Sweet showdown

Festive competition puts gingerbread in the spotlight

Deck the halls with festive favorites! Whatever your culinary tastes may be, Food Network has something to satisfy even the naughtiest of palates this holiday season, and if you have a taste for gingerbread, then it’s going to be a very merry Christmas indeed.

Food Network shines the spotlight on some of the most ambitious and decadent gingerbread creations imaginable in “Holiday Gingerbread Showdown,” premiering Sunday, Nov. 25. When paired with a good royal icing, gingerbread is the perfect edible building material. It’s rigid, it’s strong, it’s easily cut into any shape and, best of all, it’s absolutely delicious.

“Mexican Made Easy” host Marcela Valladolid oversees the festive competition that brings together nine food artists with big ambitions. Three of them face off in each episode, facing difficult challenges that test their ambition, their attention to detail and their artistry, and the resulting edible structures are just as jaw-droppingly beautiful as they are mouthwatering.

Of course, it isn’t all tasty sweets and holiday cheer — this is a competition, after all. Molly Yeh (“Girl Meets Farm”), master sugar artist Kerry Vincent (“Save My Bakery”) and former “Spring Baking Championship” contestant Adam young send two gingerbread artists home empty-handed at the end of each episode, and in the grand finale the three previous winners finally face off, each hoping to take home the $25,000 prize.

In the Nov. 25 premiere, the first three bakers are tasked with baking and decorating a North Pole scene that’s as magnificent to look at as it is to eat. It’s a challenge that seems easy enough, but just as they get into the baking rhythm, a curveball is thrown their way. They have to think fast and figure out how to make and incorporate a special new element into their creations as the clock ticks down relentlessly and the judges keep their eyes on every move.

Adam Young, Kerry Vincent, Marcela