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00:00The sugary confection battle waged on as our four empires feasted on their latest challenge.
00:07I've never worked so fast in my life.
00:10Tensions mounted to quite extraordinary heights.
00:13Everyone is stressed at this point, and this is where things count.
00:16Hands up, bakers!
00:17When all was said and done, two rival empires found themselves up for elimination.
00:22I do feel that the turkey itself needs a little more glisten and shine.
00:27To me, it's like a little bit of garnish.
00:29I do not want to go home.
00:31This could be the end of my empire.
00:34Team Holly, Team Elizabeth, one of your teams will be eliminated.
00:38Who, pray tell, shall continue in the Winter Wars?
00:42This is Sweet Empire.
00:45Yours truly, Lord Gingerton.
00:49Sadly, one empire's journey comes to an end.
00:52Judges, who is our final safe empire?
00:56Holly and Elizabeth are in the bottom.
01:01This is very surprising because they're so talented.
01:04It's crazy.
01:05The final safe empire is...
01:13Team Elizabeth.
01:15Oh, my God.
01:16I can't believe it.
01:17We're in.
01:18We made it literally by the skin of our teeth.
01:22Team Holly, unfortunately, today your empire has fallen.
01:28This was a very difficult decision for us, and it's heartbreaking.
01:32All three of you are talented, and together you're a true empire, a powerhouse.
01:37I love my teammates, and yeah, I'm disappointed that we're going home.
01:42But also, for me to get this far, yeah, I'm super proud.
01:46I am good.
01:47I can do this.
01:48Like, this isn't the end for me.
01:51You are very talented, the three of you, so I wish you the best.
01:55I am heartbroken, but being in this competition gave me a confidence that I just never knew I had.
02:01Like, I am pretty resilient.
02:02When I go home, the game has changed.
02:04Thank you guys so much, and good luck.
02:06Thanks, guys.
02:07Have fun, everyone!
02:09Love you!
02:10I mean, we're all disappointed, but at the end of the day, we're all talented artists.
02:13We'll be back.
02:14We might even be back doing something together.
02:17Just to be like, oh yeah, remember us?
02:19Remember that empire?
02:20It's not dead.
02:22The competition is getting stiff.
02:25Will your empire make it to the end?
02:28Rest easy.
02:29For now, get out of here.
02:37I wonder what they got in store for us this time.
02:39We've made it all the way to the semi-finals.
02:42That's a pretty big deal in this competition.
02:44Everyone that's been here is amazingly talented.
02:48Amazing.
02:49Making it to the top three, that's when it starts to get really real.
02:53If this is one that we can win, I think that sets us up really nicely for the finale.
02:58What the heck is this?
03:00I can't believe it.
03:01You know, we barely made it through, but we are here in the semi-final.
03:05All right, let's get down to business.
03:08Today, I want you to make an iconic North Pole animal.
03:12Okay.
03:13These creatures aren't meant to be bite-sized.
03:16We want these animals to be huge and really test your construction skills.
03:23They should look like they just stepped out of the Arctic.
03:26So focus on the texture of your creation.
03:28Fur, feathers, fluff, all of those help to make your creatures feel alive.
03:34For your flavors, make something that would warm us up on a frigid day.
03:39Something warm and cozy.
03:41Like this sweater.
03:43It's good, right?
03:45Not all at once, guys. It's fine.
03:47I love it.
03:48It's a beautiful sweater.
03:51So for this challenge, the judges will be evaluating how you work together as a team.
03:58Now, this is important.
03:59Make sure everyone gets to showcase their talents.
04:03Our empire has struggled with teamwork.
04:05We have strong opinions, but if we just come together as a team, I think we could make magic.
04:10And finally, only the two strongest teams will make it to the finale.
04:15Okay.
04:16All right.
04:17We land in the North Pole in T minus 10 hours.
04:20Your time starts now.
04:29Okay.
04:30All right.
04:31We just came off a win from the last challenge, so we're hoping to continue that momentum by taking more of an ambitious approach with our bakes and definitely taking some risks with our flavors, because that really impressed the judges.
04:45So we're hoping to do that again.
04:47How big of a circle do you want for the head?
04:49A 10-inch, I'd say.
04:51Our team is making a polar bear holding a present with a cute sign that says, I come bearing gifts.
04:57We want our bear standing up on his two hind paws.
05:00It's going to be tall.
05:02It's not an easy thing to do this cake.
05:04This thing's going to be really big.
05:06You know what?
05:07Taller is fine.
05:08The judges will appreciate the risk we took in having our bear standing up, I think.
05:12Obviously, Tatiana is really going to take the largest undertaking with the bear in regards to sculpting its features.
05:18Dana and I are going to focus more on some of the details on our piece, like the gift and the sign that our bear is going to be holding.
05:26I'm going to be focused on the tasting element.
05:28So this one's really going to be an all-hands-on-deck challenge.
05:33Here we go.
05:34Yes.
05:35All right, guys.
05:36North Pole.
05:37What's something that people don't normally do?
05:39Everyone's going to do a walrus.
05:40There's been yetis.
05:41There's been bears.
05:42Like, what is something that we don't see?
05:44Birds.
05:45Birds?
05:46Birds in the pool.
05:47Like the puffins?
05:48They got to be big.
05:49Those big old snowy owls.
05:51Ooh.
05:52Well, I can make the feather.
05:53That's for sure.
05:54Oh, yeah.
05:55We are doing a giant snowy owl.
05:59The main body can be cake with huge chocolate wings spreading out.
06:05We are so close to the finale, so we have to keep focusing and doing what we know best is how to take all three of our skill sets and combine them to create something spectacular.
06:16I think this sounds amazing.
06:17Are you guys feel good about this?
06:18Feel good about it.
06:19I feel like everyone's going to go with the pretty animals, and we've been doing pretty.
06:24Maybe we go with something that isn't quite as pretty.
06:26So, like, the walrus.
06:28That would be cool.
06:29Yeah.
06:30We have chosen a walrus.
06:32Even though it seems like it's just a big lump, they're cool and big and gnarly and lots of texture.
06:37There's a lot of ways we can use all of our skills to shine.
06:41At the end of this challenge, another empire is going home, and that is really stressful.
06:46We want to be in the finale.
06:48We want to win.
06:49I guess everybody's going to be just chipping in and really focusing on that character.
06:53Well, yeah.
06:54They said, you know, we have to work as a team.
06:55We've had some issues with teamwork and previous challenges.
06:58We see you.
06:59We see you struggling because you want to do so much.
07:02But, you know, time passed and then you get in trouble.
07:05So, in the next one, divide the walk.
07:08I'll do better.
07:09So, we're really going to focus on that, especially since we were in the bottom two, the last challenge.
07:14So, the first thing I'm going to start working on is going to be the head.
07:17After I'm done with the head, I'm going to go ahead and start stacking cake.
07:21It's a lot of cake.
07:22Nice.
07:23He's a big boy.
07:24Jonathan's going to be making sugar whiskers as well as some sugar waves that are going to be splashing up from the tail.
07:31And Renu's going to be focusing on those really cool chocolate tusks.
07:35And also, we're going to have our little mollusk shell, which is going to be made out of a very thin, delicate sugar by Jonathan.
07:42And inside is going to be the truffle that Renu's going to make.
07:45It's really going to take the entire team to pull this one off.
07:49I'm getting started on the tasting element right now.
07:52The judges want something that's going to warm them up.
07:54Something hot, something that they would drink if they were in the North Pole.
07:57And I immediately thought of, I love coffee.
08:00I'm a coffee fanatic.
08:01And I figured, what better way to do a pumpkin spice latte cake?
08:04Do you have alcohol in this one?
08:06Of course I do.
08:07Are you good?
08:08What alcohol?
08:09Rum.
08:10Let's get this party started, shall we?
08:11Just saying.
08:12Here you go.
08:13All right.
08:14Cheers.
08:15Top and bottom.
08:16All right.
08:17You guys drinking already?
08:19Jonathan!
08:20Team bonding experience.
08:22Yeah.
08:23I can't believe I got Elizabeth to drink at 9am.
08:25But you know what?
08:26It's festive.
08:27It's Christmas.
08:28In for a penny, in for a pound.
08:30What's best for the empire?
08:31I can feel it.
08:32With a little spice in it too.
08:33It's sitting right here.
08:34Salute.
08:40Do you guys need anything?
08:41No, I'm good.
08:42I'm very excited about this challenge because it's something I would never do on my own.
08:47I need a cake artist to make the body and he is going to take a lot of chocolate, he's
08:51going to take a lot of technique, a lot of time.
08:53So it's a little stressful because we know we have to do like a perfect challenge.
08:57And each little mistake that we're going to make is going to count to the final.
09:00Francois, we need cozy warm flavors.
09:03My goals right now is to make a hazelnut cake with whipped white chocolate ganache with bourbon
09:10caramel.
09:11And then I will have some crunch inside like a chocolate hazelnut strussel.
09:16That sounds warm and toasty.
09:18Oh, the bourbon is going to give you these warm feelings.
09:20Extra warm.
09:21Extra warm.
09:22It's going to be two elements of tasting.
09:25One is going to be the cake inside the hole.
09:27The other one is going to be the snowball.
09:29So the snowball is going to be made with chocolate creme.
09:32So here we have a smoked chipotle chocolate creme.
09:35Then I'm going to put inside this mold.
09:38So that's going to give you like a heat on the back of the mouth after the tasting.
09:43These are the praline and pumpkin cake inserts.
09:46Warm and cozy.
09:48How do you two feel about soup?
09:50I love soup.
09:51I love soup.
09:52How about soup and a cake?
09:53Here we go.
09:54Soup and a cake?
09:55You trust?
09:56I completely trust.
09:57Yeah?
09:58Yes.
09:59Yes.
10:00Good luck.
10:02For our tasting element, we are going to be doing a sweet potato coconut curry soup inspired cake.
10:09But then also a little bit of Thai chili to give some spicy heat to it as well.
10:14So there's different levels of warming you up.
10:16Beautiful.
10:17And I think it'll be a really nice base for all of these flavors.
10:20Stack, stack, stack.
10:21All right, I'm going to start carving the owl.
10:23Carve, carve, carve.
10:24What are you working on, Francois?
10:25The feather.
10:26So how many of those are we going to need?
10:28One million.
10:30I don't know, 200 something.
10:33We have to build the wings of the snowy owl.
10:36So I'm making the feather by using a tool that is shaped like a feather.
10:40I dip it in the chocolate and then after pressing, I make sure that when I pull up,
10:44you make like the middle of the feather.
10:47One after one, each one.
10:49Making sure you don't break it.
10:51Very thin.
10:52Very delicate.
10:53That's very tedious, very important, very precise job.
10:58I don't have time to work on anything else.
11:00So I'm going to have to rely on my team with this one.
11:04Francois's team is really, really good.
11:08But they have a lot of feathers to stick on.
11:10And I think that doing the feathers out of chocolate was definitely more time consuming than maybe they thought.
11:16I'm going to be honest, like if that was me, I would be a little bit panicky.
11:23Five hours left, bakers.
11:25You have five hours.
11:27Holy cow.
11:28This is going to be big.
11:29This is going to be big.
11:30Let me have the front first.
11:32I got to lift it again.
11:33Yeah.
11:34I'm pretty nervous.
11:37Building life-size cakes isn't something that I would really consider to be within my wheelhouse.
11:42So I'm really going to lean on Tatiana, who does have more experience with that,
11:46and Dana, who is great with putting her armatures together to help bring this piece to life.
11:51I'm doing the leg and the arm first.
11:54Since I am the cake sculptor, that's the most responsibility that falls on me.
11:59I have to make sure that proportion is right.
12:01Guys are really there to help me.
12:03But all the details, it really falls on me.
12:06Holy cow.
12:07This is going to be a lot of cake.
12:09Look at that.
12:10That's just one layer.
12:11He's huge.
12:12Let's do halfway for now.
12:14There are several challenges with making our polar bear vertical.
12:17One, the structure is really going to have to be strong to hold the weight of the cake and the mediums we use to bring our structure to life.
12:24We got to put something in there so the sticks doesn't fall out.
12:27We got to put some buttercream or something to it.
12:29Secondly, with this bear standing up, that's going to be really important that we get the proportions correct.
12:34Three, because this is such a massive cake, it's going to take a lot of time to fill the cake, to sculpt the cake, and ultimately get it covered.
12:42So we're really going to have to manage our time well.
12:45Perfect.
12:46You want to try the pumpkin pie, Philly?
12:47Sure.
12:48That's good.
12:49Mmm.
12:50Do you like these little lines in there?
12:51What do you think of these?
12:52Oh, I love that.
12:53Tesks are imperfect.
12:54They have lots of ridges and little cracks, just like humans might in their teeth.
12:58I'm currently cutting some cake to fill in any gaps.
12:59It's a really big cake and we just need a lot of cake to kind of get it nice and rounded and smooth.
13:14You have some of that ganache, right, Elizabeth?
13:15Yep.
13:16Right here, buddy.
13:17Trying to get too much on there.
13:18Yeah, I'm done with it right now.
13:19Okay, good.
13:20Let's help me get the body put together.
13:21Okay, sure.
13:22I have another test still, but yeah, I'll help you as soon as I'm done.
13:23Elizabeth has listened to the judges.
13:24She knows she has to work on the teamwork aspect.
13:25It's hard to do these detailed things under pressure.
13:26Okay.
13:27Big team energy.
13:28I'll help you as soon as I'm done.
13:29I'm going to cut it in half here.
13:30Give me this.
13:31This is the one thing you're being slow at, Jonathan.
13:32I think she's trying, but I think it's hard for her.
13:33She has improved a lot.
13:34As long as we make it to the finale, that's really what matters.
13:36We do need to keep going.
13:37Keep going.
13:38Keep going.
13:39We do need to keep going.
13:40Keep going.
13:41Keep going.
13:42I have another test still, but yeah, I'll help you as soon as I'm done.
13:43Elizabeth has listened to the judges.
13:44She knows she has to work on the teamwork aspect.
13:45It's hard to do these detailed things under pressure.
13:46Okay.
13:47Big team energy.
13:48I'll help you as soon as I'm done.
13:49I'm going to cut it in half here.
13:50Give me this.
13:51It's hard for her.
13:52She has improved a lot.
13:53As long as we make it to the finale, that's really what matters.
13:56We do need to keep going.
13:58Keep going.
13:59Yep.
14:00You can listen and we'll work at the same time.
14:01This owl has really bright yellow eyes.
14:04I'm just painting eyeballs here.
14:06Whenever you're trying to make something to look alive, the eyes are one of the most important
14:11things.
14:12I'm doing the eyeballs out of icing sheets.
14:15I'm coloring them with edible markers.
14:18The eyes got to be right, so owls have piercing eyes.
