Britain’s Love Affair with the Great British Bake Off Continues!
In the United Kingdom, The Great British Bake Off captivated the culinary fancies of the local population. This fabulous cooking competition challenges the contestants to produce the most mouthwatering pastries, cakes and biscuits imaginable. Of course, the contest was adjudicated by none other than TV celebrity chef Paul Hollywood and food critic Mary Berry. The contestants are amateur bakers with a penchant for creating culinary works of art.
It’s no mean feat putting together a menu of mouthwatering items such as cupcakes, black pudding, key lime pie, chocolate cakes, breads, pastries, molten lava cakes, biscuits, and the like. Previously, Paul and Mary determined which dishes should be baked, and the themed episodes presented viewers with succulent eye candy to enjoy for the duration of the show. Of course, the eponymous title of the show – The Great British Bake Off – is a dead giveaway as to the nature of the show.
Let’s take a look at how the pastry trend is catching on like wildfire. Cupcake parties are increasingly popular nowadays, what with all the deliciously decadent delights now possible. Plus, there are fabulous apps at the App Store and the Google Play Store where you can download pastry recipes, like Tasty Cookbook, and Cook Tasty. Hollywood is wasting no time either, with top food titles like Chef, The Lunchbox, and Chocolat, among others.
Magazines and newspapers routinely dedicate increasing coverage to foods and pastries, with Food Network Magazine, Cooking Light, and Bon Appetit hitting home with audiences. Perhaps the biggest stars of the show are the candy-themed game apps with juicy titles like Candy Juicy, Candy Gummy, and even the popular slot Sugar Train. These brightly-coloured games capture the essence of mouthwatering candies, and bring it home with interactive and engaging attractions.
A Race Against the Clock – 3 Baked Treats to Enjoy
Every show in The Great British Bake Off requires the contestants to complete 3 challenges per week. If the judges are pleased by their creations, they will advance to the next round. Eventually, the best bakers make it through to the finale where one of them stands to be crowned the best amateur baker in Britain. These 3 challenges are timed, and they include the Signature Challenge, the Technical Challenge, and the Showstopper Challenge. The latter event is particularly exciting, since contestants must create a mouthwatering piece. A Star Baker is crowned at the end of each challenge, and a contestant is sent back home.
Once a series of Britain Gets Ready for a Bake Off ends, several episodes are featured in the quarter, semi and grand finales. The contestants are tasked with baking all sorts of unique foods such as French pastries or gluten-free foods. This exciting contest enjoyed near-universal popularity across the United Kingdom, what with its eccentric hosts – Mel Giedroyc and Sue Perkins – and one of the judges from the first 7 seasons, Mary Perkins. Now that the show is in its eighth season, only Paul Hollywood remains. In August 2017, Channel 4 aired the premiere of the eighth season, and it now features a new judge, Sandi Toksvig. All the hullabaloo around her recent quip about former host Sue Perkins was met with fiery criticism on social media, but she’s taking it all in her stride.
The Great British Bake Off Remains a Hit
The producers of the Great British Bake Off have retained many of the elements that made the show universally popular to begin with. It was out with the old and in with the new, as Prue Leith replaced Mary Berry as a catering professional. The show now features the English/Danish actor in the form of Sandi Toksvig, and a comedian in Noel Fielding. While Fielding has a well-established reputation as a high-profile celeb, he’s also known as a dabbler in drugs. His debut performance was anything but unhinged. He behaved appropriately, much like a restrained clown wanting to perform a juggling act. Except in this instance, he dispensed with his bizarre attire and suited up for the part.
There has been a notable shift in the show’s emphasis in Season 8. It no longer focuses on the antics of its judges and hosts; it is focused exclusively on the amateur bakers. According to those in the know, several thousand contestants applied to be on the show, but only 150 were accepted by the casting team. What’s great about this seasoned series is that it has become cemented in UK culture as a great unifier of folks. Everyone across the British Isles gets to enjoy the taste sensations of the best of British. These include the mailman, the commoner, the stay-at-home mom, the artisan, the Banker, the Doctor, the politician, and the aristocrats alike. Thanks to the power of social media, this British tradition has gone viral and successfully transitioned across the Atlantic where it enjoys a huge following among Americans. It is a show that is eagerly anticipated by its patrons, and it appeals to everyone bar none. The new season of the Great British Baking Show will air on PBS next year, much to the delight of eager audiences and hungry tummies everywhere.
