Heel Holland Bakt Talk #7: ‘Didn’t Work Again’
The theme of the month of January and of the seventh episode of Heel Holland Bakt: ‘Didn’t work again.’ With five well-behaved women, the baking tent turns into a cozy tea party.
It’s so sweet on Heel Holland Bakt! Of course, kilos of sugar go into everything, but your tooth enamel also starts to crack a little from the contestants’ sugary behavior toward one another. Five women remain, since last week the final man, Arjen, was voted off, and they all seem determined to prove that it really isn’t such a snake pit as you always hear. The result? Such a pastel-colored situation that you’d most like to throw a cake at it. An ‘over-the-top’ cake that would then literally go over someone’s top. Hoppa.
Like pudding on the counter
The first challenge: a bombe. A chocolate bombe. That’s a rounded cake with chocolate. Alina tried to explain how to make a bombe, but because of her Limburg accent, the only words that could be understood were ‘layers’ and ‘stacking,’ nothing more. Subtitle writers, where are you? On Boer Zoekt Vrouw, every ‘uh’ and ‘well’ is subtitled, but on Heel Holland Bakt we’re just supposed to guess?
Didn’t work again, really not
Apparently, Anouk and Pauline had ordered the wrong baking mold from AliExpress, because even in the blast freezer their bombes refused to set. They dripped out of the mold onto the little counter like pudding. Well, what do you do then? Spread it with a palette knife and fold some fondant over it, and in the end it still turned into a reasonably neat pastry. But Jeanette received the most thumbs-up. ‘A bombe inside a bombe,’ said Robèrt. ‘Now that’s baking.’ Uh, yes, Robèrt, that is the point of this competition.
Philosophical commentary
In their comments, Janny and Robèrt reach certain philosophical levels that leave ordinary mortals like us standing there in bewilderment. ‘I’m missing depth in the flavors,’ Janny commented on a hazelnut roll with too little hazelnut. The buttercream is ‘greasy,’ but isn’t that inherent to using butter? The final existential question raised was this: when Alina presented a wild potpourri of colors and flavors in three tiers for the ‘Over the Top’ challenge, it was too over the top for Robèrt. Yes, take a moment to think about that: can something that is supposed to be over the top go too far over the top? Can bright red ever be too bright? Can something delicious ever be too delicious? Alina didn’t get that thinking time, because it meant the end of her competition. Next week: the semifinal, with four Stepford Wives lending one another baking tools and offering tips with smiles on their faces.
Highlight
Using a piping comb and a piece of plastic, Esther makes a feather out of chocolate. Even Robèrt thinks it’s a nice technique.
Low point
Anouk bakes a beautiful cake featuring the highs and lows of the past six episodes. André’s comment: it looks just like spareribs. There you are, having done everything right.
Read also:
