Sweet Dough The Great British Bake Off

Just when you thought things couldn't get any more exciting,

a baking injury turned our search to find Britain's best amateur baker

right on its head.

Faced with an impossible decision,

Mary and Paul chose to keep all seven bakers,

but this week seven become five.

Ooh, who'd have thought baking could get this tough?

We're the Ross Kemp of buns, we are.

-Welcome...

-..to The Great British Bake Off.

Last time, the bakers delved into puddings.

My strudel's got a haemorrhage.

But an accident for John...

What an idiot.

..led to an unprecedented decision.

No-one's going, because it just wasn't fair.

And Brendan was crowned Star Baker for a second time.

It's the one, the only Brendan - Star Baker, well done.

This week, the bakers get stuck into sweet buns...

Yes!

..inject their technical skill into doughnuts...

Doughnut doom!

..and it's a bun fight to the finish.

-It's raw.

-Raw?!

GASPS

What's done is done and cannot be undone.

For the first time on the Bake Off, the bakers will need to

master the art of making enriched sweet dough.

Bakers, it seems as if seven is your lucky number.

There were seven of you last week

and, look, seven of you again this week.

But I'm afraid your luck will run out this week,

because we will be saying goodbye to two of you. But let's crack on

with the baking now and start with our Signature Challenge,

-as we always do.

-Today we'd like you to make 24 buns.

They can be Bath buns, Chelsea buns, Colston buns,

Devonshire Revel buns, Mary Berry's hot and firm buns -

it doesn't really matter, we just need 24 of them

and they need to be made with yeast. And you've got three hours.

-So on your marks.

-Get set.

-Bake!

Enriched dough begins as a basic bread mixture using flour,

salt, yeast and water.

I prefer using fresh yeast, I think it gives a better flavour

and also it gives an extra springiness to the finished dough.

It's usually enriched by adding eggs, fat, sugar, milk,

or a combination of these.

They've got to get their mix right,

they've got to get their base dough right. It must be soft

and it must be bordering on the wet.

If you go for a tight dough, you end up with very small air holes

and the product will end up being crusty, rather than being soft.

Very, very hard challenge.

Paul is particularly fussy

that every bun is the same size and every one is baked evenly,

so we shall just see what they get up to.

British sweet buns range from lardy cakes to Bath buns,

Cornish saffron buns to Chelsea buns.

Four of the remaining seven bakers are putting their twist

on the classic 18th-century Chelsea bun.

-Good morning.

-Good morning, Brendan.

-That looks a very nice dough.

-Thank you.

-Have you done it by hand?

-Yes.

-That's good to see.

Semi-retired recruitment consultant Brendan has been Star Baker twice.

That is a perfect creme anglaise. It's good sponge, too.

It's the one, the only Brendan - Star Baker.

He's giving his Chelsea buns an Eastern European flavour.

I called them Chelsea Bunskis, simply because

I'm going to put a Polish poppy seed filling

into the Chelsea, to replace the Chelsea filling.

So you're going to fill it with poppies...poppy seeds?

Poppy-seed mixture which... It's really flavoured with lemon vanilla.

-You could call them bunkowiecs.

-Really?

-Because the poppy seed cake

is called makowiecs, so this would be bunkowiecs.

You must show me how to spell it, and that's what we'll name them.

I'm making a variant of a Chelsea bun,

but, cos I'm from South Yorkshire and close to Bakewell,

it's actually Bakewell-inspired.

Intensive care doctor Danny

has had her fair share of baking accidents and emergencies.

Oh, no!

I could cry!

Her Bakewell-inspired Chelsea buns

are flavoured with sour cherries and almonds.

Are you putting almond extract in there as well?

Yes. It needs a bit of boosting.

So the tricky thing has actually been getting the frangipane

not to put too much moisture into the bread.

You want enough so it actually binds when it spirals up,

-but doesn't leave too much of a gap.

-Yeah.

-But they should fill it well.

I look forward to these, though, the Chelsea Bakewells.

I've decided they're Bakewell buns. Derbyshire's going to reclaim them!

I'm making Easter Chelsea buns, so it's basically hot cross buns,

Chelsified.

Medical student James is never afraid to try something different.

These bits of muslin

are what the clootie dumplings are going to be boiled in.

His version of Chelsea buns are made with wholemeal flour and cider.

I think it just adds a little bit of extra bready flavour.

Gets a bit sweet,

you don't want to forget you're having a little bit of bread.

It's got less gluten in, marginally less gluten in than a white.

Have you got any white in there?

-Yeah, it's about 70/30, white/wholemeal.

-Yeah. OK.

You know, it's quite a tight challenge,

so I'm quite nervous about this, to be honest.

That's the nature of life, isn't it?

Last week, law student John had an altercation with a food processor.

Listen, the last thing you need to worry about right now is a strudel.

John is also making Chelsea buns

flavoured with cherry, almond and saffron.

-Hello, hot stuff.

-Hello!

I notice you're still rocking the Dr Strangelove glove.

Quite an emotional week for you last week, because obviously,

for a start, you had to leave. How did that feel?

I was gutted, to be honest, cos, you know, I thought someone

was going to go out, so when I heard no-one had gone

I was just so relieved, it was just wicked.

But now obviously there's two people going this week

and obviously Paul and Mary are going to be watching me like hawks.

It's just milk, sugar, rose water and yeast, and I'm just...

