The Great British Baking Show (2010–…): Season 11, Episode 9 - Patisserie Week - full transcript
It's the semi-final, and the last four bakers are assigned three patisserie challenges.
Hello, viewers. I hope you're as
excited as are for patisserie week.
I love patisserie. I love tiny
French cakes. The smaller,
the better.
Yeah, I like them so small you can
only see them under a microscope.
I've written a song about
patisserie. Do you want to hear it?
No.It's great.
# I eat patisserie,
sometimes in my lingerie... #
I'm going to stop you there.Why?
I felt it was needlessly surreal.
I was up all night writing that.
Should have gone to sleep.
BOTH: Welcome to
The great British Bake Off.
# I like patisserie
# Sometimes in my lingerie... #
La la la!See, you enjoyed it!
No, I hate it.
To secure a place in the semifinal
meant surviving dessert week.
It all hangs on this.
Oh, help, help, help.
And it was Hermine...Beautiful.
..who triumphed...
Straight out of
a Parisian patisserie.
..and was crowned Star Baker
for the second time,
while puddings proved problematic
for Peter...
It has collapsed.
That's slightly concerning.
..it was Mark...
Whoa, whoa, whoa.
..who had a wobble.
The jelly is too rubbery.
And his time in the tent was up.
It's just been the most incredible
experience.
This time...
Biff! Oh!
With a place in the final
at stake...Come on!
..the bakers must produce
perfect patisserie...
Concentration station.
..with an elegant
French signature...
Hermine says "savarin."
And I go, "sav-rin."
..a bewildering technical...
It makes no sense.
I just don't have a logical brain.
..and as temperatures in the tent
soar...
It's getting hot again, isn't it?
..a scorching show stopper...
Please be good. Please be good.
..guaranteed to cause a meltdown.
It's not quite set inside.
I don't even want to carry on.
This is going to look like
a complete mess. Oh, my God. Oh.
What a nightmare.
I'm really looking forward
to this week.
Patisserie is one of those
exciting things.
It's not home baking any more,
it's perfection, precision.
That's patisserie.
I'm not feeling massively confident.
I'm just a home baker, so this is
a little bit out of my comfort zone.
It would be a bit of a killer to go
out just before the final.
I'm feeling more nervous that it's
the semifinals than the fact
that it's patisserie week.
But I think we are all worried about
Hermine, because she is patisserie.
She is really good at what she does.
It's supposed to be the week
I enjoy the most,
but I need to make it to the final,
so pressure's on.
Hello, kids. Congratulations. You've
made it to the semifinal.Whoo!
Which means that three of you
are going to be in the final
and one of you is going to
have to spend
the rest of their life as Prue's
live-in butler.Imagine that.
"Ma'am, your buttered crumpet."
"Oh, it's not worth the calories."
"Thank you, ma'am."
The judges would like you to make
12 identical patisseries using
pate a savarin, which is
a yeasted, enriched dough.
Your savarin can be any shape or
flavour you like,
but, once baked, should be
soaked in a syrup of your choosing.
This is the semifinal, kids, so the
judges are looking for high-end
and they want an exquisite finish.
You have two hours and 45 minutes.
On your marks.Get set.Bake!
We are in the semifinal.
This is pretty awesome.Stressed.
I would very much doubt that many
home bakers do patisserie.
It's not something
I have really done before this.
Patisserie is one of the hardest
challenges. It's neat. It's
exquisite.
It's elegant.
Some people may not know what a
savarin is, but think rum baba.
That base is a savarin.
It's a yeasted, enriched dough,
baked and cooked in a mould.
Hermine says, "savarin," and I go
"sav-rin."
We're here, doing the old
savarins this week, ain't we?
Shove them in the oven, the old
savarin.It's all about the proving.
The softness of the sponge
and beautiful, delicate flavours.
That's what patisserie is all about.
Almost the worst challenge
is they're baking in a heatwave,
which means that proving times will
probably be shorter,
so they ought to watch that.
It's going to be interesting to see
who really steps up to the
plate and creates something that
deserves its place
in a patisserie
anywhere in the world.
But any of our four bakers could go
through to the final.
I think these four are as good
as we've ever had. I really do.
Strange dough to work with.
It needs to be pipe-able.
If it's done right,
it bakes beautifully.
A normal dough, you can really knead
it. You can't touch that.
It's very, very wet.
I'm just looking for a really
silky smooth, stretchy dough.
And I'm pretty much there.
Hi, Hermine.Hello, Paul. Hello,
Prue.Tell us all about your
savarin.
So I'm doing a baba au rhum.Oh,
lovely. I do like a rum baba.
And I am going to glaze it with
an apricot jam
to kind of give it a shine.
Hermine, this should be your day.
This is such a classic French thing.
I hope I can deliver.
Hermine was chosen to make
rum babas for her savarin
and she's keeping
things traditional,
filling them with vanilla creme pate
and decorating
with piped Chantilly cream
and tempered chocolate.
So you've won Star Baker twice.
Nobody else has done that.
Are you feeling quite confident then
going into the final?
I don't want that to give me
a big head, so...
You've had a handshake as well,
haven't you?
But if you can let things like that
distract you...Yeah, exactly.
You shouldn't think about that.
Just concentrate on today
and relax, do your best.
Can you say "apricot" for us
one more time?
Abricot.
OK, that's the handshake.
Thank you, Hermine.Thank you.
But Hermine has got competition
in the battle of the babas.
She keeps copying me, honestly.
Someone's going to have to say
something to her.
Hermine, you learnt all you
know from me, didn't you?I did!
Laura is giving her rum babas
a tropical twist with a filling
of poached pineapple,
kiwi and passion fruit.
To finish, she's adding pipettes
of syrup to inject an extra
kick of rum into her bake.
Tell us about your dough.
It's a fairly standard savarin
dough.
I've got fresh yeast in there
cos I think it gives a nicer
rise.Really?
Why do you think fresh yeast is
better?Uh...
You think
because it gives a better rise?
Just say yes.Yes.Oh.
That was horrible, wasn't it?
It's like you're being interrogated.
I was sweating then, weren't you?
"Why do you use that yeast?"
I don't know!
Don't let him get in your head.
Oh, he's really good at it.
He's got eyes like the nightwalker.
Make you doubt yourself.
To create a savarin to savour...
Put that in for the first prove.
..the bakers will need to prove
their dough long enough to achieve
a light, open texture.
The whole point of it is that you
make it like a bread-type cake
and then you soak it in syrup.All
the flavour comes from the syrup.
The rum is spiced, but I'm adding
some spices as well to the mix.
While Hermine and Laura are aiming
to perfect a French classic...Yum.
..Dave is taking his savarin all the
way to Mexico.
Tequila!
Dave's savarin will be soaked in
honey tequila before being
set on a mango and passion fruit
curd and crowned with a honey
and cocoa Chantilly cream.
Mango, passion fruit, chocolate and
tequila?And tequila, yes.Hmm.
Quite a mix.Getting into the final.
Do you think you're going to do it?
It's in sight, but there's
tough competition here.
I'm just going to try my best.
I tell you what, Dave,
you are looking
so much more confident.Thank you.
Quite different from when
we first met you.Good luck.
Right, cheers. Thank you.Tequila.
Tequila.Come on, now you're
talking!
Jiminy Christmas.
While Dave, Laura and Hermine are
all banking on booze...
Whenever I'm making a syrup,
I always add my alcohol last
because I don't want the alcohol to
evaporate too much.
Only question - can it make Prue
happy?
To meet the demands
of patisserie week...
I'm purposely not
over-complicating it today.
I want to get something out that's
really clean and looks professional.
..Peter has chosen to keep
a clear head.
I'm not soaking it in alcohol.
In here I've got
elderflower cordial,
lemon juice, water and sugar.
I don't really
drink very much myself,
so I thought we'll go
for a teetotal savarin.
I'm the one who goes to the club
sober, leaves after an hour.
I'm really boring.
He may think he's a bit of a square,
but Peter is hoping rectangular
savarins will help him pass this
exam.
He's soaking them in an elderflower
syrup before finishing
with elderflower
and strawberry creme diplomats.
I would like to see the old Peter
today.
We've got a bit of heat in the tent.
I think you've just got to
concentrate, ignore that
and just don't make mistakes.Do you
like that advice?
"Don't make mistakes."
Don't make mistakes! It sounds...
It's as easy as that!It's so
simple.
We can do it.Thank you, Peter.
Don't make mistakes, yeah?
That's the plan.
I'm going to bring back
week one Star Baker
and show them what I can do.
That's your yeasted enriched dough.
Is it proving at the moment?
It is proving, yeah.
Do you want to see the best bit?
You have to imagine it's Paul's
face.Oh! Really?
And then you go...
Oh, poor Paul! Oh, my Lord!
Do you want to do it?OK, here
we go.Go for it.
Biff! Oh!
You can keep that. Thanks.
Oh, wow!
I'm going to sell this on eBay.
With the first prove finished...
I'm going to get
this into a piping bag
and you'll see how we can pipe
such a substance.
..the savarins can begin to take
shape.
It's not easy to pipe
because it's quite elastic,
but I want it to be consistent.
I'm just making each one even in
weight.
They should all rise identically.
That's what I'm hoping for.
All right, so that's me done.
I got to prove these
until they double in size.
But the savarin might be ready
sooner than expected.
Because it's getting
really, really hot right now,
it could be as little as 30 minutes,
we'll just have to wait and see.
The higher temperatures in the tent
mean the bakers
risk over-proving their dough...
They had 30 minutes during practice.
I'll give it the same and then
have a look.
..resulting in flat,
collapsed cakes.
They're not going
to buy rustic this time.
It's got to be perfect.
But stop proving too soon,
and they'll rise too quickly
in the oven, causing them to tear.
It's so warm in here.
Bakers, you have 4,950 seconds left.
Is that real?
Matt, how long do we actually have?
Hm? Oh, you're halfway through.
Thank you.With their dough
rapidly rising...
Did you try and work that out,
Peter?
No...the bakers will need every
second
to create their fillings and
toppings.
Mm!
It's all about balance with
flavours.
You've got quite a lot
going on with the rum, the fruit,
the dough and everything.
So the Chantilly cream is almost
just breaks it up a bit.
The savarin is going to be set
on a mango and passion fruit curd,
sort of a fruity custard.
I'm making a creme pate.
I'm a bit worried that they
might say it's simple,
but I think it's a classic.
A classic is simple.
Have you ever seen
Babar The Elephant?
I watched that when I was young.
I still watch it now. I love Pingu.
I watch Pingu. Do you ever watch
Pingu?No.Love Pingu.
HE IMITATES PINGU
Pingu!
Oh, yeah, they're definitely well
proved.
They've really risen.
But they're all nice and even.
I think that's pretty much proved.
So they're going in for 15
minutes at 175.
I think that is quite hot,
but it's for a quick bake.
I'm baking them for 14 minutes.
10 to 12-ish minutes,
until they are nice
and dark golden brown on top.
Look at you go.
You are so laid back.
Am I?
Do you think you're going to win
this?
Who knows? It's in the hands of the
universe?
I love that you trust the universe.
What about old "good flavours"
Laura?
You're going to have to... Aren't
you?
You're going to have to...
Bang!
Oh.
You do what you got to do in this
business.
No, that's not nice.
It's got to be a proud win.
A universe win.
They look golden. I'll probably
put them in for another few minutes.
They're rising nicely.
Maybe I'm talking too early.
They are looking very golden
and rather lovely.
I'm just going to make sure
they are not under,
rather than be slightly over
and a bit drier.
All right, I need to take these out.
Yeah, they're good.
Looking good, yeah.
They've puffed up nicely.
Hopefully nice and light and airy.
I'm feeling good.
Feeling really good.Are they the
colour that you want them to be?
They are the colour
I want them to be.
Probably Paul will say
they're too dark, but...
Say that you modelled them on his
tan. I dare you!
You might not get a Hollywood
handshake,
but you'll get one from me.
From the look of them, I may have
under proved them.
Oh, dear, dear, dear.
I'll do another batch.
This is the semifinal,
so I do want it to be perfect.
