Get your piping bag and dough hook ready. Food Network’s “Ultimate Baking Championship” series is set to debut on March 9th.
The Ultimate Baking Championship, hosted by Jesse Palmer and chaired by Duff Goldman, will test 16 pastry chefs on core skills ranging from laminating dough and pâté à choux to chocolate crafting and sugar art. In the end, only one pastry chef will be crowned the Ultimate Baking Champion and win a $50,000 prize.
Food According to Network, “In the series premiere, host Jesse Palmer welcomes 16 of America’s top pastry chefs to the most intense baking competition ever. After being randomly divided into two groups, they must test one of four flavors (sweet, salty, sour, bitter) in combination with a specific texture. Each baker must create an upscale, plated dessert in their own signature style, inspired by their assigned profile, to submit to judges Duff.” Goldman and Shelleyard. After several eliminations, the remaining bakers advance to the Master Challenge, where chefs must create desserts inspired by the roots of their baking journey. ”
Challenges throughout the season include science-inspired dessert battles, 3D chocolate sculptures, and edible displays in a “larger-than-life theatrical experience.”
Goldman will be joined by a rotating roster of legendary guest judges in the baking world, including Brian Ford, Amaury Guichon, Shin-Ming Lee, Jacques Torres, Shelley Yard, Molly Yeh and Zach Young.
First-year contestants include: Julian Bellon (Miami, Florida); Florencia Breda (San Luis Obispo, California); Molly Cohen (Monterey, California); Rochelle Cooper (Washington, DC); Sarah Cracie (Lake Tahoe, Nevada). Adalberto Diaz (Salt Lake City, Utah). Casey Doody (Chicago, Illinois); Arriti Estevez (Atlanta, Georgia); Robert Gonzalez (Boston, Massachusetts). Juan Gutierrez (Chicago, Illinois); Clement Le Deore (San Diego, California). Oralia Perez (Houston, Texas). Rashida Perry (Fort Walton Beach, Fla.); Cesar Ryan Sajuran (Brooklyn, New York). Christopher Teixeira (Chicago, Illinois) and Steven Weiss (Martinsburg, West Virginia).
“The Ultimate Baking Championship” will debut on Food Network on Monday, March 9th at 9pm ET and stream the next day on HBO Max and Discovery+.
The series is produced by Food Network’s Sonic Dog.
“The pastry chefs competing are the best of the best. They are true artists whose desserts are stunningly beautiful and delicious,” said Betsy Ayala, head of food content at Warner Bros. Discovery. “The Ultimate Baking Championship chefs take pastry technique and artistry to the highest level ever.”