I've heated up my milk and I'm just leaving it for ten minutes

for the yeast to start bubbling.

-Morning, Cathryn.

-Good morning.

-Tell us about your buns, please.

They're called Lady Arundel's Manchet buns.

-Hello!

-I want to do something regional to me, so I was looking at Sussex and found these.

It's a very old bun. Lady Arundel's Manchet goes back to the 1500s.

-I wanted to tell you that, cos I knew that!

-I'm sorry.

Go on, tell me, Lady Arundel, fascinating!

-No, I don't know anything, that was it, that was all I knew!

-Sorry!

Young mum Cathryn has overcome her nerves,

and is becoming one of the most consistent bakers.

It's good strudel, it's nice and thin, and the interior's delicious.

Thanks.

She's found her own way to embellish these centuries-old yeasted buns.

My sort of twist on them, I'm just going to split them

and then fill them with cream and jam.

Because it does say they're a kind of yeasted scone,

so that's why I'm doing cream... No?

-I definitely read that.

-Yeah, I wouldn't necessarily agree with that.

-She knows, you know!

You're making me sound like I don't know, but I did feel like

-I was a bit prepared!

-No, you do...

Now I feel like I don't know anything about them.

It's a great idea, you've blended several different things

-to come up with a brand-new, unique one.

-Thanks.

-He's creeping round you now, don't you think so?!

All I'm really worried about

is making sure I can hand in something which I feel is decent,

and up to my standard.

So far, photographer Ryan's creations have had a mixed response.

-They look indulgent.

-Got a very dry texture.

Those are a bit thick, but the flavour of it I really like.

Typically, lardy cakes are made as one large cake,

invented by farmers to use leftover pig fat.

He's creating miniature versions filled with raisins.

Now I have to make them individually, roll them out,

put some lard on it, fold 'em, rest 'em, more lard, bit of raisins,

flavouring, re-fold them and then prove it.

So... Times 24, so that all eats up into the time.

I'm making a Cornish saffron bun. They should be

little perfectly round little domed orange shiny buns.

So...that's what I'm aiming for, anyway.

Stay-at-home mum Sarah-Jane has a classic baking style

that can divide the judges.

-It's a little on the dry side, a little over-baked.

-Right, OK.

I disagree with you, Mary.

I think it's actually all right.

She's adding nutmeg and orange

to boost the flavour of her Cornish saffron buns.

I've got loads to prove after last week,

cos I was really close to going home last week.

But I don't want to get too stressed.

I bake best when I'm kind of, you know, relaxed

and, you know, enjoying it.

The bakers' dough will need to be proved twice.

Enriched dough takes longer to prove than normal bread dough,

as the added sugar and fat slows down the yeast's development.

While the dough proves for the first time, the bakers

take the opportunity to prepare their fillings.

-Now that's ground-up poppy seed...

-Yeah.

..with orange zest and lemon zest and the juice of the lemon.

-I can smell it, you know.

-Milk, yeah?

Oh, I like that!

This is a Morello cherry extract, and it just kind of oomphs up the cherry.

I know that one of my failings in Paul's eyes

is that I haven't got quite the finesse of some of the others,

so I'm going to try and be a little bit more consistent.

Bakers, there's one hour until I can sink my teeth into your buns!

Psyching myself up!

Because this is the bit that's going to kill me.

If I don't do this in half an hour, I'm out of time.

With the clock ticking, the bakers must work quickly

to evenly fill and neatly shape their buns.

All 24 are then ready for the second proving.

Can I just count I've got 12?

Yeah, I've got 12, that's fine,

I just had a funny five minutes when I wasn't sure that I had 12. Right.

There's absolutely technique to this at all,

I don't know what I'm doing, basically.

This is the danger point for me, folding these are taking for ever...

-Right.

-I always knew this before coming into it,

I'm way behind time, as per usual,

so I'm trying to rush these to get them to prove.

-OK, so you're just really all-out now?

-Yeah.

I should've done Chelsea buns, I knew I should've done Chelsea buns!

That's too many raisins, it's not going to hold together.

Stop fiddling with them, or they'll just never been done, will they?

Just get one little one at the end!

Beautiful regional sweet dough buns

aren't just made great by their place of origin,

they can also make their place of origin great.

In the West Country there's a teatime treat

which is just so much more than a regional delicacy.

Cornish saffron buns have actually played a major role

in keeping the community together for years.

In Cornwall during the early 19th century,

a Methodist tradition was founded that sought

to curb the problem of local workers getting drunk on their days off.

Men were encouraged to sign teetotal pledges,

and on special holy days, events known as Tea Treat days

became a much anticipated date in the Cornish calendar.

The Cornish Tea Treat was one of the highlights of the year,

everybody really looked forward to it.

There was tremendous anticipation

and the procession was a big day.

Everybody gathered round the chapel first thing in the morning,

the brass band would start up, the banner would be hoisted,

and then you were on your way.

And some of these processions, they went on for ages!

It snaked round the little tiny Cornish narrow streets.

And the whole reason that they were going out was

because when Jesus ascended to Heaven,

the Disciples go out on the streets at Pentecost

and tell people the good news.

So this was all linked in with telling the good news about Christ.

But for many, the most exciting part of the Tea Treat days

were the delicious sweet Cornish saffron buns

that marked the culmination of this joyous parade.

Usually about lunchtime, they'd make their way

to a field, or to a big house,

and the great feature was the Tea Treat bun.

