Zumbo's Just Desserts (2016–2020): Season 2, Episode 2 - The Terrifying Tower - full transcript
[steam whistle blows]
[narrator] Previously on
Zumbo's Just Desserts...
Wow.
[narrator] Our ten
passionate dessert makers
served up sweet surprises to the judges.
The youngest, Catherine...
Crack it open.
[narrator] ...won Dessert of the Day.
Wow. This is my type of dessert.
[narrator] But the bottom two
who failed to wow...
-[Zumbo] Kimberley. Here we go.
-[Rachel Khoo] Kristie.
[narrator] ...faced a beastly Zumbo Test.
And after a ferocious battle,
Kimberley was sent home.
Coming up...
This is one dessert
not to be underestimated.
[narrator] The desserts reach new heights.
Terrifying in a new way.
[whimpers]
[theme music playing]
[birds chirping]
[Kristie] I'm excited to still be here
having gone through the first Zumbo Test,
and I pulled it off.
I am now fearless.
I'm not going back there.
I'm not going back to the Zumbo Test.
-Look what we got today.
-[Megan giggles]
[Simon] I could see
all these cranes and whatnot.
[Pearly] Seeing this dessert trolley,
there's these huge structures.
It makes me really worried
about what we're going to be doing today.
Welcome back, dessert makers.
-Having fun?
-[contestants chatter excitedly]
Well, you've all lived
to fight another day.
Yay.
Now, it's time to take it up a notch,
and your next Sweet Sensations Task
is going to be a tall order.
I always say a great dessert maker
cooks without fear.
He doesn't want us to have fear,
but I'm pretty sure we're going to anyway.
So your task is to rise
to the occasion and create...
a terrifying tower.
[all groaning]
[all chuckling nervously]
This is going to separate
the dessert makers
from the dessert fakers.
Now, each creation needs to be
at least half a meter high.
Which is about two feet.
Massive. This is gonna be massive.
-[Khoo] At least.
-[Zumbo] At least.
That's the minimum.
You're gonna need to think about structure
to give your dessert height.
[Catherine] To be able to hold up
that structure without it falling down
in that short amount of time
is gonna be...
It's gonna be hard.
Now, one little false move,
your tower could just come crashing down.
I don't do big tower cakes or desserts.
That's not me.
It's time to go big or go home.
[Khoo] The two dessert makers
with the weakest creations
will head straight into the Zumbo Test,
where you'll have to recreate
one of Zumbo's magical desserts.
And one of you will be eliminated.
Are you ready?
-Yes.
-Yeah.
Well, off you trot to your benches.
Come on.
Time to power-up your dessert stations.
You'll have three hours
on the Factory Clock.
Good luck, everyone. Your time starts now!
Lemon...
[Rachel] I need so much butter today.
Okay. Set, ready to go.
This is, like, my jam.
Like, I am all about making those
crazy, big, over-the-top cakes.
And I just got this vision
of this giant, wacky unicorn tower.
I'm gonna create a lemonade cake
with raspberry and vanilla buttercream
and a confetti blondie.
Just pink and purple and sparkly and, oh!
It's giving me all these vibes
of childhood memories.
Sugar. Butter.
The first thing when I heard "tower,"
I thought of columns.
I want to create a Temple of Athena.
I am creating a white chocolate
choux tower with a Greek yogurt cake.
So, the Greek word for this cake,
it's called yaourtopita...
which basically translates
to "yogurt cake."
Hi, my name is Zak, or Zácharia,
which in Greek means "sugar."
-Hi, Mum. How are you?
-[Zak's mother] Very good.
My mum is very important to me.
Some might call me a mummy's boy,
but I think every Greek boy
is a mama's boy.
My dessert style is taking Greek
ingredients and making them modern.
I am very competitive,
so I'm in it to win it. [chuckles]
I'm just scared, uh, that my tower
won't hold...
Hold up, because, you know,
I have a lot of things on it.
I'm feeling nervous because last time
I got Dessert of the Day.
I feel like there is a bit more pressure
since I won last time.
I'm going to be making a berry and caramel
macaron and profiterole tower.
I think my biggest competition
is probably myself.
I wanna test myself.
We have such beautiful tropical fruits
in the Far North of Queensland,
and, to me, that's what
makes a great dessert,
is having beautiful fresh ingredients.
Hi, I'm Kylie.
I'm 45 and I'm a sugarcane farmer
from Far North Queensland.
I'm large and in charge.
[laughs]
Okay, will we have
dessert first, everyone?
[all cheering]
I love feeding people,
and especially something sweet.
-There you go, Dad.
-Oh, this looks beautiful.
-[chuckles]
-[woman exclaims]
[woman] Looks good.
-[man] Don't eat it all at once, Paul.
-[all laugh]
[Kylie] I have got a big personality,
so I'm going to win this competition,
because I love a good fight.
I have three different cakes to make.
A lot of my garnishing ingredients
for my cake have to be cooked.
I'm creating a tropical layer cake
with pineapple flowers.
The other dessert makers are putting
so many different elements
into the actual structure of their tower,
and this concerns me.
I mean, mine is just cake.
There's no hidden structure,
but then, if it's delicate,
it's just gonna fall apart.
I have to nail this
to really get it across the line.
I am so terrified
that I am not going to
have the time to do this dessert.
I just gotta temper some chocolate.
I'm making some chocolate seashells
and a mermaid tail to go on top.
Hi, I'm Rachel. I'm 32,
and I'm from Alice Springs, Australia.
Jump, jump, jump, jump, jump.
I'm a playgroup leader
and a big kid at heart,
and my dessert making
definitely brings out my inner child.
I love color, I love sparkles,
I love mermaids.
I'm a little bit quirky,
but that just makes me more fun.
I'm sparkling! [squeals]
[chuckles]
Today, I'm making
a choux bun mermaid tower
with lemon madeleines.
This is so my kind of dessert.
[gasps]
[speaking indistinctly]
The flavors that I'm working with today
are lavender, raspberry,
white chocolate and lemon.
I think I'm taking a risk
using lavender today.
It's quite a strong flavor.
Two hours, dessert makers.
[groans]
[Catherine] So, usually,
they flatten out themselves.
First, I make the macarons.
When the macaron craze
came about in Australia,
it was because of Zumbo.
He is, like, the master of macarons.
It's kind of scary.
He's, like, right over there.
He's watching me.
[laughing] I can feel him watching me.
Oh, I gotta make it good.
This is meant to be my choux pastry
for my profiteroles.
I don't know what's happened.
It's just, um...
It's not meant to look like that.
With choux pastry, the...
As soon as you add the flour
into the liquid,
it's meant to be, uh,
separated from the pan.
I need to make sure
I have these profiteroles done.
They are the tower part of my dessert.
I'm already thinking I'm failing.
I feel like I got the evil eye.
Someone's put a curse on me.
It's starting to look like concrete.
I'm not building a temple out of concrete.
I'm building it out of profiteroles here.
I don't have much time left on the clock
and I have to make almost 100 of these.
I'm feeling really stressed.
I don't know what I'm going to do.
[Khoo] So, Zumbo, terrifying tower.
Be interesting to see if a lot of people
decide to make a croquembouche...
-Yep.
-...because that's a traditional,
you know, tower.
[Zumbo] From what I've seen,
there's probably about four or five
of them using profiteroles,
but using them as an element.
So, I'm just trying
to madly fill these here.
I'm creating an éclair
and profiterole tower with nougatine.
I'm happy with the profiteroles.
I'm not too happy with the fillings.
This tastes good. The raspberry one
could've been a bit sweeter.
I'm gonna cook without fear
and win this thing.
All right, I think we're done.
Looks good.
Today, I'm gonna make an éclair tower
sitting on a layered mocha cake.
They look really good.
They're nice and brown.
I'm making my éclairs
to construct my tower.
It'll release the air if I do this.
[Kristie] Lots of chocolate happening.
So, we're gonna begin dipping
the cake pops soon.
My kids love them.
I'm going to create
a chocolate and caramel cake pop tower
with marshmallow.
I'm going to make
as many cake pops as I can.
They always have the wow factor.
I'm feeling pretty confident so far.
You never know what can happen,
but at the moment,
I'm feeling pretty good about things.
[yelling indistinctly]
I'm Megan, 32.
I am really competitive, even down
to playing ball games with my friends.
Nobody likes to lose.
You got your stuff? Let's go.
I do care what other people think.
I think everybody does.
It's always important
to strive for perfection.
My biggest fear is probably failing.
[exclaims]
Failing. [laughs]
I've come all this way, I've left my kids
and I want to win.
I've never made a dessert
on this sort of structure before.
I'm creating a coconut and pineapple palm
with rice paper leaves.
Just gonna check that.
Take the brownie out of the oven.
I need to get the perfect consistency.
Yep, they're cooked.
The only thing is, I'm thinking it could
be potentially a little bit overcooked.
I'm putting so much love and energy
and passion into this dessert today,
so it has to be perfect.
[Zak] Fingers crossed this works.
If this doesn't work, I honestly don't
know what I'm going to do. I...
Like, I'm gonna have to...
Am I gonna keep making profiteroles
until they work? Who knows?
I'm starting on my second batch
of choux pastry,
and if I don't get this right,
I have a feeling
I'm gonna face the Zumbo Test.
It's worked.
This is what I was after originally, so...
I'm relieved.
I might have a chance
to get this completed.
I just hope I have enough pastry here now
to reach the height.
One hour to go. How much do you want this?
[groans] I need more time!
I'm making a lemon simple syrup,
and that is gonna turn my vanilla cake
into a lemonade cake.
I'm gonna make sure
that I'm giving them the depth of flavor
that they're asking for.
Ooh! Mmm!
They want flavor, ooh!
They're gonna get flavor.
[gasps] Oh, my meringues!
I gotta check my meringues.
You want those meringues
to be crispy on the outside,
but a little bit chewy on the inside.
To test them, I tap them on the bottom
to hear if they're hollow.
-Yup, I can hear the ocean.
-[waves crashing]
[in sing-song] Can't forget my tail.
I'm in the mermaid zone.
I can't let anyone distract me.
I've just gotta focus and get this done.
[chuckling]
It's sparkly!
-Hi, Rachel.
-Hi. How are you?
I'm good, how are you?
Doing all right. I'm getting glittery,
and sparkly and mermaidy.
Rachel pays me a visit and I think
she can smell the lavender.
"You'd better not stuff it up."
-These are my mermaid meringues.
-Yeah?
I've just put a little bit of lavender in,
not too much, not to overpower.
I have a lot of experience with lavender
and you have to use it very carefully
because I don't want
to be eating Granny's soap.
No.
The thought of Rachel and Zumbo
eating my meringues
and telling me they taste like soap,
that would be a disaster.
-So, be very careful with that flavor.
-Yeah.
[Zak] Okay.
[sighs] I have to pipe these in, get 'em
in the oven at least for 30 minutes,
take 'em out, start piping.
I've gotta get my toffee done,
stick 'em on the cone, cover my cake,
and then we have a tower.
I've got my cake batter,
and they've all got
different colors in them.
I've done plenty of unicorn cakes before,
so this is the part
that I'm not worried about.
So, I'm putting these
in all different random ways,
so then, when it comes out,
each little square is gonna have
a bit of different color in each one.
It's gonna look really gorgeous.
And these are... These are unicorn colors.
Oh, they're coming together so well.
It's getting me so jazzed.
Mmm.
[Kylie] Is there anything more beautiful?
I'm using tropical ingredients
in my mango and passion fruit sauce.
I can't lose
any of those incredible juices.
You don't often see a cake with a sauce,
but for me, that's just
the finishing touch to this dessert.
I'm not really fussed
about presentation at this moment,
as long as I get something on the plate
and that tastes good is more important.
I'm going so fast,
piping these profiteroles,
they're flying everywhere.
They're just random blobs
of choux pastry on a tray.
Get them in the oven. Whoo. [chuckles]
Okay, I'm gonna pump that heat up to 200.
I'm doing a prayer
that my profiteroles work out.
Please make these profiteroles work out...
Thirty minutes left. Don't lose focus!
[breathing rapidly]
It's time for assembling.
So, now, I'm melting the white chocolate
to put onto the cone
to create, like, a barrier
between the macarons and the cone.
I leave the Glad Wrap on,
just so no foam comes out
because I wouldn't want to give him
something inedible on his plate again.
So, just putting my roasted pineapple
in between.
I'm ready to assemble this thing.
I want it to be perfect.
[Pearly] I've got my sponge cooked
and my confetti blondie done.
Look at that.
There's 23 minutes to go,
but I think I can do it.
This mermaid tower will impress.
So, this is all about spreading
some concrete, like how I do.
Building a foundation.
With not much time left, I start to panic,
and I need to take my profiteroles
out of the oven.
They are not perfect.
They look a little dense and raw inside.
These are the worst profiteroles
I've ever made.
I just want to throw them in the bin.
They are terrible.
I have made profiteroles
so many times before,
and this is something that I am
going to be presenting to the judges.
No, it's still a little bit warm,
but that's okay.
Um, I haven't got much time.
[clicks tongue]
These profiteroles have been a curse.
I can't believe
what a disaster this is today.
I never wanna make profiteroles again.
I'm prepared for the Zumbo challenge.
[Zumbo] Dessert makers,
you have ten minutes left!
I'm assembling the cake.
It's a massive cake.
It's so tall, it's so heavy.
There's seven layers to this cake.
Please don't be stuck.
Yep.
It's growing. It's...
Not even halfway there yet, though.
I've still gotta get my oysters on,
my seashells on.
I've got, like, a vision in my head,
uh, but it's also...
It's random.
It comes together organically.
My hands are covered in delicious food.
I tasted my Swiss meringue buttercream,
and man, there'll be flavor.
[Megan] I've made elements
of this dessert before,
but I have never made
a palm tree like this.
[Simon] Just gonna add some flowers to it.
Oh, my gosh! Those other people
have done so well.
No!
I'm finding I'm having
major issues everywhere.
I'm starting to panic and freak out.
I just hope I've got enough to cover that.
I haven't got enough profiteroles
for my tower.
I've only got three profiteroles left.
That's all I can do, so...
I don't have any more time
to make profiteroles.
This has become a Greek tragedy.
I was very ambitious for this.
I dunno what I am going to do.
[sighs]
Five minutes to go, guys!
Just five minutes to go!
That's how we do things around here.
[Kylie] Five minutes on the clock,
I'm just getting the finishing touches on.
My orchids, trying to get them
in the right place.
This is the nerve-racking part.
Oh! It's standing up.
It's getting close.
It's not coming together
exactly how I envisioned it, but...
I think everybody's frantic.
[Catherine] Behind you, behind you!
It'd be great
if I could get Dessert of the Day again.
I'm lost.
I don't have enough profiteroles.
Just trying to add a bit more height,
so I'm just gonna throw some fruit on top.
What I've created today
looks nothing like what I created
in my mind.
It's collapsing.
[both] Ten, nine, eight, seven,
six, five, four,
-three, two, one!
-Ah!
[steam whistle blows]
-Whoo! [laughs]
-[gasps]
[Pearly] What a cake.
-I finished.
-[chuckles]
[laughing] I cannot believe it's standing.
There's not much I can do now.
[Khoo] Well done, everyone.
I can see some amazing
and quite precarious desserts.
Rachel, could you please
bring over your dessert?
This is the dessert
I've daydreamed about for so long.
Oh, what, she's putting on
some special gloves?
[laughs]
And now, here I am,
delivering it to Rachel and Zumbo.
Ta-da!
Rachel, before we get to your dessert,
explain to me your outfit.
Well, I just happen
to match my dessert today.
I've got my lucky mermaid gloves,
and my little mermaid tail, so...
-[both chuckle]
-So, um...
I've got the mermaid thing going,
and it's reflected in my dessert today.
Are you fishing to win this test?
I'm hoping to reel one in.
[Zumbo and Khoo laughing]
So, tell me what you've
actually made here.
It's got profiteroles
with craquelin on top.
Inside is a raspberry crème pâtissière.
I've got lavender meringues,
little madeleines that I've cut open...
with a little pearl inside.
[Khoo] Okay, let's taste it.
[Rachel] I'm hoping,
with all of my mermaid luck,
that I haven't put too much
of that lavender in.
The lavender meringues,
I thought were delicious.
Lavender can easily taste like soap.
Such a relief!
All in all, fantastic concept.
I think you could've thought
Great Barrier Reef and popping colors.
You know, that bright blue
you get from the ocean
-instead of the murkiness.
-Okay.
Catherine, can you please
bring up your creation?
Yeah, be very careful. [laughs]
[Catherine] I feel nervous.
Yeah, macarons are just Zumbo's thing.
He is, like, the master of macarons.
Can I just...
Thank you.
[exhales sharply]
[Khoo] Let's give it a taste.
It looks beautiful, very neat. I loved it.
The macaron, they look great.
But one thing to remember
with the macaron,
is that the filling should be
the same size as the shell.
