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00:00I think this is one of the best things about the holidays.
00:10Snuggling up and watching a Christmas movie.
00:13Their skin is glowing and their teeth are so white.
00:16What's it about?
00:17Oh, this is my favorite part.
00:19She moves back to her hometown,
00:21bumps into an old flame from college.
00:23You think they don't like each other,
00:25but I feel that might change.
00:27Perfect.
00:29Welcome to Baked With Love.
00:37Last week on Baked With Love.
00:39This recipe didn't work.
00:41Sally and Amy's cupcakes fell flat.
00:43I think you've kind of dropped the ball with the flavor.
00:46Rosanna was feeling the pressure.
00:48A little stressful right now.
00:50It's split.
00:51Yes.
00:52While Renee and Sade's trifle failed to wow the judges.
00:56It could definitely have looked more elegant.
00:58One duo came out on top.
01:01Susan and someone.
01:02Wow.
01:03And we said goodbye to another team.
01:06James and Karen.
01:08Oh my gosh, like to be now halfway through the competition is amazing.
01:16It's been a bumpy ride, so we feel pretty fortunate.
01:19Last week was a wild roller coaster ride.
01:23It was a roller coaster.
01:24We weren't sure if we were even coming back.
01:26On the other side of this, there's four more challenges that stand between us and the prize.
01:30So it is becoming a little bit more high stakes.
01:32Welcome back to the barn.
01:34How are you feeling?
01:35Good.
01:36Good.
01:37Good.
01:38You have made it halfway through the competition.
01:39You are one step closer to winning $50,000 and having your bake featured in a Hallmark movie.
01:48Shall we bring Anna and Vaughn in to tell you what's in store today?
01:52Yes.
01:53Yes.
01:54Yes.
01:55Okay.
01:56Anna and Vaughn.
01:57Hi.
01:58Good morning.
01:59It might be chilly outside, guys, but things are about to heat up in the barn.
02:04The theme this week is sugar and spice.
02:09And of course, everything nice.
02:13So for today's holiday classic, we want you to make donuts.
02:18Specifically, baked donuts.
02:2012 of them.
02:21So we're looking for your donuts to look absolutely stunning.
02:27Almost like an ornament.
02:29We want two different types of decoration and we will be judging you on the bake of your donut,
02:36but also on your level and control of spice.
02:40You know we have a twist for you, right?
02:43As you can see, we have a Christmas tree here and lovely presents underneath it.
02:48I would like one person from each team to walk up, grab a gift, go back to your stations,
02:55open up the gift, and tell us what you have inside.
02:59Ooh.
03:00We have cardamom.
03:01Ground star anise.
03:05Ground nutmeg.
03:07We have pink peppercorn.
03:10Ginger spice.
03:11My favorite spice girl.
03:13Really?
03:16Ground cloves.
03:17Yes.
03:18Yes.
03:19So each of you have a spice that you have to use as one of the flavors in your donuts.
03:25Yes.
03:26You have one hour and 30 minutes.
03:29Off you go.
03:37You already fail.
03:38Hey, I'll do that all the time.
03:43Let's see where the creative mind takes us today.
03:46Whoa.
03:47Bless you, baby.
03:48It's that peppercorn.
03:49Whoa.
03:50All that pepper.
03:51Whoa.
03:52We have a funky spice pink peppercorn.
03:53So we're thinking of pairing it with things that can handle that essence.
03:56But maybe something spicy.
03:58They want us to try things, so...
04:00We're gonna try.
04:01We will try things.
04:03We've got cardamom.
04:05Normally it goes really well with apple, but we decided to go with blueberry.
04:09It's just kind of a play off of my family's favorite.
04:12They like my blueberry biscuits that I make.
04:14Maybe I wash them.
04:16I don't know.
04:18Have you ever made baked donuts before?
04:21This'll be my first time to make a baked donut.
04:24Made fried donuts, but never baked.
04:27In regards to our inspiration, during, like, Thanksgiving, Christmas time, my grandmother,
04:31she makes, um, an apple pie, and she puts a crumble.
04:34However, her version of a crumble is Italian breadcrumb.
04:38Oh.
04:39Mixed with sugar.
04:40And it's not very good.
04:41But no one has the heart to tell her that that's not how you make a crumb.
04:45Yes, that's not how you make a crumb.
04:47So for one of our donuts, we're using that as the inspiration.
04:50But it's all about the decoration, ladies.
04:52Yes.
04:53Remember, we're looking for finesse and elegance.
04:55Yes.
04:56You got it.
04:57For the finesse of it.
04:58Thank you, Debbie.
04:59Yes.
05:00Well, we have ground star anise, which personally we have not baked with.
05:05However...
05:06It's definitely not even in our kitchen.
05:07I know.
05:08But it is definitely in my grandparents' kitchen.
05:10That's for sure.
05:11And it's a flavor that really reminds me of my Grammy and Poppy who passed away this
05:16past Christmas within one month of each other.