There'd be big trestle tables and they'd be stacked up.

Every child would get one, they were packed full of fruit

and children absolutely adored them.

The Tea Treat bun was a most marvellous thing,

and the Cornish folk'd say, "Get a Tea Treat bun as big as your head."

The saffron that makes these buns so delicious and colourful

was originally brought to these shores by Venetian traders

over 2,000 years ago, bartered for the locally mined tin.

And this iconic bake has since become a firm favourite

in the kitchens and bakeries of Cornwall.

Well, I've been making these Cornish saffron buns for about ten years.

The recipe's been passed on by my mum and my grandmother,

and I've sort of adapted it a bit to myself.

They're made with sultanas, currants, mixed peel

and saffron steeped in water.

I remember when I was a young girl going to Sunday School treats,

usually down on Carbis Bay beach, and at the end of the day

you'd really look forward to having

one of these great big buns given to you.

In fact, they were usually so big you couldn't eat them all.

The heyday of the Tea Treat parades is remembered with great fondness,

their success due in large part to that much-loved main attraction,

the delicious and unique Cornish saffron bun.

OK, you bun-loving criminals, you've got 30 minutes left!

Oh, good luck, little buns, good luck! There you go, then, there you go.

They'll take 20 minutes to bake

and then I've just got to put a bun wash on top,

which will be about three minutes,

and turn them out and out them onto this basket...

with a minute-and-a-half to spare.

The high amount of sugar and butter in the buns

means there's a greater chance they'll burn,

so deciding when to remove them from the oven is crucial.

BEEPING

That's the one.

They're absolutely huge!

I'm quite pleased with them, actually.

I'm loving this sugar.

SHE GASPS

Whoops!

They're robust, we're all right.

Oh!

OK. Lucky seven, you have 15 minutes left,

so get your buns into gear - you've 15 minutes left.

Hah!

It's ten minutes?

OK.

Pants.

Oh, come on!

Oh, pants!

These look awful. Why are they not...?

What's wrong with them?

I've practised all week at home with these...

I don't know...

But I think I won't be here much longer than another 48 hours.

You've got one minute left to go.

One minute.

You've just got to go for it, haven't you?

1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10.

1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9...

I've got no space.

Aw!

Put that there.

What's done is done and cannot be undone.

OK, bakers, it's time up.

Step away. Brendan! Time is up.

Get your hands off your buns. I mean it!

They all look pretty good, right size...

All different colours, which is interesting.

You can see when you look into it that the bottom of it is quite tight,

-and that's down to being under-proved.

-OK.

I think they taste really good, but I could have done with

more cream in there,

-and more of your homemade strawberry jam.

-Mm.

-It was lovely.

I think, just more filling.

But you have got some burnt ones and some light ones.

"Burnt" is maybe a bit harsh.

I think they're a little bit under-proved, to be honest.

-Actually, the structure looks all right.

-Does it?

-Yeah.

I could do with a little bit more flavour in there.

-A bit bland.

-Is it bland?

-Mmm.

-OK.

Did you put almond extract, as well as...?

No, I forgot. I was meant to.

-There you are.

-That's why.

These are for good appetites, aren't they?

It's a good, consistent bake.

They're a nice size - I like the size.

I like the icing on the top. They look great.

Sheer heaven to eat, I can tell you.

True almond flavour coming through.

You've put lots in there. You've managed to let it not leak out.

That's a Bakewell tart, in a roll.

That's what I was hoping to do.

They taste wonderful.

-Thank you very much.

-SUE: Great buns, Danny!

-Oh!

-That's good texture.

That texture is excellent.

I can't argue with the bake on that.

It's lovely and soft, isn't it? I mean, it tempts you.

I like the sugariness on top. Lovely.

-They taste great.

-The silverback is silent.

-Well done, Ryan.

-Thank you.

-Well done.

They are...very, very good.

-MARY: And a lot of them were.

-Lovely taste.

It's interesting and it's daring to use wholemeal on this sort of thing.

The problem is, the filling itself, it's never going to bind.

You can unravel it.

It's not good enough as a binder in a bun, cos you expect that to hold together.

Consistency in the bake isn't particularly good,

I'm getting a hell of a crust on this one.

It's a lovely flavour.

The nutmeg is coming through strongly, but I rather like that.

Otherwise, they'd be very bland.

These look quite dainty buns...

with your candy on the top.

-You see the interior, when I push it...and it holds?

-OK.

It's an indication that they're a bit under-proved.

-It's a little bit dry...

-OK.

-..and a little bit lacking in flavour.

-Is it really?!

-My goodness!

-That's a bit of a shame.

-Sorry.

-Thank you, Sarah-Jane.

The structure inside that looks quite good.

Yeah, it looks quite light.

It does look lovely and light.

It's very even and holding together.

I think those taste rather good.

The texture of the dough

is really lovely.

It's so soft

and totally original, isn't it?

Well done. Nice texture, good bake.

-SUE:

-Congratulations-ski!

Really unusual and delicious.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

The judges were very pleased with the bake, especially Paul - he was very complimentary.

This is the normal routine now - I do well with the first bake,

then Technical Challenge puts me right at the bottom again

and I'm back in danger again, and I'm fighting for my life for tomorrow.

Didn't go very well, really. Paul and Mary both said that

there wasn't any flavour to it.

It tastes better than the ones

I've made at home, or just as good, at least, yeah?

So I'm gutted, I'm proper gutted.

They didn't really like them.

Bit of a flop, really.

As Mary said, there are two more challenges to go. Don't count yourself out yet, love!

The surprise element of the next task can leave a baker in a precarious position.

It's the Technical Challenge.

As you all know with this challenge,

Paul and Mary judge it blind,

so, Paul and Mary, with the deepest respect...

-off you go. Tatty-byes.

-Bye.

Today, for your Technical Challenge,

what we'd like you to make...

are jam doughnuts.

Now, Mary and Paul are looking for a batch of ten doughnuts, please, from each of you.

And they're not only looking for consistency in size,

but also in jam distribution and colour.

You've got two-and-a-half hours. All the very best. On your marks...

-Get set.

-BOTH: Bake!

It's believed that doughnuts originated in Holland,

where they're known as "oliekoek"...

which means "oil cake".

Oh, I'm very experienced with doughnuts(!) Well, I eat them!

Wow! Those look absolute whoppers!

Now, the dough is quite soft.

They won't be quite sure

what the consistency should be.

Of course, if it's dry,

it won't give a lovely texture.

If it's too wet, they won't be able to handle it.

Excuse fingers, Mary.

Gosh, there's a lot of jam in there.

You've got to make sure that inside that doughnut

is cooked properly.

If the fry is too high,

if the mix is too dense,

the inside of those doughnuts will be raw.

Firstly, the bakers mix together flour, butter, yeast, sugar,

salt and water to make a wet, enriched dough

I haven't a clue what I'm doing, at all. Not a clue.

Making doughnuts is new to all of the bakers except James.

These are a very regular thing. Made them many, many times.

This one should be all right, I hope.

Feeling a little bit stressed, to be honest.

A little bit frightened. SHE LAUGHS

Just need to get on with it, really, I think.

Just need to get over it, get on with it.

I know what the end product should look like,

so, as Technical challenges go,

this isn't too bad, I think.

Oh! I'm going to eat...

Why did I say that? I'm going to eat my own words.

Oh! Interesting dough.

To achieve a light, spongy doughnut texture,

the dough must be very moist,

making it difficult to knead.

It's important the bakers work the dough well

to create essential air pockets,

enabling it to rise.

This looks disgusting at the moment.

If I work it properly, it will stop being disgusting.

I don't know how it's supposed to be going at this point.

But this just seems really weird.

It's just like kneading a big ball of chewing gum.

This should be in...

This should be in the proving drawer, proving, really,

with the timeframe we've got.

HE SIGHS

They say that an army marches on its stomach.

Well, for American servicemen,

one item of food in particular was guaranteed to boost their morale.

Yes, that winning combination of a perma-tanned dolly and a freshly baked doughnut

was all it took to really raise a GI's spirits.

In 1942, if you were a homesick American soldier on British soil,

a service club was the place to be.

Here, servicemen could let their hair down, socialise and feel at home.

And the key to the success of the whole evening

was the good old American doughnut.

So, the idea started in the First World War.

The Salvation Army decided to give the American soldiers a taste

of home and a boost of morale, so they decided to make them doughnuts.

The idea was such a success that the American Red Cross made it central

to their entertaining of the troops in the Second World War.

Venues, called "service clubs" were set up near US Army bases,

and American girls, known as "doughnut dollies"

were hired to entertain the troops and serve up their favourite snack.

They flirted with the men.

They chatted to them, they provided an ear to listen to,

and earned this affectionate nickname.

The service clubs were all about good, wholesome fun,

and the doughnut dollies had to abide by a strict set of guidelines on how to behave.

They always had to be happy, they had to be always well groomed,

they couldn't have a lazy no make-up day.

They had to be intelligent and to be good-looking.

A lot of them were very well educated, and some of them had degrees.

They had to be able to hold conversation and, most of all,

be charming.

The dollies and their doughnuts were such a huge hit with the US troops

that a way of reaching more Army bases around Britain was needed.

Old Green Line buses were transformed into "clubmobiles" -

a service club on wheels. Run by the dollies,

they dispensed doughnuts by the truckload.

In June 1944, American forces were preparing to invade Northern France,

and alongside the tanks and armoured cars,

another vehicle was being prepared to cope with the war-torn terrain of Continental Europe.

Nearly a hundred 2.5-tonne troop carriers were converted into clubmobiles,

and the doughnut dollies had to ready themselves to enter a war zone.

The hostesses, they were given instructions into

how to keep the trucks running,

maintenance, in case they broke down.

In the layout of the clubmobile, it was a giant doughnut machine,

so everything was fresh, being served up.

The doughnuts weren't your supermarket doughnut that you get nowadays.

They were hand cut and thrown into a deep-fat fryer.

Sometimes they were a bit burnt, sometimes they were a bit undercooked.

They weren't always round. You were lucky if you got a hole in the middle.

But the GIs didn't mind their doughnuts a bit rough and ready,

and the clubmobile convoy advanced right across Europe, until victory was secured

on May 7th 1945.

During World War II, the Red Cross purchased enough flour

to make 1.6 billion doughnuts,

eventually serving them at a rate of 400 per minute.

These heroic doughnut dollies could be proud

that they had well and truly won the battle for the hearts, minds and stomachs

of the grateful American soldiers.

One hour left, you doughnuts!

The judges are looking for consistent size and shape,

so the bakers must be neat and accurate when portioning out their doughnuts.

