The Great British Baking Show Recap: Egg Whites of Their Eyes

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As the current season nears its end, I’ve realized the show hasn’t done one of its usual opening sketches since the very first week—the one where Paul Hollywood famously regretted dressing up as a dinosaur. A big part of what fans enjoy about *The Great British Baking Show* is its consistency; it reliably delivers the same charming format and kind-hearted bakers each week, year after year. I’m curious why they stopped the sketches. Were they too costly? Did Alison Hammond dislike filming them? Were they a passion of Matt Lucas’, and are the producers now avoiding them due to his questionable jokes and outfits? It’s a mystery, but honestly, I haven’t missed them at all.

As a total baking show fanatic, I was thrilled to see this week’s theme – it wasn’t about simplifying things, but building them up with Meringue Week! Back when I lived in the States, lemon meringue pie was pretty much the only time I encountered meringues. But living in the U.K. now? They’re *everywhere*. You can’t even walk past an Ottolenghi without spotting a meringue the size of a corgi! And Eton Mess, that classic British dessert, is on almost every menu – it’s basically cream, berries, and glorious meringue (and the best places add ice cream too!). Honestly, they’ve clearly made meringues in the tent before, but I’m shocked it’s taken them this long to dedicate a whole episode to them – they’re so tricky to get right, but when they work, they’re unbelievably delicious.

Paul Hollywood just mentioned the three types of meringue – French, Swiss, and Italian – without explaining what sets them apart. So, naturally, I had to do some research! Okay, I admit it, I used the internet to find out the differences. Here’s the breakdown: French meringue is made by whipping egg whites, adding sugar, and whipping again. Swiss meringue involves whipping egg whites and sugar together over hot water until the sugar dissolves, then whipping again. And Italian meringue is made by slowly pouring hot sugar syrup into whipped egg whites. All that investigating really tired me out!

The bakers’ first challenge is to create a meringue of their choice, but it must sit on top of a small meringue pie. (Tom and Jasmine are making Swiss meringue, while the others are going with Italian.) Most of them are using a blowtorch to cook the meringue instead of baking it, and nearly everyone is pairing it with a tart filling, like in a lemon meringue pie. Iain is using rhubarb, claiming that no baker has ever been eliminated in the show’s 15 seasons when they’ve used it. It’s a surprisingly strategic move, and while I’d like to double-check his claim, I’ve exhausted my fact-checking resources for today, so we’ll just have to trust him!

Tom’s strawberry rhubarb tarts didn’t quite impress the judges. The meringue wasn’t browned enough and was difficult to cut. They also found the texture of his tarts problematic, which was new criticism for him. Thankfully, Tom seems to be naturally good with rhubarb! Lesley also faced challenges; Prue felt her lemon curd was overpowering, and Paul thought her pastry was too dense – a critique one judge’s husband hears often, apparently.

The other bakers are performing strongly. Aaron creates boat-shaped tarts resembling Mont Blanc, but Prue feels they lack sufficient chestnut flavor. Everyone raves about Iain’s frangipane tarts – Prue even calls them beautiful, which made me wish my husband would offer me such a compliment!

What really stood out was the two bakers receiving very different reactions from the judges. Paul jokingly teased Jasmine, saying he wouldn’t give her another handshake or ‘Star Baker’ award because she’d already gotten so many. Despite his teasing, both judges loved her passionfruit and raspberry tarts, which looked beautiful with perfectly made meringue. Then came the odd moment: Paul initially went to shake her hand, pulled back, and then gave her a left-handed handshake! It left everyone wondering what that meant. Was he playing a joke? Was there a minor flaw with the tarts he was hinting at? Or does a left-handed handshake signify something negative? It’s a confusing gesture, and honestly, it’s just as unsettling as taking away a ‘Real Housewives’ star’s makeup budget.

Toby gets enthusiastic praise for his apple meringue tarts, which he carefully crafts to look like miniature apple pies. He even adds a lattice pattern with the meringue! They’re definitely the most visually appealing and unique entries. It’s great to see Toby recognized – our stressed-out judge could use a little encouragement to keep his mustache looking its best.