Let's start again.
OK, bakers.
You've only got one hour left.
Time flies when you're having fun,
doesn't it?
Now, let's try again
and see this time.
I mean, the weather is not helping.
Hopefully this one will be
all right.
While Hermine's babas are starting
back at the beginning...
This time I'll just give it 15
minutes.
..the rest of the bakers will now
find out
if theirs pass the final test.
I'll just dip the whole thing in.
The whole point is to saturate it.
So you want no dry spots.
It just holds on to as much
syrup as it can.Come on. Get down.
I'm just soaking them
30 seconds each side.
They should soak up enough syrup.
I'm going to be soaking them
for four minutes or something,
which for such tiny things is
a very long soak.
But they are going to be absolutely
bursting with all this lovely syrup.
The only concern is
if they hold their shape.
IN HIGH-PITCHED VOICE:Bakers, you
have 30 minutes left!
Was that OK?
I'm going to get them in now.
They don't take long to cook.
Hopefully, we are good this time.
These need to go in the fridge just
to firm up and set a bit more
and then the savarin will
sit on the curd.
I really need to focus now,
because this is the tough bit.
The fancy bit.
Concentration station.
I'm going
to get my decoration ready,
so as soon as I soak my savarin, I'm
ready to go.
The mayo curd is set nicely,
so happy with that.
I think
they look pretty uniform, yeah.
Deep breath.
These are also puffing up.
I'm just going to pick
the best ones.
OK, bakers,
you have five minutes left.
What?!
Oh, God, my hands are shaking so
much.
I need to make 12 mango flowers.
It's just really fiddly to
roll these up.
I just want to make sure that
I get this absolutely bang on.
This one is leaning.
These are little pipettes that just
get a bit of extra syrup.
OK, bakers. Your time is up.
Please step away from your bakes.
I just did patisserie!
I just
can't believe I just done that!
Where are yours?
In the freezer.Oh, are they?
The bakers' soaked savarins
will now be judged by Prue and Paul.
Hello, Hermine.Hello, Prue.
Hey, Hermine.Hello, Paul.
They look really interesting
and very elegant and quite modern.
I love the pipework on them.
There's a little bit of irregularity
with the colour on these.
Let's have a look.
I love the little
tempered chocolate disc on the top.
I actually quite like the flavour.
The alcohol's just enough
to give it a kick,
and the Chantilly and the creme pat
work beautifully
and they're nice and creamy,
and the texture's all good.
The savarin itself,
it's slightly under-proved.
The air holes inside
are very, very tight,
and they should be
a little bit more open.
I find it a little tough...Mm.
..and too bread-like.
The flavour is lovely.
Thank you very much.Thank you.
Thanks.Well done.Thank you.
WHISPERS:Well done.
At first glance,
I think they're really pretty and
I love the combination of colours.
They're golden brown.
They really do look scrumptious.
They're a little bit messy
on the icing.
Likewise with the actual bake -
they all look different sizes.
That one looks bigger than this one.
Let's have a look.
So, what's in the little pipettes?
So, that's rum syrup.
So, I give it a squeeze?Yeah.
That's lovely, light sponge.
It's beautiful.
Got some spice in there,
haven't you?
Yeah, I put star anise...
And cinnamon?..and cinnamon.Mm.
You probably slightly overdid it
with some of the spices.OK.
It's little things with you, Laura.
You're like a rough diamond.
You just need polishing up
a little bit, that's all.
This is a very good rum baba.
Thank you.You know,
nobody would send it back
in a restaurant.
I probably would send it back,
just to meet the chef.
Aw, nice!Oh, there you are.
Ah, a compliment from Paul.See?
Lowered your hopes,
raised them at the end.
Well done.Thank you.
They look unusual, different. Bold,
strong colour. You've ripped it
a little bit there
getting it out of the mould.Yeah.
I think they look
really sensational and fun.
Well, the texture of the cake
is so light,
it's almost impossible
to get it onto the fork!
I think it's lovely.Mm, so do I.
I don't get the curd
sitting at the bottom.
I know it's a design thing...
Yeah...but I would have put that
inside it
and then topped it
with the chocolate.
But do you know,
the thing that surprises me
is I thought you had
too many flavours in this.
It's not. It really works.
Really? Thank you. Cheers.
There you go!
I think they look very neat
and very uniform.
It looks like
they're quite soaked, as well,
which is always a good thing.
Ooh, that looks very light.
Cuts through lovely.Look at that.
I didn't think I was going to like
a savarin without any booze in it.
SHE LAUGHS
But it's delicious.Fantastic.
Mm, mouthwatering.Yeah.
You've got such a nice texture
to that.
Very open inside,
which is classic savarin.
All I can say, Peter...
Oh, wow!
..welcome back to the tent.
Thank you so much.
And welcome back
to the Peter standard.
He told me I wasn't allowed to clap
when someone gets a handshake,
but...
Well done.
Ba-boom! Yeah, a handshake. He-he!
Usual comments -
tastes nice, looks a mess.
Getting a bit bored of that,
to be honest.
Disappointing, but,
hey, you win some, you lose some.
I'm feeling overwhelmed now.
This is, like, incredible
that I managed to do so well.
So, going into the Technical,
I'm going in with confidence.
It's going to definitely be
a tough Technical, I think.
Yeah, bring it on.
NOEL:For the bakers,
the pressure of patisserie week
is about to rise...
..as they face
their toughest Technical yet.
Bakers, it's time for
your semifinal Technical Challenge,
and this one has been set by Paul.
Paul, any words of advice?
It's quite methodical,
this challenge.
It's about precision.
Has he finished?I...
He went on for quite a long time.
For him.Yeah.
OK, as ever,
this Technical Challenge
will be judged blind, so we're going
to have to ask these two
to pop out of the tent. Off you go.
Where are they going?
It's all right.
Come on, calm down.Ah!
Where are they going?!
Come on, they'll be back.
I don't want them to go!
Pull yourself together.
Ooh!Finished?No.
Oh!
OK, finished.
The judges would like you
to make a Danish cornucopia -
a traditional
Danish celebration cake
otherwise known
as the Horn of Plenty.
Now, the classic horn shape is
achieved by stacking rings of dough.
Your dough needs
to be firm on the outside
but chewy on the inside.
You have 2 hours and 15 minutes.
Bake.On your marks.Get set.
HE CHUCKLES
Danish cornucopia?
No, I've never heard of one.
I can't really think
of what it's going to be.
I've never even heard of it before,
so I'll go with my guess, really.
I need to read the instructions,
get an idea of what it's going
to look like in the end,
but, no, it's not a clear picture
in my head right now.
Never heard of it,
never eaten it, never seen it.
It's going to be fun, isn't it?
Paul, Danish cornucopia -
what's all this about?
Well, it's a perfect challenge,
I think, for the bakers.
Now, it's got no flour in it.
It's supposed to be
ground almonds in there.
Once you've actually made the dough,
they've got to divide it up
and then they've got to shape it.
Shape it into a round,
a bit like a cigar,
and just taper the ends
so they bind together.
When you do the cigar shape,
you encourage a little bit
of a slope,
so as you piece them all together,
the slope begins to curve,
and that's how you get that shape.
Yes, I can see they're thicker
in one side.Exactly, yeah.
If they don't, they'll end up
being very, very flat,
and you won't get that depth
which you see here
in the Horn of Plenty
all the way along.
So, Prue, do you want to try
some of my horn?
You can have that piece there.
Thank you, darling.
This is lovely and chewy
and very almondy.
You've got this gorgeous,
soft, chewy almond filling
with this light, crispy exterior,
and so you've got
so many different textures in there.
I'm sure we're going
to get some bakers in there
who are going to struggle slightly
with the shape,
but I hope they don't struggle with
the overall texture.
Paul, I think
it's a really good challenge,
and especially for the semifinal.
Not easy, very delicate,
absolutely delicious.
Right, where am I? Oh!
Just says, "Make the dough."
"Icing sugar, egg whites,
almond extract and ground almonds."
Never made a dough
without flour before.
I've never seen a biscuit
like this before,
and I've certainly
never baked one before.
I can understand what he means
by crisp on the outside,
chewy in the middle.
It's kind of like
an amaretti biscuit
that's not quite baked.
I think we're going to have
to work pretty fast
cos there's a lot of shaping to do,
and we've only got 2 hours 15,
which is not a long time.
Hello, Noel.
How did you know it was me?
You're still elated
from the handshake, aren't you?
It was like this. Woo!
And then you went, "Ahh!"
And then... Did you get
on his shoulders?
Did you kiss him?
Did you get his number, at least?
That was your moment.
He softens for a minute.
You've got, like, a window
to get his email,
get his number, try his clothes on.
Oh, dear!
HERMINE:I've made the dough now.
So, the next step is
to start shaping this.
We've got to use these templates.
"Measure out 18g of dough
and shape it into a cigar shape."
"Press the ends together."
"Overlapping by 0.5cm to form a ring
"that is approximately 0.5cm
the height..." No.
This is what I've got
to get my head around.
"Press the ends together,
overlapping by 1cm."
Erm...
This is like rocket science.
It makes no sense.
I just read that, and I have
no idea what I actually read,
so I'm going to reread that
probably about six times.
This is, like,
literally my worst nightmare.
Like, I don't have a logical brain.
I can't do this.
SHE EXHALES DEEPLY
I think I know what I'm doing.
Where I join the two bits
of dough together,
it's going to be thin,
so it's going to be like a circle -
thick at one end, thin at the other.
I'm guessing like that.
Right, I've got it.
SHE SNIFFLES
How's it going?
It's stressful, isn't it?
I just don't have a logical brain.
This is literally,
like, my worst fear
of not being able to present
anything on the Technical.
But you are going
to present something, aren't you?
Yeah.You can do it.
There is something there in you
that will get you to the next step,
because if there wasn't,
you wouldn't be here.
And you're going to smash it.
Thank you.
I mean, don't literally smash it.
That would be a disaster.
I am quite clumsy.
Yeah, then if you literally
smash it...Bless you.
You're the best.See you later.
Thank you, Matt.
Oh! I love him.
Just going to start shaping.
I'm going with that.
When you join it together, you do
get a smaller and a thicker side.
This will have to do.
Like that?
SHE EXHALES
I feel pretty good about that one.
I like that one.
This is number two.
11 in total, there should be.
One, two, three, four, five, six,
seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven.
If I achieve this, I'm going to have
the biggest glass of gin...
..and Sambuca chasers.
Obviously, it all comes down
to the bake, doesn't it?Going in.
Going to check that
in about ten minutes.
I'm going to put them in
for 15 minutes,
but I'll probably check it
after ten.
I think I'm going
to freestyle and see.
Oh,BLEEP!
I forgot to put the oven on,
so I think we'll just
whack it up a bit.
I'm just going to do
my chocolate, I think.
Save some time, be a bit strategic.
"Place a sheet of acetate
over the template provided
"and pipe chocolate scrolls."
I'm melting my chocolate.
WHISPERS:Hi.Hey.
Are you OK?Yeah.
Shall I get on your shoulders?
Looks all right, actually.
You get on my shoulders.
Trench coat. Your head out the top.
Buttons pop open.
Horn of Plenty comes out.
SHE LAUGHS
Yes or no?
Right, I'll get that stuff ready.
SHE LAUGHS
Boulangeres,
vous etes demi the way through.
Was that OK, Hermine?No-o-o!
I'm just going
to leave them in there.
I think the more that they're baked,
the stronger
they have the chance of being.
Just going in
for another ten minutes.
It's nearly there.
I'm just going to have to go in.
I'm sure I had another timer.
Oh, well.
We'll just... Until they're brown.
"Spoon the chocolate
into a piping bag."
"Pipe chocolate scrolls."
I don't mind doing this stuff.
It's quite nice.
They're getting better
as I go along, I think.
Well, they look brilliant.
Ooh, that was a bit wonky.
Woo!I think it's about time
to come out now.
I think I'll cool them now.
Quite sort of golden.
They don't look burnt.
No point not being happy at this
point, I think, so let's stay happy.
They look a bit cracked.
Are they supposed to be cracked?
Nah, I think they need
a little bit longer.
Just do a couple of minutes
at a time, cos that extra minute,
you can go over too much.
Oh, brilliant. They're all cracked.
SHE EXHALES
I'd say it's the right colour.
Any more, and it would have burnt.
So, next up is to make royal icing,
whisking together icing sugar
and egg whites.
That's going to be decorating
the biscuits themselves.
"Pipe zigzag patterns onto
the cooled rings and leave to set."
I'm good with icing. I can do icing.
Good start.
Going to be messy, isn't it?
Don't love that one.
Bit scruffier now.
Oh, dear!
Ah, look at that. What a day!
Bakers, you've got a half-hour left!
It's not long.
"Step 12 - make caramel."
The caramel has
to glue it all together.
200g of sugar.
I'm just going to do my caramel.
I'm just going to do it by eye.
I need this to be liquid whilst
I'm sticking things together,
but have a slight tackiness to it
so that it's going
to bind and set on there,
and not just run out everywhere.
BLEEPcaramel! It's crystallised.
HE EXHALES
It just never goes right for me.
I'm going to start making
the old tower of doom.
"Dip the bottom flat side
of ring number eight in the caramel
"and place it on top of ring nine
"so that they are joined
base to base."
Do you want me to say it for you?
That might be actually
really helpful.
IN SCOTTISH ACCENT:
"Repeat the ring-by-ring process
"while gently supporting
the horn to each ring."
Right, let's stick this
and leave it to set.
Is that right? No idea.
This isn't the prettiest of jobs,
is it?
It's stuck. Sugar!
I think it's all right. I think
that'll be on the bottom anyway,
so they won't see it.
Bakers, you have five minutes left.
This is dangerous.
This is a bit crazy.
HERMINE:I'm not too convinced
about what I'm doing here.
It's a bit leany,
isn't it? Oh, well.
I wouldn't say it's the most
horn-like thing I've ever seen.
And then I'm supposed to stick
the horn to the stand?
That feels very precarious.
It's supposed to be like that?
So, that's how you know
it's a horn, right?
HE EXHALES
SHE GROANS
Bakers, you have one minute left.
Right.I'm just sticking
the chocolate scrolls onto the horn.
Oh, gosh! It's not going to stand.
It's too hot.
I can't even peel them off.
There! There!
Oh, my God.
It's still not cool enough.
Lordy, Lordy, Lordy!
I'm just going to pipe over them.
I can try and swirl it on
while it's on it.
I'm not sure
if that's what they wanted,
but it's what they're getting.
My face says it all.
Bakers, your time is up.
Please bring your Horns of Plenty
down to the front
and place them
behind your photographs.
Horrible challenge. Worst one yet.
I thought the matcha pancakes
were bad.
That's an abomination, that is.
Prue and Paul are looking for
beautifully decorated cornucopia
in a classic horn shape...
I should have looked around.
..crispy on the outside
and soft and chewy inside.
Let's start with this one,
which is...
HE LAUGHS
THEY LAUGH
Stop it, Paul!
It has no chocolate on it.
It should have been sitting
more like that.That.
In which case,
it was the right shape.
Yeah. The graduation of the rings
are there to the top.
CRUNCH
I think you might break your teeth
on that.Hugely over-baked.
They're bone dry. Shame.
Lovely flavour, though. Goodness!
I do love that flavour.
Mm. That almond's lovely.
Right.
Well, I'm sure that chocolate was...
Yeah, it was standing up
at one point.Yeah.
The icing's much nicer.
The graduation's OK,
but there's no horn shape to it.
The little ones are over-baked.
The top ones aren't.
When you bake these,
you can't bake them
all at the same time
because they're different sizes.
The fat ones are good, though.
Mm.Very chewy.
They're neat and they do have
the chocolate on them.Mm.
Right, moving on. This is a bit of a
mess, this one.
The chocolate's gone all over the
place,
but it's the icing...The icing's
all over the place.It's terrible.
And the colour of the actual rings
are all over the place, as well.
That does look as if the baker
just didn't understand at all
what they were trying to do.
Mm!Almost raw.Like marzipan.Mm.
Yeah, there's been issues
with that one.
Last one, we have a nice shape here.
They do look over-baked, though,
if I'm honest, but there is
chocolate on there, and it is fairly
neat.The icing's not very good,
though, because...No.
..the whole idea of the icing
is to come down the side
so that you can see it.
The flavour of that one's OK.
It's softer.
Paul and Prue will now rank the
Horns of Plenty from worst to best.
In fourth place,
we have this one. Laura.
Almost everything
was wrong with this.
It did look like a mess.
Funnily enough, it was the only one
that was under-baked.
It was not your finest hour.
In third spot,
we have this one.
David. They were a little bit
solid...Yeah.
..all the way through.
In second place is this one.
Who's that?
Me.Hermine,
this was so nearly there.
The decoration was really awful,
but it was nicely baked
and the right shape.Thank you.
So, in first spot is this one.
Peter.
You forgot to put the horn shape,
but they were delicious,
and they look good with the icing.
And you even managed to do
some nice little swirls of chocolate
on there, as well. Well done.
It's not been a bad day, yeah.
But I don't want to be complacent.
There's only four of us,
and anything can happen.
I'm really, really happy.
You know, I can't complain.
And Peter deserved it.
He's really good with detail,
which I'm not particularly,
so you can't take that
away from him.
Third isn't too great in Technical.
It's getting tougher as we go along,
but I had a good Signature,
so I'm comfortable going into
the Showstopper tomorrow.
Glad that's over.
It's not ideal, but there's
always tomorrow, isn't there?
Going to have to smash that,
aren't I?
DUCK QUACKS
There's just the showstopper
challenge left before Prue and Paul
decide who is destined
for Star Baker,
and who will miss out on
a place in the final.
Hello, Bakers.
Welcome back to the tent.
It's time for your semifinal
Showstopper Challenge.
Now, today, Paul and Prue would
like you each to make a cube cake.
This should be comprised of at least
25 mini cube-shaped cakes.
This is all about precision,
so the cubes need to be sharp
and uniform and very neat.
We're looking for
an exquisite finish.
Your mini-cakes can be flavoured
and decorated however you like,
and you can use non-edible supports
to help stack the layers.
But you will get extra points
if the whole thing is edible.
I'm on a diet, so I'll probably
just eat the supports!
You have four and a half hours,
which seems like a lifetime.
On your marks...
..get set...
..bake!
One last challenge
before the potential final.
Do you know what?
I'm just going to have fun today.
Bake from the heart,
and what will be will be.
This is right up your street.
If you can't pull yourself
into the victory spot today,
there's something wrong.
Let's see what happens.
We've set the bakers
a four-and-a-half hour,
gruelling, hot challenge
and they have to make a cube cake,
straight edges, flat sides.
Think Rubik's Cube,
and really, in Patisserie Week,
we are we are looking for that
precision,
we are looking for that
artistic flair,
and obviously their baking skill.
This is a sponge cake,
and sponge has to be, as always,
beautifully flavoured
and beautifully textured.
Inside that sponge, we'd
like to see something like a mousse,
or a melted chocolate or a ganache.
The four bakers in the tent are
amateurs. I want to see them
push themselves now into that
world of professionalism.
I think there's going to be a real
fight to get into the final.
And they need to fight for it.
Hello, Peter.Hello.
Tell us about your cube cake.
I'm making a chocolate,
raspberry and pistachio cube cake.
Yes! Favourites! Magic!
So, we've got
the three different flavours
running through the entire cake.
I've got three different sponges,
three different mousses
and three different glazes.
Wow, clever!
Peter's going big to avoid
going home,
with the tent's most
ambitious cube cake.
Made up of three types of cube,
each will contain a different
combination of chocolate,
raspberry and pistachio sponge,
mousse and mirror glaze.
Wow, it sounds wonderful.
It does.
But that's a lot to do, Peter.
It's a lot to do.
So, cracking on.
Yes, good luck.Thank you.
I promise I won't come
and disturb you, at all.
Except you know I will!
PETER LAUGHS
The strategy for today is to go out
hard and fast so that,
by the end, I'll have time
to get that patisserie precision
that the judges are going
to be looking for.
It's gone really well in practice.
While Peter's hoping
practice makes perfect,
for one baker, today's showstopper
will be a step into the unknown.
Right, there's been
a change of plan.
When I practised,
it didn't go quite well.
So, everything I'm doing today
is literally...New...new.
When did you decide to
change your recipe?
I wrote it yesterday morning.
Yesterday?!
Hermine's gambling everything
on a cube cake made up of
two different varieties, both
featuring her favourite flavours,
coffee and praline,
and cherry and chocolate.
They sound delicious.
If it works, that'll be amazing.
Very good luck.
Thanks!
Sometimes you have to take risks.
True!
Fortune favours the bold.
Good luck.Thank you.
Not only must the bakers'
sponges pack plenty of flavour...
I always add a bit of coffee
in my chocolate sponge,
so it kind of flavours it out.
..texture must be spot-on, too.
I'm making my pistachio friand.
It's going to be like frangipane,
very soft, very moist.
Always thinking about textures.
They're really important, I think.
It's not just about flavour.
Deliciously delicate, yet able to
hold their shape when layered.
This is the joconde sponge.
That's just gone in at 190,
for 12 minutes.
Today, I'm going to be making
a chocolate cube cake.
I love chocolate, so this is just
to celebrate all things chocolate.
As well as chocolate sponge
and mousse,
Dave's cubes will also contain
either a white,
milk or dark chocolate
liquid caramel centre.
But with temperatures in the tent
rising, is Dave risking a meltdown?
It's going to be hot, today.
I know it's going to be hot today,
yeah.
Try and get most of this done before
the heat really starts rising, then.
Yeah.All right, Dave.
Good luck.Cheers.
That's for my praline mousse.
So, I don't have a clear
vision at the moment,
so it's just keep going
and don't stop.
With so many elements to juggle...
So, this is for my chocolate
hazelnut mousse.
..the bakers can't
relax for a second.
I always listen to my cakes
and hear them bubble.
If they're bubbling too much,
they're not done.Ooh!
If they're not bubbling at all,
they're over-baked.
The smallest lapse
in concentration...
I've done that wrong.
..could spell disaster.
I meant to split the cream,
heat half the cream up,
whisk half the cream.
Haaallo!Hello, umpire.
That's strong booze you've got
going on there, innit? Whoo!
This is for Prue.What is it?
Kirsch.
You might require a little
shot of that on the side
if you really want to blackmail her.
A jug. A jug of kirsch.
Put a fair bit of kirsch on.
If you're going to do it,
you've got to do it, haven't you?
I am doing a Black Forest
gateau-inspired cube cake.
I just feel like flavours,
like the dark chocolate
and the cherries, they work
really nicely together.
This is one of my dad's favourite
things. This one's for him.
Although Laura's cake is made
up of just one type of cube,
each contains five layers,
including a biscuit crumb,
chocolate sponge,
two mousses and whole cherries,
all decorated in a dark
chocolate mirror glaze.
I'm looking forward to this one.
Good!
One of my favourite cakes.
And it's sort of important that you
do it really well, Laura.
Yeah. It's one of my favourite
things that I have, like, made.
I'm really proud of it.
Good! That's the spirit!
I can't wait.
So, I hope you like it.
I already like it!
I haven't even ett it, yet...
"Ett it"?!
..and I already like it.
Thank you.
I'm confident with
the flavours of this one,
but it's all about the setting time.
First big concern with the mousse
is that it doesn't set.
I'm using gelatine. It's got 2.5
leaves in each of the mousse... es.
Moussi? Mice?!
It's a fairly delicate balance
with the gelatine,
because you need it to set,
but if you put too much in,
then it'll just be rubbery,
and that's not very nice.
Because I'm not
really following a recipe,
I don't even know
if the quantities are all right.
Hopefully,
these whole concoctions will work.
Easy on the gelatine. Easy!
You know exactly how many to use,
don't you?
I mean,
I eat sheets of it as a snack.
But, just not everyone's like me.
I used to wear boots in
the '70s made out of gelatine.
And, in hot weather,
I'd get shorter.