It's the most satisfying thing in the world.

That is no exaggeration. The most satisfying thing in the world

is putting a bit of bread dough on the scales,

and it's exactly the weight you want it to be. Yes!

So, you get all the bad stuff in one place,

and that brings some tension on the side.

Then, when you put it on the counter,

and you just roll it round in the palm of your hand,

it will form a lovely smooth ball.

I'm just going by how I would normally shape bread,

kind of just tucking it all round

and trying to make it into as ball-y a shape as possible,

and try and keep it so that it doesn't hit the oil and kind of just go, pfft.

The second proving is paramount to the success of the doughnuts.

Rather than cooking in the oven, they're deep-fried,

so this is their last chance to rise.

That'll stop it drying out, and they can prove a bit.

The bakers need to make ten doughnuts.

They risk running out of time if they leave the dough in the proving drawer for too long.

I would be the first person in the oil.

Maybe I should just take the oily plunge.

Why not?

Oh, my Lord, that's not right, is it?

Oh, my giddy aunt... Agh!

First in the fryer.

I think this is big enough. I can't cope with them any bigger.

They're like big beasts, aren't they?

I'm going to go for it.

I wonder how much you can disguise with a whole heap of caster sugar.

Timing is key when frying doughnuts.

They're in danger of being undercooked or burnt to a crisp.

Not going on times, I'm just going on the colour that they are,

the kind of colour that I imagine a doughnut to be,

so kind of like a dark golden brown.

Oh, we're off, we've got bubbles.

That's how you know how brown they're supposed to be,

because they flip over.

I must be seriously below the standard of the rest

if I don't do well in this challenge

because I've done it so many times before.

These are looking quite brown.

Very, very brown, actually,

so I'm just going to get these ones out.

Oh hello, another technical challenge!

I made a really wet dough and it kind of went flat.

Maybe that's it. I'm... Don't know.

Once fried, the bakers need to immediately coat their doughnuts in caster sugar...

..then leave them to cool before filling them with jam.

Haemorrhaging slightly!

They need to be jammy, though, don't they? They're doughnuts.

-I think you might've got some kind of...

-Got a blockage!

..a jam...literally a jam.

-Ooh, there we go.

-No! That's sorted now.

-Got rid of that one.

-Certainly did.

-You're certainly the neatest of the jam injectors, and I've seen all of them.

-Have you?

-You've got a very neat syringe.

-Thank you very much, Mel. It's nice to be appreciated for once.

No, it's good, it's good.

They feel quite doughy inside. I don't even know if they're cooked.

# This is not my favourite! #

Ten minutes, please, bakers! Ten minutes left.

Frantic fry time.

SHE SIGHS

Little bit worried. In technical challenges, when things go wrong, all I want to do is just finish it.

You've got one minute left to go.

Doom is what's going through my mind. Doughnut doom!

Think they're pretty good.

OK, bakers, that's it. Doughnut time is up.

Mary and Paul have no idea which baker made which batch of doughnuts.

This will only be revealed once they've made their final judgment.

What we're looking for in a good doughnut is the light colour,

cooked inside and a good amount of jam.

Now, the problem with these is, they've been over-proved,

and it's flattened as you've moved it to the fat fryer.

I think they were pretty much crepes when they went in there. Want to have a go at that one, Mary?

-It's sort of under... It's chewy.

-Hmm.

It's sticking together. It's doughy.

That is technically underdone.

A good lot of jam in there, though.

That one is not bad, but it is under-proved again.

As Paul is pressing the dough down, it's sticking.

But the shape of them aren't bad.

Interesting.

I mean, they've been overdone

and it's been in there a little bit too long.

That's not bad, that, at all.

It's got a bounce on it, it is cooked, good jam inside,

-good colour.

-That means it's very nice.

These aren't too bad either.

Lots of jam inside.

They are cooked inside, good bit of jam, nice and equal in colour.

(They do look perfect. They've come out nice.)

These are raw inside.

Not long enough in the...

It just looks dough, and you can see the sort of stretch marks on it.

You can still see the dough inside.

OK, it's going to be a tricky one, this one.

Mary and Paul must grade the doughnuts, starting with the worst.

So, the person in seventh place is this one at the end.

It's raw inside.

And in sixth place,

it's this one here,

and they're over-proved, so they've come up and dropped down again.

They're very flat.

And in fifth place is this one.

Cathryn, again, needed a bit longer, and a bit irregular, as well.

They've gone a bit flat.

And these, although they look nice and jammy,

when they were pinched it wasn't quite done.

Third place is this one.

Moistness inside wasn't too bad, but very close, these two.

And in second place,

looking very good, lots of jam, nice bake, but not quite as good

as number one.

And number one is this one. Well done.

-That's a pretty good selling doughnut. Well done.

-SUE: Well done, James. Nice one.

That was just sheer luck that it was doughnuts. I actually feel a bit bad.

I feel like...almost like I've cheated the bakers out of a first place.

They looked perfect, and he didn't mention that at all.

He didn't mention that they were a nice colour. It was just, "This is raw."

I didn't do too well, but at one point, I thought, "I'll be last,"

so in a sense, I'm really happy. It's almost like a victory!

The Showstopper Challenge is the final hurdle for the bakers.

Two will be leaving this week,

so they need to display perfection in their bake.

So, bakers, as if today's hard work was not enough for you,

we're going to push on through straightaway to the Showstopper Challenge.

