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00:30The nation's best loved chefs are hitting the road to compete in some traditional
00:37country shows.
00:38And I'm hoping to win one of those rosettes.
00:39On the way, they'll meet some of Britain's best local food producers.
00:43Why would you ever eat a cupcake when you have Parkinson's?
00:47Before competing head to head with each other, and the great British public.
00:56I thought the competition was big enough.
00:58Our chefs are at the mercy of the harshest food critics in the land, the beady-eyed country
01:02show judges.
01:03We don't like odd ones.
01:07It's a competition and I'm taking it very seriously.
01:11Hold on to your aprons, it's country show cook-off.
01:18Top chefs Rachel Allen and Theo Randall jump into their trusty van and start the last leg
01:22of their country show road trip from the west of Scotland to Shropshire in England.
01:27Today they travel from Kington in Herefordshire to Ludlow in Shropshire.
01:31Oh, this is so sweet, isn't it?
01:38What a beautiful town.
01:40So far our chefs fortunes have been checkered when they've taken on local cooks at Country
01:45Fears.
01:46Each time our professional couple cook up a storm and manage to beat seasoned local bakers
01:50to the top spots, we give points.
01:53So far they've entered four dishes and it's level pegging with five each.
01:57So today's cook-off is their last chance to win the week.
02:02It's been good fun, hasn't it?
02:04It's been great fun.
02:05It's been a great road trip.
02:06Really fun.
02:07What has done?
02:08Done really well.
02:09Very, very well.
02:10Don't speak too soon.
02:11Yeah.
02:12Exactly.
02:13It's all the way to go.
02:14Today our couple arrive in Ludlow.
02:16This medieval market town has become a gastronomic destination with many award-winning restaurants.
02:22At the heart of the town is Ludlow Castle.
02:24This bastion was started in 1086 and nowadays is the location of the Ludlow Food Festival.
02:32This new kid on the block only started in 1995, but already attracts 160 food stands
02:38and 20,000 visitors.
02:41This festival is foodie heaven with lots of demonstrations, cooking classes and stalls
02:47where you can see, buy and try all types of lovely grub.
02:51It's here that our chefs face their final challenge and it's the toughest yet.
02:55Bravely, they've entered the fidget pie category.
02:59This pie is regional to Shropshire and dates back at least 400 years.
03:03Traditionally, it's a portable pie taken into the fields at harvest time.
03:08So not only do Rachel and Theo have to beat the best local cooks, but they have to beat
03:13them at their own game.
03:14But it's going to have a lot of interest, the fidget pie, because everything else has been
03:19judged already.
03:20It's the last food being judged, so we've got to do a good job.
03:25Their mission is to outdo local cooks like Carl Heber-Smith.
03:29We came third last year into the fidget competition and first the previous year to that.
03:34Today our professional pair really do have their work cut out.
03:38As they have to win over a panel of three judges, Leslie Mackley is a director of the food festival.
03:46We have to take it very seriously because it's very important to the people who enter their
03:50produce.
03:51Bruce McMichael is a food magazine publisher.
03:54Just because the pie is there doesn't mean it's going to work for the judges or it's going
03:58to look great or taste great.
04:00And if that wasn't enough, Judge Anthony Clay has penned cookbooks and writes food columns
04:04for national newspapers.
04:05Oh, I think I know my boil out from my soggy bottom.
04:10Oh, I say, this trio really know their onions.
04:15The ante really has been upped in this last chance to beat local bakers and win the cook-off
04:20week.
04:24Rachel Allen's the doyen of baking, but even she's lost out to local cooks twice this week.
04:29Her chocolate cake didn't place and her fruit flan was a flop.
04:35Shall we go home now?
04:36So her baking credentials are on the line.
04:39Rachel will have to step up to the plate, but we're sure she can make the grade.
04:44Theo Randall has made his mark in the restaurant world with Italian cooking, which is no mean
04:50feat considering he's British.
04:52But even Michelin-starred Theo's found the food fight with local cooks hard.
04:57I think our plan backfired big time.
05:01He's only placed twice, and he'll need to go all out to beat Rachel.
05:06Today, our chefs park the van on the banks of the river team.
05:10This fast-flowing river is popular with anglers, but fishing isn't on our chefs' minds.
05:15They'll have to hatch a plan to outship local cooks at a local dish.