That's looking good.
Does look nice. Kind of want to eat
it, just like it is!
Right, how's this going?
Caramel's a big
part of the cube cake,
so it needs to go right today.
I've still got my biscuit to
make for the cube cake stand.
So I'm just going to start
prepping that.
This is going to
be my cherries mousse.
Hopefully, it sets nicely.
I feel I'm behind.
It's crystallised. Just don't know
what it is with this caramel.
I've not stirred it or disturbed it,
and it just does that.
Caramel's not my friend
at the moment.
HE HUFFS
NOEL AND MATT: Bakers,
you are halfway through.
I'm sorry, you say it!
Bakers, you are halfway through!
Yeah!
I've made every single component.
It's now just assembly.
I'm currently lining the moulds
with the joconde sponge.
So, I decided not to make
cubes in a mould,
because I tried it once at home,
and I just found it an absolute
nightmare to get them out.
So, I decided to go
with the cake frame,
and then I can slice them
and get them nice and neat
and square at the sides.
Let's put them on.
My chocolate bavarois
is now going in.
It's just the assembly.
My stomach's in knots.
Must remember to be neat.
Must remember to be neat!
I'm just balling out a hole in the
mousse for the caramel to sit in.
I wanted, like, a gooey centre,
almost have
a little bit of a chew.
Not cutting the cherries up.
Probably get marked down for that,
but that's how I like it.
It's getting hot again,
isn't it, in the tent?Yes!
Just in the last ten minutes,
it started to get a bit watery.
It's melting!
Temperature's creeping up on me.
Ooh, what's that?
Cherry mousse.Ooh!
There you are.
Are you allowing yourself to
think about being in the final, yet?
Er, not quite.
There might not be any final
if this doesn't go to plan.
Well, there, no,
there would still be a final.
Well not for me, I mean!
Not for you.Yeah, that's right.
Do you want us to cancel
the final if you're not in it?
Rinky-dink.
Into the freezer we go.
They just need to
stay in as long as possible.
Going pretty good.
Got the raspberry glaze
chilling down,
the chocolate glaze is on,
I'm weighing out
ingredients for the pistachio glaze.
More gelatine!
This is for my mirror glaze,
so I think there's 24 sheets
of gelatine going into that.
Basically, you want to be
able to see yourself in it.
Mirror glaze is a bit tricky.
I'm not looking forward to it.
I'm preparing
the shapes for my cube cake stand.
I need to make three platforms,
and then I need to make some cubes.
I'm a square guy!
I don't know if this is how
it's supposed to look,
my mirror glaze.
Oh, it's such a messy business.
Don't think it's supposed
to look this gloopy.
Right, that's the raspberry
mirror glaze complete.
That just has to cool down.
Let's crack on.
Come on! Just this bake
and then it's the final!
I know. It's so close!
How's it going, though?
It's going all right so far.
This bit always goes fine.
It's just always just the judging!
Just the judging!
THEY LAUGH
Oh!
What a nightmare.
I know, viewers. Where's Noel?
HIGH-PITCHED:I'm in 'ere!
Heh!
Owww!You were there!
Bakers, you have half an hour left.
Yeah, that's all good.
It seems set,
but I don't have time,
so I'm going to keep adding
the layers.
I am just going to try and get these
out, get the mirror glaze on,
job's a good 'un.
I'm getting a bit worried now.
I'm not going to have the cakes,
because they're not going to set.
Oh, this is going to take longer
than I thought.
They don't release very
well from these, so...
Unfortunately, I'm going to
have to butcher them.
Agh!
Happy. Looks good.
Looks really, really good.
Doesn't look quite set inside.
Oh, it's not going too well, is it?
Until you've seen a man getting
cubes out of a silicon mat,
you've not lived.
Do you know how much
each silicon mat costs?How much?
Like, nearly £9.£9?!
Yeah.Who pays for that, Prue?
Yeah, Prue did, yeah.
I've been sponsored by Prue...
Have you?..my whole life, yeah.
I walk her dogs.
I shampoo her hair.
I put her husband's
waistcoats in a neat pile.
Get in the wardrobe
so they don't see me.
Get sucked into Narnia,
which is a nightmare,
because it takes about
three hours to get out.
You have to bargain with
some sort of lion king.
It's a disaster, really.
It's an interesting life,
though. I wouldn't change it.
Race to the finish. As usual.
Let's glaze these puppies!
So, there's eight in the milk,
eight in the dark
and nine in the white.
I've got to speed up a little bit
now. There's not a lot of time left.
This... is just not going to happen.
Please be good, please be good.
Do you know what? They look
better without it, don't they?
Not happy at all with that.
They look a bit jelly-like,
but I might be able to get them out.
This is for the chocolate support.
They're looking pretty good.
Just not staying on.
This is going to
look like a complete mess.
Oh, my God.
I think I have a bit too much kirsch
in. If I can glaze those ones...
I honestly don't know
what's happened.
This has not
gone like this in practice.
Oh!
What's wrong? Are you OK?
I don't even want to carry on.
Come on.
You can do it.
I believe in you.
Bakers, you have ten minutes left.
SHE HUFFS
MACHINE WHINES
I think they're looking good.
Is it perfection? Probably not
quite, but it's not far off.
IN WHISPERS: Just keep going.
It looks good.
It's going to be fine.OK.
Oh!
WHISPERED:Oh, dear.
Can't believe I'm done.
Bakers, you have one minute left.
Sit, sit, sit!
Snug as a bug in a rug.
If the mirror glaze had worked,
I would be so proud of these.
Bakers, your time is up.
So upset.
Please step away from your bakes.
Good? Happy?
Good, well done.
WHISPERED:You happy?
Yeah.
Absolutely gutted.
Oh, that would have looked so good
if that mirror glaze had worked.
How'd it go?
Nightmare, like.
It all went such a disaster.
I've definitely earned my crown
as the messiest, messiest baker.
It's judgment time for the bakers'
show-stopping cube cakes.
Dave, would you like to bring
up your Showstopper?
I think they look great.
I really do. Neat, tidy, uniform.
And the chocolate is holding,
which is amazing considering
the heat.That was a brave choice.
I like the fact that you've made
the base as well.
So it looks quite neat.
Mm.Look at that caramel in the
middle.
Well, personally, I think
they're a triumph. The caramel is
deliciousness, and it's just the
right melting point so it oozes
but it still holds. The mousse
is perfectly set.And the amount
of mousse and filling is quite a
lot.
So when you get a mouthful, it's all
fudgy.The whole thing together...
Very good.Thank you.
You've improved
a lot, actually, David.
Yeah, I think I have as well.
I feel that I've improved myself.
Well done.Cheers. Thank you.
Well done.
The heat's taken its toll.
It's really difficult
because it's melting, it looks
a little bit messy.
This is Patisserie Week...I know.
..so it's got to look good.
I'm so disappointed in the look.
Mm.
Absolutely delicious.
I love the flavours going
through there.And the textures
are terrific. The whole cherries,
I think that was brave,
but it's really delicious.
Not the best thing you've ever
made, but the flavours
are really good.Mm. Worth all the
calories.
Yay!Thank you.
Well done, Laura.Thanks, you too.
Well done, Laura.Thank you.
That is so clever, Peter, and so
complicated.The overall look
is quite effective because
you've got a nice shine
on all of them.
It's set beautifully.
The sponge and the mousse are
gorgeous. Really nice.
I just want to see
what one of the other ones are like.
Let's go for the chocolate one.
It has pistachio and a raspberry
sponge.Works beautifully.
Can I ask that you try the final
one? It's my favourite.
So that's pistachio cake, chocolate
mousse, raspberry glaze.
Like a sort of friand cake.
Oh, that one quite disappoints me.
Oh, no!I'm only joking!
I love them all.
I think they're very clever.
Well executed. Thank you.
Well done.
Smashed it!
Well done, Peter.
Well, it doesn't look great,
does it?
No, not my finest, I'm afraid.
The mousse hasn't quite set here.
And the bottom
is collapsing with the weight
as it's melting as well.
But before it melts too much,
let's have a quick look.
That, for me, tastes more like
raspberry than it does cherry.
I think it's the outside with the
raspberry on it...Yeah.
..cos I love the flavour.
These do feel like panna cotta.
It's really odd.
It's actually quite stodgy
and bouncy.
It's got too much gelatine in,
it's like a rubber ball.Yeah.
It's a shame.
To be honest, I'm really
disappointed...I am too.
..because you were so good
at patisserie and this is,
by your standards, it's a failure.
I think it goes without saying,
I'm really disappointed in myself.
I haven't had any disastrous bake.
This is my first one, it's a shame
that happened in week nine.
If I do make it to the final,
it'll mean a lot. But it's really
50/50.
I'm happy. Yeah.
It's been a really good week.
Got my first handshake,
first in the Technical.
I think I've got a really good shot
for Star Baker.
That was phenomenal.
I'm so proud that I even
managed to pull that off.
Paul said it was a triumph,
and that's going to stick with me
forever.
That went a lot better than
expected. Prue said it was worth
the calories - that's like the
golden comment you want from Prue.
So it's going to be close.
I'm certain it's between me
and Hermine going home.
Hopefully, it'll be enough.
Let's start with who has
had a good week.
I think the lads have had
a good week.
David and Peter have both
done very well.
David's really come from nowhere.
He struggled from the off.
And then he's come up with that
in the semifinal.
Absolutely delicious.
And it's such a sophisticated
thing to do.
The other thing that was really
good was Peter's.
I did like the fact that he had all
these different mousses
going in each one,
the flavours were amazing.
I would like to give Star Baker
to both those two boys.
But what I found so disappointing
is Hermine,
this is Patisserie Week,
it should have been her finest hour,
really.
This is basically a rubber ball.
But in her defence,
Hermine made two things...
Laura did one cake.
It doesn't look brilliant,
but when you bit into that,
that was absolutely delicious.
But how many times have
we said Laura has got to save
herself on a show stopper?
Five times.
Hermine did have a better
technical...
This is a tricky one, this.
It could go either way.
Really?Yeah.
And this is the worst time to go
out, isn't it?It's heartbreaking.
You are just there.It's brutal.
But that's the position
that we are in.
Well, it's time for me to tell you
who has been Star Baker this week.
There are a couple of candidates,
but this week's Star Baker is...
..Peter.Well done, Peter.
That leaves me with the horrible
job of announcing the baker
who will be leaving us.
It's especially hard because
the person who is leaving us
is not going to get to the final,
and you've all been
so fantastic to get this far.
But, sadly, there can only be three.
So the person who is leaving us...
..is Hermine.
It's been a pleasure.
It has been a pleasure.
I'm a bit disappointed because
I didn't want to leave.
I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry.
I believe everything has a reason.
And it was the right time for me.
You were so good. And that was just
a bad day, wasn't it?
When I go home and I have time to
reflect, there will be,
you know, a lot of happy memories,
a lot of proud moments...
You've been an inspiration,
you know?Aw.
You really have.Thank you.
I take a lot of good things away
from this.
Well done.
Well done to get Star Baker.
I've, like, hit
the Bake Off jackpot this week.
You are such a clever lad.
Thank you very much, Prue.
I think it will take a wee while
to sink in.
It feels a bit surreal.
This whole thing is surreal.
I mean, we are in lockdown
in a country estate with Prue Leith
and Paul Hollywood eating your bakes
and Matt Lucas coming round to make
you laugh with Noel. It's bonkers.
Congratulations.Thank you.
You made the final.
I, like, genuinely, I can't process
it all right now. It's mad!
Like, I'm in the final of
the Great British Bake Off.
Like the actual final.
Like, yeah, it's...
SHE STUTTERS
OK, maybe it's sinking
in a little bit now.
You are flying.
Think of that - the final.
I know, yeah.
It hasn't sunk in yet.
I can't express how happy I am.
It's just unreal.
I just can't believe it.
Next time...
The judges have said it was
the closest final
they've ever had in the competition.
And the hardest decision
they've ever had to make.
It's not set!Oh, no!
The winner...
How long have we got?
16 more minutes.Jeepers creepers.
I need more time.
..of The Great British Bake Off
2020 is...
