Hello again!
It's finally time to get this crazy project started.
Thoughts On The Episode:
12 new contestants begin their journey to see who among them is Britain’s best amateur baker. The music is light. The sweeping shots of the English countryside are picturesque. And Mel and Sues jokes are on point. Basically everything you need to start off a season of Bake Off.
And we begin with our signature challenge, to bake a Swiss Roll. Conveniently, this is the challenge I've chosen to pursue this week. Right off the back Paul gives some advice; don't make the filling too wet. Got it Paul.
The big concern for this challenge seems to be the timing. If the sponge is over baked, it'll crack when rolled, if it's under baked then, it'll be raw. It's also important to roll as soon as possible once the sponge is out of the oven. As Martha puts it “When it's hot, the proteins and stuff are still moving around and are more flexible.” (Can you tell that I paraphrased a bit?)
Now that I've learned all I can about Swiss Rolls, it's time to move onto the Technical, which is Mary’s Classic Cherry Cake. Big thing with this one is the distribution of the cherries. Don't chop them too finely, but also don't leave the pieces too large. Quarters seems to be about right. Wash and coat them in flour. Why? I don't know, but Nancy said to so that's good enough reason for me. Then all there's left to do pray that your cherries don't fall to the bottom despite all your efforts.
The Showstopper challenge is a little harder to pull practical tips from, as each baker is doing a different type of cake. The only thing I really learned were that guillotines are ok, as long as they're used to make uniform cakes.
Baking Time!:
