North East Dessert Great British Menu

The competition continues on Great British Menu and this week it's all about the North-East.

Tim Bilton, Andrew Pern and Stephanie Moon are battling it out for the chance to cook

at the ultimate street party, a magnificent banquet to celebrate the nation's unsung food heroes.

On yesterday's programme, Steph remained in the lead with 20 points...

I want to cook for those judges. To be in the lead at this stage,

it's just mind-blowing.

..which is cause for concern for Tim, as he slipped into last place on 16.

I always seem to be the horse at the back

and I've got to start charging forward a little bit.

I did last year, I'm confident I can do it this year.

Scoring them all week has been former champion Nigel Haworth.

This is the final push.

They've got to really really go for it with this course, because it's still anybody's competition.

Today it's dessert and the three dishes vying for a place at the banquet are a celebration

of Yorkshire rhubarb, gooseberry and apple crumble and Yorkshire mess.

At this stage, it can go either way.

I just need that sort of extra pointer or two just to keep my head above water cos it's now or never.

This year's competition is all about creating the perfect food to share for the people's banquet.

Stunning and exciting dishes that are a feast for the eyes.

And on this last course, Nigel will expect nothing less than completely amazing desserts.

This is the one that could get them through to the judges, that could make or break them.

This one's got to be the winner.

Only two chefs can face the judges tomorrow, so everything rests on the quality of their dishes.

Today, one chef will be leaving the competition.

The chef with the least points has got to do the walk of shame. I don't want it to be me.

First up is Stephanie Moon.

She's taken a commanding lead this week so knows she mustn't throw it all away now.

This dessert is a risk-taker.

It's wacky, I think, it's fun.

Nigel is going to love it or he's going to hate it.

How are you? Very well. So what have you got for us today?

I'm making something called Yorkshire mess.

-And I'm using Yorkshire rhubarb.

-Right.

It's absolutely stunning stuff. There's meringue happening there.

I'm actually making rhubarb set in a ginger beer jelly.

And I'm making a crumble-type thing but out of Yorkshire parkin, all sorts of things going on.

But is it a sharing dish?

You do not get much more sharing than this dish, honestly.

It is a serious sharing dish.

And it's, I kind of don't want to spoil the surprise, Nigel.

You're either going to love this dish or you're going to slate me.

So Steph is playing her cards very close to her chest

with her dish that combines a myriad of different elements.

Yorkshire mess, it could be anything.

It could be spectacular or it could be messy and disastrous

but let's hope it's not too messy and quite spectacular.

Next up is Andrew Pern.

Much to his surprise, he only scored a six for his main course

putting in just one point ahead of Tim and only one chance left to impress.

I need to get some points on the dessert course.

Prove that the dish I'm doing will be a winner and get some more points.

-All right. How you doing?

-So, what have you got for us today?

-What have we got here?

It's a celebration of Yorkshire rhubarb, basically.

It's the theme of an afternoon tea.

We're going to have different desserts. Rhubarb jelly and custard.

Then some Yorkshire puddings. We've got some spiced syrup to dip them in.

Pistachio cream and a rhubarb compote to go on the Yorkies.

We've got a glass of rhubarb schnapps. I'm going to show you how to make a bit of rhubarb schnapps.

-A lot of rhubarb going on there, Andrew.

-Yeah.

And from your point of view, a dish that's good enough to wow the people's banquet?

Yeah. I think it's definitely got that wow factor.

There'll be a tall tea-stand going to the table,

so that's a wow-factor. A feast for the eyes.

So you're keying really into the sharing bit here, aren't you?

-That's what we're looking at.

-All the best, Andrew.

-All right. Cheers.

-Bye.

Another complicated dish from Andrew

could either be the making or breaking of him.

He's got lots of things going on and must bring all those elements together.

Giving us a dessert that really is a winner.

Last to arrive and currently in last place, it's Tim Bilton.

Andrew and Steph should be watching out.

Tim Bilton's on his way up. They know I'm not out of the game yet. I know I'm not.

-Tim, how are you?

-Very well, thank you. Very well.

So what have you got for us today, Tim?

What I'm going to make today, Nigel, is a gooseberry and apple crumble, with custard,

and elderflower jelly and toffee ice-cream.

I remember the whole family sitting round the table.

Sunday afternoon tea, fantastic crumble and just digging in.

That's where you get the sharing thing cos you used to do that.

-Absolutely. Yeah.

-How are you going to deliver me a really special dessert here?

Yeah, I am. Nigel, the pressure's gone.

I can't go any lower than where I am now so it's all to gain.

Tim only needs to score one point more than Andrew

to be in with a chance of cooking for the judges,

but is he playing it safe with a traditional crumble?

Let's hope that he makes the best crumble of his life.

It might not be showcase enough for what we're looking for but it could be.

There are only a few points separating the chefs so everything is riding on this course.

A mistake at this stage could mean leaving the competition for good.

-Andrew, only one point behind you now.

-It's all going on, isn't it?

So you know, we don't want to have any slip-ups or any hiccups.

Really is the last chance now to get to that banquet.

I think you're halfway there, Steph.

-I'm feeling the pressure.

-That's what we like to hear.

There's hope yet, Tim, there's hope yet.

It's mind games now, that's what it's all about.

Stephanie's in front. The two boys can still come through.

They've got to raise the game and deliver a fantastic dessert that we're all going to be proud of.

Steph's not giving anything away

but it's clear that she's gambling on making a very unusual dish.

Now we're starting to see part of your Yorkshire mess?

-Not yet.

-But you've kind of got an idea of what's happening.

I think so. I think so.

Stephanie, she's very secretive in what she's going to do.

I'm intrigued to find out what it's going to be.

Nigel's also keen to find out exactly what Steph is up to.

There's a lot of noise coming from over in the rhubarb corner.

-Look how red they are!

-Yeah.

-So what are we up to now?

Me? I've got quite a lot going on, chef.

I'm making rhubarb curd. I'm making rhubarb syrup.

I've got my ginger parkin crumb.

I've got my rhubarb jelly in the chiller. I've got my rhubarb ginger beer jelly in the fridge.

Stephanie's got that confidence, I think she's really going to make sure she stays in front.

While Steph gets on with preparing the nine complicated components of her dish,

Tim is concentrating on the four elements of his.

The heat's around here, isn't it?

It is, chef, it is.

-It's cool round here, Andrew, it's cool round here.

-Hey, look at him over there!

Nothing's scaring me about the other two's dishes.

It's all to play for. I'm one point behind Andrew.

He's starting to feel a little bit of pressure, yeah.

Some of his stuff that he's done has looked absolutely amazing.

Tim has to score well today to get in front of the judges tomorrow.

If he doesn't, his time in the competition will be coming to an end.

This is crunch-time for me.

I've got to be completely and utterly focussed, organised.

It's a great dish. The flavours really marry well.

Tim's put all his eggs in the basket of a crumble here.

Crumble's great but you've got to deliver it.

It's a very fine line between a bad one and a great one.

Andrew has no intention of being sent home today and is confident

that his afternoon-tea-style dessert has been honed to perfection.

So this dish, Andrew, you tried it out on anybody?

Yeah. The Helmsley Tea Club, yeah. With the idea behind

having the tea-stand and the afternoon tea, sort of thing.

The chefs are competing to create fantastic dishes to share at the ultimate street party,

and they've been out in their communities looking for ideas and inspiration

from people who'll be their guests of honour if they get a dish through to the banquet.

To make sure he nailed the brief for his dessert,

Andrew arranged to visit the tearoom in his village of Helmsley.

Hi, Alison. How are you?

He's come to meet Alison Souter who runs a quarterly tea club for the locals.

The people that come to the club, have they made friendships as they've come along?

-Friendships have been formed here.

-Thriving.

Yeah. It is thriving. People say when's the next meeting, Alison, when's the next meeting?

Andrew is hoping to try out the rhubarb fancies he's planning to serve

and Alison has agreed to let him loose on her members.

-How are you finding the tea club? Do you like it?

-Oh, excellent. Yes.

-Good reason to come out?

-Absolutely. Any excuse.

-Exactly. We like that, don't we? Exactly. It's perfect.

-Yes.

He makes up his cake-stand but he'll be competing against the tea room patissiere, Paul,

who's serving his own rhubarb plate.

-Tea club special, eh?

-It is, indeed.

Pleasing this group will be no mean feat.

These regulars are connoisseurs of all things sweet.

That's a rhubarb fool, that one.

Now, the moment of truth.

Whose rhubarb fancies will these discerning Yorkshire folk prefer?

-Yorkshire rhubarb?

-The old Yorkshire Triangle.

-I used to live in the Triangles.

-Did you?

-Yeah.

The Yorkshire puddings are absolutely delicious.

And if I could only make those normally, like that.

Don't bother with the rhubarb next time!

Andrew's planned his dessert to fit this year's brief, to get people talking.

And on that note, he's certainly scored.

I just enjoyed everything he did today. It was so nice.

-But not all the regulars are won over.

-Andrew, there's bad news.

-Go on then.

One person voted for your stand, everybody else did vote for the Black Swan.

-Very good.

-We'd just like to thank you very much.

However, it's still been a worthwhile trip for Andrew.

One or two things I might tweak, but yeah, taken it all on-board

and we've still got a bit of time to work on things. Never say never.

What sort of reaction did you get then, Andrew?

Well, I don't think they really liked it, to be honest.

I love the sound of Andrew's dish. Yorkshire puddings served as a dessert. Very clever.

But not sure about the feedback from the tea club,

so maybe this could come and bite him on the backside.

All three chefs are working hard to create the perfect food to share.

Steph's intriguing dish

is called Yorkshire mess, including meringue, rhubarb curd,

rhubarb jelly and parkin crumbs.

Andrew's making a selection of dishes using Yorkshire rhubarb.

And Tim is preparing a gooseberry and apple crumble

with elderflower jelly and toffee ice-cream.

Nigel will have a tough decision to make.

After his scores today, one of these chefs will leave the competition.

Stephanie seems to have so much to do. Is she going to deliver?

Tim has so little to do he's got to deliver.

And Andrew's got all these different components that he's got to get right. The reality's kicking in.

Somebody's got to go.

Andrew splashes some elderflower cordial into his rice pudding.

Only one point ahead of Tim and three points behind Stephanie, he can't let anything to go wrong.

Mr Pern, how we doing?

-We had a slight hiccup with the rice pudding split.

-Rice pudding split?

Don't know what happened there, but we're under a bit of pressure now.

-What milk did you put in?

-I think it's full fat in there.

-Just seems to have...don't know.

-Split.

-Yeah.

So have you got time to get it right?

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

We'll make time, Nigel. Don't you worry about that, mate.

He must have tried the dish but somehow or other, maybe the heat of the day, the pressure's enough.

Pressure makes you do funny old things.

He knows he has to deliver his dessert to get through to the judges.

Steph seems flustered by the amount she still needs to do.

After caramelizing rhubarb in amber liquor,

she quickly makes her parkin crumbs, but she still has to complete her rhubarb curd and rhubarb fool.

Do you want anything doing for five minutes?

I'm just waiting for my crumble. Seriously.

The only chef who seems relaxed is Tim who's finishing off his ice-cream.

It's the last thing he needs to do before cooking his crumble.

This is his final chance to impress Nigel and he's feeling confident.

Having seen their dishes

I'm more than happy with my crumble.

It's going to be the winner.

Andrew's still having problems with his rice pudding and for the second time the milk has curdled.

It's done it again.

It's gone again.

It's gone again.

Are you putting elderflower in there?

Yes. A splash of elderflower in.

Must be the elderflower that's turning it.

-Citric acid.

-Uh?

-Citric acid.

-That's what's doing it, yeah.

Put it in the end.

Put that right in at the end, wouldn't you?

The man of his stature, I would've thought,

he's putting cordial in which has got citric acid,

I thought he might have known it would have split the milk.

So the pressure must be on his shoulders now.

Is he executing his dishes to the best of his ability? I don't know.

This could be just the break that Tim needs to beat Andrew's score today.

His is the first dish to be tasted and as he puts the last minute finishing touches to his apple

and gooseberry crumble, he's hoping his homely dessert will be enough

to put him before the judges.

Gooseberry and apple crumble.

Elderflower jelly.

Custard and toffee ice-cream.

We're going to put it in the bowl, start digging.

-Go for it, go for it, makes no difference.

-OK.

It's a very safe dish that I've done.

I'm completely aware of that but it's a fantastic dish.

It's a little bit jelly and ice-cream and it's a little bit crumble and custard.

So it's all there.

Well, it's all done to now eating it and the flavours and does everything go together?

-Shall we go and have a try?

-Yeah.

-Come on then. Let's go.

And for you, enough va-va-voom, enough spectacle for the people's banquet?

I think if this was delivered to the people's banquet, I think they'd be happy with that.

I think it's everybody's sort of food, Nigel.

-That's lovely.

-I like gooseberry crumble.

-Yeah. Me, too.

-Thoughts?

-Great combination of flavours, there.

And elderflower jelly, is that coming through enough for you?

I don't want it to be, elderflower can be very overpowering.

Too much elderflower? It's very cordially, isn't it?

Has this dessert delivered for you enough to get you through to the judges?

-I certainly think this dessert has delivered on flavour, and presentation as well.

It's a crowd-pleaser but is it a crowd-exciter?

I'm not sure if it, I don't know.

It's been an incredibly tough week

but I really feel that the dessert course has been my strongest dish,

so who knows, who knows?

Next to face Nigel is Andrew.

He puts the final flourishes to his rhubarb jelly and custard,

pours out his rhubarb schnapps and drizzles syrup over his filled Yorkshire puddings.

Has he done enough to make sure that he will be one of the chefs

going through to face the judges tomorrow?

Celebration of Yorkshire rhubarb.

Absolutely.

Happy with that?

Yeah, it's all right. It's come out well in the end.

Yes. Can we divide everything up?

At the top we've got the rhubarb jelly and custard, with blood orange.

The little Yorkshire puddings. The pistachio.

OK. The little glass of the old schnapps.

Shall we put two of those on?

And then, um, a little rice pudding. the old, yeah...

-Been a lot of work gone into that rice pudding, Andrew.

-Exactly.

OK. Shall we go and have a little try then?

So the big question is, is that a dish

that you think is good enough and spectacular enough in presentation

to be at the people's banquet?

You've got the spectacle of the height of the stand. And the individual flavours.

So again, I've always tried to concentrate on something for everybody.

People have all got different tastes, so they can have a taste of individual things.

What do you eat first?

I don't know.

I think I'll start with this.

If you think of like the French sort of profiterole, clafoutis, that sort of thing.

It's not dissimilar to that, the ingredients.

I'm going to try the rice pudding cos you had a nightmare with that.

But the rice is ever so slightly undercooked, isn't it, do you not think?

-A bit chalky?

-Well, we had a few hiccups obviously,

that put me slightly out of my stride, but I can do it better

but it's there or thereabouts, just needs tweaking a little bit

but I think it would be with those tweaks and not having the hiccups,

would make it through to the people's banquet.

I think something like that coming out after the dessert,

with the Yorkshire puddings and what have you, and the shot, perfect.

-But as a...

-Main event.

-..main-event dessert,

I don't know. I am a little bit underwhelmed, to be honest.

Just come back from Nigel.

Clean plate.

Perfectly good sign and then hopefully good points.

Stephanie is last to the pass and her rivals can't wait for her to reveal her Yorkshire mess.

She plates up the individual elements but much to the bemusement

of Andrew and Tim, she doesn't stop there.

This is a rhubarb syrup. We've got some rhubarb curd.

Then we've got some rhubarb gel.

Next, we've got some flambeed rhubarb sticks in an amber liquor.

Ginger parkin

which adds a nice hot kick to the dish. That's rhubarb jelly.

And last but not least, this is the meringue layers

with rhubarb set in a ginger beer jelly.

And then some rhubarb wafers on the top.

-And then just have to ask you to dive in, chaps.

-Dig in.

Stephanie, it's got to be a first this, hasn't it? A dessert of this stature.

-Right, well, bravo.

-Yes, Nigel, I'll be known as the girl who threw the dessert on the table.

-Absolutely.

-Bravo.

Is the reaction from her fellow chefs what she was expecting?

So, Stephanie, enlighten me. How are we tasting this? Do I roll it up?

