Holiday Baking Championship season 10 premieres

Holiday Baking Championship is back for season 10, which means the holidays are just around the corner. Jesse Palmer is back as host (with as many puns as ever), and Carla Hall, Duff Goldman, and Nancy Fuller are back as .judges. The new part is the group of bakers.

For the first Pre-Heat challenge of the season, the bakers were tasked with making coffee-drink-inspired rolls. They had to choose a specific type of fall drink and then make sweet rolls with those flavors. The options included mocha coconut drinks, cold brews, pistachio coffee drinks, and so much more. And quite a few of the bakers pulled out all the stops. Javier, Kevin, Ashley, and Sharrod had some of the judge’s favorites.

Sharrod made a chocolate coconut babka-inspired roll that I would happily eat five of. It looked ridiculously good! But, it was Ashley who won the Pre-Heat.

For the elimination challenge, the bakers had to make fall-inspired yule logs! And with Ashley winning the first challenge, she was able to pick her cake flavor and no one else could choose it. She chose pumpkin.

Holiday Baking Championship season 10 starts with cinnamon and Swiss rolls

Oh, and of course, there was a twist. The bakers also had to make toffee to give some crunch to their yule log/swiss roll.

Since the rest of the bakers couldn’t use pumpkin, they chose flavors like chocolate and peanut butter, sweet potato, cinnamon, spice, and apple pie.

This was a stressful challenge, and not just for me who breaks out in a cold sweat anytime someone starts rolling cake. Cakes broke, nuts burned, toffee burned, and the pressure of the kitchen took over.

There were a few of the bakers who were definitely feeling the stress, and it felt much more stressful than the last seasons have. Hopefully, that will dissipate as this season goes on.

So who came out on top? That was Kevin! He really showed his skills this week. And who went home? That was Ali. While she did okay in the first challenge, she simply made too many mistakes in the elimination challenge.

Next week, the bakers will be making turkey dome desserts (complete with edible feathers and heads) and mini Thanksgiving table cakes.

What did you think of this first episode of Holiday Baking Championship season 10? Make sure to stay tuned to Guilty Eats for all the latest food TV news!