Are you a Star Baker in the making?
If you'd like to apply for the next
series of Bake Off, visit...
Subtitles by Red Bee Media
excited as are for patisserie week.
I love patisserie. I love tiny
French cakes. The smaller,
the better.
Yeah, I like them so small you can
only see them under a microscope.
I've written a song about
patisserie. Do you want to hear it?
No.It's great.
# I eat patisserie,
sometimes in my lingerie... #
I'm going to stop you there.Why?
I felt it was needlessly surreal.
I was up all night writing that.
Should have gone to sleep.
BOTH: Welcome to
The great British Bake Off.
# I like patisserie
# Sometimes in my lingerie... #
La la la!See, you enjoyed it!
No, I hate it.
To secure a place in the semifinal
meant surviving dessert week.
It all hangs on this.
Oh, help, help, help.
And it was Hermine...Beautiful.
..who triumphed...
Straight out of
a Parisian patisserie.
..and was crowned Star Baker
for the second time,
while puddings proved problematic
for Peter...
It has collapsed.
That's slightly concerning.
..it was Mark...
Whoa, whoa, whoa.
..who had a wobble.
The jelly is too rubbery.
And his time in the tent was up.
It's just been the most incredible
experience.
This time...
Biff! Oh!
With a place in the final
at stake...Come on!
..the bakers must produce
perfect patisserie...
Concentration station.
..with an elegant
French signature...
Hermine says "savarin."
And I go, "sav-rin."
..a bewildering technical...
It makes no sense.
I just don't have a logical brain.
..and as temperatures in the tent
soar...
It's getting hot again, isn't it?
..a scorching show stopper...
Please be good. Please be good.
..guaranteed to cause a meltdown.
It's not quite set inside.
I don't even want to carry on.
This is going to look like
a complete mess. Oh, my God. Oh.
What a nightmare.
I'm really looking forward
to this week.
Patisserie is one of those
exciting things.
It's not home baking any more,
it's perfection, precision.
That's patisserie.
I'm not feeling massively confident.
I'm just a home baker, so this is
a little bit out of my comfort zone.
It would be a bit of a killer to go
out just before the final.
I'm feeling more nervous that it's
the semifinals than the fact
that it's patisserie week.
But I think we are all worried about
Hermine, because she is patisserie.
She is really good at what she does.
It's supposed to be the week
I enjoy the most,
but I need to make it to the final,
so pressure's on.
Hello, kids. Congratulations. You've
made it to the semifinal.Whoo!
Which means that three of you
are going to be in the final
and one of you is going to
have to spend
the rest of their life as Prue's
live-in butler.Imagine that.
"Ma'am, your buttered crumpet."
"Oh, it's not worth the calories."
"Thank you, ma'am."
The judges would like you to make
12 identical patisseries using
pate a savarin, which is
a yeasted, enriched dough.
Your savarin can be any shape or
flavour you like,
but, once baked, should be
soaked in a syrup of your choosing.
This is the semifinal, kids, so the
judges are looking for high-end
and they want an exquisite finish.
You have two hours and 45 minutes.
On your marks.Get set.Bake!
We are in the semifinal.
This is pretty awesome.Stressed.
I would very much doubt that many
home bakers do patisserie.
It's not something
I have really done before this.
Patisserie is one of the hardest
challenges. It's neat. It's
exquisite.
It's elegant.
Some people may not know what a
savarin is, but think rum baba.
That base is a savarin.
It's a yeasted, enriched dough,
baked and cooked in a mould.
Hermine says, "savarin," and I go
"sav-rin."
We're here, doing the old
savarins this week, ain't we?
Shove them in the oven, the old
savarin.It's all about the proving.
The softness of the sponge
and beautiful, delicate flavours.
That's what patisserie is all about.
Almost the worst challenge
is they're baking in a heatwave,
which means that proving times will
probably be shorter,
so they ought to watch that.
It's going to be interesting to see
who really steps up to the
plate and creates something that
deserves its place
in a patisserie
anywhere in the world.
But any of our four bakers could go
through to the final.
I think these four are as good
as we've ever had. I really do.
Strange dough to work with.
It needs to be pipe-able.
If it's done right,
it bakes beautifully.
A normal dough, you can really knead
it. You can't touch that.
It's very, very wet.
I'm just looking for a really
silky smooth, stretchy dough.
And I'm pretty much there.
Hi, Hermine.Hello, Paul. Hello,
Prue.Tell us all about your
savarin.
So I'm doing a baba au rhum.Oh,
lovely. I do like a rum baba.
And I am going to glaze it with
an apricot jam
to kind of give it a shine.
Hermine, this should be your day.
This is such a classic French thing.
I hope I can deliver.
Hermine was chosen to make
rum babas for her savarin
and she's keeping
things traditional,
filling them with vanilla creme pate
and decorating
with piped Chantilly cream
and tempered chocolate.
So you've won Star Baker twice.
Nobody else has done that.
Are you feeling quite confident then
going into the final?
I don't want that to give me
a big head, so...
You've had a handshake as well,
haven't you?
But if you can let things like that
distract you...Yeah, exactly.
You shouldn't think about that.
Just concentrate on today
and relax, do your best.
Can you say "apricot" for us
one more time?
Abricot.
OK, that's the handshake.
Thank you, Hermine.Thank you.
But Hermine has got competition
in the battle of the babas.
She keeps copying me, honestly.
Someone's going to have to say
something to her.
Hermine, you learnt all you
know from me, didn't you?I did!
Laura is giving her rum babas
a tropical twist with a filling
of poached pineapple,
kiwi and passion fruit.
To finish, she's adding pipettes
of syrup to inject an extra
kick of rum into her bake.
Tell us about your dough.
It's a fairly standard savarin
dough.
I've got fresh yeast in there
cos I think it gives a nicer
rise.Really?
Why do you think fresh yeast is
better?Uh...
You think
because it gives a better rise?
Just say yes.Yes.Oh.
That was horrible, wasn't it?
It's like you're being interrogated.
I was sweating then, weren't you?
"Why do you use that yeast?"
I don't know!
Don't let him get in your head.
Oh, he's really good at it.
He's got eyes like the nightwalker.
Make you doubt yourself.
To create a savarin to savour...
Put that in for the first prove.
..the bakers will need to prove
their dough long enough to achieve
a light, open texture.
The whole point of it is that you
make it like a bread-type cake
and then you soak it in syrup.All
the flavour comes from the syrup.
The rum is spiced, but I'm adding
some spices as well to the mix.
While Hermine and Laura are aiming
to perfect a French classic...Yum.
..Dave is taking his savarin all the
way to Mexico.
Tequila!
Dave's savarin will be soaked in
honey tequila before being
set on a mango and passion fruit
curd and crowned with a honey
and cocoa Chantilly cream.
Mango, passion fruit, chocolate and
tequila?And tequila, yes.Hmm.
Quite a mix.Getting into the final.
Do you think you're going to do it?
It's in sight, but there's
tough competition here.
I'm just going to try my best.
I tell you what, Dave,
you are looking
so much more confident.Thank you.
Quite different from when
we first met you.Good luck.
Right, cheers. Thank you.Tequila.
Tequila.Come on, now you're
talking!
Jiminy Christmas.
While Dave, Laura and Hermine are
all banking on booze...
Whenever I'm making a syrup,
I always add my alcohol last
because I don't want the alcohol to
evaporate too much.
Only question - can it make Prue
happy?
To meet the demands
of patisserie week...
I'm purposely not
over-complicating it today.
I want to get something out that's
really clean and looks professional.
..Peter has chosen to keep
a clear head.
I'm not soaking it in alcohol.
In here I've got
elderflower cordial,
lemon juice, water and sugar.
I don't really
drink very much myself,
so I thought we'll go
for a teetotal savarin.
I'm the one who goes to the club
sober, leaves after an hour.
I'm really boring.
He may think he's a bit of a square,
but Peter is hoping rectangular
savarins will help him pass this
exam.
He's soaking them in an elderflower
syrup before finishing
with elderflower
and strawberry creme diplomats.
I would like to see the old Peter
today.
We've got a bit of heat in the tent.
I think you've just got to
concentrate, ignore that
and just don't make mistakes.Do you
like that advice?
"Don't make mistakes."
Don't make mistakes! It sounds...
It's as easy as that!It's so
simple.
We can do it.Thank you, Peter.
Don't make mistakes, yeah?
That's the plan.
I'm going to bring back
week one Star Baker
and show them what I can do.
That's your yeasted enriched dough.
Is it proving at the moment?
It is proving, yeah.
Do you want to see the best bit?
You have to imagine it's Paul's
face.Oh! Really?
And then you go...
Oh, poor Paul! Oh, my Lord!
Do you want to do it?OK, here
we go.Go for it.
Biff! Oh!
You can keep that. Thanks.
Oh, wow!
I'm going to sell this on eBay.
With the first prove finished...
I'm going to get
this into a piping bag
and you'll see how we can pipe
such a substance.
..the savarins can begin to take
shape.
It's not easy to pipe
because it's quite elastic,
but I want it to be consistent.
I'm just making each one even in
weight.
They should all rise identically.
That's what I'm hoping for.
All right, so that's me done.
I got to prove these
until they double in size.
But the savarin might be ready
sooner than expected.
Because it's getting
really, really hot right now,
it could be as little as 30 minutes,
we'll just have to wait and see.
The higher temperatures in the tent
mean the bakers
risk over-proving their dough...
They had 30 minutes during practice.
I'll give it the same and then
have a look.
..resulting in flat,
collapsed cakes.
They're not going
to buy rustic this time.
It's got to be perfect.
But stop proving too soon,
and they'll rise too quickly
in the oven, causing them to tear.
It's so warm in here.
Bakers, you have 4,950 seconds left.
Is that real?
Matt, how long do we actually have?
Hm? Oh, you're halfway through.
Thank you.With their dough
rapidly rising...
Did you try and work that out,
Peter?
No...the bakers will need every
second
to create their fillings and
toppings.
Mm!
It's all about balance with
flavours.
You've got quite a lot
going on with the rum, the fruit,
the dough and everything.
So the Chantilly cream is almost
just breaks it up a bit.
The savarin is going to be set
on a mango and passion fruit curd,
sort of a fruity custard.
I'm making a creme pate.
I'm a bit worried that they
might say it's simple,
but I think it's a classic.
A classic is simple.
Have you ever seen
Babar The Elephant?
I watched that when I was young.
I still watch it now. I love Pingu.
I watch Pingu. Do you ever watch
Pingu?No.Love Pingu.
HE IMITATES PINGU
Pingu!
Oh, yeah, they're definitely well
proved.
They've really risen.
But they're all nice and even.
I think that's pretty much proved.
So they're going in for 15
minutes at 175.
I think that is quite hot,
but it's for a quick bake.
I'm baking them for 14 minutes.
10 to 12-ish minutes,
until they are nice
and dark golden brown on top.
Look at you go.
You are so laid back.
Am I?
Do you think you're going to win
this?
Who knows? It's in the hands of the
universe?
I love that you trust the universe.
What about old "good flavours"
Laura?
You're going to have to... Aren't
you?
You're going to have to...
Bang!
Oh.
You do what you got to do in this
business.
No, that's not nice.
It's got to be a proud win.
A universe win.
They look golden. I'll probably
put them in for another few minutes.
They're rising nicely.
Maybe I'm talking too early.
They are looking very golden
and rather lovely.
I'm just going to make sure
they are not under,
rather than be slightly over
and a bit drier.
All right, I need to take these out.
Yeah, they're good.
Looking good, yeah.
They've puffed up nicely.
Hopefully nice and light and airy.
I'm feeling good.
Feeling really good.Are they the
colour that you want them to be?
They are the colour
I want them to be.
Probably Paul will say
they're too dark, but...
Say that you modelled them on his
tan. I dare you!
You might not get a Hollywood
handshake,
but you'll get one from me.
From the look of them, I may have
under proved them.
Oh, dear, dear, dear.
I'll do another batch.
This is the semifinal,
so I do want it to be perfect.
Let's start again.
OK, bakers.
You've only got one hour left.