05:19They were truly each other's soulmate.
05:21So this is a really nostalgic flavor.
05:23I mean, literally, just when we smelled it, it brought back so many special memories.
05:27The spice that we received is ground cloves.
05:30So I'm trying to get these flavors together so it has a little bit more of my grandmother's Christmas cake feel to it.
05:39My grandmother's Christmas cake is near and dear to my heart.
05:44You start smelling the spices.
05:46You start experiencing it.
05:48All of a sudden, all these memories flood back.
05:50I literally felt like my grandmother was with me.
05:53I'm there.
05:54Cool.
05:55I'm there.
05:56I'm happy.
05:57Yay!
05:58So tell me, what flavor are you going in your donut and what flavor is going to go as your decorations?
06:03Ginger is the star of the donut show today.
06:06There's a little bit of cinnamon in there.
06:08We are still kind of brainstorming our toppings.
06:11We know we're going to do one that's not savory but salty.
06:15Salty.
06:16Do you feel a lot of pressure now because you are associated with really upping your finesse game?
06:22Oh, yeah.
06:23Yeah, we do.
06:24We're feeling the pressure.
06:25It is.
06:26It's real.
06:27Well, we are expecting very beautiful donuts from you ladies.
06:30Okay, thank you.
06:31Hopefully, the cinnamon will balance out and bring out the ginger flavor once the donuts are baking.
06:37We hope this is a challenge.
06:40We went to the local bazaar and got cayenne, smoked paprika, white pepper, and the pink peppercorn.
06:49Oh, my.
06:50Okay.
06:51This will wake you up.
06:52I'm excited for this.
06:53This is the good day in the barn.
06:55All right.
06:56Well, I'm going to leave you to it.
06:58Appreciate it.
06:59Bye, guys.
07:00Do you taste it?
07:01Yeah.
07:02I feel it at the end, but I feel like it might get lost in the donut.
07:05More.
07:06It's a smidge more.
07:10I think that it'll be interesting to see this one, especially how they implement the spice.
07:14Mmm.
07:15Because spice is a tricky thing to get right.
07:17Yes.
07:18Confidence.
07:19You know, when you're not sure about something, you have to kind of go to the depths of your memory of when you've used spices before.
07:25I think it's good for them to use their baking instincts with this challenge.
07:30Check and see when something's done.
07:32You know when you've filled the donut pan up to the right amount.
07:35This is a recipe we've never used before, so we don't know what the lift is.
07:40You really just bake them, hope for the best.
07:44We're putting it in there for about 10 minutes at 355 Fahrenheit.
07:51And you're setting it time for how long? 12 minutes?
07:53I wanted to ask you, what does it feel like to be in a competition with each other?
08:00You know, sometimes when we're baking family recipes or talking about them, it just takes you right back.
08:05How does that make you feel when you reminisce?
08:08It feels good.
08:09Happy and sad.
08:10Yeah.
08:11We miss the ones that aren't here, but know that we can't be forever together here on Earth.
08:15Right.
08:16Mm-hmm.
08:17But, um...
08:18It's important to make lots of memories while we're all here.
08:23Yeah.
08:24I am so lucky that I had two wonderful grandmothers, Granny and Mama, and a mother that encouraged me wanting to cook from a very early age.
08:37Yeah.
08:38They taught me a lot, and Mom still teaches me a lot.
08:40Well, I'll try.
08:47They have been in there a little over 12 minutes, and the recipe calls for 12 to 14.
08:54The cake's coming out.
08:56I set it for 12.
08:57Yeah.
08:58So they only cooked for eight.
09:00I know, but I think our temp was high.
09:02Okay.
09:03Well, that's not good.
09:05This one's cooking.
09:07Oh, oh, oh, oh.
09:08This one's cooking a little bit slower, so I'm gonna add two more minutes.
09:12Oh, oh, oh, oh.
09:13I'll just toss it back in.
09:14It's the fruit.
09:15Halfway through!
09:19Halfway through!
09:22Perfect.
09:23They're light brown.
09:24They're not too dark.
09:25I think these are done.
09:26Ooh, they look pretty.
09:29Look at that blueberry.
09:31Oh, those look great, Susan.
09:34Thank you, Chef.
09:36Wow.
09:39Come on, baby.
09:40Please, please.
09:41I like the top bake better than the bottom bake.
09:44First time for something.
09:46I think it's because we should have actually put one in each oven, so that may be a downfall for me on these.
09:57Trying to get the donuts out so they can cool and the other batch out so they can cool.
10:03I did see a lot of the teams out of the oven fairly early on.
10:07That's a good chance to test your donut.
10:09Okay.
10:10But then that also means that we're gonna be expecting some fabulous decorations.
10:13Finesse.
10:14Because they have extra time, in my opinion, to do that today.
10:18We're trying to figure out the flavors.
10:21When you have an hour and a half and you have this much to do, sometimes it just has to come to you when you get to that step.
10:27Let's be real.
10:28For donuts, it's all about the toppings.
