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00:00Christmas truly begins in my house right after Thanksgiving.
00:06I like to decorate my Christmas tree with a different theme every year.
00:11This week we are stepping up the competition with highly decorative bakes.
00:16Welcome to Baked With Love.
00:26Last week the teams were challenged to make a pie.
00:30Be a happy pie.
00:31Gaby and Ben struggled.
00:32Our oven was not on.
00:33But redeemed themselves in challenge two.
00:36The walnuts are just.
00:38Inda and Armand ended up with a runny filling.
00:41Maybe a hot mess.
00:42While Amy and Sally.
00:44Let's say a little prayer.
00:45Presented a winning pie.
00:47Excellent job.
00:49And Susan and Salmon wowed the judges.
00:52You see now I love that.
00:54As father and son Fabio and Fabio Jr.
00:57Oh it's so broken.
00:59We're sent home.
01:00Thank y'all.
01:06Feeling great.
01:07Well rested.
01:08We can go into that oven.
01:10Well not into that oven.
01:11But into that kitchen.
01:12And put some good stuff in the oven.
01:14Hello.
01:15We may look calm on the exterior.
01:18But the wheels are always turning in my head.
01:21We're aiming for nothing but the top at this point.
01:23There's no point in trying to be shy.
01:25There is a prize at the end of this.
01:27So that's what we're really focused on.
01:30Well welcome back bakers.
01:32How are you guys first of all.
01:34Good.
01:35Good.
01:36This is great.
01:37As you can see one of our stations is empty.
01:39Sadly Debbie and Kristen have left the competition.
01:42Due to personal circumstances.
01:44However.
01:45The show must go on.
01:47And remember there's a lot at stake here.
01:49One team of family bakers will walk away with $50,000.
01:55And one of their family recipes will appear in a Hallmark movie.
02:01So are you guys ready to do this again.
02:03Yes.
02:04Woo.
02:05Woo.
02:06I love it.
02:08Today's theme is deck the halls.
02:13So now I think it's time to bring in our amazing judges.
02:16Anna.
02:17And Vaughn.
02:18Please join us in the barn.
02:20Hello lovely.
02:23Feeling festive.
02:25La la la la la.
02:28La la la la la.
02:30La la la la.
02:33Oh wait.
02:35Top marks for me.
02:36Okay harmony.
02:37Yeah we harmonize.
02:38High five.
02:39Can't leave me hanging on that.
02:40Our first challenge is called the holiday classic.
02:44So Vaughn what would you like our contestants to make today.
02:47We want you all to make cookies.
02:50Specifically sugar cookies.
02:53They need to be fun and festive and transport us to the 25th.
02:58We want you to make single cookies and sandwich cookies.
03:01You can add whatever you want to make it your own.
03:03You know there's going to be a twist to it right.
03:05We want you to transform these cookies into an edible cookie wreath.
03:11Oh.
03:12It has to be gorgeous and decorative.
03:14And the base has to be a cookie too.
03:17No.
03:18Yes.
03:19Marco.
03:20You got this.
03:21You have an hour and 30 minutes.
03:26Off you go.
03:27Oh.
03:28Go.
03:29Let's do it.
03:30Oh wow.
03:31All right so filling.
03:32It's about to be a party the mama.
03:34This is peak happiness for me with baking.
03:37My girlfriends come over and we decorate cookies together.
03:39We always do a classic sugar cookie.
03:41So we're doing a vanilla for the base.
03:43Which we're not so sure about.
03:44Time is of the essence.
03:45Ah.
03:46So I don't know.
03:47I should be better about this deadline thing.
03:52You know working.
03:53Being that I was a former reporter but.
03:55I was a journalist and also working for an emergency response agency.
03:59So working under pressure is nothing for me.
04:01I mean I just sort of kind of just got to get through it.
04:04Yeah.
04:05And I teach.
04:06I know.
04:07I'm sorry.
04:08I'm sorry.
04:09Right there.
04:10That's a lot of personalities.
04:11Youthful personalities in one room.
04:13So yeah.
04:14You got to be able to manage that as well.
04:16And so I think yeah.
04:17So this is a piece of cake.
04:18No pun intended.
04:19We've got our recipe book over here.
04:22So we're definitely incorporating flavors that we love at home.
04:25And we're excited to incorporate that.
04:28So doing some caramel.
04:30But we really need to set aside enough time to decorate.
04:33We want to win.
04:34We want to win this amazing prize money.
04:36We have a baby that's going to be here in a few months.
04:39So dreaming about their future is really going to be our motivation.
04:44Cookie wreaths.
04:45I love them.
04:46Oh I'm so excited.
04:47They could be so pretty.
04:48And also I love cookies.
04:49I love cookies.
04:50Cookies.
04:54But things can go wrong with a cookie.
04:56There's so many things that can go wrong with the recipe.
04:58Too much sugar.
04:59Too much butter.
05:00Too much cheese.
05:01Too much water.
05:02All of that is actually going to make your cookie spread.
05:04Too much flour is going to make it dry and crack.
05:06I want to be wowed with the decoration.
05:09An hour and a half isn't that much time.
05:11Yes.
05:12But I think it's enough time for them to really turn out a good product.
05:17Okay.
05:18We have almond liqueur.
05:19We have almond liqueur.
05:20Traditionally.
05:21In Italian.
