Great Chocolate Showdown was back for episode 2 of the third season and it was a mess. There was ice cream involved so, of course, it was messy! But the most shocking part of the whole episode wasn’t what the bakers made, it was who was sent home.
The episode started off with the nine remaining bakers watching as pastry chef and judge Anna Olson demonstrated how to make choux pastry. It’s the type of dough used to make eclairs and cream puffs.
Once they watched her do it, she then challenged them to make their own version. They simply had to make their choux into any shape they wanted and make a filling for it as well.
The shapes ranged from airplanes and butterflies to clouds and planets. They all looked incredibly delicious (especially the clouds and the butterflies). But like last week, the judges were only going to taste six of the creations. And based on those six, they would pick three bakers who had immunity.
Great Chocolate Showdown was all about choux and ice cream this week
This week, those three bakers were Evan, Lexi, and Connie. But it wasn’t just immunity that was up for grabs; it was also the Golden Whisk. With that whisk, a baker could use it to save themselves or another baker. And the person who won it was…Lexi!
Onto the elimination challenge! The rest of the bakers had to pick a dessert and use it to make an ice cream sandwich. The items included waffles, brownies, coconut macaroons, pretzels, donuts, and cinnamon rolls. They could make whatever ice cream they wanted, it just had to taste good.
This is when things got messy. Ice cream is notorious for being the worst when it comes to cooking competition shows. There are six ovens running on top of the studio lights. That does not make for a cool environment.
The time limit was also a big factor. Because he started on his ice cream first, Shyam didn’t give his cinnamon rolls enough time to rest. Amber also had time and technique issues with her pretzels.
But someone did come out on top and this week, it was Maile! She made the most amazing waffle ice cream sandwiches. I would like one (or five) of them. They looked so delicious.
As for who went home, Shyam and Amber were in the bottom two, and in a shocking reveal (and in my opinion, a miscarriage of justice!), Shyam was the one sent home (and Lexi did not use the Golden Whisk to save him).
Considering how well he did before this challenge, it was very surprising that they sent him home. Especially with how Amber’s choux paste turned out in the technique challenge.
Next week, the remaining eight bakers will have to make a chocolate creation that contains both salt water taffy and hardy candy and they’ll have to make a chocolate dessert that features a vegetable.
What did you think of this week’s episode of Great Chocolate Showdown? Let us know in the comments below!