Bake Off Scot’s run comes to a sticky end
IT was the first caramel week in Great British Bake Off history.
But it wasn’t a sweet outcome for the only Scots entrant this year after Tom Hetherington became the fourth baker booted off the show.
The 2 -year-old architect, from Edinburgh, said his choice of showstopper was ‘a wrong one’, after he failed to impress with his hummingbird cake.
His undoing began with the first of three challenges, the signature bake, when he failed to complete the millionaire’s shortbread. Instead of offering judges Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood 18 identical bakes, he ran out of time and instead presented them with two large tins of his caramel concoction.
In the technical challenge, in which the bakers had to create 12 Dutch stroopwafels, he came in fifth place out of nine and his showstopper caramel cake, a banana and pineapple hummingbird offering, was poorly received by the judges.
Hollywood described it as ‘a bit basic’ thanks to Mr Hetherington’s lack of caramel decorations – he topped his cake with just two while the other contestants were more generous and adventurous.
Leith said that the cake was ‘gluey and under-baked’.
Hollywood said: ‘That cake was raw, it was just an off-day for him, but unfortunately in Bake Off, one slip and that’s it.’
Mr Hetherington, whose twin Robert was killed in an explosion in Afghanistan in 2013, said of his time in the competition: ‘My worst moment was obviously leaving and my decision to make the hummingbird cake was a wrong one.
‘Throughout I had positive feedback on my flavours, and I am not so good on the intricate side of decoration, so that was a gross miscalculation on my part.
‘I am disappointed to be leaving but it was justified. I made a really bad cake and everyone else did excellent cakes. I think it’s totally fair.’
He said: ‘Initially I wanted to impress Prue more than Paul, but when it came to it I wanted to impress both of them equally.’
This week’s star baker was Kate, who impressed with her showstopper toffee apple cake and her bay-infused millionaire’s shortbread.