing which really catch my eye is this.
The proportions, as well, I think are great. The radio.
You've clone a great bit of work here.
Well clone. Thank you. Thank you.
Love it, love it, love it. Where's the cake?
It could be anywhere, yeah.
It's here. Maybe.
No, I think it's in the radio. What do you guess? Yes.
Are we right? Yes, you are.
OK, please cut us a slice of your dessert.
Starting with an apple and Armagnac and fennel jelly,
an apple and vanilla and a bit of fennel compote,
puff pastry and then you have
a white chocolate and bavarois mousse.
That combination of textures with the fennel,
you have elevated the dessert.
But the side I'm less happy with is the sweetness.
Pink Ladies...
Should have gone all out Granny Smiths,
and this would've been perfect.
So, look good, and has the potential to taste great, too, so well clone.
Thank you, chefs. Thank you. Thank you.
What time, is it? Champagne o'clock.
Let's hold on on this one. LAUGHTER
From a distance, it is a grandfather's clock.
But when you get to the pendulum and the details on the clock,
almost there, but not quite.
Dessert time. Where is it? Oh, is it hidden in the clock?
No. What about behind?
DULL TAPPING Yes.
I've found it! I found it. LAUGHTER
But I had to kind of look for it, yeah?
It could've been in different places. Yeah. So, well clone.
We have clone a chocolate casing,
meadowsweet mousse, then caramelised apples,
pecan praline, and then an arlette biscuit
with smoked cinnamon.
There are some very good elements here,
but the casing is a little too thick.
It's very hard to eat. Yeah.
Ancl it's also a bit messy to kind of get to. It's a shame.
I really enjoy eating your meadowsweet mousse...
Woo-hoo! That's a good one. HAYLEY GIGGLES
...but...
...that is the only thing that I enjoy eating,
because the chocolate just take over the whole dessert.
OK, this is the time for champagne yet or not?
We shall let you go and find out soon.
Thank you very much. Thank you for your hard work. Thank you so much.
ELLIE: Based on their performance in both challenges,
the teams will now be ranked by Cherish and Benoit.
Visually it's not, nothing extraordinary,
but the dessert tastes nice. Mm-hm.
We might not be able to make wonderful showpieces,
but Cherish loved it, loved it, loved it.
The dessert, nicely hidden.
But then the casting of the chocolate was just too thick.
HAYLEY: I know we can step it up a notch,
if we're given another chance.
This showpiece showed that they're very skilful chef.
We gave it our all to show the judges that we're here to stay.
I was expecting more from them.
But I still remember their coffee eclair yesterday, so there you go.
BHARAT: Hopefully we get top.
We definitely had a strong first challenge.
We see how it goes, isn't it? Yeah. JOHN CHUCKLES
LIAM: Benoit and Cherish have made their decision.
It was very close,
but the judges thought the team in first place
just about pipped it in the face of strong competition.
Congratulations...
...Tj and Narayan from lnterContinental London at the O2.
You are through to the next round.
The team in second place are...
...Bharat and john from Soko Patisserie.
Congratulations, you're through. Thank you. Thank you.
LIAM: Carlos and Fausto were ranked third.
And Neil and Nicole were fourth.
Which leaves us with Kate and Hayley from Cake Ninja,
and Emese and Abi from The Pig at Combe.
After much deliberation,
Cherish and Benoit have decided that the team leaving us tonight are...
...Emese and Abi.
We're so sorry. Thank you so much.
The rest of you, well clone, you're through to the next round.
We're disappointed that we're the first team to go home.
But disappointed because I know I can do better.
But we enjoyed the experience.
You've been brilliant. I really enjoyed the fact that
you gave everything you had.
I can, uh, go home and put my feet up now.
You guys smashed it.
So chuffed. All thanks to him, he always gives... Not only me.
A team effort, team effort.
BOTH: Champagne o'clock!
Well clone. Oh, my god, I can't believe it.
It's just, obviously, exciting that we've got through, erm,
and ready to go again next week.
LIAM: Next time, the teams take on two classics...
I love sticky toffee pudding.
It's just full of sweet, sweet, sweet flavours.
...and enter the world of high fashion...
You're not just gonna go out to town in this kind of outfit.
...as they tailor stylish showpieces.
Nice and slim, elegant legs.
So, who will be in vogue?
Strike a pose.
And who... Does it feel strong?
...will be forced off the catwalk?
Oh, this is too risky.
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