05:20I've been doing a little bit of research on the fidget pie.
05:23Some people think that it could come from the five-sided dish in which it was apparently traditionally cooked.
05:30Some people think it could come from the word fitch, which means polecat,
05:36because it apparently smells a bit like a polecat.
05:39The pork and the apple.
05:41Yeah, which isn't very nice.
05:42So are you happy with your recipe? Do you think it's authentic?
05:44I think the judges don't want us to veer away from, you know,
05:48the traditional recipe too much of it.
05:51Well, it's a Shropshire classic.
05:52A Shropshire classic.
05:53It's a Shropshire classic.
05:55Yes, it is.
05:57And you'll both need to get this pie right,
05:59because whoever places highest will win the week.
06:02So we're absolutely even.
06:03Yeah.
06:04Yeah.
06:05Two golds and two silvers.
06:06Okay.
06:07So tomorrow's the one.
06:08It should be really, really great to get something tomorrow.
06:10I think it's going to be very busy tomorrow.
06:12Oh, wow.
06:13Very busy.
06:14And it's all locals.
06:15Apart from us.
06:16Apart from us.
06:17Yeah.
06:18We're the imposters.
06:19With our fidget pie.
06:20We're probably being kicked out of town.
06:21Our fancy fidget pie.
06:23If you get first prize, you get paraded around the town.
06:26Oh, really?
06:27Well, I don't know.
06:28I'll just make it up.
06:30Theo, you're such a tease.
06:32But around here, people are very proud of the food the area has to offer.
06:36And with it being harvest time, there's lots of delicious fruit around.
06:40Rachel and Theo head the few miles of the Algonic fruit farm on the Worcestershire border.
06:50The Alga family have run this business since 1989 and produce organic fruit, free from any
06:56artificial agents.
06:57And they're very proud of their produce.
07:01This family is so environmentally conscious, their farm is powered by wind and sun.
07:09Rachel and Theo meet Billy Alga and his son, Billy.
07:13And there are three Billys.
07:14There are three Billys.
07:15There's my father's Billy as well.
07:17So it's Billy, Billy, Billy.
07:18It sort of starts to get good music.
07:20This is beautiful here.
07:23This is our top orchard.
07:24This is Victoria plums.
07:26And we've just started on these.
07:28So everything's hand-picked?
07:29Everything is hand-picked.
07:31These we pick fresh for market or for people to come in and buy.
07:36We actually grow about 30 different varieties of plum here.
07:3930?
07:40How many varieties of fruit do you have?
07:42We actually grow rhubarb, black currants, red currants, tayberries, blueberries, apples,
07:49pears.
07:50The last things that we'll actually harvest will be chestnuts and the almonds.
07:54And I'll show you the...
07:55And almonds.
07:56See, I've never heard of almonds being grown in the UK.
07:58Oh, yeah.
07:59It's no problem.
08:00And we were told they wouldn't really crop there, but they're doing wonderful.
08:03If you ever come here in spring, these trees were just one massive blossom for about a fortnight,
08:15and the smell was exquisite.
08:17How is it?
08:18Because almonds, the flowers, are susceptible to frost, we're on the slope here, and they're
08:22at about 600 foot height.
08:24And so you've got a constant breeze.
08:26You can feel it.
08:27Yeah.
08:28And that keeps the air frost off when the blossoms out.
08:30Ah.
08:31In a few years' time, we'll be getting roughly about three to five kilo of almonds a tree,
08:37perhaps more.
08:38When will these be ready for harvest?
08:39These will be ready for harvest about the first or second week of October.
08:43Gorgeous.
08:44Fresh...
08:45Fresh almonds are just so...
08:46They're so good.
08:47Totally different to the dried ones.
08:49Oh, they make your mouth water.
08:51Wow, these fruits and nuts look absolutely delicious.
08:55So, they're off to the farm to meet Billy's mum, who's going to show them a favourite dish
09:00of hers, a plum pie.
09:08It's just a very simple plum tart.
09:11And this one, we think, started life in Switzerland.
09:14So, it's self-raising flour and four ounces of butter.
09:18Just rub it in quickly.
09:20And what plums are these?
09:21These are Vala.
09:23Vala, okay.
09:24They're more a cooking plum than an eating plum.
09:27But the colour, when they are cooked, is beautiful.
09:30Is that because the skin's quite thick on them?
09:32I think so, yes, I think so.
09:34And a quarter of a pint of milk.
09:37It looks like you've made this quite a few times before.
09:40I was just thinking...
09:41It's scones.
09:42It's just scones.
09:43Just gently pushing it into position.
09:47So, do you have freezers full of all your gorgeous fruits to keep you going through the winter?
09:51Uh, Billy sells the best fruit, and I have a freezer full of his rejects.
09:58Most people reject fruit because it's not supermarket pristine or the same size.
10:04Yeah.
10:05If it's got a blemish on it, so what?
10:07That's the scone grease done, and it's time for the plums.
10:10So, you just put them straight on, nothing, nothing on them.
10:13Nothing.
10:14So, you've cut them in half and taken out the stones.
10:16Just, just chop them.
10:17Shall I start at the other side?
10:18Yeah, what a great idea, yes.
10:20Go on, eat a plum, Rachel.
10:22I've had so many.
10:23You haven't had that many today.
10:25So, a little bit of butter in each.
10:27A little, yeah.
10:28So, what's this?
10:29Cinnamon and kind of...
10:31Mmm, lovely.
10:32Cinnamon and sugar.
10:33Oh, yeah, that goes so well with plums.
10:35Mmm.
10:36Okay, and then the other...
10:37Oh, wow.
10:38It's so simple.
10:39I love this.
10:40Claire cooks the tart for 20 minutes at 180 degrees, till the plums are bubbling and juicy.
10:46Mmm, that looks gorgeous.
10:49That smell is divine.
10:51It smells so good.
10:52Mmm.
10:53No, you do the honest.
10:54You made it.
10:55You do the honest.
10:56All the juice has gone into the dough.
11:02Mmm.
11:03Mmm.
11:04That's delicious.
11:05Claire, thank you so much.
11:06Really good.
11:07Well done.
11:08That's a very happy customer.
11:09Mmm-hmm.
11:10Looks grummy.
11:11But unfortunately, you can't stand around eating plum pie all day.
11:12You need to get started on your fidgets.
11:13These pies are a Shropshire speciality, cooked in homes and restaurants all over the county.
11:32Traditionally made with pork, apples, potatoes, onion and cider.
11:35Ha-ha!
11:36First up, it's Theo.
11:37This is my pastry for the fidget pie.
11:39It's a very sort of short crust pastry.
11:41He puts flour, butter and two egg yolks into a food processor.
11:45OK, so we're just going to add our ice cold water.
11:52I feel like a disco in here.
11:55Every time I turn this on, the lights go out.
11:58Ha-ha-ha!
11:59Ta-da!
12:00Right, OK, we'll put this back in the bowl.
12:03Without working too much, just make sure it all sort of goes together.
12:06So that's our pastry.
12:09While the pastry chills, he gets busy with the all-important pie filling.
12:15It's going to be really competitive, this.
12:17So this has got to be really good.
12:18He fries an onion and starts to line his pie dish.
12:24So I've got some potatoes here, which I prepared earlier.
12:28And they've been blanched.
12:30And then I'm just going to put a bit of oil in the bottom here,
12:32just so it makes it non-stick, so the potatoes don't stick.
12:36And I'm going to start layering potatoes.
12:39It can be quite rough.
12:40You don't have to be all fancy and do little perfect layers.
12:42Just sort of pop them in.
12:43You sort of form a whole floor of potatoes.
12:46And I'm just going to put some on the side,
12:48just so we form a kind of crust.
12:50Now he adds his secret ingredient, pancetta.
12:53Italian smoked pork belly.
12:56Cut the rind off.
12:58One slice will be fine.
12:59You want to overpower it.
13:00And then just some little slices of the pancetta.
13:03So pop them in with the onions.
13:06That should give it a really lovely smoky flavour.
13:09It's time for another typical fidget pie ingredient,
13:12cooking apples.
13:14The thing about bramley apples is they're nice and sort of tart.
13:17You don't want to have anything sweet,
13:19because they just won't withstand the cooking.
13:21They'll just sort of fall to pieces.
13:23Kind of a centimetre slice.
13:25It'll be perfect.
13:26Next up, it's the main ingredient, pork.
13:29And for his take, he's using gammon.
13:31Pop the gammon in there.
13:34Remember, this has been salt and cured,
13:36so I wouldn't salt it.
13:38And then we've also got our sage.
13:40And I think sage really benefits
13:42from being cooked for a minute or two.
13:44We're going to throw a few slices into this pork.
13:50Oh, God, that's good.
13:52So we'll just start putting some gammon in.
13:54Nicely packed in.
13:56Then we add a few of our apples, bramley apples.
13:59They just change colour a bit, but don't worry about that,
14:01because we're going to add some cider.
14:03And then we've got our onion and pancetta.
14:05That goes in.
14:06Try and get it in a few of the holes.
14:08So just layering it up.
14:10A bit more gammon.
14:12There's all this lovely juice there.
14:13I want to use that.
14:14That's good.
14:15More of the apples.
14:17That's that.
14:18So just push it down a bit,
14:19just so it's all really firm in there.
14:21Finish off a little bit of black pepper on top.
14:24And then some of this muscovada sugar,
14:27which will kind of soak into all the apples and everything.
14:31Mmm.
14:32Layers done.
14:33It's time for the sauce.
14:34He's mixing corn flour and double cream with cider.
14:37And then we're just going to pour this over.
14:40That side will get really soaked up
14:42and those potatoes are going to really absorb it.
14:44I just want to make sure there's enough liquid just halfway
14:46so it really cooks together,
14:47because this is going to cook for an hour.
14:49And those potatoes are going to act like sponges.
14:51They're just going to absorb all the goodness.
14:53No fidget pie is complete without pastry.
14:56And then over the top.
15:00Snip the top so our little friend can breathe.
15:03Just trim those edges.
15:05Give me a little bit of overlap,
15:06because you want to have a little bit of extra pastry
15:08just so you can do that crimping.
15:10And then we're just going to do a very simple nip around the edges.
15:15Nice and rustic, you know, me and my rustic pastry.
15:19Lastly, he glazes his rustic pie crust with beaten egg.
15:22And when that cooks, it should go really golden brown,
15:27and all that filling inside will cook nicely.
15:30The steam will come out through there
15:31to end up with a really nice, sort of tight, juicy fidget pie.
15:36Oh, ho! Then he bakes it for an hour at 180 degrees.
15:41Next up for her take on fidget pie is Rachel.
15:44She's the Dutchest of baking, but she's come a cropper twice this week.
15:48She wants to regain her baking throne.
15:51So she hand mixes a rich pastry with a high butter content of 125 grams of butter
15:57to only 200 grams of flour, plus a beaten egg.
16:01But self-doubt still creeps in.
16:04With this recipe, I was thinking about really playing around a little bit,
16:06maybe putting some black pudding in, maybe varying it quite a bit.
16:10But now that I'm a bit of an agricultural show, cookery competition veteran,
16:15I kind of know not to veer off the beaten track.
16:18Not worth it.
16:19Because I really don't want to get disqualified.
16:20You're right there.
16:21Hopefully that won't happen, Rachel.
16:23Let the pastry rest and get started with the filling.
16:26So I've got in the saucepan here,
16:28I've got a piece of bacon that is cooking from raw,
16:32and I just put it into some cold water, brought it up to the boil.
16:36Just a few minutes and it'll be ready.
16:38As her bacon boils, she fries an onion with garlic.
16:41She slices a cooking apple and cooked potatoes.
16:45So the potatoes, I boil them in water for about four or five minutes.
16:48They're practically cooked.
16:50Whilst her pie is very traditional,
16:51she's prepared to make a few tweaks to give her sauce seasoning some oomph.
16:56Sage is in the traditional recipe.
16:58Rosemary definitely isn't,
16:59but I think it's going to give it a little bit of an edge.
17:01And some parsley.
17:03She stirs together cream, cider and mustard.
17:07Mustard, bacon, great combination.
17:10Then add sugar, corn flour and the chopped herbs.
17:14And next thing I'm going to do is I'm going to drain the bacon.
17:18It's a little bit hot.
17:20Slicing it quite thinly.
17:23Mmm.
17:25Oh, that's delicious.
17:26With the bacon ready, she can start to assemble her pie.
17:30There's a potato.
17:31A little bit of salt.
17:32A little bit of pepper.
17:34Some onion.
17:35Doesn't really matter, I don't think, what order you go in.