14:20I hand paint mine, so I paint on top of the fondant or gum paste, and then we put the
14:26isomalt lens or sphere over the top, and it really does just help capture the light.
14:31I'm going to pour like a half-dome sugar, and I'm going to back it with the icing sheet
14:35eyes.
14:36Let's go ahead and do this set.
14:40Here we go.
14:42I know they don't look good yet, but just give it a second.
14:45Watch this.
14:46Hit them with a torch.
14:48Oh, I see now.
14:50Ooh.
14:51Ah.
14:52It's coming together.
14:53It looks freaking amazing.
14:54Listen up, bakers.
14:56Four hours remaining.
14:57You have four hours.
14:59Dana, Tatiana, how are you two doing?
15:01Oh, we're busy.
15:02We are so busy.
15:03Choosing a bear is really bold.
15:07I think it's very ambitious, and I'm hoping that we can get it done.
15:12But the challenge is not easy.
15:14This body is so humongous.
15:15It's swallowing the cake.
15:17That's a huge cake.
15:19Like, how could you not go to the finals if you pull this thing off?
15:23Feeling good.
15:24All right, guys.
15:25That's my team.
15:26Let's go.
15:27The owl is going to be up on its post.
15:29When you're doing posts and stuff, you have to make sure all the pieces fit together really nicely.
15:33So when you measure your stencils, they have to fit together.
15:36And in this case, we're going to be doing brushed chocolate so it looks like wood.
15:41So we have to get it together, but we're going to pour some chocolate down into the base to sort of stabilize it.
15:46Coins go in with the liquid, and it causes it to crystallize faster, so it's not going to have to cool as much.
15:52I believe we have made this post strong enough that it will hold the body of the owl since it's cereal, treats, and cake.
15:58It's not crazy heavy, but it's heavy enough to cause some concern.
16:02So it's a little bit of a roll of the dice.
16:05How's it going, guys?
16:06It's going good.
16:07That'll hold over here.
16:09Hey, guys.
16:10So I'm going to work on finishing up the sign that our bear is going to be holding.
16:13Uh-huh.
16:14I think it'll be a really nice touch, a little joke for the judges, if you will.
16:17You're going to wood grain the top?
16:18Yeah.
16:19We got to go, go, go, go.
16:21We have to get this thing in shape.
16:24We're running out of time.
16:26We still have a lot of work to do.
16:28This one's definitely going to come down to the wire.
16:32As we continue to build on the piece, it's getting bigger and taller than we had envisioned just from the armature itself,
16:39which means more detail we have to add to it.
16:42This is way too much.
16:43Yeah, keep his shoulders down like you're leaving me no neck now.
16:46You just go on the back there.
16:48The polar bear is bloody mahoosive.
16:51I mean, look at that thing.
16:53I wonder if they will be able to pull that off.
16:55Ooh.
16:56Guys, whoever's taller, help me out.
16:58Do you want me to put it in?
16:59Yeah.
17:00Oh, yeah, yeah.
17:01Oh, yeah.
17:02Oh, yeah.
17:03Oh, my.
17:04Go.
17:05Hold on, hold on.
17:06Pull that off.
17:07Why, is something stuck?
17:08Yeah, I think so.
17:09Hey, did you guys see that bear?
17:10Nope.
17:11The bear head's going on.
17:13It's gigantic.
17:14The polar bear is so terrifying to watch.
17:18It looks like it's going to topple over.
17:20You okay?
17:21There's something stuck in there.
17:22Hold on.
17:23Give me.
17:24Don't drop it.
17:25Not today.
17:26I've been there.
17:27I've seen wobble come down.
17:29Oh, .
17:30This is definitely the most stressed I've felt in the entire competition.
17:34Hold on, hold on, hold on.
17:35Oh, .
17:36There's something stuck in there.
17:37Hold on.
17:38Bring me.
17:39Stop.
17:40You want to use that one?
17:43There is a huge level of additional pressure in executing our bake, because we don't want
17:50to go home at this point.
17:51Don't drop it.
17:53Don't you look at me like that.
17:56It was just a joke.
17:58Getting further into this competition, there's becoming more of a us versus them dynamic,
18:03so I think we're really going to have to keep our eyes on everyone here.
18:12Time is ticking away, and I know we're going to get this walrus done.
18:15However, there's a lot of sugar elements that I have to finish to really sell this off.
18:19One being the whiskers.
18:20Pulling whiskers, it's definitely difficult, because if the temperature of the sugar is not
18:24correct, you're not going to be able to get these nice, nice, strong strands.
18:27And if it's too cold, it's just going to break.
18:29So just finding that temperature to be able to really, really pull it correctly.
18:33Elizabeth, look at this.
18:34Boom.
18:35Look how many I can get.
18:36Stunning.
18:37Fabulous.
18:38I also am pulling some sugar splashes.
18:40Sugar lends itself to looking really nice and translucent, which looks like water.
18:43So I just got to pull some really long shapes just to kind of represent like a splash of water.
18:48And once I let them harden in that like curve shape, they look amazing.
18:51Elizabeth.
18:52Yes.
18:53Ta-da.