-Mmm-hmm. Yeah.
-[Zumbo] Should be equal parts.
So, you go shell, filling, shell,
and they should all be equal size.
-Yeah.
-You know, well done.
Thank you.
Zumbo said he liked it
so I was proud of myself. [giggles]
Zak, can you bring over your dessert?
Don't trip up. [laughs]
I'm feeling really embarrassed,
taking this up.
We can see it's slightly rushed.
It's not quite finished.
-What happened, Zak?
-I found myself rushing.
I probably didn't consider the timings
for each element.
I had you on my mind, Zumbo.
"Don't cook with fear."
I tried not to, but unfortunately,
I've got this result.
What about the flavors you've used?
I've included a cherry seed splice
into my choux pastry called mahalepi.
My cream as well, I've included a mastica,
which is a gum produced from a tree
in an island in Greece.
Okay, let's taste it. [chuckles]
I don't want the whole cake to collapse.
[chuckles] Okay.
Yeah, you take away the foundation
and then it... Whoops!
We will not have a leaning tower anymore.
-We will have a collapsed tower.
-Collapsed.
I don't even want to look
at Rachel and Zumbo eat my dessert.
I just want to look down
and just wait for the verdict.
I think your idea was amazing,
and I love how you have
this story to your heritage,
you wanted to use those flavors,
but just the elements, for me,
it's just a bit bland,
you know what I mean?
I think the cake needed
a bit more of something.
It's got no flavor.
I think you need to be
a bit more bold with your flavors
-'cause I just didn't get much of it.
-Cool.
-Thanks, Zak.
-Thank you.
The feedback I had just got
was not what I wanted to hear.
Kristie? Your turn next.
[Zumbo] Kristie, you made a chocolate
and caramel cake pop tower.
Love the cake pops.
They're fudgey, delicious.
I think this is a big improvement
from your last task dish,
-so great job.
-Thank you.
[Khoo] Jeff, you made a éclair
and profiterole tower with nougatine.
Really nice flavor combinations.
With the decoration, less is more.
[Zumbo] Simon, you made
an éclair tower with layered mocha cake.
[Khoo] Great to see you've tried
-doing different skills.
-Yeah.
And the flavors go really well together.
-[Zumbo] Thanks.
-Thank you.
Megan, could you please bring
your terrifying tower over?
-It's blowing in the breeze.
-[Zumbo and Khoo chuckle]
With my dessert,
I think the flavors are great,
and I think it looks really good.
My elements look perfect.
[Khoo] Megan, you made a pineapple
and coconut palm with rice paper leaves.
Are you happy with how it came out?
Uh, it's probably a little overdone
for my liking.
I would've liked it a little bit softer.
It's incredibly difficult
because in three hours,
there's no time for it
to be completely perfect.
Presentation-wise, it's really fun.
I love the rice paper leaves.
It's unfortunate that the cake... [sighs]
-was a bit like eating bark.
-Oh.
-It was dry.
-[scoffs]
When you cut into it,
it felt like we were sawing down a tree.
Oh.
Yep, it's me. I'm in that bottom two.
Kylie, bring your terrifying tower
over to us.
[Kylie] I'm trying to hold
this thing steady.
It's so tall, it's so heavy.
[exhales heavily and chuckles]
[chuckling] Exhale. You can breathe now.
What elements have you got
in your dessert?
In the bottom tier, I have
two layers of lime and coconut cake,
and I have two layers
of lemon and coconut cake.
The top tier is a vanilla bean cake,
and in between that
is a roasted pineapple and sugar syrup.
It's covered
in a vanilla bean buttercream.
The sauce on the side
is mango and passion fruit.
-Wow. Phew.
-[chuckles]
I'm exhausted just listening to that.
-Next layer.
-[laughs]
I've only got half the cake on there.
I'm praying that they understand
why I've put those flavors together.
[Khoo] Kylie.
-You certainly took on a challenge...
-Yeah.
...making your whole tower out of a cake.
Yup.
It definitely paid off.
It looked like something
you could serve at a wedding.
-Thank you.
-It's very simple,
but I think you've nailed that simplicity.
I definitely wasn't saying,
"Where's the sauce?"
I think, uh, for me,
that really made the flavor side of it.
-[Kylie] Yeah.
-It's a beautiful representation
of Far North Queensland.
-Good job.
-Thank you.
Pearly, can you pop on over?
[Pearly] I know it's messy,
but the wow factor in this unicorn dessert
is going to be the perfect flavors.
Tell us about your dessert.
I wanted to create a centerpiece
that would just make
every little girl's birthday party pop.
It's a little bit messier than I wanted.
I'm really happy
with, um, the flavors that turned out.
Time to taste.
What was the flavor in this cake?
It's a vanilla cake
with a lemon simple syrup.
[Khoo] Ah, okay.
Everyone's desserts look so good.
I am so worried right now.
The lemonade cake,
-for me, was missing flavor.
-Okay.
I must say I wasn't such a fan
on the icing.
I think it made it very messy.
-If you look at, like, how it's finished.
-[Pearly] Yeah.
-You've got gaps here.
-[Pearly] Hmm.
So, that really let you down a little bit.
That could've gone a lot better.
Dessert makers, you were all tasked
with making a terrifying tower
that impresses
with its structure and flavor.
But one of you really hit the heights.
The Dessert of the Day...
I hope it could be me winning
Dessert of the Day again.
I delivered my completed vision.
I could possibly win Dessert of the Day.
...belongs to...
Kylie.
-[contestants cheering and applauding]
-No!
[chuckles] Yay! It's so amazing.
I can't believe it.
I'm sorry to say, some desserts
fell a little short of the mark.
The two dessert makers
with the weakest dishes
will now go into the Zumbo Test,
where one of you will be eliminated.
Deep down, I am hoping for a miracle.
The first dessert maker
to fight it out is...
I really, really hope
I'm not in that bottom two.
I do not want to do that Zumbo Test.
[Pearly] Please don't say my name.
Please don't say my name.
Please don't say my name.
Zak.
I don't think the Greek gods
are playing with me today.
They're not giving me any favors.
Zak, I think you really know
where you went wrong.
Uh, you know, time management,
getting those flavors right.
[Zak] Yeah, it was expected.
That's all right.
The dessert maker joining Zak
in the Zumbo Test is...
Pearly.
[sighs]
I'm devo'd. Hashtag, devo'd.
[chuckles] Yeah. Oh...
I had a feeling.
It just didn't come together
how I wanted it to, in the end.
Unfortunately, your wacky idea
just didn't translate.
[Zumbo] You just need
a little more sophistication
and to think about those flavors,
those textures.
You need to up your game at this point
if you want to stay in the game.
The rest of you are safe.
Please take a seat.
Ugh, I'm going through to the Zumbo Test.
I've just gotta think,
"It's another opportunity to show
that I have what it takes to be here."
Pearly and Zak, the two of you
will be cooking in a Zumbo Test,
where one of you will be eliminated.
As you can see, there's no dome.
Please tell me
that we are not making a ten-foot cake.
[Zak] I'm Greek. We make
plates and plates of desserts,
but nothing high, it's more mass.
Well, this is one dessert
not to be underestimated.
[sighs]
It's terrifying in a new way.
[laughs]
[Pearly exclaims]
What?
-Oh.
-[laughs]
[Zak] It's not as big
as what I thought it was going to be,
but it's so colorful and perfect.
It's like a work of art.
I call it Lucky 13.
[Pearly] Whoa.
[Zumbo] There are 13 tempered
chocolate rings to this beauty.
It might be small in size,
but it's big on complexity.
Wow. Oh, my gosh.
There are so many layers.
I'm scared of this tiny cake.
I mean, there's gotta be
more to it, right?
[Pearly laughing] Oh!
So, inside, I've got a confetti cake.
It's your favorite?
[all laughing]
[Pearly squeals]
-[Zumbo] We've got a chocolate ganache...
-[Zak] Mmm-hmm.
...a cherry jam
and marshmallow buttercream.
And lots and lots of
different-colored tempered chocolate.
Yeah.
This might look pretty straightforward,
but the devil's in the detail.
-It doesn't look straightforward.
-[Zak and Pearly chuckle]
I'm feeling a bit concerned
that I have to recreate this.
This is Pearly's kind of dessert.
She's the confetti cake queen.
Tastes like memories from childhood.
You can definitely taste that cherry.
Yeah. That chocolate's so thin,
it just melts when it...
The presentation
is gonna be key on this one, guys.
Pearly and Zak,
take to your dessert stations,
where you'll find your recipes.
[contestants cheering and applauding]
Good luck, guys, and make some magic.