Now this, of course, is the challenge that stands between you

and a place in the quarter-final.

We're going to ask you, please, to make a celebratory enriched dough loaf, the like of which you see

-often in festivities around the world. Christmas.

-Twelfth Night.

-Easter and my birthday.

We know it takes a long time to get that dough going, so very best of luck.

-On your marks...

-Get set... BOTH:

-..Bake!

Proving the dough can take up to 12 hours,

so the bakers start the process at the end of today.

Four have chosen to prove theirs overnight.

When I normally do this dough, I'm normally making it at Christmas time,

and I put it in my outer hall, set it off on a Friday night,

and I come to it on Saturday morning and it's been absolutely fine.

But that's my outer hall in winter, this is my tent in the summer.

Enriched celebratory loaves range from French brioche to German stollen.

The eggs, butter and sugar give the loaves their rich flavours and soft textures.

I do want to see a bit of originality, and even though it's going to look spectacular,

it's got to taste really something special.

To make a celebration bread using an enriched dough is tricky. Timing is crucial.

Whoever decides to do it overnight will probably have more of an intense flavour in their bread.

The ones that don't, really have to compensate by adding flavour to their enriched dough.

Not everyone is proving their dough overnight.

Brendan, Sarah-Jane and Ryan have chosen to prepare their fillings instead.

Sour cherries and golden sultanas,

and they're going to be soaked in some orange juice.

I'm using the flavourings from my Christmas stollen,

but I'm putting it into a brioche dough.

Danny's creating a European Christmas wreath

with an orange curd filling.

When I did it at home, I did it in the morning, went to work,

came back and it was 14 hours after I'd started it and it was fine.

What I'm going to do here is something very similar.

Brioche dough is proved in a cool environment for at least 12 hours.

This gives the bread flavour and also solidifies the butter,

making it easier to shape.

James and John have chosen to make a sponge starter.

This technique combines yeast, milk and flour to form a mother dough

that the other ingredients will later be added to.

This creates a slower rise, yielding greater depth of flavour.

I'm going to bake a baba.

My plan is to make a sponge,

a lovely, lovely little sponge for tomorrow.

James's sponge should give his baba flavour,

but to help it on its way, he's also adding soaked raisins and jelly,

flavoured with his favourite tipple.

Paul doesn't like very much alcohol in things,

so this has got, you know, half a bottle of whisky in.

Totally silly of me to do it, I'm sure. It is controversial.

It rests on my flavour combination.

If I can't deliver and I can't get the technical side of it right, then I could be going.

Mindful that Paul and Mary labelled his signature Chelsea buns as bland,

John is hoping his sponge starter technique will enhance

the flavour of his marzipan stollen.

It'll give it that sort of depth and that good, malty flavour, almost, which is what we want.

Good luck, little sponge.

Sleep well.

Four of the bakers left their doughs and sponge starters to prove overnight.

If the dough has not successfully risen,

then they'll need to start from scratch.

It looks all right.

I'm going to let it come to room temperature,

cos I don't want to shock it by putting it straight from cold to warm.

So I am pleased with this.

It's proved a little bit, but not a massive amount,

so I'm going to put it in the proving drawer and get on with everything else now.

Using a sponge starter dough creates more flavour in the final bake.

Just feels really, really cold. It feels almost frozen, to be honest,

so I'm just going to have to bin this.

This sponge I made last night, I needed to get it out the fridge earlier,

and so it's not come to temperature quick enough

and so the reaction of the two different heats has just made a really stiff mess.

So I'm going to have to bin it and not do a sponge now.

So I'm quite gutted. All that sponge for nothing.

John will now need to make a standard enriched dough

and add more flavours to compensate.

It's not going to affect the rising time of my dough, or anything like that.

It's just this time now is just a bit of waste of time.

But, you know, these things do happen.

I'm just...

At the moment, I'm rubbing the butter into the flour and the sugar

and the salt, just to try and get it all the way through

so that it's all mixed in.

Sarah-Jane's Signature Bake was criticised for being bland and under-proved,

while her doughnuts were raw inside.

But she's hoping to win back favour

with her six-strand plaited Christmas loaf.

-So two strands are chocolate flavoured...

-OK.

..two strands are cherry flavoured...

-Got you.

-..two strands are marzipan.

How are you going to do it? Outside in? Or...?

Over two, under one, over two.

-Yeah, you're lacing it through.

-Yes.

-All right, Sarah-Jane, good luck.

-Happy plaiting.

-Thank you.

-Morning, Brendan.

-Morning, Brendan.

-Good morning.

Is it a '70s delight today, or is something more in the '80s?

It's going to be a Black Forest Christmas stollen,

so I see it as a sort of centrepiece for a Christmas buffet table,

-which would allow for some additional decoration.

-Very good, so it is '70s.

Brendan is shaping his Black Forest stollen in a Bundt tin,

decorating it with marzipan sweets that traditionally represent

the 12 Apostles, minus Judas.

I know they say '70s, but I think I'm a great bridge between the '70s and today,

so I'm giving the '70s a modern twist.

I hope he heard that!

While the doughs are proving, the bakers finish preparing their fillings and flavours.

This is just the marzipan going through the stollen.

I'm going to wrap the cherries into it with some chocolate,

and then roll it up into a tube and then put that inside it.

I'm trying to fight for my place here in the competition,

and that's why I'm stuffing a piece of marzipan with cherries and chocolate.

-Is that not a bit risky? Have you tried it out?

-No, it is risky, but it's the idea to...

I need something inside of it, it's a stollen.

I want them to dissect it and get cherry with chocolate round it.

-But you've just invented this?

-Yeah. I'm not going to back down and play it safe

-because I'm in a dangerous position.

-No, good.

-I'm taking a risk!

-Come out fighting.

Ryan's doughnut disaster in the technical round

means he'll need to produce a winning Showstopper.

Ryan, we have come at a crucial moment.

-You are the only person doing a savoury.

-That's right.

I thought I'd do something Chinese.

He's making a Char Siu Bao, which is a roast pork loaf

traditionally given at Chinese New Year.

I've made some sauce with it.

I'm going to chop up the meat, put it in the sauce

and stick it into the bread.

-I've never had one before, so I'm looking forward to it.

-I love a pork bun.

-It's a first.

-I hope you enjoy it.

-Thanks.

I'm making little mini brioches with a head on, which the French call a brioches a tete.

You pull it, stretch its neck as thinly as you possibly can,

squidge it down.

Sometimes it can get a bit drunken and look like a drunken...seaman.

Cathryn is also making a brioche,

which she has named Bonfire Tear 'N' Share

with a cream cheese frosting.

-Can I have a look at it, please?

-Really?

Yes, I'd like to look at the dough.

-Is it a chocolate brioche?

-No, it's got lots of cinnamon in it.

LOTS of cinnamon to make it go that dark.

-OK, good luck, Cathryn.

-Thanks.

Paul has frightened me a little bit

about the amount of cinnamon that's in the dough.

I don't know, it might be a mistake.

It's like an enormous cornea. So this is agar and whisky?

-Yes.

-Basically whisky jelly. Can I eat this?

That might not be very delicious. If you try this one, it might be.

Goodness, that is strong.

-Whoo!

-That is strong.

LAUGHTER

That is strong.

I'm now gathering all the dried fruits together, that have soaked overnight.

I'm going to knead them into the dough.

There you go, and bake it.

OK, chocolate, cherry, marzipan.

Chocolate, cherry, marzipan.

Over two...

..under one.

-You are plaiting again, you loon!

-I know.

-A sucker for punishment.

-Well, no, you see,

I feel like I haven't progressed very much.

I thought I'd quite like to show

that I am interested and that I can do stuff.

Course you can, you've been in The Bake Off for seven weeks!

-I know.

-Of course you can, you can do everything!

-I know.

-You've got one major challenge still to do.

-I know, but I don't think my loaf is spectacular enough

to bring it back.

Over two, under one, over two.

Over two, under one, over two.

BOTH: Over two, under one, over two.

Tuck the bottom in.

And poke it all in.

Good luck, loaf.

Good luck.

The bakers have reached their sixth and final proving of the weekend.

Enriched loaves are best baked at a low temperature

to prevent the surface from browning before the interior has set.

OK, bakers, you should all have buns in the oven.

You know what? I'm not going to watch it,

I'm going to wait till the timer bips, then switch

the temperature down a little and then try not to just sit and...stare.

I don't know if it's over-proved or not because I always make my bread

really, really soft. I might be in a bit of trouble

because that happened to me in the doughnut round yesterday,

and if he believes they're over-proved again,

you know, he'll say this is a constant mistake, so, you know...

It's a nice colour, and it's...

and it's puffed up quite a lot, so hopefully it's proved enough.

I'd like to make ONE thing this weekend that they like.

OK, that's 30 minutes remaining, everybody, just 30 minutes.

Oh, dear!

That's good.

It's not risen as much as it does at home.

It rises loads at home.

What a mess.

Beautiful.

-Please tell me you are going to dust that with icing sugar.

-Liberally.

Oh, it's going to be beautiful!

A wee bit dark. That's a shame.

Oh, look, it's shrinking.

LAUGHS Oh, it's kind of split a bit.

The sides look nice though.

Phew!

No, not good.

I'm in trouble. All kinds of technical issues,

it's leaking from the side.

I think it's a bit dry because it's so thin.

I hope there's a layer of good bread at the bottom, but I'm just like...

maybe clutching at straws, really.

The bakers only have ten minutes left to make the final touches.

I want it to be messy.

I'm not going for perfect.

It looks all right, but... I've done the best I can.

OK, bakers, you've got five minutes left.

Very close to the end now.

Got a little, er...

a little...

problem here.

That's a bit annoying.

OK, bakers, time's up.

Put your sweet, doughy buns at the end of your table.

It's too pale, it feels a bit dense.

Um...

Oh, God, I'm really disappointed with that bake.

So, yeah, I think I'm quite gutted.

I think any of us could go. I could go if that's terrible in the middle.

It's what's on the inside that counts, isn't it?

So we'll see when he cuts into it.

Over the past seven weeks,

each baker has presented 21 bakes to Mary and Paul.

For two of them, this will be their last.

You ticked the boxes when we said a celebration bread.

I thought, seeing that dark outside, that it would be a bit hard and dry.

-And it's not.

-It's a good bake. It's got great texture and flavour.

-You've done really well.

-Thank you.

-Well done, Brendan.

-Thank you very much.

-It does look a bit dark, it's ripped quite badly.

-Yeah, OK.

-Yeah, it's raw.

-Raw?!

-Yeah.