10:30At least that's how we feel.
10:31For one of our toppings, we're gonna have, like, this savory pancetta crumble.
10:35Rosanne, did you put maple in here, too?
10:37No, I wanted to season it.
10:39Even, like, a little bit of rosemary.
10:40I know you're not a fan, since we can't add, like, an acid to it.
10:43Wait, rosemary in there?
10:44No.
10:45No?
10:46No, you're going overboard.
10:48Okay.
10:49She's constantly is like, Ma, let's try this, because she likes her unique tastes and unique flavors.
10:54And I'm like, sure, bring it on, you know.
10:56And there's times that I'm like, oh, my goodness, that's so delicious.
10:59And then there's times I'm like, uh, yes, Mommy's not liking this one.
11:03I really think it needs some herb.
11:0615 minutes, guys!
11:0915 minutes!
11:10Time is running out, so just gonna go very, very fast to get this done.
11:17I think I might just do half a wing.
11:19Yeah.
11:20Because we don't want to overdo it on the decoration, either.
11:23Dang it.
11:24What, honey?
11:26These just don't look good.
11:27Well, we're gonna garnish them.
11:30The glaze just has to dry.
11:32Okay.
11:33Stand on the back side here.
11:34I need you to fan.
11:35Just don't whack me in the head.
11:37Just adding a little razzle-dazzle with some piping here.
11:41Yeah, they're melting.
11:43I'm almost there.
11:44Okay.
11:47Oh, that's the wrong flavor. Oh, no.
11:49This tip is so fine.
11:51Get me another bag.
11:52Large her tip.
11:53I'm just running out of time.
11:55Rosanna, gold leaves we could put on that, too.
11:58See?
11:59But with purpose.
12:00Right.
12:01One minute!
12:02Dang.
12:03Not enough time.
12:04That's it on the rosemary, I think.
12:05Rosanna.
12:06Make it snow, baby.
12:07Gorgie.
12:08That looks so good.
12:09Get something to scoop them with, please.
12:10Here.
12:11Those feel very German.
12:12Yep.
12:13Feel very fun.
12:14Yep.
12:15They're not ornate, but we hope they're very flavorful.
12:17Some of them sticking, some of them's not.
12:18It's fine.
12:19This is a test of my dexterity right now, and I am shaking like a leaf.
12:34Time's up!
12:35Good job.
12:36Okay.
12:37You see, theirs blew up a lot. Ours didn't do that.
12:42Look how high theirs is.
12:43Oh, this one's making me nervous. But we did it.
12:45It's the kind of cookie that gets you in trouble.
12:46Overall, I'm a little bit disappointed.
12:47I am in awe of you.
12:48I'm gonna do the little icicle.
12:49My donut, that's not fully cooked.
12:52Six batches of donuts are ready to be tasted.
12:56We browned pancetta with oats, rosemary in there as well.
12:59And then we put the pancetta in the pancetta in the pancetta in the pancetta in the pancetta
13:02and then we had made orange nutmeg.
13:03They are stunning.
13:07I'm excited to dive into these.
13:08So we're going in for the pancetta one.
13:09The saltiness of the pancetta is delicious. I think it's caramelized really nice. As I'm
13:14speaking to you now, I can taste the rosemary. That's really good flavor.
13:19Thank you so much.
13:22To be able to use that, it shows a lot of technique.
13:25And it's gorgeous.
13:26Your orange donut. I want to continue eating. I want to continue eating.
13:44Great job. These are stunning.
13:46Thank you guys.
13:48Yeah, really good. Well done. Well done, guys.
13:50Amazing ladies.
13:51We made a blueberry donut. So we have a HIT glaze. It also has a little bit of maple syrup
13:56in there. I'm not sure they have as much detail or interesting bits to make them look like
14:03an ornament.
14:04I kind of wish I saw just a little bit more of that Renee and Sade glam that we usually
14:10get.
14:11Let's see how it tastes.
14:16Smells lovely.
14:17Mmm.
14:18Now the blueberries weren't giving me as much of a tart burst as I wanted in order to
14:21kind of balance out that sweetness, but I am really getting that spice and the texture
14:26is really, really good.
14:27It's lovely.
14:29I think the donut is delicious. I can undeniably get cardamom off this, but really, with the
14:34brief, I think you could have done more with the decoration.
14:39So we glazed it with an amaretto glaze. We topped these with the sliced almonds and cacao nibs. This
14:46one we've topped with a dark chocolate ganache and cherries. I think that these are very eye-catching
14:54to me, but are lacking a little bit of that finesse. Let's taste. I'm not really getting
15:05the star anise. Oh. I get it just a tiny, tiny bit. I'm not getting any spice again. Texturally, I think
15:17these donuts are spot on, but I don't know if it necessarily really hammers home that brief.
15:24Okay.
15:25The exterior is a vanilla and almond glaze. Here, there's lots of fruits and floral and
15:32coconut. Here, we have these cute little German-style candies. The ones with the sanding
15:38sugar and the sparkle would have just looked so much cleaner without the gummies.