This week’s technical challenge was a bit chaotic. The bakers worked in stages so the judges could enjoy fresh raspberry soufflés. Iain went first, and Alison ended up explaining the task to each baker multiple times without any extra compensation. Lesley and Tom struggled again, which seemed unusual for the normally composed Tom. Surprisingly, Iain won, despite adding a significant amount of extra sugar – over one and one-eighth cups – to his soufflé. It’s baffling how he managed to win with such a mistake! Let’s just say there’s some lingering drama, and Claudia Winkleman is aware of it. Thanks for tuning in.

The final challenge was a vacherin glacé – an ice cream dessert inside a fancy meringue shell. Our resident *Baking Show* expert, Iain, decided to create his version as a tribute to Iain Watters, a baker with the same name (and spelling!) from Belfast, who competed on season five. Iain W’s dessert, a baked Alaska (also meringue and ice cream based), famously melted. In a dramatic move, he threw it all away and presented the empty trash can to the judges, leading to his elimination. The incident caused quite a stir and became known as #BinGate.

Iain decided to recreate the coffee and chocolate flavor pairing, but with a playful twist: a meringue container. It was a clever and surprisingly self-aware idea. When he presented it, the slightly rough, imperfect look was exactly what he intended. Iain has a talent for creating things that are beautifully messy, so even though his creations aren’t as polished as Tom or Jasmine’s, they always feel successful – like his memorable chocolate stout cake from the first week. However, Paul didn’t like the taste combination. Iain jokingly blamed a previous contestant, Iain W., but everyone agreed it was best to leave that poor soul in the past.

It looked like Iain was about to be eliminated, just like Iain W, until a surprising turn of events! A magical rhubarb appeared from his pocket and announced to Paul and Prue that he had a secret advantage, almost like something out of *Survivor*. Then, this talking rhubarb directed the judges’ attention to Lesley’s vacherin glacé. Unfortunately, Lesley, who had consistently performed well all season, made a rare mistake while making her wedding-cake-inspired dessert – she accidentally switched the amounts of sugar and egg whites. By the time she corrected it and made new meringues, they weren’t fully cooked and were too chewy. While Paul and Prue loved her lemon and basil ice cream and Eton Mess flavors, the flawed meringues led to her elimination. We’ll miss you, Lesley!

Tom faced trouble heading into the last challenge, but a surprising magical rhubarb appeared and gave him the recipe for an incredible dessert: a mushroom-shaped treat with layers of banana ice cream and cake, topped with torched coffee meringue. It was so beautiful and delicious, it saved him from elimination. Aaron also did very well, creating a stunning all-white cake shaped like a nine-tailed Japanese fox spirit – it resembled Halston’s living room if made of ice cream and meringue. However, the judges didn’t enjoy the combination of lemongrass sorbet and stem ginger ice cream, which was an odd pairing – like putting salsa on pancakes.

Jasmine and Toby are competing to be Star Baker. Jasmine, a calm veterinarian, faces off against Toby, who seems to constantly be rushing around. Jasmine presents a beautiful seashell filled with pistachio, strawberry, and chocolate chip ice cream. The judges love the flavors and appearance, but they can’t ignore a large crack running around the edge of the seashell.

Honestly, I was thrilled when Toby was named Star Baker! He had such a good week, and it was clear he was keeping it together – a lot more than Paul was with his critiques, let me tell you! He absolutely decimated one poor baker’s creation, it was tough to watch. His vacherin was inspired by a mango tree his friend has, and it was filled with the most amazing mango sorbet and coconut gelato. The best part? He made it all without any dairy because he’s lactose intolerant! Seriously, they keep giving him challenges with custard and cream… that tent must be a disaster! The dessert itself looked incredible, especially the meringue shaped like a tree – it was probably the prettiest thing anyone made all week. When he called his girlfriend to tell her, I totally teared up. You really root for someone like Toby, seeing him struggle week after week. It was so nice to finally see him have his moment, and he didn’t even need a lucky rhubarb to do it!

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2025-10-17 11:56