Halloween Baking Championship Season 10 episode 5 recap: Twisters and witch’s ooze

While it might be 85 years since Dorthy blew her way into Oz, the bakers are looking for their own yellow brick road to victory. In Halloween Baking Championship Season 10 episode 5, one baker fell prey to a witch’s spell. The ooze proved to be one baker’s elimination downfall .

After four episodes, the separation between top bakers is starting to become more apparent. Aaron, Thierry, and Joel have impressed the judges time and again. While each one has had mis-steps, they have been towards the top in most challenges.

Even though the top bakers might bask in the praise, those high moments can turn sour quickly. Unless a baker has immunity, moving into the next round is not a guarantee. A favorite baker can be sent to the cryochamber.

For the Halloween Baking Championship Season 10 episode 5 Thriller Challenge, the bakers had to channel the tornado from Wizard of Oz. While a dessert cyclone might not typically be on the menu, one dessert had a flavor that all the judges would order time and again.

Unfortunately, Hollie had a huge dessert disaster. Her entremets did not set. She plated a flood, not a tornado. Even though the flavor was tasty, the appearance could not be overlooked.

Overall, the Thriller desserts seemed to either tasted great or impressed visually. It was not necessarily both items. Aaron’s dessert has creative use of color with the sepia inspired design, but the curd was too loose. Thierry had a great spun tornado, but there was no texture with his dessert.

Earning the Thriller Challenge win and immunity was Manny. Even though his visual needed some help, the flavor of his bourbon pecan tart blew past all the other desserts. The tart’s crust was lovely. More importantly, the filling has a robust flavor and a perfect gooey texture.

With immunity, John Henson reminds Manny to swing for the fences. Since the semifinals are quickly approaching, immunity and its safety might disappear soon. It is time to take advantage of that benefit.

In the Halloween Baking Championship Season 10 episode 5 Killer Challenge, the bakers had to create oozing witch desserts. They could choose any flavor and interpret the witch and ooze however they liked. The diversity of the desserts was tremendous.

The countdown to meltdown seemed to have everyone on edge. Even though the bakers should be finding their stride, these witches cast a nasty spell in the kitchen.

The top bakers were quite clear. Joel and Aaron turned the witch’s ooze dessert into the caramel apple showdown. Both desserts were visually impressive and well balanced.

Aaron find a way to bring the scary. While his caramelized ginger apple cheesecake was well balanced, it was the creepy image that captivated the judges. They appreciated his willingness to embrace the darker side.

Joel used all the techniques in his dessert. While the caramel apple torte had lovely flavor, it was the movement in the design that was visually impressive. In this dessert, Joel was able to focus his design. The seamless connection between sugar, chocolate, and dessert earned Joel the win.

Unfortunately, the bottom bakers were surprising. Thierry and Hollie were up for elimination.

Hollie had a creepy witch design, but it needed a hat to identify it as a witch. Additionally, her cake was oversoaked. The flavor was nice, but the sponge was almost melting.

Thierry had multiple mistakes. While he used many techniques, his witch’s design was muddled not intentional. More importantly, his key lime flavor was way too tart. Carla Hall might love a good pucker, but this flavor was too extreme even for her.

Given his flavor mistake, Thierry was eliminated. The Halloween Baking Championship favorite was frozen out of winning the title.

Could another favorite be sent to the cryo-chamber next week? Be sure to watch the new episode Monday night at 9 p.m. on Food Network. Episodes can be streamed the next day on MAX.