15:43Okay. Your donuts, which has dried fruit and floral on it, for me, there's an initial
15:48warning sign that they are smaller. My donut, that's not fully cooked. So I see that I can
15:57kind of pinch it. It's not crumbling, which breaks my heart, but it also makes sense why
16:02they're smaller. Right.
16:03And I think there's a real elegance and length of flavor, but obviously, your donut is not
16:07fully cooked. Okay.
16:08And I kind of like the balance of spices. Thank you.
16:13Well, thank you, guys. Thanks.
16:16So this is a ginger brown butter glaze with a ginger brown butter buttercream. And this
16:24is a lemony ginger glaze with a lemony ginger buttercream.
16:31I was expecting a little bit more from this team.
16:36It's missing the real kind of Christmas sparkle.
16:42I can get the ginger. Your donut is a little bit tough. It's a little bit dry.
16:46Okay.
16:48The brown butter is really nice, though, in that glaze.
16:51I'm excited to try the lemon.
16:58The lemon is very low. There's very little acidity in there.
17:01I really feel, on this challenge, you guys have struggled.
17:06We have a orange vanilla donut.
17:10It's kind of a tangy orange glaze.
17:12And this one is spiced dark chocolate.
17:15Visually, I am not getting ornament. I'm not getting much decoration.
17:26Pink peppercorns sit forward, which is excellent.
17:29Oh, good.
17:30So that's really quite fun to taste.
17:32And I would love that kind of complemented and reinforced on the bottom.
17:36I love the heat on the back end.
17:38You know, to me, it's not overpowering.
17:40And I think that, honestly, as this competition goes on,
17:43I'm looking to applaud creativity and risks a little bit more.
17:48But these are looking a little on the sloppy side to me.
17:56Well, well done, guys, for getting through that challenge.
18:00Judges, what do you think of their donuts?
18:02Overall, I'm a little bit disappointed.
18:04I think that this is the point in the competition,
18:06that we do have to be a little bit more critical.
18:10We really struggled to find a lot of decoration in these bakes today.
18:15Well, I'm going to try and lighten the mood with a joke.
18:19How about, do not give up?
18:25If we would have spent more time on the decorations,
18:28maybe it would have gone better, but we didn't.
18:30And we have a saying about that.
18:32It's bits and buts for candy and nuts.
18:36Every day would be Christmas.
18:38And today was not Christmas.
18:40No, it was not.
18:41The team that really nailed the brief was Rosa and Rosanna.
18:53Another example of mother may not always know best.
18:57Because she had said, don't put Rosemary,
18:59because it's not her personal preference.
19:01Good job.
19:02We made a good combination together.
19:05This is not the right texture.
19:06We're a little soft.
19:08That's not good.
19:09I want to make my mom proud with these cookies.
19:12Oops, sorry. I'm sorry.
19:21Welcome back.
19:23Now it's time for the ultimate festive bakes.
19:26Judges, what do you have in store for the teams?
19:30We would like you to make a gingerbread centerpiece,
19:33and it needs to be inspired by a very special place in your heart.
19:38We also want it to light up.
19:42Just like the place that's special to you lights up your hearts,
19:45I'm sure.
19:47We would also like some cookies to accompany the gingerbread centerpiece.
19:54I truly find gingerbread houses challenging.
19:58It has become a tradition in my household,
20:00so now we just kind of buy them already made.
20:06Can we do that?
20:07You're not allowed to do that.
20:08No, no.
20:09However, I'm really excited to see you guys excel at that,
20:12because I know I did not.
20:15All right.
20:16Well, you have two hours and 45 minutes to complete this challenge.
20:20Off you go.
20:25Two hours and 45 minutes is longer than we've had,
20:28but not a huge amount of time for a lot of detail.
20:32Yeah, I don't like this paddle.
20:34That's a no-no.
20:36We've made it several times,
20:37so hopefully all will go well today as it did when we practiced.
20:42Gaby.
20:43Come here.
20:44Yes.
20:45This is not the right texture.
20:46Oh, okay.
20:47It needs to be more crumbly?
20:49No, it's not.
20:50It's too crumbly.
20:51Let's restart it and...
20:53Okay, sure.
20:54And do less flour.
20:55Okay.
20:56All right.
20:57We're from Chicago and our roots are in Memphis,
21:00and so what we're going to be doing is representing our grandmother's house and the Memphis Bridge.
21:06So we're going to incorporate a pistachio white chocolate chip cookie into, like, some of the landscape.
21:11We always cross the bridge when you're driving in to my grandmother's house.
21:15My husband and my son, the first time I took them, we crossed the bridge and it was kind of like a full circle moment.
21:24You okay?
21:26Oh, no.
21:27How did they get all the way over here?
21:28Clean up on aisle three, please.
21:31What do you think?
21:33It's definitely clumpier.
21:34Okay.
21:35I mean, that feels good to me.
