It’s tart week today as the remaining seven contestants prepare for another week of competition and another looming elimination.
Their signature bake is first. They will have to create their own ‘tarte tatin’. They have two and a half hours to create their signature tarte tatin. Monique is doing just a classic apple tarte tatin. Her name is French after all! Dan Leppard thinks it will be a challenge for her. Brendan is having a bit too much fun with his tarte tatin. Let’s just say, he uses pineapples for boobs! Julie is not happy.
Apparently it’s forty degrees in the marquee today! Eep! They’re really hammering in the contestant’s personalities this episode as Jonathan practices his karate moves. Nancy is doing a rum spiced caramel tart. Jonathan is doing a Georgian inspired Lamb tarte tatin. He is the only one attempting a savoury tarte.
The contestants begin their caramelising and some of the contestants are annoyed at shifty Brendan trying to copy their techniques.
The heat is also messing with some contestant’s pastry. Hopefully not too much! Maria is doing a jackfruit and banana tarte tatin. Sounds interesting.
As the contestants begin baking, the threat of ‘soggy bottoms’ becomes real! Brendan finishes really quickly and his tarte looks great! Some of the contestants are jealous!
Last part of the challenge is to FLIP the tarts. Most of them flip well. Julie’s is a little sloppy. It’s time for judging.
First up is Maria’s banana tart. Maria and Kerry argue as to whether or not her bananas are burnt or caramelised. She has a bit of a boggy bottom but her jackfruits taste nice.
Julie’s banana and pineapple tart is next and Kerry likes her flavour but wishes it was pulled together better. Jonathan’s lamb tart is next. The crispness of the pastry is a hit and Kerry thinks the tart is great.
Brendan’s peppered pineapple is next. The pineapple is tough and the flavour is thin. The caramel isn’t crash hot either. Mark’s apple, raisin and almond tart is fifth. The skin doesn’t work and the raisins are branded a waste of time. Nancy’s rum spiced caramel tart is next. It is a bit wet and the pineapple is tough.
Monique’s apple tarte tatin is last. The apple is perfectly cooked and Kerry loves it. Seems like a star performer here!
Jonathan and Monique are ‘on the rise’ while Brendan, Nancy and Mark are not doing as well.
The technical bake is next. The temperature rises too much so the challenge is delayed. The next day is a little cooler, so the technical bake begins.
This is a blind tasting, so no judges in this round. Their challenge is a quiche Lorraine. They have two and a half hours. They will have only part of the recipe.
Again, Brendan is pretty relaxed about this. Monique is too, but at least she had good reviews yesterday!
Seems Brendan and Jonathan have a bit of a feud going on as they argue over cheese. Monique already promises a soggy bottom due to a lack of time. Maria makes a mistake by over seasoning. Meanwhile, Brendan and Jonathan continue to argue.
As the quiches come out, there are a few niggly errors, but nothing big. Time is up and the blind tasting begins.
First up is Monique’s bake. It’s a bit sloppy with seepage and the judges aren’t happy. The flavours aren’t good either. Jonathan’s is overdone and is a bit too dark. Brendan’s pastry is applauded but it is a bit messy. The bacon is too large. Julie’s colour is quite dark but the pastry is good the filling is also fantastic. The base isn’t good. Mark’s quiche is bottom heavy and could have had good potential.
Maria’s is very salty. Nancy’s bottom is definitely NOT soggy. It’s a hit however there’s another salt overload. In order from worst to best are Monique, Maria, Julia, Mark, Nancy, Jonathan and Brendan. Seems like the cheese won it for him.
It’s now time for the showstopper. They have to produce miniature tarts- six chocolate and six fruit. They have three and a half hours. Maria is doing a lemon and vanilla tart for her fruit varieties. She is doing a white chocolate and mango tart for her chocolate ones. Mark is doing Nectarine & Lemongrass tartlets while his chocolate varieties are of a chocolate cream nature.
Nancy is doing chocolate marshmallow tarts and coconut & orange liqueur tarts. Brendan is doing passionfruit cream tarts with toffied macadamias and chocolate tarts with raspberries and mint. Jonathan is doing chocolate tarts with hazelnut frangipane and lychee tarts with macadamia praline.
Monique is doing strawberry cream tarts with salted caramel & chocolate tarts. Julie is doing passionfruit mango tarts and peanut butter chocolate tarts. She can’t get her curd mixture thick enough.
Brendan is now making his Ganache but it is behind time and may not set well enough. He has five minutes left!
It’s soon time for tasting as more effort is put into the plating than the bloody tarts! Monique is first and the pastry is good however her custard in her fruit tart is slightly gummy. The chocolate tart is a massive hit to Kerry.
Brendan is next and the presentation is bad. His fillings are applauded. Mark is next and his presentation is slammed. What the hell? Just taste the bloody tart! Reviews are mixed.
Nancy is fourth. The pastry is no good but the flavours are superb according to Dan. Jonathan is next and Kerry wanted better presentation skills. The flavours of the tarts are good but the chocolate Ganache is a bit hard.
Penultimate taste is for Julie’s tarts and the presentation is bland. The curd is not the best. This drives her crazy- causing Shane to take the knives away.
Maria is last and the presentation is applauded, the pastry is perfect and the filling is great! She should have used fewer ingredients.
It’s now time for the results. The star baker this week is… Jonathan.
The person going home is… Mark.