Time flies when you're having fun,
doesn't it?
Now, let's try again
and see this time.
I mean, the weather is not helping.
Hopefully this one will be
all right.
While Hermine's babas are starting
back at the beginning...
This time I'll just give it 15
minutes.
..the rest of the bakers will now
find out
if theirs pass the final test.
I'll just dip the whole thing in.
The whole point is to saturate it.
So you want no dry spots.
It just holds on to as much
syrup as it can.Come on. Get down.
I'm just soaking them
30 seconds each side.
They should soak up enough syrup.
I'm going to be soaking them
for four minutes or something,
which for such tiny things is
a very long soak.
But they are going to be absolutely
bursting with all this lovely syrup.
The only concern is
if they hold their shape.
IN HIGH-PITCHED VOICE:Bakers, you
have 30 minutes left!
Was that OK?
I'm going to get them in now.
They don't take long to cook.
Hopefully, we are good this time.
These need to go in the fridge just
to firm up and set a bit more
and then the savarin will
sit on the curd.
I really need to focus now,
because this is the tough bit.
The fancy bit.
Concentration station.
I'm going
to get my decoration ready,
so as soon as I soak my savarin, I'm
ready to go.
The mayo curd is set nicely,
so happy with that.
I think
they look pretty uniform, yeah.
Deep breath.
These are also puffing up.
I'm just going to pick
the best ones.
OK, bakers,
you have five minutes left.
What?!
Oh, God, my hands are shaking so
much.
I need to make 12 mango flowers.
It's just really fiddly to
roll these up.
I just want to make sure that
I get this absolutely bang on.
This one is leaning.
These are little pipettes that just
get a bit of extra syrup.
OK, bakers. Your time is up.
Please step away from your bakes.
I just did patisserie!
I just
can't believe I just done that!
Where are yours?
In the freezer.Oh, are they?
The bakers' soaked savarins
will now be judged by Prue and Paul.
Hello, Hermine.Hello, Prue.
Hey, Hermine.Hello, Paul.
They look really interesting
and very elegant and quite modern.
I love the pipework on them.
There's a little bit of irregularity
with the colour on these.
Let's have a look.
I love the little
tempered chocolate disc on the top.
I actually quite like the flavour.
The alcohol's just enough
to give it a kick,
and the Chantilly and the creme pat
work beautifully
and they're nice and creamy,
and the texture's all good.
The savarin itself,
it's slightly under-proved.
The air holes inside
are very, very tight,
and they should be
a little bit more open.
I find it a little tough...Mm.
..and too bread-like.
The flavour is lovely.
Thank you very much.Thank you.
Thanks.Well done.Thank you.
WHISPERS:Well done.
At first glance,
I think they're really pretty and
I love the combination of colours.
They're golden brown.
They really do look scrumptious.
They're a little bit messy
on the icing.
Likewise with the actual bake -
they all look different sizes.
That one looks bigger than this one.
Let's have a look.
So, what's in the little pipettes?
So, that's rum syrup.
So, I give it a squeeze?Yeah.
That's lovely, light sponge.
It's beautiful.
Got some spice in there,
haven't you?
Yeah, I put star anise...
And cinnamon?..and cinnamon.Mm.
You probably slightly overdid it
with some of the spices.OK.
It's little things with you, Laura.
You're like a rough diamond.
You just need polishing up
a little bit, that's all.
This is a very good rum baba.
Thank you.You know,
nobody would send it back
in a restaurant.
I probably would send it back,
just to meet the chef.
Aw, nice!Oh, there you are.
Ah, a compliment from Paul.See?
Lowered your hopes,
raised them at the end.
Well done.Thank you.
They look unusual, different. Bold,
strong colour. You've ripped it
a little bit there
getting it out of the mould.Yeah.
I think they look
really sensational and fun.
Well, the texture of the cake
is so light,
it's almost impossible
to get it onto the fork!
I think it's lovely.Mm, so do I.
I don't get the curd
sitting at the bottom.
I know it's a design thing...
Yeah...but I would have put that
inside it
and then topped it
with the chocolate.
But do you know,
the thing that surprises me
is I thought you had
too many flavours in this.
It's not. It really works.
Really? Thank you. Cheers.
There you go!
I think they look very neat
and very uniform.
It looks like
they're quite soaked, as well,
which is always a good thing.
Ooh, that looks very light.
Cuts through lovely.Look at that.
I didn't think I was going to like
a savarin without any booze in it.
SHE LAUGHS
But it's delicious.Fantastic.
Mm, mouthwatering.Yeah.
You've got such a nice texture
to that.
Very open inside,
which is classic savarin.
All I can say, Peter...
Oh, wow!
..welcome back to the tent.
Thank you so much.
And welcome back
to the Peter standard.
He told me I wasn't allowed to clap
when someone gets a handshake,
but...
Well done.
Ba-boom! Yeah, a handshake. He-he!
Usual comments -
tastes nice, looks a mess.
Getting a bit bored of that,
to be honest.
Disappointing, but,
hey, you win some, you lose some.
I'm feeling overwhelmed now.
This is, like, incredible
that I managed to do so well.
So, going into the Technical,
I'm going in with confidence.
It's going to definitely be
a tough Technical, I think.
Yeah, bring it on.
NOEL:For the bakers,
the pressure of patisserie week
is about to rise...
..as they face
their toughest Technical yet.
Bakers, it's time for
your semifinal Technical Challenge,
and this one has been set by Paul.
Paul, any words of advice?
It's quite methodical,
this challenge.
It's about precision.
Has he finished?I...
He went on for quite a long time.
For him.Yeah.
OK, as ever,
this Technical Challenge
will be judged blind, so we're going
to have to ask these two
to pop out of the tent. Off you go.
Where are they going?
It's all right.
Come on, calm down.Ah!
Where are they going?!
Come on, they'll be back.
I don't want them to go!
Pull yourself together.
Ooh!Finished?No.
Oh!
OK, finished.
The judges would like you
to make a Danish cornucopia -
a traditional
Danish celebration cake
otherwise known
as the Horn of Plenty.
Now, the classic horn shape is
achieved by stacking rings of dough.
Your dough needs
to be firm on the outside
but chewy on the inside.
You have 2 hours and 15 minutes.
Bake.On your marks.Get set.
HE CHUCKLES
Danish cornucopia?
No, I've never heard of one.
I can't really think
of what it's going to be.
I've never even heard of it before,
so I'll go with my guess, really.
I need to read the instructions,
get an idea of what it's going
to look like in the end,
but, no, it's not a clear picture
in my head right now.
Never heard of it,
never eaten it, never seen it.
It's going to be fun, isn't it?
Paul, Danish cornucopia -
what's all this about?
Well, it's a perfect challenge,
I think, for the bakers.
Now, it's got no flour in it.
It's supposed to be
ground almonds in there.
Once you've actually made the dough,
they've got to divide it up
and then they've got to shape it.
Shape it into a round,
a bit like a cigar,
and just taper the ends
so they bind together.
When you do the cigar shape,
you encourage a little bit
of a slope,
so as you piece them all together,
the slope begins to curve,
and that's how you get that shape.
Yes, I can see they're thicker
in one side.Exactly, yeah.
If they don't, they'll end up
being very, very flat,
and you won't get that depth
which you see here
in the Horn of Plenty
all the way along.
So, Prue, do you want to try
some of my horn?
You can have that piece there.
Thank you, darling.
This is lovely and chewy
and very almondy.
You've got this gorgeous,
soft, chewy almond filling
with this light, crispy exterior,
and so you've got
so many different textures in there.
I'm sure we're going
to get some bakers in there
who are going to struggle slightly
with the shape,
but I hope they don't struggle with
the overall texture.
Paul, I think
it's a really good challenge,
and especially for the semifinal.
Not easy, very delicate,
absolutely delicious.
Right, where am I? Oh!
Just says, "Make the dough."
"Icing sugar, egg whites,
almond extract and ground almonds."
Never made a dough
without flour before.
I've never seen a biscuit
like this before,
and I've certainly
never baked one before.
I can understand what he means
by crisp on the outside,
chewy in the middle.
It's kind of like
an amaretti biscuit
that's not quite baked.
I think we're going to have
to work pretty fast
cos there's a lot of shaping to do,
and we've only got 2 hours 15,
which is not a long time.
Hello, Noel.
How did you know it was me?
You're still elated
from the handshake, aren't you?
It was like this. Woo!
And then you went, "Ahh!"
And then... Did you get
on his shoulders?
Did you kiss him?
Did you get his number, at least?
That was your moment.
He softens for a minute.
You've got, like, a window
to get his email,
get his number, try his clothes on.
Oh, dear!
HERMINE:I've made the dough now.
So, the next step is
to start shaping this.
We've got to use these templates.
"Measure out 18g of dough
and shape it into a cigar shape."
"Press the ends together."
"Overlapping by 0.5cm to form a ring
"that is approximately 0.5cm
the height..." No.
This is what I've got
to get my head around.
"Press the ends together,
overlapping by 1cm."
Erm...
This is like rocket science.
It makes no sense.
I just read that, and I have
no idea what I actually read,
so I'm going to reread that
probably about six times.
This is, like,
literally my worst nightmare.
Like, I don't have a logical brain.
I can't do this.
SHE EXHALES DEEPLY
I think I know what I'm doing.
Where I join the two bits
of dough together,
it's going to be thin,
so it's going to be like a circle -
thick at one end, thin at the other.
I'm guessing like that.
Right, I've got it.
SHE SNIFFLES
How's it going?
It's stressful, isn't it?
I just don't have a logical brain.
This is literally,
like, my worst fear
of not being able to present
anything on the Technical.
But you are going
to present something, aren't you?
Yeah.You can do it.
There is something there in you
that will get you to the next step,
because if there wasn't,
you wouldn't be here.
And you're going to smash it.
Thank you.
I mean, don't literally smash it.
That would be a disaster.
I am quite clumsy.
Yeah, then if you literally
smash it...Bless you.
You're the best.See you later.
Thank you, Matt.
Oh! I love him.
Just going to start shaping.
I'm going with that.
When you join it together, you do
get a smaller and a thicker side.
This will have to do.
Like that?
SHE EXHALES
I feel pretty good about that one.
I like that one.
This is number two.
11 in total, there should be.
One, two, three, four, five, six,
seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven.
If I achieve this, I'm going to have
the biggest glass of gin...
..and Sambuca chasers.
Obviously, it all comes down
to the bake, doesn't it?Going in.
Going to check that
in about ten minutes.
I'm going to put them in
for 15 minutes,
but I'll probably check it
after ten.
I think I'm going
to freestyle and see.
Oh,BLEEP!
I forgot to put the oven on,
so I think we'll just
whack it up a bit.
I'm just going to do
my chocolate, I think.
Save some time, be a bit strategic.
"Place a sheet of acetate
over the template provided
"and pipe chocolate scrolls."
I'm melting my chocolate.
WHISPERS:Hi.Hey.
Are you OK?Yeah.
Shall I get on your shoulders?
Looks all right, actually.
You get on my shoulders.
Trench coat. Your head out the top.
Buttons pop open.
Horn of Plenty comes out.
SHE LAUGHS
Yes or no?
Right, I'll get that stuff ready.
SHE LAUGHS
Boulangeres,
vous etes demi the way through.
Was that OK, Hermine?No-o-o!
I'm just going
to leave them in there.
I think the more that they're baked,
the stronger
they have the chance of being.
Just going in
for another ten minutes.
It's nearly there.
I'm just going to have to go in.
I'm sure I had another timer.
Oh, well.
We'll just... Until they're brown.
"Spoon the chocolate
into a piping bag."
"Pipe chocolate scrolls."
I don't mind doing this stuff.
It's quite nice.
They're getting better
as I go along, I think.
Well, they look brilliant.
Ooh, that was a bit wonky.
Woo!I think it's about time
to come out now.
I think I'll cool them now.
Quite sort of golden.
They don't look burnt.
No point not being happy at this
point, I think, so let's stay happy.
They look a bit cracked.
Are they supposed to be cracked?
Nah, I think they need
a little bit longer.