18:54That's fantastic.
18:57Uh-oh.
18:59Okay, so teamwork is a big component of today's bake.
19:04Who do you think is the strongest team?
19:06And who do you think has the most to work on?
19:08I'd say they each have their own unique dynamic and specific areas to work on.
19:14Aaron is a great leader, because he really lets his teammates play a huge part.
19:19Yeah.
19:20He plays to their role.
19:21I like Aaron's style of leading.
19:23Yes.
19:24He's really dedicating work.
19:26And this is the way to grow.
19:27If you don't do that, you know, you get limited.
19:29With Elizabeth's team, she's a very clear leader.
19:33And you can tell she likes control.
19:36And I'm not sure if she's doing that because she's thinking, okay, we have three different skill sets.
19:40Let's utilize them all.
19:42Or if it's because she just wants total control over the cake making.
19:46Francois' team play where everybody's playing together.
19:50I think that's obvious.
19:52They also work harmoniously.
19:54Yeah.
19:55And they've been working that way and it's worked out for them.
19:57Let's talk about flavor.
19:58It's almost as important as how it looks.
20:01Yes.
20:02And I've seen you guys change your votes based on flavor.
20:06It's the perfect tiebreaker.
20:08There's never been a challenge more important than this one.
20:12And getting through to the next round.
20:14You know, you can't win a Super Bowl unless you get the Super Bowl.
20:17So everything's on the line for these guys.
20:20Mm-hmm.
20:21So we're not supposed to have two tasting on this one.
20:24But I was like, if I have the time, I'll make one.
20:27I did a double tasting too.
20:28Well, we did.
20:29Yeah, we did.
20:30I cannot control myself and I want to show up everything I can make.
20:35I'm very motivated.
20:36I want to win this competition and I want to do more than what was asked.
20:41Looks great.
20:42Aw.
20:43So my number one role is to get the cake perfect.
20:48All the details make it hard to make a realistic animal.
20:52So I feel a ton of pressure knowing that if I mess up this cake, we might not make it to the finale.
21:00Don't freak out, but you have two hours left.
21:03We gotta move, we gotta move, we gotta move.
21:05Once we get him on, he can start the wings and then literally it's just spray and finish.
21:09He's cute.
21:12Hello, little pop-it.
21:13My little pop-it pop-it.
21:15With the walrus, in order to make it look convincing and hopefully impress the judges,
21:20we need to make sure we get all the textures right.
21:22We're gonna be rolling lots of little balls and lumps and we're gonna be putting them underneath the fondant.
21:27So when we lay the fondant over the top, we actually get this natural looking bump.
21:32The walrus has a lot of texture.
21:34They do have a lot of lumps and bumps on them.
21:37You're seriously doing really, really good.
21:39Thanks!
21:40Elizabeth keeps Jonathan and I moving.
21:42It's really helpful for both of us that we can make sure we get all of the elements completed in time.
21:47Good job, guys. You're doing awesome.
21:49She is a great leader that way.
21:51Is it good? Is it good?
21:53It's delicious.
21:54I love my team. I think we work fairly well together.
21:58I mean, we're all so different, but we have this strong common goal and that is we love what we do, we're passionate and we want to just do good work.
22:07Great. That looks fantastic.
22:08Renu's placing her tusks and they look bloody beautiful. I mean, they look pretty real.
22:15Sick!
22:17This whole thing is not covered yet. Let's get these big pieces out. Don't make me wait for pieces, guys. Let's make it move.
22:23We know. I can tell you're stressed. You're getting a little intense. We can't fall apart or lose our team dynamic now.
22:30No, I'm not falling apart.
22:31We have to go very fast and when I get nervous, my tone changes.
22:36Too many holes because I gotta cover what something is. If you leave me this, I have a problem.
22:41Not a pretty tone, but the guys never done a fur texture and it's not easy. We might be in trouble.
22:47You're gonna have to jump in helping with this, okay?
22:50Okay, don't be mad at me, but one hour.
22:54Just dip and paint, dip and paint.
22:56Okay.
22:57Ready, ready?
22:58Yeah, we're ready. Go.
23:00Just hold it there. You gotta go down. Perfect. All right, ready? Here we go.
23:07We're good. We're in.
23:09So the big risk that we took in this challenge is making a smaller animal.
23:14Obviously, everyone else is making these massive structures, so every single detail will matter, especially the wings.
23:22These wings have to be huge.
23:25Damn, I need only one wing. You're good.
23:27You're fine. You're fine.
23:28Just focus on that, and then we'll see where we're at for that second tasting element, and we'll make a judgment call, all right?
23:33Okay.
23:34You're fine.
23:35Focus on this.
23:38Francois is very nervous about finishing up these feathers.
23:41I don't know if he knew that these feathers were gonna take forever.
23:44It looks real good.
23:47I know what he can do, but I'm worried about how many feathers that Francois is gonna have.
23:53Are we gonna be able to pull it off? Like, I'm not sure.
23:56This feather taking forever.
23:57That's okay.
23:58But it's gonna be worth it.
24:02Those little tiny details will make or break this build.