You have two and a half hours
on the Factory Clock.
Your time starts now!
[contestants cheering]
-[Catherine] Yeah!
-[Kristie] Go! Go! Go!
I'm gonna start with my cake
because I've got to get it finished
and in the oven.
This recipe is...
[sighs] very intimidating.
I mean, yeah, it's not just a cake.
I've gotta make sure
these egg whites are at firm peaks.
I don't want them too meringue-y.
Yep, that's perfect.
Fold this egg white mixture in.
This is gonna form the batter of the cake.
This is the confetti sponge cake.
This holds up that tower.
I need to make sure
I get this sponge right.
I don't want to go home.
I still have so much more
to show and give.
Whoo! Love it.
Okay.
[Catherine] Whoo, Pearly! Well done!
Go, Pearly!
Zumbo, Lucky 13 looks simple,
but how tricky is it?
That tower looks very tricky.
[Khoo] You need to have a...
Like, a delicate touch, don't you?
[Zumbo] Exactly.
And both of these dessert makers
have been quite heavy-handed
with their previous desserts.
-[Zumbo] Yes, they have been.
-[Khoo chuckles]
[Zak] Now, I'm gonna get ready
to make my ganache.
It's just chocolate with cream.
This recipe's asked to put
a bit of glucose syrup in it, as well.
Hashtag, chocoholics anonymous.
Right here.
Just flatten out my ganache
and then that should cool
at room temperature.
Okay. Chocolate ganache, done, done.
[Khoo] You have two hours to go.
[contestants cheering]
[Rachel] Go, Zak! Go, Pearly!
[Pearly] The cake is done.
-How you going there, Zak?
-Okay.
-I'm starting my marshmallow buttercream.
-Awesome. Samesies.
-[mixer whirs]
-[mutters]
[Zak] The marshmallow buttercream
is an important part of this dessert.
Not only do I need to use it
as a part of my layers,
but it is also required to mask this cake
and hold it together.
So, now, I've gotta
add the butter in slowly.
This is, I guess,
the marshmallow buttercream.
It's gooey and bright white.
It looks pretty cool.
That is my glucose mix,
the basis for the marshmallow.
So, I've made marshmallow before,
but I've never put it in a buttercream.
I've turned my back for one minute
just to set up my chocolate...
and suddenly, I can smell burning.
[Simon] With sugar,
you've gotta stick with it
'cause it just takes seconds
for it to go off.
There was a real caramelized smell. Ugh.
You can see clumps
being pushed around in the bowl.
Every now and then, I see a clump
come up against the side of the bowl.
Oh, I want to stay
in this competition so badly.
I am so devastated that this marshmallow
has not come together.
It's like chewing gum.
-[Pearly] Buttercream's gonna fail.
-I know.
[Pearly] I'm just gonna have lumpy
marshmallow that's not gonna fluff up.
Just focus on the chocolate
and come back to it.
[Zumbo] Guys, you have
just one hour to go!
I'm feeling a little bit concerned
with my chocolate tempering.
It's very time-consuming.
Those layers of chocolate
are throwing me off a little bit.
There's 13 of those we have to achieve.
So, yeah, that's probably, kind of,
stressing me out a little bit.
I think it's just
a sudden explosion of colors.
As long as I get that captured
and reflected in the final dessert.
I'm quite happy I'm starting this
with an hour to go.
Give me a bit of time
to get all the colors done.
-[Megan] Chocolate looks great, Zak.
-[Kylie] Looking good, Zak.
-So vibrant.
-[Simon] Nice color.
[Pearly] I need to color
all of this white chocolate.
I've got violet, green, blue, red...
Pretty much the entire rainbow is there.
So, I want this chocolate
to be, uh, touch-ready, which it is,
and then I can put my paper on top.
Ah, chocolate.
And then wrap it around the pipe.
See, I've got really fat fingers
and I'm not good
with these kinds of small things.
[Pearly] Six down.
-See? You're more ahead than you thought.
-Yay!
Don't you think he should be
assembling his cake by now?
[Rachel] Yeah,
they're running out of time.
I can't even use that.
I'm running out of time.
I need to start stacking my cake.
[contestants cheering and applauding]
[Jeff] Start putting it together!
I burnt the marshmallow,
so the marshmallow buttercream
is not going on today.
If I was in her situation
and I'm running out of time,
-I'd just do a Swiss meringue buttercream.
-I was thinking that, too.
In my head, I was like, "Come on, Pearly,
you know, you got time.
you can make another one."
We don't have enough time
on the clock to go back.
So, now, I'm gonna just
mask the edges of the cake.
The marshmallow buttercream
is used to mask the cake.
With the butter, it helps set
and firm up the cake.
[softly] Okay.
Oh, his buttercream works. I'm so sad
that's not me. [chuckles]
I'm gonna mask my cake
with the chocolate ganache.
I'm building my cake
and I'm masking it with the ganache
and it's a little bit stiffer
than the buttercream would've been.
I have to be really careful
with this chocolate ganache,
that I don't rip the sponge apart.
[Zumbo] You have ten minutes left, guys!
Get a move on.
Come on. This is it now.
-[Kristie] Well done.
-[Rachel] Whoo!
-[Catherine] Yay!
-[contestants applauding]
[Pearly] I just have to
get my chocolate on there.
I'm peeling the acetate off
without cracking the chocolate
and it's so thin.
This is definitely the most delicate part
of the day right now.
-All right.
-[contestants whooping]
-First one done!
-[Megan] Whoo!
I'm trying not to crack the chocolate.
I'm trying to be as gentle as possible.
I cracked a bit of the edge.
Ugh! This is not good.
Oh, I'm shaking so much.
Keep snapping 'em.
These chocolate rings
are vital to this dessert.
Just as long as I get the colors on.
They've gotta cover all that cake,
all on the outside.
[both] Zak hasn't even started...
[Simon] ...doing his one.
I just need to make sure I have
some chocolate bands around this cake.
One more ring, people.
[all] Ten, nine, eight, seven,
six, five, four, three, two, one!
-[all cheering]
-[steam whistle blowing]
[contestants cheering and applauding]
[Simon] Well done!
It's not what I had in mind,
but you know what, I got it done.
Pearly and Zak,
please bring us your desserts.
[Zak] I'm looking at Pearly's.
Looks like she's got pretty much
all her rings on her cake.
I was meant to have 13 rings,
but I've only got seven.
Zak, I can see you're getting
a little bit teary.
Oh, honey.
[Zak sniffles]
Like, I'm very honored to be here.
I just wanna show what I've got.
I really want
to go well in this competition.
It's a huge pressure
to be doing the Zumbo Test,
so to have that courage, it's fantastic.
-So, well done for making it through.
-Yeah.
Okay. Pearly, we'll taste
your dessert first.
As soon as I noticed Pearly didn't have
her buttercream in her cake,
I have a glimpse of hope.
Zak, it's now time to taste your dessert.
[breathes deeply]
Presentation was a major issue
for me today.
I just could not get that happening.
In my head, I'm going home.
[sighs]
This competition means so much to me.
I'm bracing myself. Here it comes.
[Khoo] Pearly, that buttercream?
That was essential to keeping
those flavors in balance on your cake.
-Yeah.
-So, by using the chocolate ganache,
that chocolate, it's just
such an overpowering flavor.
You really needed something
to offset that ganache.
Pearly, I thought your presentation
on your cake was beautiful.
You got 12 out of 13 rings.
You really had
the best resemblance of mine.
But you dropped
that marshmallow buttercream.
[Zak] I am really worried.
Pearly didn't have her buttercream,
but, at the same time,
her chocolate work was done perfect
and mine wasn't.
Zak, you put up all the elements
but I think you really struggled
on your presentation.
Your finish was a bit clunky.
All your flavors in your cake
really come together nicely.
Pearly, for your dessert, I give you...
[Pearly] Missing that buttercream
might be the thing
that sends me home today.
...a five.
Pearly, for your dessert, I give you...
a five.
That gives you a total score
of ten out of 20.
Ten out of 20 is a good score.
My chocolate may be the thing
that's gonna send me home.
Zak, I give you...
a six.
Zak, I give you...
a seven.
That gives you a total score
of 13 out of 20.
-Well done.
-Thank you.
Unfortunately, Pearly, you have been
eliminated from the competition.
[Pearly] I came here
wanting to achieve so much,
and I feel like I'm leaving too soon.
Pearly, you've got a crazy,
colorful imagination.
Keep cooking desserts, having fun,
chasing those dreams.
Thank you so, so much.
Pearly, it's time to depart
the Dessert Factory.
May all your sweet dreams come true.
[contestants applauding]
Mwah, mwah.
[narrator] Previously on
Zumbo's Just Desserts...
Wow.
[narrator] Our ten
passionate dessert makers
served up sweet surprises to the judges.
The youngest, Catherine...
Crack it open.
[narrator] ...won Dessert of the Day.
Wow. This is my type of dessert.
[narrator] But the bottom two
who failed to wow...
-[Zumbo] Kimberley. Here we go.
-[Rachel Khoo] Kristie.
[narrator] ...faced a beastly Zumbo Test.
And after a ferocious battle,
Kimberley was sent home.
Coming up...
This is one dessert
not to be underestimated.
[narrator] The desserts reach new heights.
Terrifying in a new way.
[whimpers]
[theme music playing]
[birds chirping]
[Kristie] I'm excited to still be here
having gone through the first Zumbo Test,
and I pulled it off.
I am now fearless.
I'm not going back there.
I'm not going back to the Zumbo Test.
-Look what we got today.
-[Megan giggles]
[Simon] I could see
all these cranes and whatnot.
[Pearly] Seeing this dessert trolley,
there's these huge structures.
It makes me really worried
about what we're going to be doing today.
Welcome back, dessert makers.
-Having fun?
-[contestants chatter excitedly]
Well, you've all lived
to fight another day.
Yay.
Now, it's time to take it up a notch,
and your next Sweet Sensations Task
is going to be a tall order.
I always say a great dessert maker
cooks without fear.
He doesn't want us to have fear,
but I'm pretty sure we're going to anyway.
So your task is to rise
to the occasion and create...
a terrifying tower.
[all groaning]
[all chuckling nervously]
This is going to separate
the dessert makers
from the dessert fakers.
Now, each creation needs to be
at least half a meter high.
Which is about two feet.
Massive. This is gonna be massive.
-[Khoo] At least.
-[Zumbo] At least.
That's the minimum.
You're gonna need to think about structure
to give your dessert height.
[Catherine] To be able to hold up
that structure without it falling down
in that short amount of time
is gonna be...
It's gonna be hard.
Now, one little false move,
your tower could just come crashing down.
I don't do big tower cakes or desserts.
That's not me.
It's time to go big or go home.
[Khoo] The two dessert makers
with the weakest creations
will head straight into the Zumbo Test,
where you'll have to recreate
one of Zumbo's magical desserts.
And one of you will be eliminated.
Are you ready?
-Yes.
-Yeah.
Well, off you trot to your benches.
Come on.
Time to power-up your dessert stations.
You'll have three hours
on the Factory Clock.
Good luck, everyone. Your time starts now!
Lemon...
[Rachel] I need so much butter today.
Okay. Set, ready to go.
This is, like, my jam.
Like, I am all about making those
crazy, big, over-the-top cakes.
And I just got this vision
of this giant, wacky unicorn tower.
I'm gonna create a lemonade cake
with raspberry and vanilla buttercream
and a confetti blondie.
Just pink and purple and sparkly and, oh!
It's giving me all these vibes
of childhood memories.
Sugar. Butter.
The first thing when I heard "tower,"
I thought of columns.
I want to create a Temple of Athena.
I am creating a white chocolate
choux tower with a Greek yogurt cake.
So, the Greek word for this cake,
it's called yaourtopita...
which basically translates
to "yogurt cake."
Hi, my name is Zak, or Zácharia,
which in Greek means "sugar."
-Hi, Mum. How are you?
-[Zak's mother] Very good.
My mum is very important to me.
Some might call me a mummy's boy,
but I think every Greek boy
is a mama's boy.
My dessert style is taking Greek
ingredients and making them modern.
I am very competitive,
so I'm in it to win it. [chuckles]
I'm just scared, uh, that my tower
won't hold...
Hold up, because, you know,
I have a lot of things on it.
I'm feeling nervous because last time
I got Dessert of the Day.
I feel like there is a bit more pressure
since I won last time.
I'm going to be making a berry and caramel
macaron and profiterole tower.
I think my biggest competition
is probably myself.
I wanna test myself.
We have such beautiful tropical fruits
in the Far North of Queensland,
and, to me, that's what
makes a great dessert,
is having beautiful fresh ingredients.
Hi, I'm Kylie.
I'm 45 and I'm a sugarcane farmer
from Far North Queensland.
I'm large and in charge.
[laughs]
Okay, will we have
dessert first, everyone?
[all cheering]
I love feeding people,
and especially something sweet.
-There you go, Dad.
-Oh, this looks beautiful.
-[chuckles]
-[woman exclaims]
[woman] Looks good.
-[man] Don't eat it all at once, Paul.
-[all laugh]
[Kylie] I have got a big personality,
so I'm going to win this competition,
because I love a good fight.
I have three different cakes to make.
A lot of my garnishing ingredients
for my cake have to be cooked.
I'm creating a tropical layer cake
with pineapple flowers.
The other dessert makers are putting
so many different elements
into the actual structure of their tower,
and this concerns me.
I mean, mine is just cake.
There's no hidden structure,
but then, if it's delicate,
it's just gonna fall apart.
I have to nail this
to really get it across the line.
I am so terrified
that I am not going to
have the time to do this dessert.
I just gotta temper some chocolate.
I'm making some chocolate seashells
and a mermaid tail to go on top.
Hi, I'm Rachel. I'm 32,
and I'm from Alice Springs, Australia.
Jump, jump, jump, jump, jump.
I'm a playgroup leader
and a big kid at heart,
and my dessert making
definitely brings out my inner child.
I love color, I love sparkles,
I love mermaids.
I'm a little bit quirky,
but that just makes me more fun.
I'm sparkling! [squeals]
[chuckles]
Today, I'm making
a choux bun mermaid tower
with lemon madeleines.
This is so my kind of dessert.
[gasps]
[speaking indistinctly]
The flavors that I'm working with today
are lavender, raspberry,
white chocolate and lemon.
I think I'm taking a risk
using lavender today.
It's quite a strong flavor.
Two hours, dessert makers.
[groans]
[Catherine] So, usually,
they flatten out themselves.
First, I make the macarons.
When the macaron craze
came about in Australia,
it was because of Zumbo.
He is, like, the master of macarons.
It's kind of scary.
He's, like, right over there.
He's watching me.
[laughing] I can feel him watching me.
Oh, I gotta make it good.
This is meant to be my choux pastry
for my profiteroles.
I don't know what's happened.
It's just, um...
It's not meant to look like that.
With choux pastry, the...
As soon as you add the flour
into the liquid,
it's meant to be, uh,
separated from the pan.
I need to make sure
I have these profiteroles done.
They are the tower part of my dessert.
I'm already thinking I'm failing.
I feel like I got the evil eye.
Someone's put a curse on me.
It's starting to look like concrete.
I'm not building a temple out of concrete.
I'm building it out of profiteroles here.
I don't have much time left on the clock
and I have to make almost 100 of these.
I'm feeling really stressed.
I don't know what I'm going to do.
[Khoo] So, Zumbo, terrifying tower.
Be interesting to see if a lot of people
decide to make a croquembouche...
-Yep.
-...because that's a traditional,
you know, tower.
[Zumbo] From what I've seen,
there's probably about four or five
of them using profiteroles,
but using them as an element.
So, I'm just trying
to madly fill these here.
I'm creating an éclair
and profiterole tower with nougatine.
I'm happy with the profiteroles.
I'm not too happy with the fillings.
This tastes good. The raspberry one
could've been a bit sweeter.
I'm gonna cook without fear
and win this thing.
All right, I think we're done.
Looks good.
Today, I'm gonna make an éclair tower
sitting on a layered mocha cake.
They look really good.
They're nice and brown.
I'm making my éclairs
to construct my tower.
It'll release the air if I do this.
[Kristie] Lots of chocolate happening.
So, we're gonna begin dipping
the cake pops soon.
My kids love them.
I'm going to create
a chocolate and caramel cake pop tower
with marshmallow.
I'm going to make
as many cake pops as I can.
They always have the wow factor.
I'm feeling pretty confident so far.
You never know what can happen,
but at the moment,
I'm feeling pretty good about things.
[yelling indistinctly]
I'm Megan, 32.
I am really competitive, even down
to playing ball games with my friends.
Nobody likes to lose.
You got your stuff? Let's go.
I do care what other people think.
I think everybody does.
It's always important
to strive for perfection.
My biggest fear is probably failing.
[exclaims]
Failing. [laughs]
I've come all this way, I've left my kids
and I want to win.
I've never made a dessert
on this sort of structure before.