Just do a couple of minutes
at a time, cos that extra minute,
you can go over too much.
Oh, brilliant. They're all cracked.
SHE EXHALES
I'd say it's the right colour.
Any more, and it would have burnt.
So, next up is to make royal icing,
whisking together icing sugar
and egg whites.
That's going to be decorating
the biscuits themselves.
"Pipe zigzag patterns onto
the cooled rings and leave to set."
I'm good with icing. I can do icing.
Good start.
Going to be messy, isn't it?
Don't love that one.
Bit scruffier now.
Oh, dear!
Ah, look at that. What a day!
Bakers, you've got a half-hour left!
It's not long.
"Step 12 - make caramel."
The caramel has
to glue it all together.
200g of sugar.
I'm just going to do my caramel.
I'm just going to do it by eye.
I need this to be liquid whilst
I'm sticking things together,
but have a slight tackiness to it
so that it's going
to bind and set on there,
and not just run out everywhere.
BLEEPcaramel! It's crystallised.
HE EXHALES
It just never goes right for me.
I'm going to start making
the old tower of doom.
"Dip the bottom flat side
of ring number eight in the caramel
"and place it on top of ring nine
"so that they are joined
base to base."
Do you want me to say it for you?
That might be actually
really helpful.
IN SCOTTISH ACCENT:
"Repeat the ring-by-ring process
"while gently supporting
the horn to each ring."
Right, let's stick this
and leave it to set.
Is that right? No idea.
This isn't the prettiest of jobs,
is it?
It's stuck. Sugar!
I think it's all right. I think
that'll be on the bottom anyway,
so they won't see it.
Bakers, you have five minutes left.
This is dangerous.
This is a bit crazy.
HERMINE:I'm not too convinced
about what I'm doing here.
It's a bit leany,
isn't it? Oh, well.
I wouldn't say it's the most
horn-like thing I've ever seen.
And then I'm supposed to stick
the horn to the stand?
That feels very precarious.
It's supposed to be like that?
So, that's how you know
it's a horn, right?
HE EXHALES
SHE GROANS
Bakers, you have one minute left.
Right.I'm just sticking
the chocolate scrolls onto the horn.
Oh, gosh! It's not going to stand.
It's too hot.
I can't even peel them off.
There! There!
Oh, my God.
It's still not cool enough.
Lordy, Lordy, Lordy!
I'm just going to pipe over them.
I can try and swirl it on
while it's on it.
I'm not sure
if that's what they wanted,
but it's what they're getting.
My face says it all.
Bakers, your time is up.
Please bring your Horns of Plenty
down to the front
and place them
behind your photographs.
Horrible challenge. Worst one yet.
I thought the matcha pancakes
were bad.
That's an abomination, that is.
Prue and Paul are looking for
beautifully decorated cornucopia
in a classic horn shape...
I should have looked around.
..crispy on the outside
and soft and chewy inside.
Let's start with this one,
which is...
HE LAUGHS
THEY LAUGH
Stop it, Paul!
It has no chocolate on it.
It should have been sitting
more like that.That.
In which case,
it was the right shape.
Yeah. The graduation of the rings
are there to the top.
CRUNCH
I think you might break your teeth
on that.Hugely over-baked.
They're bone dry. Shame.
Lovely flavour, though. Goodness!
I do love that flavour.
Mm. That almond's lovely.
Right.
Well, I'm sure that chocolate was...
Yeah, it was standing up
at one point.Yeah.
The icing's much nicer.
The graduation's OK,
but there's no horn shape to it.
The little ones are over-baked.
The top ones aren't.
When you bake these,
you can't bake them
all at the same time
because they're different sizes.
The fat ones are good, though.
Mm.Very chewy.
They're neat and they do have
the chocolate on them.Mm.
Right, moving on. This is a bit of a
mess, this one.
The chocolate's gone all over the
place,
but it's the icing...The icing's
all over the place.It's terrible.
And the colour of the actual rings
are all over the place, as well.
That does look as if the baker
just didn't understand at all
what they were trying to do.
Mm!Almost raw.Like marzipan.Mm.
Yeah, there's been issues
with that one.
Last one, we have a nice shape here.
They do look over-baked, though,
if I'm honest, but there is
chocolate on there, and it is fairly
neat.The icing's not very good,
though, because...No.
..the whole idea of the icing
is to come down the side
so that you can see it.
The flavour of that one's OK.
It's softer.
Paul and Prue will now rank the
Horns of Plenty from worst to best.
In fourth place,
we have this one. Laura.
Almost everything
was wrong with this.
It did look like a mess.
Funnily enough, it was the only one
that was under-baked.
It was not your finest hour.
In third spot,
we have this one.
David. They were a little bit
solid...Yeah.
..all the way through.
In second place is this one.
Who's that?
Me.Hermine,
this was so nearly there.
The decoration was really awful,
but it was nicely baked
and the right shape.Thank you.
So, in first spot is this one.
Peter.
You forgot to put the horn shape,
but they were delicious,
and they look good with the icing.
And you even managed to do
some nice little swirls of chocolate
on there, as well. Well done.
It's not been a bad day, yeah.
But I don't want to be complacent.
There's only four of us,
and anything can happen.
I'm really, really happy.
You know, I can't complain.
And Peter deserved it.
He's really good with detail,
which I'm not particularly,
so you can't take that
away from him.
Third isn't too great in Technical.
It's getting tougher as we go along,
but I had a good Signature,
so I'm comfortable going into
the Showstopper tomorrow.
Glad that's over.
It's not ideal, but there's
always tomorrow, isn't there?
Going to have to smash that,
aren't I?
DUCK QUACKS
There's just the showstopper
challenge left before Prue and Paul
decide who is destined
for Star Baker,
and who will miss out on
a place in the final.
Hello, Bakers.
Welcome back to the tent.
It's time for your semifinal
Showstopper Challenge.
Now, today, Paul and Prue would
like you each to make a cube cake.
This should be comprised of at least
25 mini cube-shaped cakes.
This is all about precision,
so the cubes need to be sharp
and uniform and very neat.
We're looking for
an exquisite finish.
Your mini-cakes can be flavoured
and decorated however you like,
and you can use non-edible supports
to help stack the layers.
But you will get extra points
if the whole thing is edible.
I'm on a diet, so I'll probably
just eat the supports!
You have four and a half hours,
which seems like a lifetime.
On your marks...
..get set...
..bake!
One last challenge
before the potential final.
Do you know what?
I'm just going to have fun today.
Bake from the heart,
and what will be will be.
This is right up your street.
If you can't pull yourself
into the victory spot today,
there's something wrong.
Let's see what happens.
We've set the bakers
a four-and-a-half hour,
gruelling, hot challenge
and they have to make a cube cake,
straight edges, flat sides.
Think Rubik's Cube,
and really, in Patisserie Week,
we are we are looking for that
precision,
we are looking for that
artistic flair,
and obviously their baking skill.
This is a sponge cake,
and sponge has to be, as always,
beautifully flavoured
and beautifully textured.
Inside that sponge, we'd
like to see something like a mousse,
or a melted chocolate or a ganache.
The four bakers in the tent are
amateurs. I want to see them
push themselves now into that
world of professionalism.
I think there's going to be a real
fight to get into the final.
And they need to fight for it.
Hello, Peter.Hello.
Tell us about your cube cake.
I'm making a chocolate,
raspberry and pistachio cube cake.
Yes! Favourites! Magic!
So, we've got
the three different flavours
running through the entire cake.
I've got three different sponges,
three different mousses
and three different glazes.
Wow, clever!
Peter's going big to avoid
going home,
with the tent's most
ambitious cube cake.
Made up of three types of cube,
each will contain a different
combination of chocolate,
raspberry and pistachio sponge,
mousse and mirror glaze.
Wow, it sounds wonderful.
It does.
But that's a lot to do, Peter.
It's a lot to do.
So, cracking on.
Yes, good luck.Thank you.
I promise I won't come
and disturb you, at all.
Except you know I will!
PETER LAUGHS
The strategy for today is to go out
hard and fast so that,
by the end, I'll have time
to get that patisserie precision
that the judges are going
to be looking for.
It's gone really well in practice.
While Peter's hoping
practice makes perfect,
for one baker, today's showstopper
will be a step into the unknown.
Right, there's been
a change of plan.
When I practised,
it didn't go quite well.
So, everything I'm doing today
is literally...New...new.
When did you decide to
change your recipe?
I wrote it yesterday morning.
Yesterday?!
Hermine's gambling everything
on a cube cake made up of
two different varieties, both
featuring her favourite flavours,
coffee and praline,
and cherry and chocolate.
They sound delicious.
If it works, that'll be amazing.
Very good luck.
Thanks!
Sometimes you have to take risks.
True!
Fortune favours the bold.
Good luck.Thank you.
Not only must the bakers'
sponges pack plenty of flavour...
I always add a bit of coffee
in my chocolate sponge,
so it kind of flavours it out.
..texture must be spot-on, too.
I'm making my pistachio friand.
It's going to be like frangipane,
very soft, very moist.
Always thinking about textures.
They're really important, I think.
It's not just about flavour.
Deliciously delicate, yet able to
hold their shape when layered.
This is the joconde sponge.
That's just gone in at 190,
for 12 minutes.
Today, I'm going to be making
a chocolate cube cake.
I love chocolate, so this is just
to celebrate all things chocolate.
As well as chocolate sponge
and mousse,
Dave's cubes will also contain
either a white,
milk or dark chocolate
liquid caramel centre.
But with temperatures in the tent
rising, is Dave risking a meltdown?
It's going to be hot, today.
I know it's going to be hot today,
yeah.
Try and get most of this done before
the heat really starts rising, then.
Yeah.All right, Dave.
Good luck.Cheers.
That's for my praline mousse.
So, I don't have a clear
vision at the moment,
so it's just keep going
and don't stop.
With so many elements to juggle...
So, this is for my chocolate
hazelnut mousse.
..the bakers can't
relax for a second.
I always listen to my cakes
and hear them bubble.
If they're bubbling too much,
they're not done.Ooh!
If they're not bubbling at all,
they're over-baked.
The smallest lapse
in concentration...
I've done that wrong.
..could spell disaster.
I meant to split the cream,
heat half the cream up,
whisk half the cream.
Haaallo!Hello, umpire.
That's strong booze you've got
going on there, innit? Whoo!
This is for Prue.What is it?
Kirsch.
You might require a little
shot of that on the side
if you really want to blackmail her.
A jug. A jug of kirsch.
Put a fair bit of kirsch on.
If you're going to do it,
you've got to do it, haven't you?
I am doing a Black Forest
gateau-inspired cube cake.
I just feel like flavours,
like the dark chocolate
and the cherries, they work
really nicely together.
This is one of my dad's favourite
things. This one's for him.
Although Laura's cake is made
up of just one type of cube,
each contains five layers,
including a biscuit crumb,
chocolate sponge,
two mousses and whole cherries,
all decorated in a dark
chocolate mirror glaze.
I'm looking forward to this one.
Good!
One of my favourite cakes.
And it's sort of important that you
do it really well, Laura.
Yeah. It's one of my favourite
things that I have, like, made.
I'm really proud of it.
Good! That's the spirit!
I can't wait.
So, I hope you like it.
I already like it!
I haven't even ett it, yet...
"Ett it"?!
..and I already like it.
Thank you.
I'm confident with
the flavours of this one,
but it's all about the setting time.
First big concern with the mousse
is that it doesn't set.
I'm using gelatine. It's got 2.5
leaves in each of the mousse... es.
Moussi? Mice?!
It's a fairly delicate balance
with the gelatine,
because you need it to set,
but if you put too much in,
then it'll just be rubbery,
and that's not very nice.
Because I'm not
really following a recipe,
I don't even know
if the quantities are all right.
Hopefully,
these whole concoctions will work.
Easy on the gelatine. Easy!
You know exactly how many to use,
don't you?
I mean,
I eat sheets of it as a snack.
But, just not everyone's like me.
I used to wear boots in
the '70s made out of gelatine.
And, in hot weather,
I'd get shorter.
That's looking good.
Does look nice. Kind of want to eat
it, just like it is!