17:39Let's go with apples next.
17:41I'll put in the bacon.
17:43Should it be shredded, I wonder?
17:45Hmm.
17:46I actually had it whole originally, but you know what?
17:49I think I'm going to actually shred it.
17:52I'm slightly winging it here.
17:54Oh, I hope that's okay.
17:55Okay, well, look, I've just started now.
17:57Shredded, slice, slice, shredded.
17:59It still looks really tasty.
18:01And then I think I'll pour over half the mixture
18:05and go with potatoes again.
18:07And it's looking good.
18:09Hi, Theo.
18:11How's it going?
18:12Fine.
18:13Is there any pastry in the bottom?
18:14No.
18:15No, okay.
18:16No, I was thinking of putting pastry in the bottom
18:18and then I realised that's not traditional.
18:19Ah, but is it, Rachel?
18:21Well, I'm not sure, because I keep seeing pictures of...
18:23Did you put pastry in the bottom?
18:24Well, I didn't put pastry in the bottom of mine,
18:25but some of them are sealed with a pastry on the bottom,
18:28but it looks more like a kind of pie, like a pork pie.
18:31Right.
18:32But that looks nice.
18:33Could you get my pastry out of the fridge, please?
18:35God, anything else you want?
18:37A cup of tea.
18:38She lays on the rich pastry crust, glazes it,
18:41and adds some top baker touches.
18:44Now I'm just going to roll the scraps of the pastry
18:47and just cut out a couple of little designs, leaves,
18:50or I could write maybe in letters.
18:52Please choose me.
18:54And then arrange the leaves.
18:57And that is my fidget pie.
19:00It's so funny.
19:01It's so different when you're making something for a competition.
19:03So much more pressure than to just cooking it.
19:06Okay, Rachel, put it into the oven.
19:09Be good.
19:10The pie bakes for 45 minutes to an hour at 180 degrees.
19:14I like pie, I like it.
19:17As night draws in, the pies are ready.
19:20Ooh-hoo-hoo.
19:21That looks good. I'm pleased with that.
19:24Mmm.
19:25Ooh, I feel like a Shropshire wife.
19:27I'm happy with this.
19:29It's bubbling in the bottom.
19:33Pastry is nice and golden brown.
19:35Yeah.
19:36I'm happy with this.
19:37Oh, that looks lovely, isn't it?
19:38That was our final cook.
19:39I know, it's very sad, isn't it?
19:40Yeah.
19:41It's been good fun.
19:42It's very good.
19:43But Rachel's still having qualms about her pie.
19:45Yeah, that's gorgeous.
19:46Ooh, your pastry's a bit richer.
19:48Get off.
19:49That's a good day's work.
19:50Oh, sorry.
19:52That's you.
19:53They both look delicious, and they'll need to be,
19:57as tomorrow is the last competition of the week.
20:00The only things I like you best of all.
20:08The Ludlow Food Festival is a three-day festival of foodtastic fun,
20:12and food that's regional to Shropshire is taken very seriously here.
20:17So seriously that the only baking competition taking place today
20:20is for fidget pie.
20:28This is Theo and Rachel's hardest challenge yet,
20:31but as they arrive at the medieval castle,
20:33clutching their fidget pies, they're liking what they see.
20:37Look at this.
20:38It's amazing.
20:39I didn't realise they're actually using the castle.
20:42It's gorgeous.
20:46But the people that need to think their pies are gorgeous
20:49is the panel of judges.
20:51And Judge Anthony Clay knows what she's looking for in a fidget pie.
20:56Well, I'm looking for the key ingredients.
20:58I want to see that there's apples, pork, onions,
21:02and some cider going on in there.
21:04And I really want those ingredients to shine, actually,
21:07not to be sort of hidden by other things.
21:09And then some lovely, crisp pastry, which is sort of flaky and melt in the mouth.
21:15Our expert chefs have to beat home-grown bakers like Carl Heber-Smith.
21:19He thinks fidget pies are a pushover.
21:22It's not really difficult to make, but I make them quite a lot, so I make them most days.
21:27Loving the salad there, Carl.
21:29Local entrant Libby Baldwin is positive about her pie.
21:32I'm confident of baking, but it's the first time I've made this particular dish.
21:37I've never entered anything like this before,
21:39so it's the first time entering a competition.