24:06You've got 30 minutes remaining.
24:08That's the texture.
24:09Dana went in the zone. The fondant tone.
24:18This could send us home. Not enough texture.
24:21This could be our make and break between $50,000, and I'll see you later.
24:26Oh, okay.
24:27He looks so good.
24:29To really finish off this walrus, to make him look really, really cool,
24:34we obviously are gonna do some airbrushing.
24:36So I'm really gonna add, like, a darker gray airbrush on top
24:39and really bring out, like, those creases and wrinkles
24:42to really break up the brown.
24:44Cool.
24:45That's fantastic.
24:46That's great.
24:49Each challenge is just a little bit closer to that $50,000.
24:54Beak.
24:55Talents.
24:58We do not want to go home.
25:00We want to win this whole thing.
25:02Bakers, you have five minutes.
25:04Five minutes left.
25:05Dane, I'm gonna need help to put this on, okay?
25:08Okay.
25:09You got it?
25:10Good.
25:11Yes.
25:12Okay.
25:14I made a bunch of these, like she asked.
25:17Get them all very fast.
25:19Okay, we're getting even covered, guys.
25:20What's going on to the thing?
25:25Oh, sweet.
25:28Corner.
25:29Do not run right here.
25:30Stress level's pretty high.
25:31You know you have to deliver.
25:32And if you don't deliver, man, goodbye.
25:35You don't make the finale.
25:40Did it rip out the front?
25:41It sure did.
25:43Of course, the sign topples out of the bear's hand.
25:46An absolute nightmare.
25:49Sticks, sticks, sticks, sticks.
25:52You have got to be kidding me right now.
25:55How the hell are we gonna fix this?
25:57Oh, my God.
25:58Oh, my God.
26:01Help me with the board.
26:02Please, please, please.
26:03Of course, this is when everything that can go wrong starts happening.
26:06I quickly have to jump in and re-texture the piece to make it look like it's still one solid sign again.
26:13We have to get that reattached.
26:15One minute remaining, bakers.
26:17Oh, my God.
26:19If we're missing this detail, we're missing part of our story.
26:22So this has to get back onto our piece.
26:25Okay, we need chocolate or something.
26:28Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one.
26:39Hands up, bakers.
26:41I can't believe we did it.
26:43Girl, you and me both.
26:44All right, guys.
26:45He looks like a she, though.
26:47I finally get a chance to look around the room, and I'm like, oh, man, this is gonna be close.
26:51It's just a question of detail.
26:53Did we do enough?
26:54That was a lot.
26:55Bakers, we asked you to work as a team to create North Pole animals with flavors that would warm us up on the chilliest of days.
27:11We can see that those animals are quite large, and I'm anxious to see all the details.
27:17In addition to design, we'll be judging you on your teamwork.
27:22Team Elizabeth, we'll start with you.
27:24Even though he's pretty hefty, he has a kind of rather delicate name.
27:28His name is Poppet.
27:29He is made of cake, modeling chocolate, fondant, chocolate tusks, sugar whiskers, sugar eyes.
27:37We also have sugar waves for our splash because we obviously wanted to bring a little bit of movement to him with his clams slash mollusks because they eat a lot of those apparently.
27:47Hey judges, I brought you some mollusks, please don't eat me.
27:56I think Poppet looks phenomenal.
27:59The texture specifically on the skin is beautiful. I mean, as beautiful as it would be on a walrus, I suppose.
28:08I love his facial expression, the nose, the eyes.
28:11His eyes are very lifelike. The tusks really steal the show for me.
28:16They look real.
28:17They're gorgeous. I watched you make them, Renu. They're the perfect finishing touch for the walrus.
28:24Can we taste him?
28:25Absolutely.
28:26I went for like a pumpkin spice latte. That was my inspiration.
28:30I did an espresso and hazelnut cake with a coffee liqueur soap, a pumpkin pie espresso filling, and a chocolate fruillotine, pumpkin seed, hazelnut crumple, and then a coffee buttercream.
28:40For our second tasting element, Renu made a rum and habanero truffle, and they are encased in the mollusk, so you have to crack them open like you would crack open the mollusk.
28:49The flavor works very well. The buttercream is excellent. The cake is a little bit on the drier side, but for a cake like that to hold, you have to make it not too wet because everything will collapse, so I get it.
29:02The truffle is good.
29:03Delicious.
29:05I like the little heat at the end, and the flavor are good.
29:08It has literally warmed me up.
29:10Yeah.
29:11Slowly.
29:12The slow heat.
29:13Yeah.
29:14Regarding teamwork.
29:18Today is the best that I have seen you work as a team. You were really all hands on walrus, as they say. You were working harmoniously, and you seem to be having fun despite the stress level.
29:31Whatever you drink during the competition or before the competition, keep doing the same because it's working.
29:38It was rum.
29:40Well done. Thank you so much.
29:44I'm so thrilled. The judges really appreciated all the detail and work we put into, and I think they really did see us come together as this unified empire.
29:55I feel pretty good about our walrus, but there's still two more pieces to judge, so we'll see.
