Cake The Great British Bake Off

'12 fresh bakers are preparing for battle like warriors of old.'

Warriors?

No, worriers. As in - they're worried. Worriers.

I was going to say, they're not dressed as warriors.

That's why they don't have breastplates on.

-Don't worry.

-All right. Welcome to a brand-new series of...

BOTH: The Great British Bake Off.

When I applied, did I think I'd get on? No, I didn't.

My daughter entered me for the competition

and when I got the initial phone call, I thought it was a joke.

It hadn't really felt real until we saw the tent.

I can't even describe... I don't have any words...

I never imagined I would actually get here.

Now that I'm here...everything...

My jaw is just on the ground.

I just want all of my bakes to be right, nothing to be raw

and everything to be risen and everything to taste good.

You know the Paul Hollywood stare - he looks at something

and then looks up at you. I'm dreading that.

I am such a big fan of Mary.

If I can even make her swallow a piece of my cake,

that's quite a big deal!

MEL: 30 brand-new challenges.

Nervous, really nervous.

12 new bakers.

My wife gave me two bits of advice.

Make sure you don't go out the first weekend

and don't make any jokes.

But only one can be the winner of The Great British Bake Off.

I'm quite random.

You know, I can be making a cake

and you can have a meat pie by the time I've finished.

We are back in the glorious grounds of Welford Park, Berkshire,

and limbering up for another baking marathon.

-Ooh, crunchy.

-Focus. Focus.

-All right, feel the burn. OK, ready?

-Yeah, yeah.

Ready?

BOTH GROAN

-Lunge!

-Good!

BOTH GROAN

BOTH: It's cake week!

The bakers are about to face their first-ever challenge.

There'll be a couple more over the next two days,

after which, one will be crowned Star Baker

and one will be asked to leave the Bake Off.

Welcome, everybody, to the tent.

Now, I know you've been practising, probably for months -

the breads, the cakes, the biscuits.

That's all over.

All you have to do now is impress our lovely judges - Mary and Paul.

Now, this is your first Signature Challenge.

And for this, we thought we'd start you nice and simply

with a very basic Madeira cake. Easy.

Surely it's got to be three tiers with lots of sugar crafts, that kind of thing?

-No. No, Melanie.

-Really?

-Very simple. So, for the very first time,

you've got two hours to complete this. On your marks.

Get set.

Bake!

We're cooking. The oven's on - the process has started.

Trying to do my preparation properly.

My sister's last words were, "Make sure all the tins

"are always well-greased and lined and everything."

My hands are shaking so much, it's really difficult to cut.

Do you know what? I never get bored of coming back to Bake Off,

and this year, we've got 12 fantastic bakers to break in.

Madeira cake, for me, is one of the great classics.

It's a close-textured, beautiful, plain cake,

but it should have a dome and a crack on the top.

I'm happy that there will be different flavours

but I don't want it too far from the classic, because you can't beat it.

That's my thyme, which I'm taking leaves off,

and then I'm going to blend it together

with some lemon zest to release the flavour.

Born in Lithuania, Ugne is an office administrator

who lives in Essex with her partner and two children.

She has two burning passions - British baking and body building.

Her lemon and thyme Madeira cake

will be topped with a lemon glaze and crystallised thyme sprigs.

Hopefully, the taste will be good and my crack will show!

SHE LAUGHS

-Morning, Nadiya.

-Hey, Nadiya.

Right, can you tell us all about your Madeira, please?

It's green cardamom and orange Madeira.

Is that the only flavour in your Madeira cake?

Just the orange zest and green cardamom powder.

Interesting using the cardamom.

It could be fantastic or it could be disastrous.

Yeah, if you put too much in and it can taste quite medicinal,

and too little and you can't taste it, so it's finding a balance.

-And you're happy with the balance at the moment?

-Yes.

Nadiya learned to bake during her home economics lessons

at school in Luton.

She now lives in Leeds with her husband, Abdal,

and is full-time mum to Musa, Dawud and Maryam.

They've given the thumbs-up to her Madeira with its candied orange

and cardamom-flavoured glaze.

My kids keep telling me that they're really proud of me,

but I think my eldest son

will definitely feel a little bit disappointed

if I didn't get through.

-Morning, Paul. Morning, Mary.

-Good morning, how are you?

Very well, thank you, very well.

What inspired you to do this and what about the ingredients?

Well, I've been lucky enough to do quite a bit of work in the Caribbean,

so quite a bit of ginger in there.

The classic Jamaican ginger idea, and then some lime mojitos in Cuba.

OK.

When Ian isn't working as a travel photographer,

he's a stay-at-home dad to George and Zoe in Cambridgeshire.

His Somewhere West Of Madeira Cake will have coconut-based batter.

-It's going to be different.

-I hope so. I hope so.

Just get those flavours balanced.

Yeah.

The consistency of a Madeira cake batter is crucial.

Slow that down so I don't cover everyone in it.

It needs to be liquid enough to produce steam in the oven,

which should encourage the Madeira's distinctive crack

on the surface of the sponge.

-Morning.

-Morning.

-Mat, what have you chosen to do?

-Erm...

So, I'm making a gin and tonic Madeira cake.

-That's original.

-Is it?

Are you actually putting gin into the cake?

Yeah, a little bit. It's more of a gin and tonic glaze than it is gin in the cake.

As long as we get that balance through on the top.

-I think putting it on the top is more of a gesture than anything else.

-Yeah.

Mat began learning to bake three years ago,

in between shifts as a London firefighter.