21:41That pie's enormous!
21:43Charlotte Hollins is delivering a pie for a pal,
21:46and it's got a special ingredient from her farm.
21:49It's made from pork from our Goster Old Spots, which are all free-range.
21:53Local apples and local and organic onions and potatoes.
21:57The competition's hotting up, then.
22:00As Theo and Rachel are bringing their pies,
22:02they realise there's a lot of different ways of making a fidget.
22:05Quite a variety.
22:07And they've all got something their pies haven't.
22:10They've all got pastry bases.
22:12You know what I did think I did?
22:13Every single one has got a pastry base.
22:15I can't believe it.
22:16Oh, shoot, somebody does.
22:17Oh, no!
22:18Have they got it wrong?
22:20Could this mean disaster for their pies?
22:22The answer lies with the judges.
22:24That's all we can do.
22:27The steward fiddles with the fidgets,
22:30and the judges get ready to assess
22:32whether their pies are heaven or hell.
22:34There's no more they can do.
22:36Their fates as bakers lies with their pies.
22:39To take their minds off the proceedings,
22:41Rachel and Theo take in the spectacle of the festival.
22:44Look, knife skills class going on.
22:47Any lessons?
22:48How are your knife skills?
22:50They're not very good.
22:52Back in the Castle Keep, our food critics are presented with the first fidget,
22:57and his previous prize winner, Carl Heber-Smith's offering.
23:01Oh!
23:02So, look at the presentation.
23:03They've upped the game in presentation.
23:05This is very fancy.
23:06We're not going to be swayed by a wedge of tomato, are we?
23:10It's quite hollow in the middle, so it's collapsed there.
23:13Fighting with it here, so I'm wrestling with a pie.
23:15It's a bit unfair on this pie, because it actually is quite lurking, really good.
23:19I don't even want a fight, that was.
23:20That's actually come out quite nicely, hasn't it?
23:22It smells very hammy.
23:24It smells like it should.
23:25The pastry's hard.
23:27Considering it's quite nice and moist to look at, the ham is quite dry.
23:32Yeah.
23:33The pastry's just a bit too thick.
23:34The pastry's too thick, and it's very hard, isn't it?
23:36We've got a big fat layer of undercooked pastry.
23:38Yeah.
23:39Oh, dear.
23:40Carl's pastry might have let him down there.
23:42Next to be granted judgement is Libby Baldwin's impressive presentation.
23:46Oh!
23:47Oh, look at this!
23:48It looks lovely and homemade.
23:49I mean, I think we couldn't have full marks, because it has sort of broken up a bit.
23:53It's a big pie.
23:54The pastry is very, very good.
23:56Oh, but, but, look at the stripes.
23:58Yeah.
23:59That is pretty.
24:00It's got quite a lot of potato in it, hasn't it, which is making it quite firm.
24:04I want a bit more ham in there.
24:05Yeah, I find it a bit stodgy.
24:06I almost want to double that layer of ham.
24:09A bit too much potato.
24:10There's a lot in there, yes.
24:11Well, a fine effort from Libby, but she might have needed some more piggy in the middle.
24:17Next up, it's Theo's pie.
24:19Oh, look.
24:20It's with a little body in the middle.
24:22Little blackbird.
24:23This looks like a different sort of pie.
24:25Do you think this is just a pastry top on a pie?
24:27This looks like it's pastry only.
24:28If we're talking about care and love, I think it could have been more carefully cut back
24:33a bit.
24:34It's a little bit slapdash.
24:36Oh, slapdash, eh?
24:38Theo would call that rustic.
24:40Not that they'd know it's his.
24:42They're judging blind.
24:43That pastry looks good.
24:44Yeah.
24:45When you cut into there, I think that looks really attractive.
24:49The ham size, we like the flavour.
24:52Oh, the flavour's good.
24:53Yeah.
24:54I slightly feel this isn't really filling the...
24:57No.
24:58The criteria, no.
24:59The criteria.
25:00But it's a jolly good pie.
25:01Because it's an odd pie to eat cold.
25:03I'm not minding it cold.
25:05Well, I don't think I would eat it cold, really.
25:08Are we going to fall out about this?
25:09No.
25:10They liked the flavour.
25:12The pancetta paid off.
25:14But presentation might have let him down.
25:17Now it's Charlotte Hollins' pals pie that's about to be assessed.
25:21That is a beautiful, beautiful pie.
25:24That's a nice consistency, yes.
25:25And they've got some big crimps around the side, isn't it?
25:27Oh, now that looks like some ham I want to eat.
25:30I'll put it on the side so we can see there.
25:32It's very thin, the pastry.
25:33Yeah.
25:34It's very thin.
25:35And it's a full pie, isn't it?
25:36It's very attractive, isn't it?
25:37Yes.
25:38Smiling there.
25:39Good.
25:40Really nice pastry.
25:41The ham is still quite, kind of, chewy and quite hard work.
25:45But there's a lovely balance with the apple and the onion.
25:49This is one you could serve at a table and all take on a picnic.
25:51I still would say it's a little highly seasoned, if I'm honest.
25:54The panels seem to have liked that pie.
25:56Now they move on to Rachel's dish.
25:59Goodness, they're all so different.
26:01Well, they've got some decoration on the pastry.
26:03Pretty.
26:04It's pretty and very well-loved.
26:06Yes.
26:07Nice pastry.
26:08They're loving the look there, Rachel.
26:10Fantastic.
26:11It's feeling a bit peckish.
26:12This does look quite nice in there, actually.
26:15It's very apple-y, this one.
26:17And some serious mustard seeds by the look of it.
26:19Yeah, but it doesn't taste very really mustard-y.
26:22Actually, I think maybe there's a bit too much apple.
26:24I like the flavour.
26:26I know you think there's too much apples, but I think it's OK, really.
26:29It's quite well-balanced.
26:30For me, this is one of the best pastries we've had.
26:32Oh, that rich pastry seems to be working.
26:35Having savoured the baking, our judges decide who wins the prizes.
26:39This is the final and toughest competition this week.
26:42So who, if either of them, will come up Trump's
26:45and regain the throne of baking royalty?
26:50You've got second prize!
26:52Yay!
26:54Yes, Rachel's baked her way to second prize.
26:57And she's done herself proud by getting a prize with such a local dish.
27:01But there's nothing for Theo.
27:04It might be there, but it's not, unfortunately.
27:08Oh, oh.
27:09Can we have a little taste?
27:10Yes!
27:11Great!
27:12We never get to taste our results.
27:14What?
27:16Mmm.
27:17Your mustard's very good.
27:18That was a really good addition.
27:20Well done, you.
27:23Fantastic.
27:24It's very emotional, this.
27:25It is very emotional.
27:27I won't be the same again.
27:30Charlotte Hollins' pal from her farm came first.
27:33Well done, you.
27:34Absolutely lovely.
27:36Carl Heber-Smith didn't pick up a prize.
27:38Never mind, Carl.
27:39Better luck next year.
27:41And Libby Baldwin didn't win anything either.
27:44No, I didn't expect to win.
27:45But she'd never entered before, so better luck next year, Libby.
27:49Well, it looks like we're having fidget pie for tea tonight.
27:54Sadly, Theo's pie scores a big nothing today.
27:56His Michelin stars didn't cut the mustard.
27:59And his total for the week is five.
28:01Rachel's pie gets second place, giving her two points.
28:04So that means Rachel is this week's country show cook-off winner.
28:08She wins with seven points.
28:13And what a week it's been for our duo.
28:15Wow.
28:16There's been tears.
28:17Tantrums.
28:19It's only a competition.
28:21And triumphs.
28:23So what impression has the week-long road trip left with our cooks?
28:28It's just been amazing.
28:30It's been such good fun.
28:32Entering these competitions is nerve-wracking.
28:34I mean, someone said to me the other day, she goes,
28:35what are you doing entering into a competition?
28:37It's like the worst thing.
28:38You've been criticised.
28:39I was like, well, you know, it's fun and you should enjoy it.
28:41I really would like to take the van home with me, but apparently I'm not allowed.
28:44And I'm going to miss the red van.
28:45I'm going to miss the red van.
28:46I missed you and I'm going to miss the red van.
28:48Next time on country show cook-off, Aldo Zilli and Silvena Rowe hit the road from Wells to
28:54the Yorkshire Dales.
28:55So buckle up as this bake-off becomes bumpy.
28:59Oh, this is not Italy.
29:02We're doing good here.
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