21:37I think that feels great.
21:38It's definitely better.
21:39Okay.
21:40Good.
21:41Our gingerbread cookie is actually not a traditional gingerbread.
21:44I was going to say, it looks a little darker.
21:46What's going on there?
21:47So it is inspired by the Italian gingerbread called massicoli cookies.
21:51Uh-huh.
21:52And it has a traditional gingerbread base, but it also has rum, orange glass of water, orange zest, and cocoa powder.
21:58Oh, my goodness.
21:59It's a little bit more softer than a gingerbread.
22:01Ooh, that smells delicious.
22:03I grew up and lived on the farm my entire life.
22:06Okay.
22:07We are doing a farmhouse and pinoli cookie as the cobblestone pathway.
22:13In Italian, pinoli are pine nuts.
22:16Growing up on the farm, the men were out working.
22:19So the women, we would cook and prepare meals for when the men came back.
22:23So we were always in the kitchen cooking together.
22:26In a way, that started my, you know, love for cooking because we were always surrounded by my grandmothers and my mother there.
22:33True.
22:34And she always adored being in the kitchen.
22:38Hello, I am.
22:39Hi guys.
22:40Hi.
22:41You made it this far.
22:42How do you feel?
22:43Honored to have made it this far.
22:44Oh.
22:45Around this time you can get a little lethargic, a little tired.
22:47Yeah, yeah.
22:48Or you can be like, oh, I made it this far.
22:50Let's go, let's go.
22:51Red light dance party.
22:52Bum bum bum bum bum bum bum bum bum bum bum bum bum.
22:54Oh.
22:55I love it.
22:56Okay.
22:57It works.
22:58Gives you the energy.
22:59Love it.
23:02So what is your centerpiece?
23:05Our centerpiece is a nativity scene.
23:08So we're making a gingerbread structure
23:11with gingerbread cookies and sugar cookies.
23:15That little one right there.
23:17Right there, that baby one.
23:19That I leave out year-round in my kitchen.
23:22Always makes me think about Christmas,
23:23so it inspired this bake.
23:25Yeah, and I always leave one out in my house year-round.
23:28The more we're together, I'm kind of starting to worry.
23:30We're a little too much alike.
23:33As well as a show-stopping centerpiece,
23:36the judges want the teams to make their signature cookie.
23:39I'm making my grandma's famous chocolate chip cookies.
23:43She's been written about in the paper
23:45describing her as Cookie Lil
23:48because she gives her chocolate chip cookies away.
23:51She's amazing.
23:52I love her so much.
23:54Wish I could feed you a little though.
23:56The best part?
23:58We got married in December of 2022.
24:01So what we're recreating here
24:03is from the welcome party
24:04from the night before our wedding.
24:06We're going to use my Aunt Susan's tea cake recipe
24:09to make a Christmas tree.
24:11Coincidentally, the downtown Christmas parade
24:13was happening that night right outside.
24:15People are toasting inside, hugging,
24:17meeting each other for the first time,
24:19and it was just a really, really great Christmas memory
24:21and one for us too.
24:22Oh, I love that.
24:23Yeah.
24:24Hi, ladies.
24:25Hi.
24:26So is there anything that you have learned about each other?
24:29I think I've always known that my sister was really creative
24:31when it came to the kitchen,
24:32but I don't really think I've ever stopped to kind of appreciate it.
24:35Yeah.
24:36She's got such a creative mind.
24:37Oh, I'm going to cry.
24:43Sorry.
24:44Oh, dear.
24:45Y'all ain't going to make me cry today.
24:47I'm so proud of her for just jumping in and doing this with me.
24:51I know it's been hard for her to be away from her son for this long,
24:54and it's just I don't want this to be a waste
24:56for her to come here and not try my best.
24:59Well, you should be very proud of yourself.
25:06Stephen and I went to Antarctica for the holiday.
25:10We had lots of little baby penguins running around.
25:14They were so cute.
25:16It's a whole series of glacier mountains made of gingerbread
25:20and sugar cookies with little penguins on top of them.
25:24The icebergs are actually Stephen's mother's sugar cookie recipe
25:30that nobody else in the family has other than us.
25:33She wouldn't give it to me except for this show.
25:35I want to make my mom proud with these cookies.
25:38I think they're good.
25:43I hope so.
25:44In the oven.
25:46They are in.
25:47That's great.
25:48One section down.
25:50So Ben is definitely, I would say,
25:51the more advanced baker between the two of us,
25:54but he is so humble that I feel like I'm always his hype girl.
25:57I'm his encourager to be like, yes, let's do this.
25:59You're my hype girl for sure.
26:02So I'm working on the centerpiece,
26:03and we are making a mini replica of the Eiffel Tower.
26:06What?
26:07Yeah.
26:08We also have chai buttercream cookies,
26:11and then we have a rosewater white chocolate bark as well.
26:15And this is special to us because before our wedding,
26:18we actually went to Paris, and when we were on the Seine,
26:22there was a man playing an accordion,
26:24and he played the song Le'Veon Rose.
26:26And so we were just dancing on this bridge on the Seine.
26:29Slow dancing.
26:30Super romantic.
26:31So we ended up making that our wedding dance, Le'Veon Rose.
26:35My goodness, this sounds incredible,
26:37but you both look more relaxed than me.
26:39Oh, thank you.
26:41Well, we had a couple moments in the beginning
26:43where we were stressed,
26:44but now I feel like we're feeling good.
26:45I haven't got the gingerbread baked now, so...
26:48Keep the momentum going.
26:49I kind of wait to see this.
26:50Thank you, Samadana.
26:52With the gingerbread baked and cooled,
26:54it should be time for our bakers to start building.
26:57Oh, we're a little soft.
27:00That's not good.
27:01We're really soft.
27:02If it collapses, then we have nothing.
27:12Well, no, we're really soft here, too.
27:14The cookie was soft, so it cracked.
27:19Oh, no.
27:2230 minutes left?
27:23Yes.
27:25I just don't think it's going to harden.
27:27You just don't want your structure to fall.
27:30Shoot.
27:37That's not us.
27:38No.
27:38Or is it?
27:39We're good.
27:40You're halfway through.
27:41Halfway through.
27:46You just don't want your structure to fall,
27:49so I'm going to make sure that I have it lined up correctly.
27:52We're going to have to start assembling this.
27:54I need to get the other side iced.
27:56The snow is starting to fall.
27:59I should stick it in the oven a little bit longer, too.
28:02At least we found out now and not at the 9 o'clock hour, you know?
28:05I know, but we've got to start assembling it.
28:08It's soft.
28:09It might have had to stay in the oven just a little bit longer
28:12to crisp it more of a structural cookie
28:13instead of just an eating cookie.
28:15I don't know how much you want me to coat this.
28:18I'm trying to get wood-like strokes in there.
28:21What are you going to stick the centerpiece together with?
28:24Yeah, the actual structure we're using white chocolate.
28:25Okay.
28:26It colludes together pretty solidly.
28:28It's really about the edges,
28:29as long as they're flat and they meet each other.
28:31This is so precise and beautiful.
28:33Oh, sorry.
28:34I'm sorry.
28:35Didn't break, did it?
28:36Oh, my God.
28:36Thank God.
28:37Okay.
28:38I fell down.
28:40Anybody catch that joke?
28:42I fell down.
28:44So we are now piping our royal meringue icing onto this.
28:49We have tried and true tested this exact icing,
28:55and it worked as a great icing glue.
28:57I absolutely think Gabriel and Ben look like they were born
29:02to make this gingerbread piece.
29:04They were working together like a brilliant team.
29:06I mean, theirs will probably be the highest structure,
29:09given it's the Eiffel Tower, you know?
29:11I'm a little bit worried about Rene and Shadow.
29:13Oh, really?
29:14Well, they're choosing to use white chocolate
29:16as the kind of edible glue.
29:18Oh, no.
29:19White chocolate isn't as stable or strong as dark chocolate.
29:22Also, there's a lot of up in action happening in here,
29:25so it's pretty warm.
29:27The biggest thing I'm worried about
29:28is that the cookies are not cooked completely,
29:31so they are soft and they're not strong enough
29:32to hold a structure.
29:34Okay, move.
29:35Excuse me.
29:39Yeah, these guys are good.
29:40Yeah, because Manny made those.
29:42Mama made those.
29:44We're going to just continue decorating everything
29:45so we'll have all our elements decorated,
29:47and then hopefully, closer to time,
29:50we can put it together and we'll be good to go.
29:52Just got to get these walls done.
29:55Oh, gosh, please.
29:5730 minutes!
29:5830 minutes left?
29:59Yes.
30:0030 minutes, Susan?
30:01We just got to start gluing.
30:04Shoot.
30:05Kavi, I just messed it up.
30:06Oh, no.
30:06Okay.
30:08Dang.
30:09Wait, is your glue sturdy enough?
30:12Because we're not going to have enough time,
30:13I think, should we just make a creative concept
30:16and just put it flat?
30:17What?
30:18It's going to crumble.
30:19So instead of it crumbling...
30:21It's not going to crumble.
30:22I think it is.
30:23No, it's not.
30:24I was worried about the rosemary.
30:26I was worried about the pie dough.
30:27No, I don't think we should.
30:29We've got to try it.
30:33Good job.
30:34All right, I've got our star,
30:36just so it can be dry.
30:37Just decorate the front.
30:39I know.
30:41I'm actually going to need that in a minute.
30:44There's sheeting everywhere.
30:44Let me see how many I need.
30:46I had a star.
30:49It's not what I wanted.
30:53Okay, we have something on the boards, at least.
30:57We have the chocolate ready,
30:58so we're going to try and put it together.
31:01I tried to keep it as thick as I possibly could.
31:04You think I should go back on the other side?
31:05Yeah.