Right, how's this going?
Caramel's a big
part of the cube cake,
so it needs to go right today.
I've still got my biscuit to
make for the cube cake stand.
So I'm just going to start
prepping that.
This is going to
be my cherries mousse.
Hopefully, it sets nicely.
I feel I'm behind.
It's crystallised. Just don't know
what it is with this caramel.
I've not stirred it or disturbed it,
and it just does that.
Caramel's not my friend
at the moment.
HE HUFFS
NOEL AND MATT: Bakers,
you are halfway through.
I'm sorry, you say it!
Bakers, you are halfway through!
Yeah!
I've made every single component.
It's now just assembly.
I'm currently lining the moulds
with the joconde sponge.
So, I decided not to make
cubes in a mould,
because I tried it once at home,
and I just found it an absolute
nightmare to get them out.
So, I decided to go
with the cake frame,
and then I can slice them
and get them nice and neat
and square at the sides.
Let's put them on.
My chocolate bavarois
is now going in.
It's just the assembly.
My stomach's in knots.
Must remember to be neat.
Must remember to be neat!
I'm just balling out a hole in the
mousse for the caramel to sit in.
I wanted, like, a gooey centre,
almost have
a little bit of a chew.
Not cutting the cherries up.
Probably get marked down for that,
but that's how I like it.
It's getting hot again,
isn't it, in the tent?Yes!
Just in the last ten minutes,
it started to get a bit watery.
It's melting!
Temperature's creeping up on me.
Ooh, what's that?
Cherry mousse.Ooh!
There you are.
Are you allowing yourself to
think about being in the final, yet?
Er, not quite.
There might not be any final
if this doesn't go to plan.
Well, there, no,
there would still be a final.
Well not for me, I mean!
Not for you.Yeah, that's right.
Do you want us to cancel
the final if you're not in it?
Rinky-dink.
Into the freezer we go.
They just need to
stay in as long as possible.
Going pretty good.
Got the raspberry glaze
chilling down,
the chocolate glaze is on,
I'm weighing out
ingredients for the pistachio glaze.
More gelatine!
This is for my mirror glaze,
so I think there's 24 sheets
of gelatine going into that.
Basically, you want to be
able to see yourself in it.
Mirror glaze is a bit tricky.
I'm not looking forward to it.
I'm preparing
the shapes for my cube cake stand.
I need to make three platforms,
and then I need to make some cubes.
I'm a square guy!
I don't know if this is how
it's supposed to look,
my mirror glaze.
Oh, it's such a messy business.
Don't think it's supposed
to look this gloopy.
Right, that's the raspberry
mirror glaze complete.
That just has to cool down.
Let's crack on.
Come on! Just this bake
and then it's the final!
I know. It's so close!
How's it going, though?
It's going all right so far.
This bit always goes fine.
It's just always just the judging!
Just the judging!
THEY LAUGH
Oh!
What a nightmare.
I know, viewers. Where's Noel?
HIGH-PITCHED:I'm in 'ere!
Heh!
Owww!You were there!
Bakers, you have half an hour left.
Yeah, that's all good.
It seems set,
but I don't have time,
so I'm going to keep adding
the layers.
I am just going to try and get these
out, get the mirror glaze on,
job's a good 'un.
I'm getting a bit worried now.
I'm not going to have the cakes,
because they're not going to set.
Oh, this is going to take longer
than I thought.
They don't release very
well from these, so...
Unfortunately, I'm going to
have to butcher them.
Agh!
Happy. Looks good.
Looks really, really good.
Doesn't look quite set inside.
Oh, it's not going too well, is it?
Until you've seen a man getting
cubes out of a silicon mat,
you've not lived.
Do you know how much
each silicon mat costs?How much?
Like, nearly £9.£9?!
Yeah.Who pays for that, Prue?
Yeah, Prue did, yeah.
I've been sponsored by Prue...
Have you?..my whole life, yeah.
I walk her dogs.
I shampoo her hair.
I put her husband's
waistcoats in a neat pile.
Get in the wardrobe
so they don't see me.
Get sucked into Narnia,
which is a nightmare,
because it takes about
three hours to get out.
You have to bargain with
some sort of lion king.
It's a disaster, really.
It's an interesting life,
though. I wouldn't change it.
Race to the finish. As usual.
Let's glaze these puppies!
So, there's eight in the milk,
eight in the dark
and nine in the white.
I've got to speed up a little bit
now. There's not a lot of time left.
This... is just not going to happen.
Please be good, please be good.
Do you know what? They look
better without it, don't they?
Not happy at all with that.
They look a bit jelly-like,
but I might be able to get them out.
This is for the chocolate support.
They're looking pretty good.
Just not staying on.
This is going to
look like a complete mess.
Oh, my God.
I think I have a bit too much kirsch
in. If I can glaze those ones...
I honestly don't know
what's happened.
This has not
gone like this in practice.
Oh!
What's wrong? Are you OK?
I don't even want to carry on.
Come on.
You can do it.
I believe in you.
Bakers, you have ten minutes left.
SHE HUFFS
MACHINE WHINES
I think they're looking good.
Is it perfection? Probably not
quite, but it's not far off.
IN WHISPERS: Just keep going.
It looks good.
It's going to be fine.OK.
Oh!
WHISPERED:Oh, dear.
Can't believe I'm done.
Bakers, you have one minute left.
Sit, sit, sit!
Snug as a bug in a rug.
If the mirror glaze had worked,
I would be so proud of these.
Bakers, your time is up.
So upset.
Please step away from your bakes.
Good? Happy?
Good, well done.
WHISPERED:You happy?
Yeah.
Absolutely gutted.
Oh, that would have looked so good
if that mirror glaze had worked.
How'd it go?
Nightmare, like.
It all went such a disaster.
I've definitely earned my crown
as the messiest, messiest baker.
It's judgment time for the bakers'
show-stopping cube cakes.
Dave, would you like to bring
up your Showstopper?
I think they look great.
I really do. Neat, tidy, uniform.
And the chocolate is holding,
which is amazing considering
the heat.That was a brave choice.
I like the fact that you've made
the base as well.
So it looks quite neat.
Mm.Look at that caramel in the
middle.
Well, personally, I think
they're a triumph. The caramel is
deliciousness, and it's just the
right melting point so it oozes
but it still holds. The mousse
is perfectly set.And the amount
of mousse and filling is quite a
lot.
So when you get a mouthful, it's all
fudgy.The whole thing together...
Very good.Thank you.
You've improved
a lot, actually, David.
Yeah, I think I have as well.
I feel that I've improved myself.
Well done.Cheers. Thank you.
Well done.
The heat's taken its toll.
It's really difficult
because it's melting, it looks
a little bit messy.
This is Patisserie Week...I know.
..so it's got to look good.
I'm so disappointed in the look.
Mm.
Absolutely delicious.
I love the flavours going
through there.And the textures
are terrific. The whole cherries,
I think that was brave,
but it's really delicious.
Not the best thing you've ever
made, but the flavours
are really good.Mm. Worth all the
calories.
Yay!Thank you.
Well done, Laura.Thanks, you too.
Well done, Laura.Thank you.
That is so clever, Peter, and so
complicated.The overall look
is quite effective because
you've got a nice shine
on all of them.
It's set beautifully.
The sponge and the mousse are
gorgeous. Really nice.
I just want to see
what one of the other ones are like.
Let's go for the chocolate one.
It has pistachio and a raspberry
sponge.Works beautifully.
Can I ask that you try the final
one? It's my favourite.
So that's pistachio cake, chocolate
mousse, raspberry glaze.
Like a sort of friand cake.
Oh, that one quite disappoints me.
Oh, no!I'm only joking!
I love them all.
I think they're very clever.
Well executed. Thank you.
Well done.
Smashed it!
Well done, Peter.
Well, it doesn't look great,
does it?
No, not my finest, I'm afraid.
The mousse hasn't quite set here.
And the bottom
is collapsing with the weight
as it's melting as well.
But before it melts too much,
let's have a quick look.
That, for me, tastes more like
raspberry than it does cherry.
I think it's the outside with the
raspberry on it...Yeah.
..cos I love the flavour.
These do feel like panna cotta.
It's really odd.
It's actually quite stodgy
and bouncy.
It's got too much gelatine in,
it's like a rubber ball.Yeah.
It's a shame.
To be honest, I'm really
disappointed...I am too.
..because you were so good
at patisserie and this is,
by your standards, it's a failure.
I think it goes without saying,
I'm really disappointed in myself.
I haven't had any disastrous bake.
This is my first one, it's a shame
that happened in week nine.
If I do make it to the final,
it'll mean a lot. But it's really
50/50.
I'm happy. Yeah.
It's been a really good week.
Got my first handshake,
first in the Technical.
I think I've got a really good shot
for Star Baker.
That was phenomenal.
I'm so proud that I even
managed to pull that off.
Paul said it was a triumph,
and that's going to stick with me
forever.
That went a lot better than
expected. Prue said it was worth
the calories - that's like the
golden comment you want from Prue.
So it's going to be close.
I'm certain it's between me
and Hermine going home.
Hopefully, it'll be enough.
Let's start with who has
had a good week.
I think the lads have had
a good week.
David and Peter have both
done very well.
David's really come from nowhere.
He struggled from the off.
And then he's come up with that
in the semifinal.
Absolutely delicious.
And it's such a sophisticated
thing to do.
The other thing that was really
good was Peter's.
I did like the fact that he had all
these different mousses
going in each one,
the flavours were amazing.
I would like to give Star Baker
to both those two boys.
But what I found so disappointing
is Hermine,
this is Patisserie Week,
it should have been her finest hour,
really.
This is basically a rubber ball.
But in her defence,
Hermine made two things...
Laura did one cake.
It doesn't look brilliant,
but when you bit into that,
that was absolutely delicious.
But how many times have
we said Laura has got to save
herself on a show stopper?
Five times.
Hermine did have a better
technical...
This is a tricky one, this.
It could go either way.
Really?Yeah.
And this is the worst time to go
out, isn't it?It's heartbreaking.
You are just there.It's brutal.
But that's the position
that we are in.
Well, it's time for me to tell you
who has been Star Baker this week.
There are a couple of candidates,
but this week's Star Baker is...
..Peter.Well done, Peter.
That leaves me with the horrible
job of announcing the baker
who will be leaving us.
It's especially hard because
the person who is leaving us
is not going to get to the final,
and you've all been
so fantastic to get this far.
But, sadly, there can only be three.
So the person who is leaving us...
..is Hermine.
It's been a pleasure.
It has been a pleasure.
I'm a bit disappointed because
I didn't want to leave.
I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry.
I believe everything has a reason.
And it was the right time for me.
You were so good. And that was just
a bad day, wasn't it?
When I go home and I have time to
reflect, there will be,
you know, a lot of happy memories,
a lot of proud moments...
You've been an inspiration,
you know?Aw.
You really have.Thank you.
I take a lot of good things away
from this.
Well done.
Well done to get Star Baker.
I've, like, hit
the Bake Off jackpot this week.
You are such a clever lad.
Thank you very much, Prue.
I think it will take a wee while
to sink in.
It feels a bit surreal.
This whole thing is surreal.
I mean, we are in lockdown
in a country estate with Prue Leith
and Paul Hollywood eating your bakes
and Matt Lucas coming round to make
you laugh with Noel. It's bonkers.
Congratulations.Thank you.
You made the final.
I, like, genuinely, I can't process
it all right now. It's mad!
Like, I'm in the final of
the Great British Bake Off.
Like the actual final.
Like, yeah, it's...
SHE STUTTERS
OK, maybe it's sinking
in a little bit now.
You are flying.
Think of that - the final.
I know, yeah.
It hasn't sunk in yet.
I can't express how happy I am.
It's just unreal.
I just can't believe it.
Next time...
The judges have said it was
the closest final
they've ever had in the competition.
And the hardest decision
they've ever had to make.
It's not set!Oh, no!
The winner...
How long have we got?
16 more minutes.Jeepers creepers.
I need more time.
..of The Great British Bake Off
2020 is...
Are you a Star Baker in the making?
If you'd like to apply for the next
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