05:22To stay true to like our roots.
05:23But.
05:27She said she forgot the egg.
05:28I forgot the egg.
05:29The scale is being so weird.
05:32This will not zero.
05:34Oh.
05:35Do you want me to measure that out for you?
05:36I think I got it.
05:37You got it.
05:38Hi.
05:39How are you feeling?
05:40Feeling good.
05:41We're going to do a little buttercream on some.
05:43And we're thinking of like a sea salted caramel flavor.
05:46The decorations, there will be glitters and metallics.
05:49In our house, we also have a lot of glitter.
05:51My mom does specific themes.
05:53She did peacock feathers one year.
05:55Cool.
05:56Yeah.
05:57I turned to baking out of necessity.
06:00I got sick.
06:01And I used to be a pharmacy technician.
06:04And I lost my job.
06:07I began baking to help bring in money.
06:10That helped our family during a very hard time.
06:14I began to like it.
06:16And I was really good at it.
06:18So it's been awesome.
06:22Oh my God.
06:23It is a stickier dough.
06:24I can't believe how sticky it is.
06:26We're just going to re-roll it.
06:27I don't like getting stuck.
06:28All right.
06:29I saw some amazing purple dough.
06:31Ube.
06:32Ube is a Filipino sweet potato, right?
06:36Yes.
06:37I'm representing our Filipino culture in a good way.
06:40The judges, I will tell you this.
06:42They love when you add a little bit of your personality into it.
06:46For sure.
06:47And I feel like you guys have done that beautifully.
06:51I appreciate that.
06:52You're welcome.
06:53Renee and Sade, les twins.
06:55Hi.
06:56I saw this whiskey on the table.
06:57I said, I'm coming over there.
06:58Our sandwich cookie is going to have a filling that mimics an old fashion.
07:02I love that.
07:03Okay.
07:04So how are your cookies going to tell the story of your family?
07:08I'm going to try and do a black Santa and like a Mrs. Claus that looks like us.
07:12Representation is really important to us.
07:13And we all want to be able to see ourselves in the world.
07:16Our mom had a set of little black drummer boys that she got when we were maybe like five or six and she still has them to this day.
07:22I'm very proud of my heritage.
07:24Our roots are in Memphis with all of our extended family and a lot of our traditions of going there for the holidays.
07:30The real pine tree that our grandmother had, tasting things, dancing, music.
07:35So many memories.
07:37Halfway through.
07:39Halfway through, bakers.
07:42Okay.
07:43We'll just start cutting out some shapes.
07:45These are all very cute.
07:46So we're excited.
07:48In the oven.
07:49This can go in the top.
07:51Just put all those in the oven.
07:53Oh, no.
07:54Our dough is really sticky and we're behind.
07:59It was my fault.
08:00I weighed it, but our scale was being really funky.
08:02The flour was so low.
08:03I know.
08:04I just don't think these shapes are going to hold.
08:07So at this point, I don't know if we should just scrap it and...
08:11Do what?
08:12I don't think we have time to start a new dough.
08:15I'm worried about the time restraint that we have.
08:18You should talk.
08:20I can talk.
08:22Our dough is not going well.
08:25And I don't know what we're going to do.
08:29Hi, guys.
08:30Hi.
08:31How are you?
08:32I know.
08:33Something went wrong earlier.
08:34The best thing to do would be genuinely to take a deep breath,
08:37look at each other and make a plan.
08:39Look at each other and make a plan.
08:40What do we think?
08:41We're sweaty king.
08:42We've kind of given up in doing cookie shapes.
08:44They're going to be round cookies.
08:45They don't have to be in this shape.
08:47Okay?
08:48Right now in this moment, obviously, it feels like it's a nightmare.
08:51It's done.
08:52This is the base.
08:53All right.
08:54Okay.
08:55Thank God for this template, though.
08:58Were we supposed to do a sugar cookie circle?
09:00We didn't do it right?
09:02We were just using it as a template.
09:04I didn't know we were supposed to make a sugar cookie.
09:06But it does say that, so we missed that part.
09:11We're going to have to present without the cookie base and hope that maybe the taste and story
09:19and design helps us survive.
09:25What did I do wrong?
09:26You were supposed to put it on opposite sides to make it look like a sandwich.
09:35I did?
09:36No.
09:37It was supposed to look like this way?
09:38Yes, mother.
09:39So our rules will switch.
09:40I'll play the mom in the kitchen and...
09:44I'll be the soup painter.
09:45My soup chef.
09:46No, no, no, no.
09:47Cut it this way.
09:48You know, make a triangle.
09:49Don't cut it on the edge.
09:51So in that aspect, I'm like, okay.
09:53What's going on here?
09:54How will that be decorated?
09:56So in Italy, we celebrate St. Nicholas, which is on the 3rd of December.
10:00Oh.
10:01We put oranges inside of stockings, so we wanted to encompass that in our wreath.
10:05Sounds good.
10:07I need more silver.
10:08I need more silver, please.
10:09Marco and Steven, tell me about your cookies.
10:12The flavor profiles are a little bit more like a gingerbread.
10:15Steven's family being German, I wanted to kind of play off of that.
10:18My family, of course, being Latino, we love a good party.
10:21You got to have some glitter.
10:22Glitter and be gay, huh?
10:23Yeah.
10:24Exactly.
10:25You're doing so good, Mom.
10:26Thank you, Sam.
10:27Hello, ladies.
10:29Is there a story to this?
10:31We're using peppermint extract, and we just like color.
10:34You love color.
10:35And when we have Christmas, I have done things.
10:38But now that the kids are older, it's too tired.
10:41Anything goes.
10:42I can totally relate to you, because sometimes you're just too tired to care.
10:48If I could tell my young mother self how I am now, same person, two different expectations.
10:54And now it's just fun and family.
10:56And you know what that sounds like?
10:58What?
10:59Growth.
11:00Growth.
11:01That's a good thing.
11:02As a grandmother of 11, I love Christmas, because watching my grandchildren is very entertaining.
11:10They're all running around being cool.
11:13Greatest gift a parent can have to see their children having children and making them happy
11:19and enjoy Christmas.
11:22We gotta get that in the oven, buddy.
11:23I know.
11:24We're a little behind.
11:25Oh, my God.
11:26I gotta cut.
11:27Oh, you do?
11:28Yeah.
11:29Are you okay?
11:30Oh!
11:31I'm a little nervous.
11:32I just need a bandaid.
11:33Okay.
11:34How many minutes do you think you got over there?
11:35Fifteen minutes!
11:36I know.
11:37Fifteen minutes left, and we'll see what we can make happen, but you know what?
11:42Our dough is really not workable, and we are running out of time.
11:46Just go slowly, and it should be fine.
11:48Is it dangerous?
11:49Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh.
11:50There will be drama.
11:51Quite a few things have gone wrong for you here, and it just feels so unfair.
11:58Probably about ten minutes left.
12:02We are really behind.
12:04You almost done, Henny Bear?
12:06Just get it on in there.
12:07Yeah.
12:08No going back.
12:09Now start decorating, placing trees.
12:11I'm not being as delicate as I want.
12:14These cookies are too hot.
12:16We've got some in the ovens.
12:17They just need a little longer.
12:19Time, please.
12:20Five minutes!
12:21Five minutes?
12:22Oh!
12:23Praise be!
12:24Oh, Lord, have mercy.
12:26We're under the gun.
12:27We're under the gun.
12:28We don't have time.
12:29We just gotta get it out.
12:30I love you, but we gotta muscle through it.
12:32Be careful.
12:33This is super hot.
12:34The clock is ticking.
12:35Tick, tick, tick, tock.
12:36We have cookies, but we probably aren't gonna be able to get too much together.
12:40How much time's left?
12:41One minute left!
12:42Crunch time.
12:43Horrendous.
12:44Okay, hurry up.
12:4529 seconds.
12:46It's not over until the pregnant lady sings.
12:49Time's up!
12:50Yes!
12:51Oh!
12:52I hear a yes.
12:54It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.
12:57I'm pretty upset I did that wrong.
13:00I didn't know we had to cut out an actual template on the bottom.
13:03I just didn't know what I didn't know.
13:05I don't think I'm ever gonna bake again.
13:07You know what?
13:08We're not gonna surprise it.
13:13Now it's time for the judges to taste the cookies.
13:17Arman and Inda, please tell the judges about your cookie wreath.
13:21You have some oven mitts.
13:22Not oven mitts.
13:24You have some Christmas winter mitts that represent like our outfits and our pajamas that we always match.
13:31I think what really stands out is the elegant cutting.
13:34It's really clean and crisp.
13:36What's the flavors?
13:37Salted caramel cookie with cookie butter buttercream.
13:41I did get salted caramel and I love the cookie butter.
13:44The cookie is definitely softer than I prefer.
13:47I like a soft cookie.
13:48Do you want to fight it out?
13:50It's the best.
13:55Rosanna and Rosa.
13:56So this is a little almond, a little bit of amaretto, chocolate.
14:06This is a beautifully balanced cookie sandwich.
14:10It's got the tartness from the raspberry.
14:12The chocolate like gives a bitterness that I really love.
14:16Also I love the almond in it.
14:17I think it's delicious.
14:18And it's got gold on it.
14:19Come on.
14:21Versace.
14:22Italian opulence.
14:23I love it.
14:24I love it.
14:25Come on.
14:27Excellent job.
14:30Good job.
14:31Good old what's up with the tears today?
14:36Amy and Sally.
14:37It's stunning.
14:38It could go on a door, you know.
14:40But it's going to go in our belly instead.
14:42Tell us about the flavor.
14:43We're from Alabama and we thought this is a representation of the flavors we love there.
14:47It's got traditional almond cookie icing with a peppermint buttercream.
14:53There's a really good peppermint balance flavor in here.
14:57And also the cook on your cookie is very good.
14:59It held its shape so excellently.
15:01Well amazing job ladies.
15:03Thank you all so much.
15:04Thank you very much.
15:05I think I'm going to steal this one.
15:07Please do.
15:08That looks so good.
15:10Good job mom.
15:11Good.
15:12Proud of you.
15:14Marco and Steven.
15:15We made gingerbread men because we have all nephews.
15:19We now finally have our first little girl in the family.
15:22So the flavoring is gingerbread.
15:25I love the buttercream.
15:26I think it's really delicious.
15:27I might have wanted a little bit more spice, you know.
15:30But love, the glitz, the glam.
15:32If you've got it, wear it.
15:37Salmon and Susan, what inspired your cookie wreath?