31:07We're going to do a different concept.
31:10A shame.
31:10A 2D version.
31:13We're going to work with what we got.
31:15We'll give them something standing, huh?
31:17It's something that's standing.
31:22It looks so good.
31:23Can you start getting the trees on the board?
31:25Yeah.
31:26Awesome.
31:27Can I go?
31:28Because I need to put the tree in there.
31:29Okay, please, yes.
31:30The gang's all here.
31:32We've got the main characters.
31:36If you'll give me the stranded lights as well,
31:39I'll go ahead and get them in place.
31:42Ice, ice baby.
31:46Okay.
31:48We need that to seal, just like that.
31:51Come on, guys!
31:52Five minutes left!
31:53We can't fit this in the fridge, can we?
31:55I just don't think it's going to harden
31:57without something cold.
32:00We wanted to include a Santa in the front,
32:02but Santa was really busy, so...
32:04He was really busy.
32:05Is it sliding?
32:06No.
32:07No, it's not.
32:08Oh, wow.
32:09Look at the Eiffel Tower.
32:12It's so funny.
32:13See if you can lift up the Memphis Bridge.
32:15It's a little more sticky.
32:19Is there anything I can do?
32:21I am just putting a frost on the ice.
32:23Cobblestone Pathway, where are the pignoles?
32:28Okay.
32:30Can you see the light?
32:31Yes, I can see the light.
32:35It's a little bit cooler.
32:39Watch out, watch out, watch out.
32:41Let's put it aside.
32:45I can't believe this happened.
32:47It's how the cookie crumbled, I guess, right?
32:49I am in awe of you.
32:51One minute, guys.
32:53One minute.
32:54I'm going to do the little icicles, okay?
32:56Okay.
32:56Thank you so much.
32:58Well, stay.
32:59It keeps dropping that way.
33:01I know what's the weight of this is pulling it.
33:05Use every minute.
33:07It's not enough.
33:08You put rosemary on it or not.
33:10We pray that it sticks together.
33:15Time's up.
33:16Step away from your gingerbread.
33:21Okay.
33:22Please don't fall.
33:22Please don't fall.
33:23Please don't fall.
33:24I can't watch.
33:24Don't fall.
33:24Don't fall.
33:25Don't fall.
33:25Don't fall.
33:31Gabrielle and Ben, you're first.
33:35Please tell the judges about your gingerbread.
33:37So, we present to you the city of delights.
33:42This was inspired by a really romantic moment that we had in Paris on the Seine River by the Eiffel Tower.
33:47We wanted to bring that to life because it's a place that is absolutely very special to us.
33:52Good job.
33:53I mean, like, this is, like, c'est très bien fait.
33:59I think your gingerbread centerpiece is fantastic.
34:03I think it looks secure and stable.
34:05Cutting into it, seeing the lights, I'm sure at night it would glow gorgeously.
34:13There's a really nice spice element to that.
34:16It has a nice finish of ginger at the end.
34:19I really love the cookies.
34:25I am just astonished at how you pulled this off in just a little over two and a half hours.
34:32Our gingerbread house is our, sorry, our grandmother's house.
34:43And, um, our goal is just to kind of represent, you know, as best we could what her home looked like.
34:50But for us, it represented love.
34:51So, uh, it looks like there might have been a few little tricky moments when you were making the house.
34:57There's quite a lot of white chocolate on there.
34:59It's just kind of breaking my heart a little bit that it didn't go all to plan for you guys.
35:04Um, so you can see that some of your cookies weren't actually cooled down before you iced them.
35:09There we go.
35:10It's a good structural gingerbread.
35:15Really good, like, punchy, spicy flavor.
35:21Great chew.
35:22I think the flavor of your biscuits are really good.
35:25But quite a few things went wrong with your house.
35:29Our structure was influenced by the farm, which is where I grew up.
35:34All of our fun, family memories, Christmases, family gatherings, everybody came to the farm.
35:39Oh, don't, don't, you did good.
35:42You did fine, that's it.
35:44You did fine.
35:46Yes.
35:47I'm sorry.
35:48You were so confident all the elements were done.
35:5140 minutes left, and then we went to go put up the structure.
35:53It turned out our cookie was just a bit soft.
35:56Oh, it's heartbreaking, isn't it?
35:57I know, I know.
35:58We can see so much detail.
36:05The chocolate gingerbread cookie.
36:07I think it could have been a little bit sweeter.
36:09Just a tiny bit.
36:14It's the kind of cookie that gets you in trouble.
36:16Uh-oh.
36:18You get out of bed in the middle of the night to go downstairs and eat these.
36:24Just the front of the barn.
36:26Yeah.
36:27Did us dirty.
36:28We got married on December 3rd, and on December 2nd was the night when all of our loved ones came together for the first time.
36:37And they congregated in this building, in this space in my hometown, and it's so special to me.
36:43And it was so special to see all the people who had poured so much love into us pouring into the room for us.
36:50You can see the lights in there, kind of all, what do you say, higgledy-piggledy?
