Bake Off Breakdown: Pudding Week

It was week five this week and time for mouth-watering pudding week.  Prue stepped up the sass again this week and is really shining in her new role and certainly proved she knows, and loves, a good pudding.  This week the bakers had to contend with a signature challenge with no baking required - steamed school puddings. I’m not sure what schools the bakers went to but there were middle class puddings galore featuring Tonka beans, earl grey tea and even a syringe. In Paul’s technical challenge this week the bakers were staggered and tasked with making molten chocolate puddings filled with peanut butter.  I’m guessing not a single person has ever made this before in their life, even Paul, and the extremely mixed result showed this to be the case. For the showstopper challenge this week the bakers had to contend with an ornamental trifle terrine where the judges were looking for structure, taste and texture and they certainly got plenty of each.

In a week of light puddings and lumpy custard the highlights were:

Golden syrup puddings of the week:

• Yan, Steven and Stacey’s delicious steamed puddings all got a Hollywood Handshake.
• Sophie’s stunningly runny molten cakes.
• Yan’s poppies injected into jelly were so unusual and beautiful and her trifle was stunning.
• Sophie’s terrine was apparently of a Michelin star standard.

Dry molten chocolate cakes of the week:

• The boring history bit was back again. I’m sure literally no-one asked for it.
• Prue describing Kate’s liquid custard - “That’s not custard, that’s a big mistake”.
• Kate’s disgusting solid hockey puck cakes.
• Yan’s phallic raw chocolate cakes.
• James’ “sickly” trifle.
• Liam’s trifle collapsed and was “clumsy” and a “disaster”.

 Sandi and Noel highlights of the week:

• Sandi and Noel frolicking in the fields.
• Noel has started offering a “Fielding Fondle”.

• Noel telling Liam that he and Paul invented the Chai Latte when at art school.
• Sandi giving love advice to the baking blacksmith Kate.
• Sandi comforting an upset Liam about his droopy trifle.

Star baker: Sophie. She made a stunning terrine and delectable molten cakes.

 Who left the tent: James. He couldn’t contend this week and all of his bakes just weren’t up to scratch.

Who’s for the chopping board next week?: There are a number of contenders this week but I think Liam could be coming to the end of his time in the kitchen.

Contributed by Graeme Thomson-Gold

The Great British Bake Off Continues Tuesday at 8.00pm on Channel 4 
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