GBBO season 5 - thread #2

[Dolly80]

Thought I better start another one (in case I lose you all next week!)

Blimey that was fag paper thin between Richard and Kate. Bet they're grateful to Diana now.

I think the cakes Mary chooses for the technicals are always boak TBH.

And Martha should have got the Blue Evils for usng a shop bought mould for her chess pieces.

Thought it was all a bit lacklustre this week, until the final showstopper anyway. Part of the issue is that they are all just too good! Not enough tension/disasters. And it all looked fairly samey in terms of what they produced, Luis's tower cake thing aside.

I am glad Chetna won Star Baker though, I don't think she stood out as a Star exactly but she was certainly as worthy of the title this week as anyone.

What did they say the theme is for next week? I missed it, got distracted by something else.

Pastry something. Intricate pastries perhaps?

Is anyone else curious as to how the 17 year old got hold of liqueur to put in her cake? Pretty sure supplying alcohol to minors is still illegal, even if it's only for a cake...

Well she wasn't necking it was she? Not like all the minors who are out every weekend getting bladdered eh

Maybe her mum gave it to her?

I suppose tv schedules are sacrosanct. I don't mind when no one gets knocked out in MasterChef, or two win etc, so I don't mind it here either.

I thought Mel and Sue were dreadful this week. I gather they are going? About time - they're clutching at straws for things to say/do now, I've been feeling slightly sorry for them all series. There is only so much comedy in cakes, so everything's got a bit stale (see what I did there?).

I miss the history bits. They are not the same now, less interesting or informative. Though this one was better, as it was about European cakes. Some of them looked really good, and I'm toying with the idea of trying to make some yeast cakes.

How come Europe used yeast while we switched? Who invented baking powder? etc, would have been interesting too.

I'm sure I recognised the War exhibition woman at Marlborough, but missed her name. I had no idea the trenches were so narrow, making conditions even more awful than I had imagined.

If you love the history of baking Jux buy Elizabeth David's book about Bread it is wonderful; full of interesting information and old recipes. We all used to use yeast too (bread would be made every week or so and the leftover dough would be mixed with fruit\sugar, fat etc. and baked while the oven cooled down a bit.

It's called English Bread and Yeast Cookery. Though it has a lot of other types of baking in it.

Are mel and sue really leaving? I have only heard that on this thread.

I hope not, I love them. They make the show IMHO, they give it its charm.

I hope not too IScream It wouldn't be the same without them.

DD2 said last night "it'll be so sad if they leave." I said "Yes, I'll be heartbroken."

She gave me a strange look and said "Not Mel and Sue, Mummy, I meant the Scots."

What a bright DD areyouthergod !

Poor Luis he totally deserved star baker this week, his show stopper was incredible.

We are rooting for Luis because he lives not far from us. And we recognised the building he must have taken his inspiration for his show. It is The Cage at Lyme Park, near Poynton.

Yes it LOOKED impressive but both judges were not impressed by the flavours were they?

I've never seen a contestant clearing up after an extremely challenging bake though! he deserves something for that alone!!!

I think they just showed that to stress how far ahead he was on timing.

IIRC someone (Danny?) said of a previous series that they don't show everything chronologically, so you might see what looks like people rushing around with five minutes to go while someone else is sitting sipping tea, but actually it's all been cut together from slightly different times?

I didn't like the look of Martha's cake and you'd break a tooth on those solid chess pieces, wouldn't you?

I also loved her using booze.

I find Nancy really irritating - so smug. Hope she's next to go.

Though she always seems to pull it out of the bag, just at the end.

I find them all irritating in their own way!! All the women need to tidy up their hair in the kitchen. Chetna is ok though.

It must be difficult to know how to 'do' your hair when appearing on GBBO on telly, esp. with the big screens now! I note that some wear a lot of make up too which is a bit Theu do their own I reckon.

Just catching up with the thread. ppeat, totally agree about the E. David 'English Bread and Yeast Cookery' book. When I first got it, I sat down and read it like a novel. It's fascinating.

I don't dislike any of them and I think Nancy is nice not smug. I like Chetna a lot and Martha, erm and Kate, oh and Luis, not forgetting Nancy of course and Richard is fun ...... Should I attempt a sugar fence to sit on?

I like Nancy, I think she's gruff and sweet and I like both. She knows what she's good at, but also what she's not. "I didn't know if I was Arthur or Martha" creased me up. She's old school, I bet she bakes more in a week than I have in my life.
Chetna was hilarious when she got her princess cake done.
Luis is smug, had enough of him.
Kate is lovely! I just love looking at her face.
Martha is doing so well, 17 is a baby and she's ever so calm.
Richard the Pencil is annoying, I think (hope) he'll be the next to go.

I want a Princess Cake.

rooty - my thoughts on the remaining contestants are exactly the same as yours!

I have cookbooks which were my grandmother's, and others were my mother's, and every Xmas I get another cookbook. I have them coming out of my ears! Some are just lots of recipes, but many of them have explanations, little stories, all sorts. I have one fab one which has a recipe for capercailie - incredibly complicated and takes forever. You end up burying it in the garden for a while (can't remember how long), digging it up and giving it to the dog "for no one else will eat it".

I don't have the E David bread one though so I think that might be the one I get this year! Thanks, ppeat