His G&T Madeira will be brushed with a fresh lemon glaze

containing seven shots of gin.

I always serve gin and tonic with just a little bit of regret.

-Oh, really?

-Just a little bit.

-I've got plenty of that.

Three of the bakers have gone strictly Madeira.

These are the types of cakes my mum used to make all the time.

No frills - just a very classic, traditional Madeira cake.

They are only using the classic citrus flavours.

I've tried adding poppy seeds and things

and I thought it's just nice

the way it is with the orange and lemon in it.

And it's like the one that we eat at New Year in Scotland.

At home in Perthshire, Marie bakes almost every day,

much to the delight of her five grandchildren.

Her zingy citrus Madeira cake is one of their favourites.

Once it's baked, I'll drizzle it with some light icing.

It still will have the crack on top you look for in a Madeira cake

but it'll keep it a little bit moist.

-Morning, Dorret.

-Morning.

-So, how about your Madeira cake?

For the first challenge, I thought, "You just want to see the cut of my jib,"

so I've just gone with a bit of lemon zest and some candied lemon as decoration.

Nothing wrong with doing something simply and well.

Dorret is a project accountant

and lives in Preston with her husband and daughter.

She's been baking since she was 11, and has been honing

her simple Madeira for the last 40 years.

How have they turned out at home?

Perfect, with a nice dome and a crack in them,

and a very close-textured cake.

They should be quite light, as well.

-OK.

-Good luck.

-I'll take that from someone who's strategically important to this.

LAUGHTER

-I'm loving the fact that Paul has been deemed strategically important. That's a first for him.

-Thank you.

I want to play with the twist, so not full orange or lemon.

And I really like blood oranges, I think they're the sweeter fruit.

Flora lives in Perthshire, and at 19, is this year's youngest baker.

Her harshest critics are her younger sisters,

but they've approved her blood orange Madeira.

Flora's breaking with tradition in her cake mix.

I think almonds in the mixture helps with the moisture

because a Madeira cake can be quite dry.

Fingers crossed!

Alvin's gone for something a little more substantial in his cake mix.

-My Madeira is going to have figs.

-They're dried figs?

They're dried and slightly rehydrated. Really moist.

Alvin's a nurse and lives in Bracknell with his wife

and two children.

As well as adding figs, he's infused his batter with orange

-and fresh vanilla.

-How do they disperse?

My aim is for them to be suspended, and they were

when I was practising it at home, so...

Never thought of chopping them up?

Cos I like them chunky.

OK, fair enough.

Alvin isn't the only baker daring to add fruit.

-Good morning.

-Hello.

-Paul is obsessed with dispersal of chunks.

-My chunks are well-dispersed.

-Good, that's all he cares about.

-Do they drop down to the bottom, or do we expect...

-Oh, no.

-..to see them all the way through?

If they're at the bottom, they're meant to be there.

Sandy is a child welfare officer and lives and works in Leeds.

Her apricot Madeira is flavoured with almond liqueur.

Paul shook my confidence in that the fruit would all sink to the bottom.

I've got to have real faith in my own ability.

Powerhouse of self-confidence going on.

Time to go in, I think.

So, fingers crossed!

I'm going to put it on for ten minutes on a higher temperature,

then after ten minutes, I'm going to lower it down.

It just gives it time to heat up quickly to get a rise.

Ahh! I haven't even set my oven.

Ah! I forgot to set the oven, because at home, we've got an Aga.

So used to having it on all the time.

Oh, well.

Bakers, one hour has gone. One hour to go.

Plenty of time.

I'm just going to put it in the oven.

Hopefully, it's got enough time to cook, fingers crossed.

Otherwise I'll be in trouble!

Trying to get nice, even slices.

Madeira cake is traditionally topped with a light glaze

and candied fruit.

The fruit must be brittle.

I'm going to pop them into the oven, just for five minutes, and it will crisp them up a wee bit.

And the glaze should be thin, translucent and full of flavour.

That's a lot of gin. Let's keep adding it.

Fingers crossed.

I really want to do well at this

because there's a lot of people that don't know this side of me.

When he's not baking, Stu's a lead singer in a band

and a professional musician.

His lime and chocolate Madeira will be topped with a rum and lime glaze.

It's well on its way to being cooked,

if not already burnt,

so I'm just going to let that cool and see what I'm looking at.

-Now, Paul, I have one question.

-Yes.

You know that you have the same facial hair as Paul Hollywood.

-You have the same name.

-I've been waiting for someone to say that.

What is going on, Paul?

I'm slightly younger. Slightly younger.

Everyone's slightly younger. This Paul is a prison governor

in Swansea. He has a penchant for sugar craft,

but today, his decoration will be simple candied lemons,

on top of his lemon, ginger and caraway seed Madeira.

There's no hidden agenda here...

HE CHUCKLES

-There is no hidden agenda.

-You don't wear as much hair gel as the other Paul,

-which is a relief to us.

-No, I don't.

That's 30 minutes, bakers. 30 minutes!

Can't afford ear defenders.

Watch it like a hawk.

This last part of the bake is crucial.

This is when the centre should cook through,

producing the Madeira Holy Grail.

-Looking for a crack.

-SHE LAUGHS

My cake's not cooked in the middle, but the top is really brown.

So, I'm just covering the top, so that it doesn't burn.

It's just the temperatures. I don't think I've got them right.

OK.

I'm happy with that.

I think it looks great. It's got a lovely crack.

I think it's all right.

I'll dress it up and try and make it look pretty.

What's happened with the crack? What's going on?

I have a little two.

But two's better than one. One crack bad, two cracks better.

Two cracks better.

Famous in Leeds is the three-crack Madeira.

MEL: One baker has a novel way to moisten his cake.

I've made a syrup for the cake, like a lemon drizzle.

So, using the syringe just to inject the syrup in, just a little bit,

I don't want it to be too soggy, but it just helps to get the flavour in.

As a trainee anaesthetist,

Tamal is well-versed in the art of injecting.

He's using a rose-water syrup to moisten his pistachio-flavoured cake.

I know Paul has this thing about there not being too much rose-water,

so hopefully I've got the balance right.

Eugh...

I might be pushing my luck.

Phew! Didn't snap it.

It's well-dispersed.

You know it.

Obviously, I'm a bit disappointed with the colour.

Right, M'DEARERS, you have five minutes left on the old clock.

Five minutes.

Argh! I'm going to take it out now.

-Ah!

-HE MUTTERS SOFTLY

Right, bakers, time to reveal your cracks.

Step away from your bakes and then move them to the side.

Thank you.

For the very first time,

the bakers will face the scrutiny of Mary and Paul.

Looking at it, you've got a very lovely colour

all the way round the outside.

We've got our dome.

You have got a split. You've hit all the criteria so far.

And also... Now, you just listen as I drop this on the plate.

PLINK

That's how it should be. This is proper candied.

It's not sticky and wet.

MEL: That's a Bake Off first, the candied drop test.

I've never seen you do that before, Bez.

-MARY: Now it's just whether we've got that cardamom right.

-Yes.

For me, there's the right hint of cardamom.

It doesn't overpower it.

I think you've done a very clever variation. Well done.

-Well done.

-Thank you.

-You've done really well.

So, when you baked it at home, it had a perfect crack?

-There's a little one there.

-Yeah!

I'm not getting the strong thyme flavour at all.

It is overwhelmingly lemon.

What the problem is...

when you put coconut into a cake like that,

it tends to bind the whole thing together,

and so it's like chewing on wallpaper paste.

I'm just wondering...

When I think of Madeira cake -

half chocolate and half lime, it isn't, to me, a Madeira cake.

What is that on the top?!

Um, yeah, my glaze sort of turned into caramel a little bit.

Slightly!

The flavours are all wrong, really. It's quite bitter.

Lovely texture, perfect bake all the way round.

I love it. I think the flavours coming through are stunning.

Well done.

Now we have the surprise of the figs at the bottom.

You did mention...

I did say, it was my concern about them dropping down to the bottom.

However, the texture of the Madeira is fantastic.

Great distribution of the fruit inside.

-Hasn't dropped to the bottom.

-Thank you.

-Because they're small.

-Hello, Paul.

-Hello, Paul.

-Right.

-THEY CHUCKLE

Er, it's stayed quite flat.

It's overbaked.

I think it's a fun idea

to think about, gin and tonic,

but in fact, the gin, for me, is not there.

-I love what you've done to the apple.

-Mm-hm.

-Very good.

We've got a bit of a dome on it and we've got the crack.

But it is down to the flavour on this.

I love that.

-Really?

-I do. The flavours are lovely, so balanced.

I think it tastes amazing.

It is a lovely colour that you would expect from a Madeira cake,

and you've got a crack on the top.

I'm not sure how crisp your candied peel on the top...

Not very.

I think your texture's fantastic.

I think you've got a proper Madeira cake.

However, it's quite bland.

Well, it looks as though you've got a good bake

and it's got a nice dome, and there's a crack across the middle.

It looks good.

..Oh, I like that.

MEL: That's amazing.

-You've done these before, haven't you?

-Mm.

It's lovely. Need's nothing else, the orange is coming through.

That's a perfect Madeira. Good bake.

-Thank you.

-Well done.

-Thank you.

-Can I take the pith, Marie?

-Of course you can, yes.

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

I'm really so pleased. It's wonderful.

Wonderful. Couldn't have asked for anything more!

They liked it! It's a miracle.

Paul and Mary were much more critical

than I thought they would be on the first challenge.

Yes. Wallpaper paste.

That's going to live with me for a little while, I think.

The bakers were able to plan and practise

for their first challenge.

Their second is a total mystery.

Bakers, welcome to your first-ever Technical Challenge.

Now, this one has been set by lovely Mary

and it is quintessentially British.

It is more British, even, than Morris men,

beefeaters and chicken tikka masala.

Mary and Paul are not going to be in on the action for this next bit,

so before you go, any advice for the bakers?

Read the recipe at least twice, to get familiar with it,

and then weigh very carefully.

MEL: Paul, any words?

Good luck.

Right. Brief.

Excellent. Off you go, now.

So, they've popped off, which leaves you, us

and that sneaky little recipe lurking under the gingham.

Paul and Mary would very much like you to make a walnut cake.

Not a coffee and walnut cake, this is the decaf version.

You have got 1 hour and 45 minutes.

Very good luck. On your marks.

-Get set!

-BOTH: Bake!

All the bakers have the same ingredients

and a stripped-down version of Mary's recipe.

I fairly know how it's supposed to be done.

I don't want to talk too much, because I might fail.

So I'll just keep it to myself.

I think I've made it years and years ago,

and I don't think it really worked.

There we go, Mary, the first Technical Challenge.

Walnut cake - where do you think they could go wrong?

Well, first of all, they have to make a sponge mixture

and chop the walnuts in it.

If they don't chop them reasonably finely, they'll sink to the bottom.

You can see all the layers, you can see all the buttercream,

and you can see the nuts inside the sponge as well.

Now, there should be a nice, even layer of frosting all over the cake.

This will be a new frosting for them they do over hot water.

Follow the directions and it'll be fine.

I'm not sure what a perfect size for a walnut is at all.

Just getting really paranoid about the size of these walnut pieces.

If they're too big, I'm scared they are going to drop down, and I think

if they're small enough, they'll incorporate nicely into the cake.

Well, if you buy chopped nuts, they're usually about that big.

I think that is the perfect walnut size.

I can't see how it can't be.

125...

Mary's recipe requires the bakers to use

the creaming method for their mix.

Just creaming my butter and caster sugar.

I'm adding the eggs gradually. If you add it all in one, it curdles.

Somehow, I misread it. I'm doing the all-in-one.

It will work - trust me.

Just putting the flour and the walnuts in very, very slowly.

Folding it in.

Mixing them in like this. I hope that's right.

They're smaller than I would normally chop.

Hopefully, they'll just disperse evenly in the mix.

I'm going to put them in the oven now.

Mary's recipe only gives an oven temperature.

It doesn't say how long to put it in the oven for,

so I'm guessing about 20 minutes.

I'm going to put them in about 15, 20 minutes.

Just chucked it all in as one, really.

Mary does do a lot of the all-in-ones.

Bakers, you've got one hour left.

-Are you starting your caramel?

-Yeah.

I am making the caramelised walnuts, getting the caramel on.

So, it's a tablespoon of water.

It's the 150g of sugar.

This is the bit that could go horribly wrong.

If I move away, it will go disastrously wrong.

It's just a waiting game.

The secret to perfect caramel is not to stir it

and not to let it crystallise.

The bakers are looking for molten sugar crystals...

Come on.

..that should be a rich golden brown.

It's going. It's going.

OK.

I'm going to make another caramel.

Looks good. Looks good.

I will caramelise my walnuts and I will try to do some sugar work, maybe.

This is sticky work.

-That's definitely not happening. I'm starting again.

-Why does that happen?

-I don't think there was enough water in it.

-OK, OK.

Mary said one tablespoon - I'm going to break the rules.

MEL GASPS

-Stu!

-I know, it got me in trouble in the last round, didn't it?

-Is this wise?

-Well, I need caramel.

I'm worried that it's not melting. The sugar's not melted completely.

I'm going to start again.

HE SIGHS

BIRDSONG

Now, it's nearly 20 minutes. Opening the door,

I don't want to open the door.

They look fine. Nice rise, nice bounce.

Perfect.

Oh, no.

It's not even.

That's my disaster.

Because when I arranged the racks, I didn't put it properly.

It was tilting.

Could you prop it up on some walnuts? No, that's ridiculous.

-No. No.

-No, no.

-Don't stir it.

-Are you sure?

Just slowly, slowly. It will just all go all at once.

It's bubbling a little bit, but not enough.

Mary's recipe stipulates an unusual meringue-style frosting.

I'm just looking at the ingredients and it says four tablespoons

of water into egg whites, caster sugar and cream of tartar.

It just seems a bit odd to be putting water into a meringue.

So, is this the right thing to do?

The meringue ingredients should be whisked over a pan of hot water.

I think it's meant to be light, fluffy and shiny.

If the sugar doesn't dissolve completely,

the frosting will be grainy.

I'm whisking it until it's very white, very sticky up the side

and a lot more voluminous.

It feels like it's almost at the right consistency now.

Perfect.

Doesn't look like it's going to stay up for me.

Bakers, you've got ten minutes.

I don't know about that. I don't think my caramel's happening.

Back in the game with this caramel. Third time.

Let's try to assemble it now.

The cakes should be sandwiched with vanilla buttercream

to create a perfectly level finish.

SHE GASPS

Ah, no. Nothing happened.

I'm just going to cover it with the meringue and that's it.

Five minutes, please, bakers. Five minutes.

Holy shenanigans.

It's like render.

I'm just checking to see how steady your hands are.

-God, they're awful.

-Thank God you're not a surgeon.

I need to get a couple of walnuts in here,

even if I can only get one in.

Right, bakers, Mary's walnut Technical Challenge is now closed.

I've noticed that I'm the only one that's left the sides completely uncovered.

Please bring your bakes up and pop them

behind the photo of yourself on the gingham altar.

Mary and Paul are expecting 12 perfect walnut cakes

with three even layers of sponge,

sandwiched with buttercream and covered with a smooth, shiny

meringue-style frosting, plus ten caramel-coated walnuts.

Start with this one. The icing doesn't look too bad, does it?

It's quite smooth.

We've got a good height.

The nuts are cut fairly small.

They're even within the sponge.

Sponge is very good.

Buttercream good, and the icing is slightly crystallised.

-Mm, they haven't cooked it out.

-Very slightly.

Moving on to number two.

Nice layers.

Oh, dear.

-Granular.

-Yeah.

That's a shame.

Now, this looks more like it, doesn't it? You see the swirls.

Nice sponge on this.

Very grainy, again.

It's a very nice sponge.

-Mm, chopped the nuts quite well in there.

-Yes.

The icing, though, is like eating sugar.

Now, we've only got one walnut

and I've got a sort of feeling there may have been a disaster.

I think there was an attempt at a caramel right on the end.

What's the texture like?

-Soft, not quite whisked enough.

-No.

Right, let's move on.

Now, this looks OK.

-Nice swirly effect, good appearance.

-Nice sponge.

Now, this person has gone to a lot of extra trouble.

-Very good marshmallowy topping.

-It's much smoother.

Now, moving on to number eight.

-It's nice and even, isn't it, the layers? The buttercream.

-Yes.

The caramel has flowed a bit round the nuts, but I rather like that.

-It looks quite nice.

-Good colour.

-Something happened to the icing here. Perhaps there wasn't enough.

-Perhaps.

-Perhaps.

-It's not there, anyway.

-No, it's definitely not there.

I don't know where the rest of it's gone.

-Very grainy.

-Very grainy.

The nuts seem to have all crammed into one area, haven't they? Right to the edge.

I think the nuts could have been chopped up a little bit smaller, couldn't they?

-Lots of buttercream, isn't there?

-A little bit uneven.

-I think the walnuts are just a little bit coarse.

-A little bit too big, yeah.

-Finally, on to number 12.

-Three even layers.

The frosting is quite neat. However...

It's granular.

-Very granular.

-Yeah.

Paul and Mary will now reveal whose walnut cake was technically perfect...

and whose wasn't.

Last place is this one. Whose is this?

-Everybody else covered their cake, and that was a key criteria.

-Yeah.

11th position is this one.

Paul is tenth, Sandy is ninth, Ian eighth,

Mat is seventh, Flora sixth,

fifth is Dorret, and Tamal comes in fourth.

And in third place, very nice finish in this,

lovely swirls.

And in second place is...

..this one. Whose is this?

It's a nice cake, lovely caramel on the top,

and it did look very attractive as well.

I expect you all know who number one is.

Who is number one?

A beautiful sponge - lovely layers.

It's a perfect cake and it's what we asked for.

-Thank you.

-Well done.

-It was awesome!

-SHE LAUGHS

-It was amazing.

-Well done.

-Very nice.

-Well done.

-Good work.

That made up for the Madeira cake!

I'm pleased that I managed to pull it off at the last minute,

that that caramel is not going to ruin me, you know what I mean?

I'm here to be judged, and they've judged me

and they've put me in 12th place, and I'm OK with that.

No, of course I'm not. I don't want to be 12th place!

HE SIGHS

One challenge remaining.

A last opportunity to claim Star Baker.

A final chance to avoid being the first to leave the Bake Off.

Who's strong for you, Mary?

Oh, I think Marie.

She was the one that was calm, got on with her own thing.

-I think Flora did really well.

-MEL: She did.

MARY: And Nadiya did very well.

But then in the Technical Challenge, Nadiya was last.

If you cut a walnut into four pieces, that's too big.

-So, I'd say half that.

-An eighth?

I wasn't going to make it as precise as that.

-But you are as precise as that.

-What about the men?

Tamal came fourth in the Technical.

Alvin came second and I actually liked his Madeira, too.

Who is in real trouble?

Stu really didn't make a good Madeira cake.

And likewise, Ian is another one.

And Paul... Particularly in trouble at the moment.

I think you'll stay, mate. I think you're all right.

-I hope so.

-I'm not so sure.

-He's had a weak start.

Bakers, good morning, welcome to your Showstopper Challenge.

We're going to be taking you back to the 1970s today,

when Mary was rocking out with some wing collars to Boney M,

and Paul was dancing on his own to The Nolan Sisters.

-Times haven't changed for Paul.

-No.

What we're asking for in this challenge is

a Black Forest gateau, which graced many a menu back in the 1970s.

You've got three and a half hours.

-On your marks.

-Get set!

-BOTH: Bake.

It's a classic from my era, along with the prawn cocktail

and the steak Diane.

It's very retro and I wasn't even there.

This is the first Showstopper so they've got to show off,

they've got to impress us.

We want to see good chocolate work, it's got to look special.

60g.

You've got to choose your sponge wisely

to go inside the Black Forest gateau.

You want something light like a genoise or a whisked sponge.

But traditionally, a chocolate sponge. Simple enough.

I'm mixing the dry into the chocolate butter mixture.

If you mix the dry ingredients into the eggs, you start getting clumps

and you have to beat it quite a lot to get rid of those.

Tamal's aiming for a rich, dark chocolate sponge,

which he'll fill with a cherry ganache before enveloping his gateau

in a tempered-chocolate collar.

The cake, when I practise at home, it's been pretty good.

I'm definitely not in chilled-out mode,

so I don't really want to be chilled out until it's all done.

A classic Black Forest gateau is a decadent blend of chocolate,

cherries, fresh cream and Kirsch liqueur.

But not everyone's a purist.

-Morning, Stu.

-Morning, Paul. Morning, Mary.

Right, buddy, what's your interpretation

of the Black Forest gateau?

OK, I've called it Purple Forest gateau,

because I've used beetroot in it, so it's a nice moist cake.

You don't think the original sponge was moist enough?

It's pretty moist, but I just wanted to do something slightly different with it.

Stu's beetroot and chocolate sponge will be sandwiched together

with a mascarpone cream, then covered with Italian meringue.

You're going to show off your chocolate work.

What is your chocolate work?

OK, so it's going to simply be some truffles...

and also some chocolate trees around the outside.

Good luck, mate. Are you all right for time at the moment?

I think I'm fine for time.

Pink is a very hard scale to gauge.

Flora's also decided to give the '70s classic a bit of an update.

Cherry powder makes it quite pink, but not quite pink enough,

so I'm going to add a little bit of colouring.

Flora's going to layer her cherry and chocolate sponges

with fresh cream and cherries.

She'll decorate it with chocolate and Kirsch truffles.

I've got all the classical elements.