I'm creating a coconut and pineapple palm
with rice paper leaves.
Just gonna check that.
Take the brownie out of the oven.
I need to get the perfect consistency.
Yep, they're cooked.
The only thing is, I'm thinking it could
be potentially a little bit overcooked.
I'm putting so much love and energy
and passion into this dessert today,
so it has to be perfect.
[Zak] Fingers crossed this works.
If this doesn't work, I honestly don't
know what I'm going to do. I...
Like, I'm gonna have to...
Am I gonna keep making profiteroles
until they work? Who knows?
I'm starting on my second batch
of choux pastry,
and if I don't get this right,
I have a feeling
I'm gonna face the Zumbo Test.
It's worked.
This is what I was after originally, so...
I'm relieved.
I might have a chance
to get this completed.
I just hope I have enough pastry here now
to reach the height.
One hour to go. How much do you want this?
[groans] I need more time!
I'm making a lemon simple syrup,
and that is gonna turn my vanilla cake
into a lemonade cake.
I'm gonna make sure
that I'm giving them the depth of flavor
that they're asking for.
Ooh! Mmm!
They want flavor, ooh!
They're gonna get flavor.
[gasps] Oh, my meringues!
I gotta check my meringues.
You want those meringues
to be crispy on the outside,
but a little bit chewy on the inside.
To test them, I tap them on the bottom
to hear if they're hollow.
-Yup, I can hear the ocean.
-[waves crashing]
[in sing-song] Can't forget my tail.
I'm in the mermaid zone.
I can't let anyone distract me.
I've just gotta focus and get this done.
[chuckling]
It's sparkly!
-Hi, Rachel.
-Hi. How are you?
I'm good, how are you?
Doing all right. I'm getting glittery,
and sparkly and mermaidy.
Rachel pays me a visit and I think
she can smell the lavender.
"You'd better not stuff it up."
-These are my mermaid meringues.
-Yeah?
I've just put a little bit of lavender in,
not too much, not to overpower.
I have a lot of experience with lavender
and you have to use it very carefully
because I don't want
to be eating Granny's soap.
No.
The thought of Rachel and Zumbo
eating my meringues
and telling me they taste like soap,
that would be a disaster.
-So, be very careful with that flavor.
-Yeah.
[Zak] Okay.
[sighs] I have to pipe these in, get 'em
in the oven at least for 30 minutes,
take 'em out, start piping.
I've gotta get my toffee done,
stick 'em on the cone, cover my cake,
and then we have a tower.
I've got my cake batter,
and they've all got
different colors in them.
I've done plenty of unicorn cakes before,
so this is the part
that I'm not worried about.
So, I'm putting these
in all different random ways,
so then, when it comes out,
each little square is gonna have
a bit of different color in each one.
It's gonna look really gorgeous.
And these are... These are unicorn colors.
Oh, they're coming together so well.
It's getting me so jazzed.
Mmm.
[Kylie] Is there anything more beautiful?
I'm using tropical ingredients
in my mango and passion fruit sauce.
I can't lose
any of those incredible juices.
You don't often see a cake with a sauce,
but for me, that's just
the finishing touch to this dessert.
I'm not really fussed
about presentation at this moment,
as long as I get something on the plate
and that tastes good is more important.
I'm going so fast,
piping these profiteroles,
they're flying everywhere.
They're just random blobs
of choux pastry on a tray.
Get them in the oven. Whoo. [chuckles]
Okay, I'm gonna pump that heat up to 200.
I'm doing a prayer
that my profiteroles work out.
Please make these profiteroles work out...
Thirty minutes left. Don't lose focus!
[breathing rapidly]
It's time for assembling.
So, now, I'm melting the white chocolate
to put onto the cone
to create, like, a barrier
between the macarons and the cone.
I leave the Glad Wrap on,
just so no foam comes out
because I wouldn't want to give him
something inedible on his plate again.
So, just putting my roasted pineapple
in between.
I'm ready to assemble this thing.
I want it to be perfect.
[Pearly] I've got my sponge cooked
and my confetti blondie done.
Look at that.
There's 23 minutes to go,
but I think I can do it.
This mermaid tower will impress.
So, this is all about spreading
some concrete, like how I do.
Building a foundation.
With not much time left, I start to panic,
and I need to take my profiteroles
out of the oven.
They are not perfect.
They look a little dense and raw inside.
These are the worst profiteroles
I've ever made.
I just want to throw them in the bin.
They are terrible.
I have made profiteroles
so many times before,
and this is something that I am
going to be presenting to the judges.
No, it's still a little bit warm,
but that's okay.
Um, I haven't got much time.
[clicks tongue]
These profiteroles have been a curse.
I can't believe
what a disaster this is today.
I never wanna make profiteroles again.
I'm prepared for the Zumbo challenge.
[Zumbo] Dessert makers,
you have ten minutes left!
I'm assembling the cake.
It's a massive cake.
It's so tall, it's so heavy.
There's seven layers to this cake.
Please don't be stuck.
Yep.
It's growing. It's...
Not even halfway there yet, though.
I've still gotta get my oysters on,
my seashells on.
I've got, like, a vision in my head,
uh, but it's also...
It's random.
It comes together organically.
My hands are covered in delicious food.
I tasted my Swiss meringue buttercream,
and man, there'll be flavor.
[Megan] I've made elements
of this dessert before,
but I have never made
a palm tree like this.
[Simon] Just gonna add some flowers to it.
Oh, my gosh! Those other people
have done so well.
No!
I'm finding I'm having
major issues everywhere.
I'm starting to panic and freak out.
I just hope I've got enough to cover that.
I haven't got enough profiteroles
for my tower.
I've only got three profiteroles left.
That's all I can do, so...
I don't have any more time
to make profiteroles.
This has become a Greek tragedy.
I was very ambitious for this.
I dunno what I am going to do.
[sighs]
Five minutes to go, guys!
Just five minutes to go!
That's how we do things around here.
[Kylie] Five minutes on the clock,
I'm just getting the finishing touches on.
My orchids, trying to get them
in the right place.
This is the nerve-racking part.
Oh! It's standing up.
It's getting close.
It's not coming together
exactly how I envisioned it, but...
I think everybody's frantic.
[Catherine] Behind you, behind you!
It'd be great
if I could get Dessert of the Day again.
I'm lost.
I don't have enough profiteroles.
Just trying to add a bit more height,
so I'm just gonna throw some fruit on top.
What I've created today
looks nothing like what I created
in my mind.
It's collapsing.
[both] Ten, nine, eight, seven,
six, five, four,
-three, two, one!
-Ah!
[steam whistle blows]
-Whoo! [laughs]
-[gasps]
[Pearly] What a cake.
-I finished.
-[chuckles]
[laughing] I cannot believe it's standing.
There's not much I can do now.
[Khoo] Well done, everyone.
I can see some amazing
and quite precarious desserts.
Rachel, could you please
bring over your dessert?
This is the dessert
I've daydreamed about for so long.
Oh, what, she's putting on
some special gloves?
[laughs]
And now, here I am,
delivering it to Rachel and Zumbo.
Ta-da!
Rachel, before we get to your dessert,
explain to me your outfit.
Well, I just happen
to match my dessert today.
I've got my lucky mermaid gloves,
and my little mermaid tail, so...
-[both chuckle]
-So, um...
I've got the mermaid thing going,
and it's reflected in my dessert today.
Are you fishing to win this test?
I'm hoping to reel one in.
[Zumbo and Khoo laughing]
So, tell me what you've
actually made here.
It's got profiteroles
with craquelin on top.
Inside is a raspberry crème pâtissière.
I've got lavender meringues,
little madeleines that I've cut open...
with a little pearl inside.
[Khoo] Okay, let's taste it.
[Rachel] I'm hoping,
with all of my mermaid luck,
that I haven't put too much
of that lavender in.
The lavender meringues,
I thought were delicious.
Lavender can easily taste like soap.
Such a relief!
All in all, fantastic concept.
I think you could've thought
Great Barrier Reef and popping colors.
You know, that bright blue
you get from the ocean
-instead of the murkiness.
-Okay.
Catherine, can you please
bring up your creation?
Yeah, be very careful. [laughs]
[Catherine] I feel nervous.
Yeah, macarons are just Zumbo's thing.
He is, like, the master of macarons.
Can I just...
Thank you.
[exhales sharply]
[Khoo] Let's give it a taste.
It looks beautiful, very neat. I loved it.
The macaron, they look great.
But one thing to remember
with the macaron,
is that the filling should be
the same size as the shell.
-Mmm-hmm. Yeah.
-[Zumbo] Should be equal parts.