15:40Every Christmas I host, kind of mid-December, a cookie decorating party with my girlfriends.
15:45This wreath is kind of a compilation of the shapes that we have.
15:49Beautiful, but what's the flavors?
15:51We always do a classic sugar cookie.
15:53I'm a bit of a purist with mine.
15:55So we have a vanilla buttercream.
15:57I love vanilla.
15:58I'm actually the same as you.
15:59I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to it.
16:01I would say that that ratio of cookie defrosting is maybe a little heavy handed.
16:04A little much.
16:05But they do look beautiful.
16:07Karen and James, please tell the judges about your cookie wreath.
16:12We put purple food coloring to kind of indicate that it's going to be an ube cookie sandwich.
16:19Ube jam.
16:20I love ube.
16:21I love ube desserts.
16:22I really enjoyed the ube jam in there.
16:25I think it's maybe a little bit rustic around the edges.
16:28But it's got this lovely, playful feeling of real Christmas.
16:32Well done.
16:35Great job, guys.
16:38Sade and Renee.
16:39You don't have a cookie base.
16:41What happened there?
16:42We thought the snowflakes kind of served as that.
16:43Okay.
16:44So we thought we were kind of using the guide just to kind of figure out placement.
16:47But even though we're missing the wreath, I absolutely love your story about representation
16:52being a big part of your holiday celebration.
16:55I think that's so important.
16:57It has orange zest, cherries, bourbon to kind of reflect a nice little old fashioned.
17:03Old fashions are our favorite drink.
17:05Oh, amazing.
17:06You chose well.
17:07You chose well.
17:08The flavors are delicious.
17:09I love the orange zest coming through it as well.
17:11But if you'd slowed down and heard the brief, you would have had the wreath.
17:18Gabriel and Ben.
17:20It obviously looks very different than what you would have hoped for.
17:24It doesn't look very attractive.
17:26What's the flavors?
17:27Cookie butter.
17:28Almond with homemade caramel sauce.
17:31I mean, your cookie butter spilt out a little bit.
17:35I think maybe it was warm when it went on there.
17:37But the almond in it is delicious.
17:39And also the thing that really impressed me was that when the chips are down and everything's
17:44going wrong, you stayed as a team.
17:46It's still baked with love.
17:47Baked with love.
17:48And that's what it's all about.
17:49I know.
17:50Could we say that you both felt the love?
17:53Absolutely.
17:54Absolutely.
17:55We put a lot of that in here.
17:56So there's that.
17:57Yeah.
17:58Thank you both.
17:59Thank you, Ben and Gabriel.
18:00Thank you, guys.
18:02You did great.
18:06You all did an amazing job.
18:09Anna, who did you think excelled at this challenge?
18:12I'm so lucky I get this one.
18:15Sally and Amy.
18:18Rosa and Rosanna.
18:21And Inda and Arman.
18:24We really got to taste delicious flavors through your REITs.
18:28And there was some excellent finesse through them, too.
18:31Top three.
18:35Now, there were some teams that really struggled.
18:39Gabriel and Ben, you know, you shared your fair share of issues.
18:43Maybe just time management.
18:44That's probably the biggest no we have.
18:47Renee and Sade, the thing that we ultimately had to dock for was not having the cookie base.
18:53Well, you guys can go back and relax, and we'll see you back for the ultimate festive bake challenge.
19:00I'm not too upset about it because I know that's something that's an easy fix.
19:05We're going to make sure we pay attention for the next challenge and hit all the marks for it.
19:10The way that this bake went, we really need to bring our A game for the second bake this week, or we're going home.
19:17Holy Spirit, activate!
19:20The biggest challenge is making sure that we can get that quintessential Christmas tree shape.
19:25Oh, goodness!
19:34Ready for round two?
19:35Yeah!
19:36Now it's time for the ultimate festive bakes.
19:41Anna, what do they need to do to wow you today?
19:44What we want you to do is a 3D Christmas tree cake.
19:48It's going to be made of sponge, and it's going to be layered.
19:51So we want it to be at least five layers, so that's going to test your knowledge of sponge, of buttercream.
19:57But above all else, we want them to be festive, decorated, and really tell your story of the holidays.
20:04You have two hours for this challenge, okay?
20:07So make sure every second counts.
20:11Off you go.
20:14Okay.
20:15Go.
20:16Let's do it.
20:17The last challenge, our cookies did not look good, so we need this to look good.
20:23I knew that was going to happen.
20:25Time for a red light dance party.
20:30Okay, that's it.
20:31All right.
20:32We have a code word when we drive.
20:33If you stop at a red light, and you say red light dance party, and you start dancing, and then you go on.
20:39But it's a perfect way of breaking tension.
20:41And it just relieves the stress, so red light dance party.
20:43Red light dance party.
20:44That's our code word.
20:45This sounded really tricky.
20:47Anytime I hear, like, 3D, I feel like a lot can go wrong.
20:51For any structural thing, especially when it has multiple layers, you really have to focus on your temperature control.
20:57What's crucial is their timing.
20:58Yeah.
20:59You can have a filling and icing.
21:00But if your cake is warm, forget it.
21:02It's gonna look like a hot mess.
21:03It's gonna melt.
21:04Yeah.
21:05We're gonna make this whole batter.
21:07Thyme, that's the biggest issue.
21:09I'm just gonna hope for the best here.
21:11Our layer cake is called Don't Stop Bay Leafing.
21:17Basically, don't stop believing in Christmas.
21:21The cake is bay leaf and lemon, and then covered on the sides with sliced almonds.
21:27I just like having herbs and sweet things.
21:30I am a U.S. history professor.
21:32I own over 400 cookbooks in my studio apartment.
21:36You're much more adventurous in your flavor palette than I am.
21:39I am.
21:40I'm very traditional.
21:41I'm very much whatever's in the pantry.
21:43If it's cinnamon, if it's chocolate, I'm good.
21:46I sifted your flower switch.
21:49Thanks, baby.
21:50Beautiful.
21:51One and a half of baking soda.
21:53All right.
21:54Amy and Sally, tell me a little bit about your cake today.
21:57Okay, so today our cake is a gingerbread spice sponge.
22:01And then we have a bourbon vanilla buttercream in the middle.
22:05Our Christmas tree is I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas.
22:08My girls love the movie White Christmas.
22:11The one with Bing Crosby.
22:12Yeah, yeah, yeah.
22:13Still do.
22:14Yeah.
22:15And we also dream of a white Christmas in Alabama because that never happened.
22:18That never happened.
22:19Yeah.
22:20This never happened.
22:21Renee, Sade, how's it going?
22:24I feel like that first challenge, we were at odds a little bit.
22:29We feel very vulnerable, but we really want to get this one right because this one's for
22:33a very special person.
22:34Yeah.
22:35For my son, Kamari.
22:36He's four years old.
22:37My son goes four very soon.
22:39This cake features all of Kamari's favorites.
22:42So it has chocolate cake, chocolate chip cookies, and his favorite superheroes.
22:48Christmas means more now that I'm raising a little one to make sure that he's meeting
22:52family and also just having those moments with them as well.
22:56This is actually the longest I've been away from him.
22:58It's really hard being away from them.
22:59Yeah.
23:00But, you know, they need a strong mommy to use as inspiration for when they get older.
23:05Yeah.
23:06We're hoping we can make him proud.
23:07Obviously, we've got to deliver.
23:10We have no choice but to get this right.
23:12All right.
23:13I'm going to keep working.
23:14Okay, honey bear.
23:15Hello, Ben and Gabrielle.
23:16How's it going?
23:17Hi, Ben.
23:18Tell me about your cake today.
23:19This cake is really a tribute to our baby.
23:21Oh.
23:22So we're calling it Baby.
23:24It's Cold Outside.
23:25Oh, I love that.
23:27We recently had a gender reveal and we're so excited to find out what baby was in my belly.
23:33We got to see the blue icing inside and just can't wait to have our baby boy this Christmas.
23:38So we're doing some cute little baby blue ornaments to have the Christmas tree decor.
23:44And our cake is delicious.
23:46It's a spice cake from Ben's mom's recipe that she made them a lot growing up.
23:50Yeah, it's a little bit of a nod to the past and the future at the same time, which is pretty fun.
23:54Are we worried about timing?
23:55You know, we struggled a little bit this morning.
23:58We've only got two hours.
23:59So we got to get these in the oven and cooled as fast as possible or we're going home.
24:04Baking away, baking away against the clock as everyone is.
24:09The largest cakes will take about 45 minutes or so.
24:12Yes, very tight.
24:13We are very tight on time.
24:14They do their thing.
24:15We'll do.
24:16We trust them.
24:17We trust the process.
24:18Bye.
24:19Hi, Simone.
24:20Hi, Susan.
24:21Hello.
24:22I see you've got lots of bread here.
24:23What are you guys making?
24:24There is a place near where I grew up that is beautiful at Christmas time.
24:28Yes.
24:29They have these huge, like, to the ceiling trees that they've decorated.
24:32Wow.
24:33They do lots of, like, bold colors.
24:34So we're doing a raspberry coconut pink Christmas tree.
24:38It's all pretty and pink.
24:40In your family home, do you ever do a pink Christmas tree?
24:44No, we aren't traditional with the decor, so.
24:46Well, we could fantasize with cakes.
24:47Yeah.
24:48I love that.
24:49That's, you know.
24:50That's great.
24:51I do love Christmas time.
24:52She loves Christmas so much that we had a December wedding.
24:56We decided to lean into it.
24:57And for the honeymoon, we decided to explore and find the world's greatest Christmas markets.
25:03I know most people go to the beach after they get married and they're ready to relax, but.
25:07She's ready to do more Christmas.
25:08All right.
25:09He's got this.
25:10The more important things, they also have to make the filling.
25:12I've tasted enough buttercream icing to rot my teeth.
25:15And then, Arman.
25:16Hello.
25:17Hi.
25:18What do we got going on here?
25:19We have Dutch chocolate cake, cafe con leche, Puerto Rican style.
25:24There is a peppermint buttercream.
25:25I love it.
25:26Like a peppermint mocha vibe.
25:27Yeah.
25:28And Arman, what are you working on over there?
25:29This right here is going to be the cake topper.
25:31Just another reference to our religion, our faith, and some angels.
25:34That's gorgeous.
25:36I have five kids and he's the brave one to do this with me.
25:42My mom is definitely an inspiration.
25:44She's pursuing her baking dream and it's just special being able to, like, just have this experience with her.