36:57Higgledy-piggledy.
36:58Higgledy-piggledy.
36:59I love the detail in the roof.
37:08I think it's quite nice.
37:09You know, I love the molasses-y flavor.
37:11So, yeah, it's good.
37:12It's got really interesting flavor, quite crumbly texture.
37:19All in all, I would say you showed a lot of skill with the size of your cookies.
37:23It's definitely missing, like, finishing finesse.
37:28Our story represents an old story about 2,000 years old that most people have heard.
37:37Your centerpiece would not be out of place on a dinner table on Christmas Day.
37:41My only thing is the lighting.
37:43That's also maybe a little higgledy-piggledy.
37:45Yeah, yeah, that is.
37:50I quite like the chew on that.
37:53Good.
37:54I think it needs a little bit of salt.
37:56I think it's a bit heavy on the molasses.
38:01Your Christmas trees look so lovely.
38:08The sugar cookie's good.
38:09You both do simple, classic so well.
38:14Sometimes I'm waiting to be wowed.
38:19Okay.
38:19We traveled to Antarctica for the holidays.
38:25Wow.
38:25We spent Christmas with the penguins, hundreds of them running around our feet.
38:30So that was our inspiration with the structure.
38:34I think it looks amazing.
38:35I think it looks so cool.
38:36And the use of the lights is my favorite, most intentional use of the lights.
38:42I think I see Jack Dawson under this one.
38:47I think it's probably too heavy on the spice for me.
38:53Okay.
38:53I think that the gingerbread is a little crumbly.
38:56I think it's a little dry.
38:57The little iceberg cookies that the penguins are on is my mother's sugar cookie recipe.
39:01Your sugar cookie has a similar texture to a kind of cake or a sponge.
39:07So I think it might have needed just maybe a little bit longer to cook.
39:10But I really love the story behind it.
39:15I think we're just going to have to be kind of daring.
39:18What we think is a lot of flavor is clearly not enough.
39:21So we've got to really spice it up.
39:24And they said, I can't taste the ginger.
39:26I thought, oh gosh, half a cup next time?
39:30I don't know.
39:38Well, I'd say it's been quite a day.
39:40We take out the front of the barn and it's bending.
39:42I'm like, no.
39:43For us, we were literally holding our roof with one minute left.
39:47Yes.
39:47And we just had to let it go and hope.
39:49I don't know how, but for some reason it stayed.
39:52This week has been an emotional rollercoaster for me.
39:55I don't know about for you, Mom.
39:56I've been cool, calm, and collected the whole time.
39:59You've got amazing bakers you're going up against, so.
40:01I don't know.
40:02It could go any way.
40:07You know, I have to say, I'm slightly confused.
40:12Rosa and Rosanna did amazing, but wait.
40:14They're in the bottom.
40:16What happened today?
40:18The fact that you can be in the top and then suddenly be in the bottom is, I think, a good sign that it's a healthy race.
40:24I do feel like Ben and Gaby, their Eiffel Tower was genius.
40:30It was fantastic.
40:32Do you have a clear idea of who's going home today?
40:34Renee and Sade kind of come to mind.
40:37Unfortunately, that gingerbread house just really didn't go to plan for them today.
40:41I'd be a bit worried about Marco and Steven.
40:44Really?
40:44Well, I think they struggled with a couple of their bakes.
40:47I feel like that's a common theme for them as well.
40:50Their bakes are always either too eggy, dry.
40:55Amy and Sally, I think that their donuts were just not there today.
40:59Their gingerbread was gorgeous, but I'm just kind of over the vanilla with the vanilla frosting.
41:08You have a big decision to make.
41:10Do you want to make the decision?
41:11No, you are not putting that on me.
41:17What a sweet and spicy day we've all had.
41:21Well, I'll start with the sweet.
41:23Anna, who do you think were the strongest bakers today?
41:27So, the team that we really felt excelled in today's challenges were Gabriel and Ben.
41:42Oh, I'm so excited.
41:44Honestly, we were not expecting this, so, like, my heart about dropped into my chest when they said our names.
41:50That was awesome.
41:50I, like, had tears in my eyes.
41:52I was so excited.
41:54Sadly, one team will be leaving us today.
42:00And that team is...
42:07Renee and Sade.
42:11Will you please hang up your aprons in the barn?
42:14We're sad to see you go, but please don't stop baking with love.
42:20Honestly, I'm only heartbroken because I did want my grandmother's house to look a lot better.
42:30But our intention for this competition was really to have these challenges be a love story to our family.
42:37And I hope we did them justice.
42:41We know we have some very tight competition in this.
42:46And, um, we're going to bring our A game.
42:47Yeah.
42:49Everybody's so good.
42:50Everybody's so good.
42:55Yeah, our glasses are rose-colored right now after that, which is pretty fitting.
42:59So, yeah.
42:59I honestly, this is, like, just the best feeling.
43:02We know we're going to be a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little bit of a little
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