So, you go shell, filling, shell,
and they should all be equal size.
-Yeah.
-You know, well done.
Thank you.
Zumbo said he liked it
so I was proud of myself. [giggles]
Zak, can you bring over your dessert?
Don't trip up. [laughs]
I'm feeling really embarrassed,
taking this up.
We can see it's slightly rushed.
It's not quite finished.
-What happened, Zak?
-I found myself rushing.
I probably didn't consider the timings
for each element.
I had you on my mind, Zumbo.
"Don't cook with fear."
I tried not to, but unfortunately,
I've got this result.
What about the flavors you've used?
I've included a cherry seed splice
into my choux pastry called mahalepi.
My cream as well, I've included a mastica,
which is a gum produced from a tree
in an island in Greece.
Okay, let's taste it. [chuckles]
I don't want the whole cake to collapse.
[chuckles] Okay.
Yeah, you take away the foundation
and then it... Whoops!
We will not have a leaning tower anymore.
-We will have a collapsed tower.
-Collapsed.
I don't even want to look
at Rachel and Zumbo eat my dessert.
I just want to look down
and just wait for the verdict.
I think your idea was amazing,
and I love how you have
this story to your heritage,
you wanted to use those flavors,
but just the elements, for me,
it's just a bit bland,
you know what I mean?
I think the cake needed
a bit more of something.
It's got no flavor.
I think you need to be
a bit more bold with your flavors
-'cause I just didn't get much of it.
-Cool.
-Thanks, Zak.
-Thank you.
The feedback I had just got
was not what I wanted to hear.
Kristie? Your turn next.
[Zumbo] Kristie, you made a chocolate
and caramel cake pop tower.
Love the cake pops.
They're fudgey, delicious.
I think this is a big improvement
from your last task dish,
-so great job.
-Thank you.
[Khoo] Jeff, you made a éclair
and profiterole tower with nougatine.
Really nice flavor combinations.
With the decoration, less is more.
[Zumbo] Simon, you made
an éclair tower with layered mocha cake.
[Khoo] Great to see you've tried
-doing different skills.
-Yeah.
And the flavors go really well together.
-[Zumbo] Thanks.
-Thank you.
Megan, could you please bring
your terrifying tower over?
-It's blowing in the breeze.
-[Zumbo and Khoo chuckle]
With my dessert,
I think the flavors are great,
and I think it looks really good.
My elements look perfect.
[Khoo] Megan, you made a pineapple
and coconut palm with rice paper leaves.
Are you happy with how it came out?
Uh, it's probably a little overdone
for my liking.
I would've liked it a little bit softer.
It's incredibly difficult
because in three hours,
there's no time for it
to be completely perfect.
Presentation-wise, it's really fun.
I love the rice paper leaves.
It's unfortunate that the cake... [sighs]
-was a bit like eating bark.
-Oh.
-It was dry.
-[scoffs]
When you cut into it,
it felt like we were sawing down a tree.
Oh.
Yep, it's me. I'm in that bottom two.
Kylie, bring your terrifying tower
over to us.
[Kylie] I'm trying to hold
this thing steady.
It's so tall, it's so heavy.
[exhales heavily and chuckles]
[chuckling] Exhale. You can breathe now.
What elements have you got
in your dessert?
In the bottom tier, I have
two layers of lime and coconut cake,
and I have two layers
of lemon and coconut cake.
The top tier is a vanilla bean cake,
and in between that
is a roasted pineapple and sugar syrup.
It's covered
in a vanilla bean buttercream.
The sauce on the side
is mango and passion fruit.
-Wow. Phew.
-[chuckles]
I'm exhausted just listening to that.
-Next layer.
-[laughs]
I've only got half the cake on there.
I'm praying that they understand
why I've put those flavors together.
[Khoo] Kylie.
-You certainly took on a challenge...
-Yeah.
...making your whole tower out of a cake.
Yup.
It definitely paid off.
It looked like something
you could serve at a wedding.
-Thank you.
-It's very simple,
but I think you've nailed that simplicity.
I definitely wasn't saying,
"Where's the sauce?"
I think, uh, for me,
that really made the flavor side of it.
-[Kylie] Yeah.
-It's a beautiful representation
of Far North Queensland.
-Good job.
-Thank you.
Pearly, can you pop on over?
[Pearly] I know it's messy,
but the wow factor in this unicorn dessert
is going to be the perfect flavors.
Tell us about your dessert.
I wanted to create a centerpiece
that would just make
every little girl's birthday party pop.
It's a little bit messier than I wanted.
I'm really happy
with, um, the flavors that turned out.
Time to taste.
What was the flavor in this cake?
It's a vanilla cake
with a lemon simple syrup.
[Khoo] Ah, okay.
Everyone's desserts look so good.
I am so worried right now.
The lemonade cake,
-for me, was missing flavor.
-Okay.
I must say I wasn't such a fan
on the icing.
I think it made it very messy.
-If you look at, like, how it's finished.
-[Pearly] Yeah.
-You've got gaps here.
-[Pearly] Hmm.
So, that really let you down a little bit.
That could've gone a lot better.
Dessert makers, you were all tasked
with making a terrifying tower
that impresses
with its structure and flavor.
But one of you really hit the heights.
The Dessert of the Day...
I hope it could be me winning
Dessert of the Day again.
I delivered my completed vision.
I could possibly win Dessert of the Day.
...belongs to...
Kylie.
-[contestants cheering and applauding]
-No!
[chuckles] Yay! It's so amazing.
I can't believe it.
I'm sorry to say, some desserts
fell a little short of the mark.
The two dessert makers
with the weakest dishes
will now go into the Zumbo Test,
where one of you will be eliminated.
Deep down, I am hoping for a miracle.
The first dessert maker
to fight it out is...
I really, really hope
I'm not in that bottom two.
I do not want to do that Zumbo Test.
[Pearly] Please don't say my name.
Please don't say my name.
Please don't say my name.
Zak.
I don't think the Greek gods
are playing with me today.
They're not giving me any favors.
Zak, I think you really know
where you went wrong.
Uh, you know, time management,
getting those flavors right.
[Zak] Yeah, it was expected.
That's all right.
The dessert maker joining Zak
in the Zumbo Test is...
Pearly.
[sighs]
I'm devo'd. Hashtag, devo'd.
[chuckles] Yeah. Oh...
I had a feeling.
It just didn't come together
how I wanted it to, in the end.
Unfortunately, your wacky idea
just didn't translate.
[Zumbo] You just need
a little more sophistication
and to think about those flavors,
those textures.
You need to up your game at this point
if you want to stay in the game.
The rest of you are safe.
Please take a seat.
Ugh, I'm going through to the Zumbo Test.
I've just gotta think,
"It's another opportunity to show
that I have what it takes to be here."
Pearly and Zak, the two of you
will be cooking in a Zumbo Test,
where one of you will be eliminated.
As you can see, there's no dome.
Please tell me
that we are not making a ten-foot cake.
[Zak] I'm Greek. We make
plates and plates of desserts,
but nothing high, it's more mass.
Well, this is one dessert
not to be underestimated.
[sighs]
It's terrifying in a new way.
[laughs]
[Pearly exclaims]
What?
-Oh.
-[laughs]
[Zak] It's not as big
as what I thought it was going to be,
but it's so colorful and perfect.
It's like a work of art.
I call it Lucky 13.
[Pearly] Whoa.
[Zumbo] There are 13 tempered
chocolate rings to this beauty.
It might be small in size,
but it's big on complexity.
Wow. Oh, my gosh.
There are so many layers.
I'm scared of this tiny cake.
I mean, there's gotta be
more to it, right?
[Pearly laughing] Oh!
So, inside, I've got a confetti cake.
It's your favorite?
[all laughing]
[Pearly squeals]
-[Zumbo] We've got a chocolate ganache...
-[Zak] Mmm-hmm.
...a cherry jam
and marshmallow buttercream.
And lots and lots of
different-colored tempered chocolate.
Yeah.
This might look pretty straightforward,
but the devil's in the detail.
-It doesn't look straightforward.
-[Zak and Pearly chuckle]
I'm feeling a bit concerned
that I have to recreate this.
This is Pearly's kind of dessert.
She's the confetti cake queen.
Tastes like memories from childhood.
You can definitely taste that cherry.
Yeah. That chocolate's so thin,
it just melts when it...
The presentation
is gonna be key on this one, guys.
Pearly and Zak,
take to your dessert stations,
where you'll find your recipes.
[contestants cheering and applauding]
Good luck, guys, and make some magic.
You have two and a half hours
on the Factory Clock.
Your time starts now!
