This week saw the Great British Bake Off’s first ever German week, and the show was opened with Noel and Matt, dressed and singing in the style of 80”s German electropop band Kraftwerk. I guess this shows the age demographic the producers of the show are now aiming for, because today’s youngsters will never have heard of Kraftwork or their, quite frankly, forgettable music.
I surely can’t be the only person to notice Jurgen is slowly morphing into the loveable Winnie the Pooh? And once you’ve connected the two, it’s pretty hard to ignore. Tiny sniggers, shoulders quivering, and cheeky little smiles. Ahhh – everyone loves the Jurgen-meister don’t they? So, surprisingly (in the voice of Janice from Friends) OH MY GOD Jurgen didn’t win Bake Off’s first ever German week. Who saw that coming? Uh – nobody on the planet!
But, sadly I don’t think German week was particularly successful. The technical challenge was a Prinzregentorte. For those (like me) who’d never heard of this, it’s a cake made from 8 thin layers of sponge, sandwiched together with chocolate flavoured cream, coated in chocolate ganache, creating a glossy mirror-glaze effect, and topped with chocolate cream swirls and chocolate crowns (what a chocolatey faff!). Hardly an ideal choice for a very hot, melty tent, but that’s probably precisely why brutal judges Prue and Paul chose it; all part of their cunning plan to oust those who buckle under the pressure, and fail to produce perfection under impossible conditions. They’re all heart aren’t they?
The unpronouncable German biscuits turned out quite spectacularly, with most looking equally as perfect as those factory produced shop-bought ones from Lidl’s Christmas range. Jurgen earned the third Paul Hollywood handshake of the series for his coffee and pecan, and horny shaped biscuits, but his yeast beer-soaked cake failed to impress in the final showstopper round, with Paul Hollywood commenting “it’s ok….. but I don’t love it.”
Unfortunately, series 12’s vegan and youngest baker Freya, was the person leaving the tent this week, amid many tears and shock from the other contestants. But mostly, from George who really thought his number was up, and considering his fairly average offerings this week, it was quite a shocker to us watching at home too. At least poor lass Freya won’t have to do any more ‘vegan faffing’ in the tent, and I don’t really feel she was a trailblazer for successful vegan bakers of the future, so back off to sunny Scarborough she goes. Panto season is almost upon us, and her extraordinarily long plaits will surely warrant her a leading role in Rapunzel at her local theatre.
This leaves only 7 bakers remaining in the competition. It’s getting tougher now, but my money is still on a final between Guiseppe, Crystelle and the Jurgen-meister.
Watch this space!