All that retro is still there, but are they too pink?

I'm not sure.

I had my bedroom walls painted fuchsia pink for a very long time.

We'll try and avoid tacky pink.

I like working with chocolate.

I like working with alcohol. This is the perfect bake for me.

Dorret plans to fill her gateau with a cherry chocolate ganache

and chocolate mousse.

She's making two types of sponge.

Now, explain to me what an Alhambra sponge is.

Well, the first part is made with a sabayon warmed in the bain-marie.

Then the melted butter. And then cocoa and flour.

And it makes a very dense, rich sponge.

-This isn't looking brilliant, actually.

-Give it a good whisk.

SHE CHUCKLES

I'm going to have to start this one again. This isn't working.

-MEL: Oh, Dorret, really?

-It's not supposed to look like this.

Don't panic, and just make sure you get it right. You've got mousse, you've got lots of things going on.

You've already started, you're in control, you've got hours left.

-We'll leave you to it.

-Thank you.

-Thanks, Dorret.

-Good luck.

Cakes are going in the oven now.

I thought I'd do four thin ones

cos I'm absolutely terrible at slicing.

So, I'm making one big sponge, slicing it in two.

It's a liquid chocolate cake, so you add boiling water to the batter.

It makes for quite a sticky, gooey chocolate cake,

which is exactly what we want.

Nadiya will layer her sponges with chocolate ganache

and a smooth cherry jam,

before covering it in a chocolate mirror glaze.

They're a little bit liquid, so I've got to be really careful.

Come on.

TIMER BEEPS

Both Ian and Sandy are planning to bake more than just sponge.

I've been to the Black Forest on a few school trips,

beautiful part of the world, and the Black Forest gateau

we had there had this shortbread base.

On top of her chocolate shortbread, there'll be three chocolate sponges

layered with cherries and fresh cream.

My last practice one was like...

Ooh, it was straight. It was powerful.

It had that real sort of trendy look, you know.

I try to model myself like that as well.

Random with a trendy twist.

The base is going to be one huge macaroon,

which I think works very well.

Macaroon's something I make quite a lot of.

I'm going to play to my strength here.

Ian's chocolate macaroon will sit underneath a genoise sponge,

topped with a giant three-dimensional chocolate tree.

This tree - are you piping it out, or what?

So, it's going to be essentially made of caramel, that will give it the strength.

And then it's going to be covered in chocolate,

and maybe if I have time, I'll pipe some little flowers and maybe some animals.

Animals? We have had no animals yet.

I can't wait to romp in your forest, Ian. Looks lovely.

-The animals, Mary.

-Thank you!

OK, bakers, that's one hour remaining. One hour.

Happy with it.

I'm happy with the overall appearance.

They're darker than I would have liked.

But I think that's going to be OK.

Oh, no, they need a bit longer.

My Alhambra sponge is going in the oven - it will take about 12 minutes to cook.

At two hours, I expected all the cakes to be done,

so I'm about 12 minutes behind.

I'm just about to take my cakes out, if you...

-Go ahead

-Just a last check.

-No, go ahead.

-MEL: That oven's doing lovely things to your hair, Marie.

-Is it?

It's lovely. It's like being at a Rod Stewart gig. It's great.

MARIE CHUCKLES

Marie's genoise sponges will be layered with fresh cream

and a cherry syrup - all decorated with dark chocolate ganache

and a copse of tempered-chocolate trees.

Your ganache that you're putting on the top -

is that just going to be a disc of ganache just covering the top,

-or is it going to come down the side as well?

-Hopefully, it will dribble down beautifully.

And not along the sides. So, just come down as if it's...

You want it to cascade down the sides a little bit?

Yeah, uh-huh, I think so. I think that might be quite a nice look.

-OK.

-All right.

They still look pretty pink on the inside.

They feel quite different to how they felt at home. They're springy. So that's good.

That's how they rise at home. They're a nice soft consistency.

You get a nice thick layer of cream in there, it'll treble in size.

Paul will decorate with a tempered-chocolate tree bearing fruit

and cherries.

This is one cake the governor hasn't shared in prison.

Presumably, all your bakes have to go through an X-ray machine?

We're not that high security to do that, but, er...

Oh, good to know.

I sense this is not a laughing matter for you, Paul.

-I'm backing down now.

-Not with security, that's for sure.

I'm just assuming the position. Cuff me.

It's a nightmare for security...

They shouldn't be rising like that.

Got a little bit of a rise that I wasn't expecting.

But they're cooked and they're dense,

which is how they're supposed to be.

As the sponges cool, work can begin on showstopping decorations

-and fillings.

-Mm.

So, the jam is just tinned cherries originally.

We'll try to get up to about 104 ...in temperature.

There's a bit of technical knowledge.

Matt's cherry- and-Kirsch-flavoured jam

will be spread on his chocolate brownie cakes.

I've done it twice at home. So this is, so far, the most accomplished dish.

Third time - shouldn't be any problems.

So, I'm just preparing my mixture for my shiny chocolate glaze.

It's like a mirror effect on the cake.

Alvin's mirror glaze will smother layers of almond chocolate sponge

that will be topped with shards and curls of tempered dark chocolate.

Confidence is growing,

because I feel like I'm in control and I think I've got plenty of time.

All depends on the tempering of the chocolate.

The only way to create crisp, shiny chocolate is to temper it.

Tempering chocolate is quite a tricky thing to do.

It's a process where slowly heating the chocolate

breaks down the sugar crystals in the cocoa butter.

You've got to not overheat it, and then lower the temperature

by usually adding little bits of chocolate to it.

As it cools, the crystals reform, creating a glossier chocolate to decorate with.

I'm just trying to cool it down, ideally to 31 degrees.

I'm looking for 32.

I don't know what I'm looking for. Just saw everyone else do it.

I don't know what temperature it's got to be.

Just looks good, don't it?

Yeah, looks quite good.

-Ian, when I think of the Black Forest...

-Mm.

..my first thought is - elephants.

You know all the elephants that roam around there?

The savanna that is the Black Forest.

Exactly!

Ian's not the only baker venturing beyond the forest for inspiration.

When I found out what we were going to make,

the first thing that came into my mind is the cherries falling out,

and I thought a saucer and a cup would look nice on a cake,

like on sideways,

falling over, and cherries are spilling out of it.

Ugne's chocolate tea setting

will top her three buttermilk chocolate sponges.

-Are you making cups and saucers?

-Yeah.

Nice. UGNE CHUCKLES

I've got two colours for my chocolate,

so I'm going to pipe it on to my acetate, let that dry

and then cover it with a whole layer of dark chocolate,

so it will form the collar around my cake

and when I peel it off, hopefully there'll be a really nice shine.

I hope it will look good on the final cake.

I don't want it to look too much like a small child has done it.

Bakers, you've got half an hour, half an hour

till you bring your Black Forest gateaux to be judged.

So as that hits 32, it's coming out, it's going in that piping bag,

cutting the end off, piping some trees,

let them go off, finish off doing the cake,

cover it in Italian meringue.

Come on.

Kirsch in there.

You're supposed to measure this, aren't you, but...

The danger...

If you oversoak the sponge, it's going to be super-saturated,

it's not really nice to eat.

SHE GASPS

It does look delicious.

You enjoying that?

I just don't want to compromise how it looks.

Rather than putting it in a ring and trying to get it out again,

just put acetate around, and then when I'm done with it, I just lift it off.

So, it's a good way of doing it and being able to see the level of the cake at the same time.

The mousse is not going to be set. Needs to go back in the fridge.

This is my mirror glaze.

It's got gelatine in it, so it sets nice and firm.

It gives it a really clean look.

Panicking inside.

You can still see elements of the sponge underneath, which is a shame, really.

I don't really believe in luck, but I think, you know, if I stay calm

and keep pushing, I'm going to be all right.

OK, bakers, you have five minutes...

before we will be gambolling through your forests.

Is that enough time for this? Is there any point doing this?

-Yes. Yes.

-Going to do it. I'm doing it.

Come on.

Is less is more, or more a winner?

That's what I need to think now.

Not bad, not bad.

I don't know if it needs it.

HE GROANS

SHE TUTS

(No!)

I can't believe this is actually happening.

-Dorret, what's to be done?

-Nothing.

Oh, no, no, no, come. There's lots to be done.

-Piping is a great thing. There's no need to get upset.

-There's every reason.

-No, because it's just a cake.

-It's not just a cake.

-It is just a cake.

It's just a cake.

Bakers, Showstopper time is up.

That doesn't mean you're going to go home.

It doesn't mean you're going to go home.

-We'll see.

-It tastes great. It tastes great. You're all right.

It's judgment time.

Flora, would you like to bring your creation up?

You've made a very big cake.

Having said that, you've broken it up with detail.

-And that piping all the way round is sheer perfection.

-Mm.

I like that. The textures are good. It's soft. It's moist.

I was nervous about that cherry sponge but it works very well.

It was brave of you to do it.

Maybe a little bit more kick from the kirsch would have been better.

-There's not much alcohol coming through.

-OK.

This looks impressive.

I think it looks very theatrical.

You've shown us that you can do some nice chocolate work on the top.

I want to get in there.

-The sponge is disappointing.

-Oh.

-It is very, very close.

It's not good.

Oh, that's disappointing.

It is a different presentation.

It's very simple but those trees are absolutely stunning.

When you look at that it screams that it is Black Forest gateau.

The sponge looks very light.

I love it.

-Oh!

-SHE LAUGHS

The sponge is lovely. It's beautiful and soft.

Lots of cream in there. The cherries have a nice kick to it as well.

Tastes absolutely wonderful. It's a sort of classic.

As classic as you can get. You should be proud of that.

It's just for me it looks too simple.

It looks totally modern.

There's good flavours.

Did you soak that as well - the sponges?

Yes, with kirsch syrup.

Yeah. You can taste that all the way through it.

I think you've made a fantastic looking cake.

You've really done the chocolate well.

Everybody loves a chocolate brownie

and that's a different thing to put in a Black Forest gateau.

I think that tastes exceedingly good.

The tempering of the chocolate

and the way you have done the tree, I think, looks impressive.

I like the distinct layers you've got.

The texture in the sponge is fantastic.

The flavours are coming through, nice rich chocolate.

That is a good cake.

A different idea to show us that you can do shortbread at the bottom

but I don't know how much it adds to it, really.

The piping around the top...

it looks like it's from the '70s.

I've tried many times to put collars round cakes and it's...

particularly first time in a tent,

it was jolly difficult, and you've achieved it.

That's great. The cherry juice you put in the ganache,

you've got a nice sharpness coming through.

Marries really well with the beautiful sponge

which is lovely and soft,

and then the cream with the cherries in it as well.

You know you're eating a Black Forest gateau

-but you know you're eating something special, too.

-It's very good.

-Well done.

-Thanks very much.

Stu, would you like to bring your forest to the judges?

Erm...

It's interesting what you've done.

I like the idea of the Italian meringue.

We are looking for some tempered chocolate or skills with chocolate.

Let's have a look inside.

If I remember rightly you've got a beetroot-flavoured cake.

What beetroot does is it brings colour and moisture to a sponge.

On a Black Forest gateau, to use it as a carrier to put more cream

in between, what that does is just closes the texture up even more.

And so what you're left with is almost it feels it's got

the texture of a raw sponge going through it.

It's quite contemporary, it's minimalist.

I think it looks really smart.

The shine on there I think is wonderful.

It's all down to the flavour.

-Beautiful.

-Lovely.

-Yeah. The textures are quite soft

and they almost melt in the mouth.

You've got that nice sharpness of a fresh cherry coming through as well.

-Very different and very good.

-Thanks. Fantastic.

Would you like to come up, Dorret?

INAUDIBLE

What happened?

I had to re-do one of the sponges so that put all my timings out

so my chocolate mousse didn't set.

It's a shame. It looks like a mud slide.

I've got a sort of feeling it's going to taste rather good.

Now, the Alhambra sponge, is this the denser one sitting at the top?

Yeah.

It's like rubber. Like chewing on a rubber tyre.

There's no aeration in them.

The bottom layer is good. It's got a beautiful chocolate flavour in.

Lovely flavour of the cherries and the kirsch.

However, it looks a bit of a mess.

I think you should be proud of this.

It's totally different and you promised we'd get the odd animal.

-An elephant is an odd animal in the Black Forest!

-A rabbit...

-It really is!

-Exactly.

-It looks quite clean, sharp, neat.

-Yeah.

But let's hope it looks the same inside.

I think it's rather clever to have that different base.

You've shown us many skills, that you can make a good macaroon.

I think its fantastic. You've really got a good blend of flavours in there

and it looks very, very smart, too.

Phew! Thank you very much.

Mary and Paul will now take stock of the weekend and decide who

will be this year's first Star Baker and who will be leaving the tent.

It's been a mammoth day on the old Black Forest Gateau Showstopper.

-It wasn't a mammoth, it was an elephant.

-It was an elephant of a day.

-Can you see the wood for the trees, guys?

-Tamal did well.

-Yeah.

-I thought the collar was a fantastic idea.

I think Marie has done very well.

I think Flora has to be mentioned, too.

And Nadiya, particularly in the Black Forest cake.

It was absolutely superb.

Can I focus on the bottom end of the spectrum?

Stu had quite a lot of work to do.

He tried to vary each different thing and it just didn't work.

Ugne, look at the Technical, she was first, but she struggled

in the Signature, and I think she struggled again in the Showstopper.

What about Dorret, who had a very unfortunate day at the office?

Yes, it was just what happens in the Bake Off at the last minute.

It's just the mousse, the mousse, the mousse.

If you fail on a Showstopper you're in trouble.

Just finally, for people watching at home, when they're thinking about

making a Black Forest gateau, how small should the cherries be chopped, Paul?

MEL: An eighth?

-MARY: Sixteenth.

-Go away.

-Oh!

Bakers, congratulations. A very busy and brilliant weekend.

I have the great job this week.

I get to announce Star Baker.

Now, Star Baker this week goes to somebody whose Madeira had

a magnificent crack.

Plus the Showstopper featured trees

so large they would dwarf even the redwoods of California.

This week's Star Baker is

Marie. Congratulations, lovely. Congratulations.

I have the slightly less pleasant task this week.

We can't take you all with us into next week

so I'm afraid the person who won't be joining us next week is...

..Stu.

-So sorry, Stu.

-So sorry, Stu.

Come on. In you come.

CHATTER

It's a shame to be the first to go but I just got out-baked

and had a couple of mishaps but it's been an awesome experience.

I'll remember this for ever and...

Oh, well. Back to music.

Stu never got started. He just tried to be too clever.

It wasn't a true Black Forest cake.

Then you go and put beetroot in it and meringue on the top.

It certainly wasn't his week.

You don't get in that tent unless you are a good baker.

He should be very proud of himself getting this far.

The problem is you're the bottom of a pack of great bakers.

Every time I go into the tent, I think, "Am I really here?"

And it's just wonderful that I've got Star Baker.

Now, "Have I really done that? Are you sure?"

So, I got away with it.

My mum said, "If you get kicked out in the first round

"don't bother coming home," so it's quite nice that I can fly home

and be greeted by my parents.

That will be quite lovely.

CHATTER

The wife will be pleased. At least I will be able to go home tonight and sleep comfortably, that's for sure.

Live to fight another week. Yay!

CHATTER

It's been like that. And I've got the taste for it now

and it's just, I want to keep going, I want to keep going.

-Well done. I'll see you next week. Get some rest.

-Yes, yes.

I actually feel as though I've been initiated truly into what Bake Off really means.

I want to go home and I just want to put my feet up and have a good rest.

CHATTER

Cup of tea - no cake!

Next time...

It's starting to look a bit like a snail.

'.it's biscuits.' Ooh!

-With a Signature Bake...

-Oh!

..that's baked twice...

Oh, I know. Jenga.

..the thinnest Technical Challenge ever devised...

This thin.

-..and show-stopping biscuits...

-I've just snapped it.

..presented in show-stopping boxes...

made from show-stopping biscuit.

Nothing shall escape. Not even the macaroons.

-But who is cut out...

-I'm so happy about it.

-..to be Star Baker...

-Come on.

..and whose Bake Off dreams will crumble?

If I leave you're coming with me.

I'll take that.