25:49Yeah.
25:50Yeah.
25:51So far, so good.
25:52This is going to be the peppermint buttercream.
25:55Is the blade in it?
25:56No.
25:57Wait, turn it off. Turn it off.
25:58Open it and then we have to reset it.
26:00How many minutes do we have?
26:02Halfway through.
26:04This is crazy.
26:06Are they coming out clean?
26:08That one's not.
26:09Come on, baby.
26:10Steven, Marco, what's the cake that you're going to make?
26:13Uh, inspired by my grandparents' Christmas tree.
26:16The silver aluminum trees with the color wheel.
26:18To have something that newfangled for them was just, I thought that was the coolest thing.
26:23Wow.
26:24Lay rings are orange, lime, and chocolate.
26:29You think you're going to have enough time?
26:31We hope so.
26:32Oh, we hope so, Anna.
26:3445 minutes left.
26:36Oh, goodness.
26:37Those are done.
26:38Okay.
26:39You want to check them out?
26:40Yeah.
26:41We're going to pop the cake into the freezer.
26:43If we can get it chilled, it's a lot easier to frost and get that quintessential Christmas tree shape.
26:49I want them to get as cold as they can get.
26:52Please, Lord.
26:53There will be drama.
26:55Ah!
26:56Careful.
26:57I'm so sorry.
26:58Cranberries down.
26:59In some cultures, that's a celebration, you know?
27:02Yeah.
27:03Oppa.
27:04Greek.
27:05Yes.
27:06This cake is cherry and pistachio carrying out our Italian culture.
27:11But now it's Italian chaos.
27:13We work together.
27:14It's all good.
27:15At the end of the day, it ain't going to be perfect.
27:18It's going to be chaos.
27:19There's so much going on.
27:21That's what makes the holidays.
27:23If this doesn't exist, it wouldn't be Christmas, right?
27:25Be boring.
27:26Would be boring.
27:28Oh, dear.
27:30Everything's really hot.
27:32Oh, my God.
27:33This cake's still warm.
27:35Getting nervous.
27:36No, don't be nervous.
27:38We need everything cooled and time to frost it.
27:40We don't want warm cakes and putting buttercream frosting on there,
27:43because, of course, butter's just going to melt.
27:45Oh, it's still warm.
27:48She can't.
27:49It's all good.
27:50Take a break.
27:51It's not.
27:52All right, Lord Jesus.
27:53I've been a good, humble servant of yours.
27:56Please help me.
27:59It's showtime, baby.
28:00I'm going to have to decorate really, really fast.
28:02This is a pipe dream.
28:03Our cake is, like, falling.
28:04Oh.
28:05It's falling like a mountain.
28:1030 minutes left.
28:15Should we just start constructing it now?
28:18I guess so.
28:19Get moving on the pipe.
28:21Definitely.
28:22Yeah.
28:23It's showtime, baby.
28:25Are we stressing yet?
28:27Yes.
28:28God, help me.
28:29It seems like it's still...
28:31hot.
28:33Oh, I can't do that.
28:35Because my cake is hot.
28:37Mama, do it.
28:38Do it.
28:39Do it.
28:40Do it.
28:41Inhale.
28:42Exhale.
28:43No.
28:44The cake layers.
28:45Too hot.
28:46They're melting.
28:47Normally, we would probably give ourselves a little bit more of extended time to get all
28:49of our layers cooled the way we would like.
28:52One, two, three, four, five.
28:55I just need more filling.
28:58This little guy is just going to hold everything together.
29:01Just go slowly and it should be fine.
29:03Not too much cake trauma, you know.
29:05We're going to carve this cake in about two minutes and we're going to ice it.
29:08There's a lot of icing that we need to put on this cake to frost it and make it look
29:11like a tree, but the cake's breaking.
29:13This is not right, Armand.
29:15It's going this way.
29:16That's okay.
29:17Oh, my gosh.
29:18I've never done this hot in my life.
29:21Mama, keep going.
29:22It's falling like a mountain.
29:27It's not supposed to be a mountain or a shrub.
29:29It's supposed to be a Christmas tree.
29:31Oh, it is melting.
29:32Is that dangerous?
29:33Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh.
29:35This is lopsided.
29:37It's really fragile.
29:38This one's going to fall apart.
29:40Oh.
29:41Oh, no.
29:43It's dying.
29:45Mom, keep going.
29:46Armand, it's like literally falling all over.
29:49Five minutes.
29:50Five minutes.
29:52Okay.
29:53My cake collapsed.
29:54I'm laughing and crying.
29:58Mama, it's okay.
29:59Oh, my gosh.
30:02Our cake is like falling.
30:04I don't know how to get it to stick.
30:08No, wait.
30:09You're smishing the rest of the cake down.
30:11Mama, it's okay.
30:12I'm trying to put this on a board.
30:14Mama, keep going.
30:15I don't even know what to do.
30:16Because this is something I've never experienced in my life.
30:21What am I supposed to do?
30:22Mom, it's okay.
30:23Keep going.
30:24Keep going.
30:25Do it.
30:26That's the time.
30:27You have one minute.
30:28One minute.
30:29Ah.
30:30Holy Spirit, activate.
30:31Look.
30:33Do what you can with it.
30:34You got this.
30:35Fly like the wind, booza.
30:37Watch this.
30:38Okay, put this underneath.
30:39Ooh, geez.
30:41That feels dangerous.
30:42We're going to rename this a dump cake.
30:46That's what we're going to call it.
30:51Everything's melting.
30:52It's so hot in here.
30:53Pray that it doesn't fall over.
30:55Ten seconds.
30:56Oh, where's our angel?
30:57I made this angel.
30:59I made it.
31:00Hurry, hurry.
31:01It's going right up there.
31:03Bless it, Paula.
31:04So cute.
31:05Time's up.
31:06I don't want it to fall.
31:07Oh, no, no, no.
31:08That's broken.
31:09I did that wrong.
31:10No.
31:11I'm laughing and crying the same time.
31:12Hey, you've got to do it at the same time.
31:13I do the same thing.
31:14What happened?
31:15My stuff's doing cool.
31:16It's a hot mess.
31:17No.
31:18No.
31:19No.
31:20Now it's time for the judges to taste.
31:21Salman and Susan, you're up.
31:22It's based off Christmas trees that we've seen.
31:23The question is, what are we going to do?
31:24Is it the same thing?
31:25Is it the same thing?
31:26Is it the same thing?
31:27What happened?
31:28Is it the same thing?
31:30Is it the same thing?
31:31Is it the same thing?
31:32I'm laughing and crying the same thing?
31:33Hey, you've got to do it at the same time.
31:36I do the same thing.
31:37What happened?
31:38My stuff's doing cool.
31:39It's a hot mess.
31:40No.
31:41Now it's time for the judges to taste.
31:42Salman and Susan, you're up.
31:45It's based off Christmas trees that we've seen
31:48at the Homestead Resort.
31:50They truly deck the halls.
31:52Wow. How gorgeous.
31:53I mean, I love the ruched piping on the sides.
31:55It's really, really fun.
31:57Tell us about the flavor.
31:58Inside, we have coconut cake layers,
32:01raspberry compote.
32:03It doesn't have a huge coconut flavor,
32:06but I think you've done a really nice sponge.
32:08It's light, it's airy, it's fluffy.
32:10Well done.
32:11Amy and Sally, you're next.
32:15It's a white Christmas tree,
32:17because my girls love the movie White Christmas,
32:20and my parents gave them the VHS.
32:23Y'all may remember those.
32:25Gorgeous. It looks like a tree.
32:27The piping is very crisp.
32:30Your buttercream was at the right temperature,
32:32which I think is a sign of good technique there.
32:35The flavor is gingerbread,
32:37and then we have a bourbon vanilla buttercream in the middle.
32:40It's got such a gorgeous finish on it.
32:45Really?
32:46You've got that lovely molasses feeling
32:47at the end of the cake.
32:49It's really good.
32:50It just reminds me of home a lot,
32:52because we did a lot of very molasses-y gingerbread growing up,
32:56and the bourbon is coming through it,
32:58and I can taste it.
32:59Molasses bourbon?
33:00Mm-hmm.
33:01Oh, my.
33:02What more goods you want?
33:04Sounds like a good Friday night meme.
33:06Yes.
33:09Marco and Steven?
33:10The inspiration came from my grandparents.
33:13Their tree change colors.
33:15Stop the lights! Look at this!
33:17Whoa!
33:18Whoa!
33:20We do have very psychedelic vibes going on in here.
33:24I feel like I'm in the 70s.
33:26See?
33:27What's the flavors?
33:28The ornaments on it are actually cast chocolate.
33:31The sponge cake is orange with lime.
33:37I'm not really getting strong flavors of orange,
33:40and I'm not getting strong flavors of lime.
33:42Okay.
33:43I'm getting a little bit of a texture issue
33:46with the sponge as well.
33:47It's a little chewy,
33:48but you went there,
33:50and fortune favors the brave.
33:52It does.
33:53So, groovy baby.
33:59Karen and James, you're up.
34:02The cake is bay leaf,
34:04almonds, and lemon.
34:05I'm not sure I'm getting Christmas tree.
34:07I'm getting more of, like, a tiered cake.
34:09I don't know if it necessarily meets the brief.
34:14The flavor's amazing.
34:15It's interesting.
34:16I love the texture of the flaked almonds on the outside.
34:19They really complement the flavor of the bay.
34:21Well done.
34:22Enda and Armand.
34:25Come on up.
34:28We have a mocha Dutch chocolate cake
34:31we call cafe con leche.
34:32There is a peppermint buttercream.
34:34Enjoy.
34:36Well, we asked you for 3D.
34:39That's a lot of Ds right there.
34:42Why do you think it collapsed?
34:44Well, the cake was not cooled down sufficiently.
34:47Okay, well, let's taste it.
34:49Yeah.
34:54It seems a little underbaked or soggy.
34:57I think you have some good individual flavors here.
34:59Feel like there isn't a full gel of the flavors together.
35:03Hey, it would make a good cake pop.
35:04Absolutely.
35:05Put that thing in a mixer and just blend it around.
35:08Brilliant idea.
35:09You know, that's what I like to do with all...
35:11Yeah.
35:12I mean, hey, we all have baking fails, right?
35:14We have.
35:15It's just part of the journey.
35:16Yeah, it's just part of the journey.
35:17Yes, I see.
35:18Wow.
35:19Thank you guys.
35:20Thank you so much.
35:21Thank y'all.
35:22Rosanna and Rosa, you're next.
35:26This was our living room tree, the traditional one.
35:28And inside, it's a pistachio cherry cake carrying out our Italian culture.
35:35The flavors are quite lovely.
35:37The tartness of the cherry really complements and balances it.
35:41Your icing has melted, but I think the presentation is excellent.
35:47Gabriel and Ben, you're up.
35:51This is going to be our very first Christmas with our baby.
35:55So that is what we wanted to bring to life.
35:57Well, it looks fantastic.
35:59Yeah.
36:00I mean, it looks absolutely incredible.
36:02My mom always made spice cake for us around the holidays, so we made a spice cake.
36:11Spice is mild.
36:12The cake is really nicely baked.
36:13It's got a lovely crumb on it.
36:14That is a really well-executed cake.
36:16Yeah, it's just so clean, so congratulations.
36:19The comeback kids.
36:21Every week, come on.
36:22Well done.
36:23Sade and Renee, you're next.
36:29Today we made for you Kamari's superhero Christmas tree cake.
36:33Oh.
36:34Kamari is my four-year-old son.
36:36This cake features all of Kamari's favorites, so it has chocolate cake, chocolate chip cookies,
36:41because Kamari loves chocolate chip cookies.
36:43Oh.
36:44Why are you ladies emotional right now?
36:47We really wanted to do him proud.
36:49Yes.
36:50You know, I just have to say, as a mother too, we're never perfect.
36:53And our children, all they truly care about is that we're doing our best, and that they feel that love.
37:01Our first bake together was when he was three months old.
37:05And I was holding him on my hip, and I was pouring a bag of chocolate chips, and my first baking lesson, my first tip to him was that we don't measure chocolate chips in chocolate chip cookies.
37:15We just pour with our heart.
37:16It's such a nice chocolatey flavor, which isn't always easy to get with a sponge cake.
37:26And yeah, I like the crunch of the sprinkles.
37:29I like where you were going with the chocolate chip cookie crumble in there.
37:33That is a cake that my nephew would love, because he loves superheroes, and he loves chaos.
37:40I don't think your cakes are fully cooked.
37:43Oh, okay.
37:44Quite a few things have gone wrong for you here, and it just feels so unfair.
37:49Oh, that's so nice to see everything.
38:02You guys got a very tough decision to make.
38:07Yeah.
38:08Gabriel and Ben redeemed themselves, but Inda and Armin were in your top three and then struggled.
38:16Oh, the day.
38:17The day we've had.
38:18Rollercoaster.
38:20I love their holiday classic, but to see the final product from the ultimate bake was unfortunate.
38:28Sade and Renee struggled with the cookies and the Christmas tree cake.
38:33Coming out of challenge one, challenge two, a little bit of a letdown, not gonna lie.
38:37Honestly, we know how you feel.
38:38We were just there not too long ago.
38:40But we've seen you both make incredible bakes in the story.
38:43That was beautiful.
38:44You got me.
38:45I was emotional.
38:46Also, it tastes incredible.
38:48I think when it comes to flavor and story, Sade and Renee are wizards.
38:53I think they're brilliant.
38:54And their holiday classic was really good.
38:57They just were missing the cookie part of the wreath.
39:00Oh, this is so hard.
39:01That's true.
39:02It's all on you guys.
39:03I'm glad I don't have to do it.
39:05But I'm, like, such a better baker than what we did today.
39:12You're a better baker, period.
39:15Arman.
39:16Ooh.
39:17Might be hanging out in my apron.
39:18We saw some pretty amazing Christmas decorations today.
39:31Let's start with the good news first.
39:33Who were the strongest baking team?
39:35One team really excelled in both bakes today.
39:40Seeing as today's theme is Deck the Halls, really their decorations were pretty top-notch.
39:47So the winner today is Amy and Sally.
39:58Wow.
39:59Awesome.
40:00Good job.
40:01Roll Tide.
40:02Sadly, there is one team that is going to be leaving us today.
40:12The two teams that struggled today were Renee and Sade and Arman and Inda.
40:20This competition is all about baking with love.
40:25We all have got stories to tell, and some people are better curating them and applying flavour to them.
40:31So there's one team that I feel in captured flavour and story better than the other.
40:42And the pair that is leaving us this week is...
40:52Arman and Inda.
40:55I am so sorry.
40:57Please hang up your aprons in the barn.
41:00We hope you continue baking with love.
41:05Thank you, guys.
41:10Very interesting day.
41:12It was such a high this morning and then it just all went downhill.
41:17Keep crashing down.
41:18Yeah.
41:19But you know what?
41:20Like, the experience was so fun and we just tried to stay positive and see the joy in what we were doing and I'm just so freaking proud of my mom.
41:29Aw, thank you.
41:30I love you so much.
41:31Wow.
41:32And you know what?
41:33We tasted it and it was good and we're proud still of what we did.
41:38It's so difficult to send anybody home, but I thought it was really important that the team that had the most potential stayed.
41:46Renee and Sade, the way they tell stories through flavour, through love and passion, I think they have something really special.
41:56And next week they need to come back fighting.
41:59We're grateful to just get another opportunity to try again because baking is my passion.
42:05I really do love it.
42:06It's just the idea of having, like, potentially one of our grandmother's recipes in a Hallmark movie.
42:11It just would be a dream.
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