30:01Team Francois, you're up.
30:03Who wants to tell us about the owl?
30:06We do the snowy owl, and he is standing on the post that's saying the North Pole.
30:13So all the stand is made of chocolate, the owl.
30:16He is cake, and all the wings and the feathers are made of chocolate too.
30:20It's very well done. I love the chocolate that you scrape and try to make it not shiny.
30:26Jacques is right. The wooden beam is gorgeous. It's obviously not more magnificent than the owl itself, but it's the perfect perch for the owl.
30:35The owl has a lot of details. Those feathers, that take time.
30:40The feathers are all in slightly different directions. You can see them separate as well, so there's a lot of life to them.
30:47The face and the expression, the eyes, the beak, look good.
30:51I do wish his talons were a little stronger or a little thicker. Let's talk about teamwork.
30:57Camille, she did the body, and she did all the texture of the feathers and all.
31:02I make the tasting elements, and I work on all the feathers, and Nils work on the paw, and Nils also did all the sugar details, the beans and the eyes.
31:11So we devised very well all the work.
31:14I think that was a very nice teamwork.
31:17We have a lot of fun together.
31:18Oh, yes.
31:19I don't know how we eat this bird.
31:22Don't hurt him.
31:23We have an hazelnut cake, caramelized white chocolate whipped ganache, some bourbon caramel, and some crunchy hazelnuts covered with dark chocolate.
31:33So this one, we got chocolate cremeux with smoked chipotle, then a pumpkin cake, and a praline with pecan and pumpkin seed.
31:44As usual, both of these tastings are delicious.
31:48The bourbon caramel with the chocolate-covered walnuts and the hazelnut cake, it's so rich and indulgent, the type of dessert I want to eat during the winter when I'm hibernating.
31:59The outside of the snowball is so white and crisp and sparkly, and then the inside is pure warmth.
32:06I love the ratio cake and cream.
32:10Chipotle also has a smoky flavor.
32:12Yes.
32:13I can also feel that.
32:14Delicious.
32:16It warms you up on a chilly day.
32:18Yeah.
32:19Well done.
32:20Thank you so much.
32:22I'm very happy about the reaction.
32:23We work so well together.
32:25We have a beautiful choppiece, a beautiful cake.
32:28The most important is not to be eliminated, of course, but I feel confident that we can win this one.
32:34Team Aaron, tell us about your bear.
32:39So we have our polar bear here.
32:42They've come bearing a gift for you with our little sign.
32:46We love to incorporate a little humor into our piece with the opportunity.
32:49I love that he brought us a gift.
32:51I really appreciate that.
32:53I think this was a very ambitious build.
32:56Very.
32:57The structure of the bear is fantastic.
32:59He's standing there, proud.
33:01Making him stand on two legs with his size, it's not an easy task.
33:06I do like what you did with his face.
33:09It's a little bit more hair-like.
33:10And then when you look at his body, it's different.
33:13It's almost not the same animal between the body, the face and the arms.
33:17The texture on his face is really well done.
33:21But like Jacques said, it's drastically different on the body.
33:25And you had to nail that texture from head to toe, front to back.
33:30Tell us about your teamwork.
33:32How exactly did you divvy up the tasks?
33:35The bear itself was all hands on deck.
33:39That was very much a team endeavor.
33:41And because Tatiana, our lovely cake artist here, brought the face to life,
33:45Dana and I focused on the present and the sign that the bear has
33:49and kind of a team effort getting those paneled, covered, textured,
33:54and decorated onto the piece.
33:56Great teamwork.
33:57All right, let's dig into this bear.
34:02Taking that theme of something that keeps you warm and cozy during the holidays,
34:05my brain immediately went soup.
34:07So we have a sweet potato, coconut curry, soup-inspired cake.
34:11Very strange choice, but per usual Aaron's style,
34:14he goes for some really, really outlandish, crazy flavor profile that I would never do.
34:19It's wild.
34:20So we have a brown sugar and sweet potato cake with a sweet potato butter,
34:25and both of those contain a garam masala.
34:27And then we have a coconut tres de ches soak with a little bit of Thai chili and lime in there.
34:32We have a golden milk custard.
34:34It's a turmeric latte with milk and it has a little bit of cinnamon,
34:38a little bit of black pepper and ginger in it.
34:40And then to add some texture, we have some curried cashews and coconut in there.
34:45Have you made a cake like this before?
34:47I have not.
34:54Man, this is risky.
34:57You have got to do something like that.
34:59It's very interesting, very savory-like.
35:01Strangely, it's sweet enough that it go.
35:05I have never had a cake like this.
35:07It's fantastic, dude.
35:10This is one of the most interesting pieces of cake I've ever had.
35:13Yeah.
35:14And I can taste all the flavors.
35:15The texture of the cake is wonderful.
35:17It's extremely moist.
35:19And because of that moisture, it's carrying the flavor perfectly.
35:22I always ask you for bold flavor.
35:25You get it.
35:26Yeah.
35:27I don't think you guys got here because you've been playing it safe.
