Blossom, bloom and bake: Florals are on the menu for ‘Spring Baking Championship’
Bees are buzzing and the birds are chirping, and that can only mean one thing. Jesse Palmer (“The Bachelor”) and his buddies, judges Duff Goldman (“Duff Takes The Cake”), Kardea Brown (“Delicious Miss Brown”) and Nancy Fuller (“Farmhouse Rules”), are back for another year of the “Spring Baking Championship,” continuing with an all-new episode Monday, March 11, on Food Network.
“Vibrant colors, fresh fruits and bright flavors are on display as 12 of the best bakers in the country compete in challenges for the title of Spring Baking Champion and the $25,000 prize,” the season’s logline describes. “To survive week to week, the bakers must prove their abilities in front of expert judges Kardea Brown, Nancy Fuller and Duff Goldman. The array of springtime treats in this one-hour series is the sweetest way to kick off spring.”
During the season’s premiere, Palmer welcomed the competing bakers, introducing them to the championship kitchen before diving into the season’s first, tropics-inspired task.
“After grabbing an ingredient and flower that’s familiar to spring breakers,” an episode description reads, “the competitors have two hours to incorporate them into a baked dessert.” Afterwards, the bakers then conjured thoughts of relaxing vacations and sunny skies, with cakes that showcased their own favorite spring experiences.
This week, however, the group embraces the change of season with an episode celebrating the upcoming spring equinox. Palmer and the judges sit back and relax, basking in the heat radiating from the kitchen as the bakers wrangle one of this year’s trendiest ingredients — ube — and do their best to replicate the blossoming beauty of nature through flower-covered dome cakes filled with floral flavors, presenting desserts fit for mother nature herself.
With episodes airing weekly, there’s always more to come, and the upcoming episodes are jam-packed with more seasonally appropriate fun. From shining a spotlight on awards season with “and the winner is …” envelope-shaped pies and bubble cakes inspired by fizzy afterparty cocktails, to celebrating Earth Day with creepy-crawly cakes and ice cream-filled baked Alaska and honoring the Indian Festival of Holi with bright and colorful, spice-filled doughnuts, Palmer guides his bakers — and us — through a season of transformation, rebirth and change, with only the most delicious treats to nibble at along the way.
Plant your annuals, then plant yourself on the couch: “Spring Baking Championship” continues with all-new episodes, airing Mondays on Food Network.