Hopefully you don't feel like rolling it up but I think the best thing to do is to just

dive in.

Yeah. Maybe for yourself, Nigel, a plate might be an idea.

This dish is a risk-taker, isn't it?

If you like it, it's great. If you don't, you're going to hate it. I need some of that parkin.

You know, it's a sharing dish.

It's taking sharing to the cliff edge, I think, really.

But if this dish has fallen over the cliff,

Steph's risk-taking may have ended her chances in the competition.

I think,

on all counts,

we're all a little bit speechless.

How do you feel?

That's good, to create a reaction like that.

It's got to be a good thing.

Well, Tim, what do you think to that? I know my kids'd love it.

It's either very, very clever,

or she's lost the plot!

Are you happy with the harmony of the dish, there's nothing overpowering, it's working for you?

I feel it does, yeah. I feel it does.

I'm absolutely speechless, completely and utterly speechless.

I don't like this at all.

From a flavour point-of-view, I'm really happy with the rhubarb in the ginger beer.

That feels good to me.

The parkin is nice, nicely done.

And I think the meringue really adds a nice sweetness.

People's banquet, do they want to eat off a tablecloth?

It's getting it off the table,

isn't it, really?

It's quite funny eating off the table.

I've never really eaten, well, I probably have when I've had one or two drinks, not before.

Is it the right dessert for the people's banquet?

I'd like to think so.

If that was on a plate, Andrew, she'd walk it.

I think the way of serving it,

if that is acceptable, I think it is the right dessert.

If that is not acceptable for whatever reason, I feel it should go to somebody else.

You can either be laughed out the door or you can succeed.

And at this moment in time, it felt like a success.

To get the chefs silenced, that's good, surely?

But it's not what Stephanie thinks that matters.

Now, there's only one opinion that counts. Nigel's scores will decide which chef is going home today.

I'm a little bit excited. I really want to go on to the judges' chamber.

We're just waiting for the points.

My last chance there to get any points. Nigel had a smile on his face.

He cleared the plate so we've gathered a few points and we'll be through to see the judges.

I've had sleepless nights worrying about serving a dish like this.

I feel the dessert was a success.

-Hi, guys.

-Nigel.

Tim, I'm going to start with you.

A good solid crumble.

Very good ice-cream.

Didn't get the jelly. Didn't think it really worked.

And for me, a crumble needs more crumble.

Andrew, a celebration of rhubarb and custard.

You had difficulty with the rice pudding, it was undercooked.

Presentation was quite flamboyant, but needed a bit more detail in there.

Stephanie, your Yorkshire mess,

I love the ambition.

It was daring. On the slight negative,

presentation is open to interpretation is what I would say.

Yeah.

So I sit a bit on the fence with that.

So with a score of eight for the dessert,

making them the chef with the highest total score

across the week is...

Steph.

So congratulations, Steph.

You'll be cooking a menu tomorrow for the judges.

But that leaves two of you and there's only a point between you at this stage.

Well, I can announce that I gave Andrew with your celebration of rhubarb and custard...

..seven points.

And Tim...

..with your gooseberry and apple crumble,

I gave...

six points.

Which means, with your total, Andrew, you will be the second chef going through

to the judges tomorrow.

Well done and congratulations. And to you, Tim, commiserations

cos it's always tough when somebody has to leave us at this stage.

But well done and I wish you much success.

-Thank you.

-Cheers, Nigel.

-Well done.

-Well done.

-Well done, Steph. Excellent.

Commiserations, pal.

So Stephanie's spectacular gamble has paid off

and she and Andrew will be cooking for the judges tomorrow.

Tim must now leave the competition.

Totally gutted but two cracking representations for the North East

in Stephanie and Andrew and I wish them all the best

because tomorrow is a very very hard day.

I need to up my game a bit, I think.

I'm still confident with the dishes. I'm just going to go for it and make sure they're precise, spot on.

At the beginning of the week, I wasn't feeling confident and I think now it's fired me up.

I want to get in there and get on with it now.

Steph and Andrew will have to cook their entire menu tomorrow

and they'll expect nothing but perfection.

If you're going to do this, there has to be warmth and love to it.

I can't feel any love from this dish. I am not feeling the love.

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