-As you chew it, it goes back to a dough.

-OK.

-I think you've got the flavours right.

-Well done.

-Thanks very much.

It doesn't have that sort of wow. It doesn't feel celebration to me.

-Ooh, we have an issue.

-Yeah.

Probably all the moisture coming from the meat as well.

But the colour on it, it's quite pale,

and as it's brioche-like, it should have been darker than that.

Unfortunately, it's raw inside.

The flavour of the meat is good.

It was very nice you chose something totally different

from everybody else and went savoury. But, for me,

-it didn't quite get there.

-It's a shame. I was looking forward to it.

OK. Cheers.

It does look quite festive.

I like what you've done with the water icing on top

and it's got a nice, strong colour.

The flavour's absolutely delicious.

Everything you've put in there, I can still taste the flavours,

which is lovely.

-The flavour is excellent. Thanks, Danny.

-Well done.

-Thank you.

Looks a little on the flat side to me.

I mean, it actually looks... stollen-like.

I find that a little bit on the stodgy side.

-Very much so.

-Is it?

-Mm.

It's beginning to weld my mouth together - probably not a bad thing!

When you do hit the marzipan, it's lovely.

It really is.

CHEERING

Are you trying to take our eyes out?

Looks good for a bonfire, doesn't it?

Looking at the colour, it looks like it's been ON the fire!

-I was giving it that bonfire-y flavour.

-Ah, right.

-I like the frosting on top, it's a nice idea.

-Thank you.

Actually, the cinnamon's got a good balance in it.

It has a lovely flavour.

It's nice and sweet, the icing's good,

-but it is like cutting into a cake.

-Yeah.

-You haven't got the nice aeration to it.

-OK.

-Thanks, Cathryn.

-Well done.

-Thank you.

-Well done.

I truthfully think that the whisky-flavoured jelly is a little bit over the top.

LAUGHTER

The actual structure inside, it's not carrying much flavour,

the crumb structure itself.

Concentrate a bit more on your core flavours.

'It wasn't my best bake, to be honest,'

but the judging was reasonably positive, compared to what I was expecting.

'It was a very poor bake,'

probably my worst bake for this round.

'Three bad bakes in a row.'

It's not good.

Um, so yeah, kind of just a bit... phew!

'Yeah, a few people have had some tough bakes,'

but I've been the least consistent.

'There's an added pressure with two people going,'

and everybody's worried and therefore clinging to the negative.

This is the horrible part.

Now, Mary and Paul must decide who deserves Star Baker,

and agree on which two will not progress to the quarter-final.

Let's focus on the positives. Who do we think could be Star Baker?

Danny, she is quite scientific in what she does.

She gets her flavours together. She had a very good bake today

-and her Bakewell buns were wow.

-They were good.

-I think Brendan's up there...again.

-The mighty Brendan.

He's been unbelievable, he seems to be so constant.

He comes up with this stuff and you go, "Wow, where did that come from?"

Before the showstopper started, there were sort of five people that possibly

could be in the danger zone.

Cathryn, was over-baked. The flavours were good, though.

I was really sad that Sarah-Jane didn't get hers cooked.

That was really disappointing.

James seems to be going off the plot a bit.

Some of his flavours, when you get into the core of it, the texture,

there isn't much there.

Ryan's is, again, under-proved, under-baked.

It just missed the mark.

And I really didn't enjoy...

-John's stollen.

-Heavy.

-It was a stolid stollen. Two going

-is going to shake them.

-It'll hit them hard.

Bakers, very long and emotional weekend. And luckily,

I get to do the bit I really love - to reward excellence.

So this week's Star Baker

is someone uniquely qualified to provide intensive care

to any flagging bun.

-Finally, Danny is Star Baker. Well done!

-Yay!

As you know, bakers, there will be two of you not joining us on next week's Bake Off.

And I'm very sorry to say

that the people not coming with us on our journey next week are...

..Sarah-Jane...

..and Ryan.

We're very sorry to see you go. APPLAUSE

Yeah, you have to come back, and you have to win.

Unfortunately, Sarah-Jane had a terrible weekend.

And Ryan...really disappointing.

His savoury bake, it could have been wonderful.

But it's very sad.

My wife, I think half of her will be disappointed,

half of her will be happy I won't mess up her kitchen any more

with flour everywhere. Well, she's wrong.

I'll carry on baking!

Oh! 'I love baking in that tent.'

I love the kitchen, I love the stuff.

I love everybody else. You know, it's just been so fun.

And I am sad to be going, but I'm also kind of, you know what, week seven? Amazing!

'I think this weekend, even before I knew I was Star Baker, was probably the best weekends' '

baking that I've had. And so, to use the baking analogy,

the Star Baker is the icing on the cake, really. It's brill.

Yeah, lovely.

Next time...

I've burnt my first batch.

..it's crunch time, as the bakers take on biscuits.

I need to get cracking.

They're tested with 48 signature crackers and crispbreads.

-Don't be scared of the cracker breads.

-Oh, my gosh, I've got others in the oven, they'll be burned!

A classic tea-time treat in the technical challenge.

I'm just going to torture it a bit.

And a showstopper that takes gingerbread structures to the next level.

This is like Meccano for boys with baking.

But who will earn their place in the semi-final?

Really scrummy.

And who will be saying goodbye...

Honestly, I've completely lost it.

-Agh!

-..to the Great British Bake Off?

It's a total disaster.

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