[contestants cheering]
-[Catherine] Yeah!
-[Kristie] Go! Go! Go!
I'm gonna start with my cake
because I've got to get it finished
and in the oven.
This recipe is...
[sighs] very intimidating.
I mean, yeah, it's not just a cake.
I've gotta make sure
these egg whites are at firm peaks.
I don't want them too meringue-y.
Yep, that's perfect.
Fold this egg white mixture in.
This is gonna form the batter of the cake.
This is the confetti sponge cake.
This holds up that tower.
I need to make sure
I get this sponge right.
I don't want to go home.
I still have so much more
to show and give.
Whoo! Love it.
Okay.
[Catherine] Whoo, Pearly! Well done!
Go, Pearly!
Zumbo, Lucky 13 looks simple,
but how tricky is it?
That tower looks very tricky.
[Khoo] You need to have a...
Like, a delicate touch, don't you?
[Zumbo] Exactly.
And both of these dessert makers
have been quite heavy-handed
with their previous desserts.
-[Zumbo] Yes, they have been.
-[Khoo chuckles]
[Zak] Now, I'm gonna get ready
to make my ganache.
It's just chocolate with cream.
This recipe's asked to put
a bit of glucose syrup in it, as well.
Hashtag, chocoholics anonymous.
Right here.
Just flatten out my ganache
and then that should cool
at room temperature.
Okay. Chocolate ganache, done, done.
[Khoo] You have two hours to go.
[contestants cheering]
[Rachel] Go, Zak! Go, Pearly!
[Pearly] The cake is done.
-How you going there, Zak?
-Okay.
-I'm starting my marshmallow buttercream.
-Awesome. Samesies.
-[mixer whirs]
-[mutters]
[Zak] The marshmallow buttercream
is an important part of this dessert.
Not only do I need to use it
as a part of my layers,
but it is also required to mask this cake
and hold it together.
So, now, I've gotta
add the butter in slowly.
This is, I guess,
the marshmallow buttercream.
It's gooey and bright white.
It looks pretty cool.
That is my glucose mix,
the basis for the marshmallow.
So, I've made marshmallow before,
but I've never put it in a buttercream.
I've turned my back for one minute
just to set up my chocolate...
and suddenly, I can smell burning.
[Simon] With sugar,
you've gotta stick with it
'cause it just takes seconds
for it to go off.
There was a real caramelized smell. Ugh.
You can see clumps
being pushed around in the bowl.
Every now and then, I see a clump
come up against the side of the bowl.
Oh, I want to stay
in this competition so badly.
I am so devastated that this marshmallow
has not come together.
It's like chewing gum.
-[Pearly] Buttercream's gonna fail.
-I know.
[Pearly] I'm just gonna have lumpy
marshmallow that's not gonna fluff up.
Just focus on the chocolate
and come back to it.
[Zumbo] Guys, you have
just one hour to go!
I'm feeling a little bit concerned
with my chocolate tempering.
It's very time-consuming.
Those layers of chocolate
are throwing me off a little bit.
There's 13 of those we have to achieve.
So, yeah, that's probably, kind of,
stressing me out a little bit.
I think it's just
a sudden explosion of colors.
As long as I get that captured
and reflected in the final dessert.
I'm quite happy I'm starting this
with an hour to go.
Give me a bit of time
to get all the colors done.
-[Megan] Chocolate looks great, Zak.
-[Kylie] Looking good, Zak.
-So vibrant.
-[Simon] Nice color.
[Pearly] I need to color
all of this white chocolate.
I've got violet, green, blue, red...
Pretty much the entire rainbow is there.
So, I want this chocolate
to be, uh, touch-ready, which it is,
and then I can put my paper on top.
Ah, chocolate.
And then wrap it around the pipe.
See, I've got really fat fingers
and I'm not good
with these kinds of small things.
[Pearly] Six down.
-See? You're more ahead than you thought.
-Yay!
Don't you think he should be
assembling his cake by now?
[Rachel] Yeah,
they're running out of time.
I can't even use that.
I'm running out of time.
I need to start stacking my cake.
[contestants cheering and applauding]
[Jeff] Start putting it together!
I burnt the marshmallow,
so the marshmallow buttercream
is not going on today.
If I was in her situation
and I'm running out of time,
-I'd just do a Swiss meringue buttercream.
-I was thinking that, too.
In my head, I was like, "Come on, Pearly,
you know, you got time.
you can make another one."
We don't have enough time
on the clock to go back.
So, now, I'm gonna just
mask the edges of the cake.
The marshmallow buttercream
is used to mask the cake.
With the butter, it helps set
and firm up the cake.
[softly] Okay.
Oh, his buttercream works. I'm so sad
that's not me. [chuckles]
I'm gonna mask my cake
with the chocolate ganache.
I'm building my cake
and I'm masking it with the ganache
and it's a little bit stiffer
than the buttercream would've been.
I have to be really careful
with this chocolate ganache,
that I don't rip the sponge apart.
[Zumbo] You have ten minutes left, guys!
Get a move on.
Come on. This is it now.
-[Kristie] Well done.
-[Rachel] Whoo!
-[Catherine] Yay!
-[contestants applauding]
[Pearly] I just have to
get my chocolate on there.
I'm peeling the acetate off
without cracking the chocolate
and it's so thin.
This is definitely the most delicate part
of the day right now.
-All right.
-[contestants whooping]
-First one done!
-[Megan] Whoo!
I'm trying not to crack the chocolate.
I'm trying to be as gentle as possible.
I cracked a bit of the edge.
Ugh! This is not good.
Oh, I'm shaking so much.
Keep snapping 'em.
These chocolate rings
are vital to this dessert.
Just as long as I get the colors on.
They've gotta cover all that cake,
all on the outside.
[both] Zak hasn't even started...
[Simon] ...doing his one.
I just need to make sure I have
some chocolate bands around this cake.
One more ring, people.
[all] Ten, nine, eight, seven,
six, five, four, three, two, one!
-[all cheering]
-[steam whistle blowing]
[contestants cheering and applauding]
[Simon] Well done!
It's not what I had in mind,
but you know what, I got it done.
Pearly and Zak,
please bring us your desserts.
[Zak] I'm looking at Pearly's.
Looks like she's got pretty much
all her rings on her cake.
I was meant to have 13 rings,
but I've only got seven.
Zak, I can see you're getting
a little bit teary.
Oh, honey.
[Zak sniffles]
Like, I'm very honored to be here.
I just wanna show what I've got.
I really want
to go well in this competition.
It's a huge pressure
to be doing the Zumbo Test,
so to have that courage, it's fantastic.
-So, well done for making it through.
-Yeah.
Okay. Pearly, we'll taste
your dessert first.
As soon as I noticed Pearly didn't have
her buttercream in her cake,
I have a glimpse of hope.
Zak, it's now time to taste your dessert.
[breathes deeply]
Presentation was a major issue
for me today.
I just could not get that happening.
In my head, I'm going home.
[sighs]
This competition means so much to me.
I'm bracing myself. Here it comes.
[Khoo] Pearly, that buttercream?
That was essential to keeping
those flavors in balance on your cake.
-Yeah.
-So, by using the chocolate ganache,
that chocolate, it's just
such an overpowering flavor.
You really needed something
to offset that ganache.
Pearly, I thought your presentation
on your cake was beautiful.
You got 12 out of 13 rings.
You really had
the best resemblance of mine.
But you dropped
that marshmallow buttercream.
[Zak] I am really worried.
Pearly didn't have her buttercream,
but, at the same time,
her chocolate work was done perfect
and mine wasn't.
Zak, you put up all the elements
but I think you really struggled
on your presentation.
Your finish was a bit clunky.
All your flavors in your cake
really come together nicely.
Pearly, for your dessert, I give you...
[Pearly] Missing that buttercream
might be the thing
that sends me home today.
...a five.
Pearly, for your dessert, I give you...
a five.
That gives you a total score
of ten out of 20.
Ten out of 20 is a good score.
My chocolate may be the thing
that's gonna send me home.
Zak, I give you...
a six.
Zak, I give you...
a seven.
That gives you a total score
of 13 out of 20.
-Well done.
-Thank you.
Unfortunately, Pearly, you have been
eliminated from the competition.
[Pearly] I came here
wanting to achieve so much,
and I feel like I'm leaving too soon.
Pearly, you've got a crazy,
colorful imagination.
Keep cooking desserts, having fun,
chasing those dreams.
Thank you so, so much.
Pearly, it's time to depart
the Dessert Factory.
May all your sweet dreams come true.
[contestants applauding]
Mwah, mwah.