35:30This was a risk, but...
35:31But it paid.
35:32Yeah.
35:33Thank you, thank you.
35:34Fantastic job.
35:38After hearing the critiques from the judges across the three pieces, I'm really hoping
35:43that our flavors and our choice to be so ambitious will really carry us into the finale.
35:48It does taste like soup.
35:49It does.
35:50It does.
35:51It's wild.
35:52It is.
35:53Yeah.
35:54It's amazing.
35:55My flavors have kept us around once.
35:56Who's to say it won't do it again?
35:57Bakers, once again, you've absolutely blown us away.
36:00It's literally going to be.
36:02Two teams make it through to the final.
36:04Whoever doesn't, they're off.
36:06They're gone.
36:07I'm feeling so confident.
36:09But this is pretty intense.
36:11Yeah, I want to throw up.
36:13I'm nervous.
36:14The sheer size and magnitude of what we did.
36:17It is amazing.
36:19Is it enough?
36:20I don't know.
36:21Bakers, I've got to say, you really captured the magic of the North Pole.
36:36While you all made incredible creations, only two teams will be going to the finale and
36:42one team will be going home.
36:45So the first team that's going to go to the finale is a team that show us a presentation
36:53that tell us a story.
36:55Just looking at it.
36:57Beautiful facial expression.
37:00Beautiful texture.
37:02Delicious cake.
37:04And I think that all things really tell us a story of the North Pole.
37:10And that team is… Team Elizabeth.
37:23We have come pretty far.
37:26Even the judges could see the work and effort and the growth that our empire has had.
37:31It's a little bit hard relinquishing that control and trying not to step in all the
37:36time to help people, but it works.
37:39How do we feel?
37:40Relieved.
37:41Lucky.
37:42Relieved.
37:43And now I'm stressing.
37:48I'm like, oh my God.
37:50It's 50-50.
37:51We have 50% chance of going home.
37:53I'm stressing, stressing, stressing, stressing.
37:57Team Francois.
37:59Team Aaron.
38:00That means one of your empires will fall and one of your teams will be eliminated.
38:06Yolanda, who's the next team coming to the finale?
38:10Boy, oh boy.
38:11You guys haven't made our jobs easy.
38:13This is really difficult.
38:15And to be clear, you're all worthy of making it to the finale.
38:19Both were spectacular in very different ways.
38:23Aaron, you took a huge risk as usual, but it paid off.
38:27And we all tasted something we never expected to taste and have never tasted before.
38:32And Francois, you always bring it with the flavor.
38:35Different every time, but equally delicious each time.
38:39In terms of design, your cakes are completely different, but superb in their own unique way.
38:46And in the end, what this boiled down to was execution.
38:51My heart is beating out of my chest.
38:54We created something so beautiful.
38:57We just cannot go home right now.
38:59I've been in this exact same spot before, making it to the semifinals and not being quite enough to make it into the finale.
39:07So I'm really, really hoping that things are different this time.
39:11And the second team that will be headed to the finale is...
39:23Team Francois.
39:32First show, first time on final.
39:34Congratulations, you guys.
39:36You're headed to the finale, and you are one step closer to $50,000.
39:42It pains me to say this, because your cake was so freakin' good today.
39:48But unfortunately, Team Aaron, your empire has fallen.
39:53That doesn't mean that you didn't impress us.
39:56From the beginning, we have our eyes on you guys.
39:59You are amazing bakers.
40:01All three of you are incredible, on your own and even better together.
40:05And that was the best part of watching you work as a team.
40:08I'm pretty disappointed.
40:09But at the end of the day, I've learned a lot.
40:11I've been able to teach some old-school bakers a few new tricks.
40:16And some of the bakers have even pushed me outside of my comfort zones and helped me to grow.
40:21I wouldn't have had anyone else on my empire and wouldn't have had it any other way.
40:25I don't have any regrets.
40:26We did what we can do.
40:27We showed our skills.
40:28I think we did very good.
40:32When they bring me back for a sweet empire all-stars, I'm going to come fast and furious.
40:40I just want to put that in the hat right now if any executives are watching.
40:43Well, we have our final two empires.
40:50The win feels good for this challenge.
40:52But Francois' team, I know that they are going to be hard to beat.
40:56It is now all the pressure.
40:58Everybody's going to do everything they can to possibly win.
41:01Congratulations.
41:02You've built and maintained amazing empires.
41:07But the real battle lies ahead.
41:09Oh, God.
41:11Elizabeth, we're coming for you.
41:17Next time on Sweet Empire.
41:19May the best team win.
41:21We will.
41:22This is the finale.
41:23So you're meant to go big.
41:25We're making this huge Christmas tree.
41:29It's the finale.
41:31If this tree falls apart, we're toast.
41:34You're good.
41:35Keep going.
41:36Spread buttercream.
41:37Jonathan, cover the backboard.
41:38Oh, my God.
41:39I need you to get this done in eight to ten minutes.
41:43Uh, well...
41:44Get the body done.
41:45Uh...
41:47Are you serious?
41:48And the winner of Sweet Empire is...
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