In another first for the show, this week’s challenges were set by the viewing audience. Viewers were asked to submit suggestions for the signature, technical and challenge.
Signature: Baked cheesecake
The “overwhelming” choice for the signature was a baked cheesecake featuring flavors inspired by their family – which contained another surprise: each baker had a family member join them in the tent to help them bake. With only three hours on the clock, the bakers had to work fast and cool the cheesecake fast – but not too fast. Nikki and her cousin Jen struggled because the cheesecake took longer than expected to bake, and the judges felt they used far too much almond extract.
Tom and Alex received rave reviews for their raspberry cheesecake, Gabe and Ellis were praised for the coconut cheesecake and whipped chocolate ganache but the lime curd seemed a bit out of place. Yannis and his sister Rusar made a German-style cheesecake with quark which the judges like for its delicate texture, but Nigella wasn’t a fan of the fig jam. Molly and husband Ash had their raspberry cheesecake downgraded for using freeze-dried raspberries, while Gary and his sister Paula got high marks for the base, texture, and beautiful swan decorations of their New York-style cheesecake.
Clara and fiancé Kieran’s bourbon cheesecake had great flavor, but they used too much peach topping for the judges’ liking. Mo and cousin Esrat’s bake was overly complicated, and Connie and Myke’s pear creation looked great, but the liquid from the pears negatively impacted the texture. Shannon and her mother Tammy’s Bailey’s cheesecake was not liked “at all” by Paul, but Nigella softened the blow by telling Shannon to take the criticism as a way to improve and move forward. Moyin and his mom Kike’s Basque cheesecake with orange curd received the season’s first Hollywood handshake.
Technical challenge: Mystery box
Faced with a pantry full of baking staples, the bakers had to decide what to make and develop a recipe for it. This is my nightmare scenario, as I have a difficult time making open-ended decisions. Analysis paralysis! The bakers all looked shocked when they heard the challenge but quickly got to work, and the star ingredient was lemon.
Gabe made a lemon and orange meringue, Clara went with a lemon and almond layer cake, while Gary and Shannon kept it simple with a lemon drizzle loaf. Molly had similar flavors with her lemon sponge, curd, and raspberry cake, as did Moyim with a lemon and raspberry layer cake. Nikki made a lemon meringue tart and Yannis had a curve ball with mini Esterhazy tortes. Tom served up a citrus and raspberry cake while Connie was the only one who used chocolate with a chocolate orange cake. Mo attempted the most complicated bake with a Paris-Brest. The rankings from last to first: Shannon, Molly, Yannis, Gary, Tom, Connie, Moyim, Nikki, Clara, Mo, and Gabe.
Showstopper challenge: Wearable bake
This was a weird challenge and understandably, there were a lot of hats. Clara stood out by making a pina colada handbag, Shannon opted for fairy wings, while Mo made Victoria’s Secret-inspired angel wings. Tom, Gary, and Gabe took inspiration from their careers: a wig topper, a knitted hat, and a crown. Moyim, Molly, and Connie also went with hats: Moyim’s a top-hat-ish cake, Molly’s an F1-inspired cap, and Connie’s based on the hat her mother wore to her wedding. Nikki and Yannis rounded out the hat collection with a Mexican sombrero and a Hindu-Bengali wedding crown.
Connie received high praise for her rum-fruit carrot cake, as did Tom with his banana-forward cake and icing. Mo’s almond cake with cherry compote lived up to the ‘heavenly’ design. Moyim’s cake tasted great, but it looked less like a hat and more like a regular layer cake. It also tumbled off the mannequin during judging. Gary’s knitted hat looked realistic, and the orange sponge was good, but the ganache on the inside was a bit too firm. The look that Nigella gave Paul when he called Gabe’s crown “untidy” was great. His flavors were good, but the textures were off. Nikki’s sombrero was a hit, both the gingerbread and the choux buns received high marks. The judges loved Yannis’ mango lassi choux, but Paul wondered if the crown was really enough for 4.5 hours of work. Paul and Nigella liked Molly’s hat details and the orange flavor but found her sponge too dense. The judges thought that Shannon’s design was lovely but too simple. The gingerbread flavor and baking level were good but there wasn't enough done for the time given. Both Paul and Nigella raved about Clara’s handbag, praising her light pineapple cake and the overall flavor balance.
Clara was named star baker and Shannon was sent home.