Everyone eventually emerges, grabs breakfast at the cafeteria and heads for the Bake Off competition which has been set up by Hilary and the two other organisers, Tom & Becky. They are waiting in the Domestic Science rooms for you to arrive. There is a big room with four cooking sections: work bench with small sink, various equipment, oven and a shel with ingredients. The larger part of the room has tiered seating so people could watch demonstrations.
Each of the four cooking stations has the name of one of the four universities on the front of the workbench. Reading left to right, it says Teeside, York. Durham, Newcastle. So there is a team from each. Each of the contestants are asked togather before their bench.
Teeside's team consists of Carla, Wendy and Natalie Your team is Ian, Emma and Miranda. Durham's team is Russel, Kath and Kayla. Newcastle's team is Sarah, Tony and Ashley
Quite a few of the supporters and competitors have come along to watch and you recognise a number of them particularly Gordon & Linda who look much happier. You are pleased to see Mr Harding and Miss Beech, Ross & Beech, Janine & Penny are attending, presumably to support the York team.
Tom takes control explaining the set up whilst Hilary and Becky demonstrate the equipent, ingredients etc as he refers to them.
"Welcome all. Good to see you all. This is meant to be a bit of fun, so don't get two hung up on trying to achieve Michelin status." He chuckles. "Hopefully though by the end we will have some freshly baked treats to sample along with our tea and coffee at the end. This competition is in three rounds. All ingredients are provided and you can utilise any of the equipment on your benches. The first round challenge will be to bake a cake, any flavour, any decoration. Second round is a technical challenge which will be announced at the start of that round. And the Third round will be to make any kind of dessert. We will allow the contestants a few minutes to decide who will compete in each of the rounds. And I will be talking to each of the contestants about their plans as they cook. Applause is not only encouraged but mandated. You will have 45 minutes for the first round, 25 minutes for the second and an hour for the final round. Any questions?"
She nods. "That's fine with me. Ian, do you want technical or desserts?" Both had some fun opportunities to go with them. It would be fun to see what everyone came up with.
Ian laughs then turns to Emma. "I was thinking a Creme Bruele for dessert. Not sure what they'd require for a Technical competition. Except it might be best if you do that since I muddle my way through most recipes."
The teams have all decided who is doing what and the two competitors for rounds 2 and 3 are directed to some benches set to the side of the cooking area. Those competing in round 1 move to stand by their designated bench.
Miranda looks around to see who is in her round. To her right she recognises Natalie, one of the competitors from Teeside. Looking left, she doesn't recognise the girl there and then at the end is Sarah who she gives a little wave, receiving one in return. Turning towards her team and then to her York supporters, she gives a little closed fist victory sign, though she doesn't look as confident as her signal suggests.
In the audience a hush descends as Tom steps forward. Unsurprisingly the largest section of the audience is Durham's. Not only are they the home team but they also have a mascot on display. It is a large light brown cow with a name tag 'Duncan' hanging around its neck.
"Good luck contestants. You have 45 minutes. Let's bake!"
He clicks the stopwatch he is holding.
Firstly Miranda turns on the oven, then, she adds starts to reach for a number of ingredients. Weighing and adding butter and sugan to her mixing bowl. Whilst the machine slowly churns, she cracks two eggs into a cup and then weighs out some flour. She uis quite focused and does look as if she has done this before.
The other three girls also look organised.
Miranda adds the eggs letting them mix in and then adds the flour a little at a time. Still with the machine on a low setting, she takes two oranges, juicing them and adding athat to the mix, also grating in some zest. Greasing and flouring two small baking tins, she adds have of her mixture to each. Checking the oven which isn't quite there, she gets out a cutting board and sets out a sharp knife and the last two oranges. She also gets out another bowl and a large carton of cream.
Then in goes her cake, and she checks to make sure the oven door is closed properly. Her attention then turns back to her oranges ans she starts to cut small cresent sections carefully.
It is a rough morning for him as he overdid drinking last night, again. Late to the cafeteria, he manages to eat some food along with some aspirin to try and take the edge off of his headache and hangover. He smiles and waves towards Miranda and the York team as they start the bake challenge. He gets a sense that Miranda is not too happy with him at his excessive drinking last night. He can not remember much of it.
His gaze slowly lowers towards the floor as time moves on, his head in a slight bow while he decides to stay sober for the rest of their trip here.
Miranda is intent on her cake. Whilst it is in the oven, she prepares an orange & lemon cream for the middle and the top, whisking it to stiff peaks, and carefully cuts some orange pieces for decoration. She constantly moves to the oven to check on her cakes, enentually happy they have cooked.
Taking them out she leaves them for a moment and then turns them out onto a baking tray to cool. She goes to look for a suitably sized plate, returning to fan her cake halves until they have cooled, constantly checking the clock for time. A little ahead of when she might have liked, she adds the cream to the top of one then carefully lifts the second one on top, carefully letting it softly settle and then adds more of the cream to the top. Time is almost up as she quickly adds some pieces of orange.
Emma cheered at the final result. It looked absolutely amazing. "Miranda, that is a wonderful looking cake... " A look around at the other entries, "It's going to be hard for the judges, but I am sure that it's going your way."
She didn't really appreciate being "petted" by Levon and only allowed a few strokes before she tousled her hair a little. Skye hoped he'd get the hint - though she wasn't too annoyed with him. They had stolen away again after the night of partying. A drunken roll in the hay always made some things more forgivable.
Skye was a bit fascinated by watching the competition. She'd gone through a short phase of watching Iron Chef and shows like that - but it was different to be in person. So much to see in the background and not be limited by a camera. As Miranda finished up her cake, Skye clapped her encouragement along with the others. She also found herself a little hungrier than expected.
Miranda too is encouraged and looks around at the others. She thinks she is in with a chance but it will depend on the tasting.
The three reps step forward.
"Now we are going to taste."
The move to each workspace and cut a small slice of each cake, then dividing it into three, each having a taste. After that they huddle for a few seconds, whispering to each other.
"All the cakes are good but the winner is Miranda for the York team!"
They applaud along with the other contestants. Miranda blushes but looks as pleased as punch.
"If the teams will continue to sit together, they can place their cakes on the shelf at the back for now. Can the first bakers clean their worktops and then swap with the technical round contestants."
There is a bit of shuffling around as this takes place.
"And now for the technical round. You have 25 minutes to produce a savoury omlette. It can have any filling. Good luck!"
Omelette. Right. Emma waved at Miranda as she moved forward and scanned the ingredients. Okay, 25 minutes? The eggs would only take a few to cook, so the prep should be on the filling first. Looking around, she saw the basics, ham, sausage a variety of cheeses... and... ah... some smoked salmon. Okay, Emma knew what she was going to do, a Smoked Salmon and Crème Fraîche omelette.
That would make it stand out, she hoped, from the other entries. She got out the Gruyère and grated what should be enough... and began working quickly and methodically on the inside filling. Finely chopping the chives, dill, and prepping the Crème Fraîche.
She should have enough time... as long as things went smoothly.
When she finished she plated, using a small bit of Crème Fraîche to make a little design on the omelette. The omelette itself was simple, she was counting on the difference for the filling to set her apart more than the loveliness of the finished egg dish.
A big round of applause for Miranda winning, but then Skye leaned over to Leon. "Damn, I thought we'd get to try it too. Now I'm getting hungry." She laughed and then whistled for Emma. "Yay. Go Yorkies!"
By the time Emma completed her omelette, Skye was definitely hungry.
Ian’s nervously stepped up to the stage. He set his focus on a dish that played with deep cacao, bright acid, and subtle, savory earthiness: Chocolate Crème Brûlée paired with a Spiced Blackberry-Sumac Compote and Salted Thyme Shortbread Shards. He started gathering his ingredients knowing that there was a time limit so he started with the one thing he knew would take the most time.
Phase 1: The Shortbread Shards
Ian started with the shortbread to give it ample time to bake and cool into crisp, shatterable sheets.
Cream the Base: In the bowl of his stand mixer, Ian beat ½ cup (1 stick) of unsalted butter (softened to room temperature) with ⅓ cup of powdered sugar and 1 teaspoon of freshly chopped thyme leaves until light and fluffy.
Bring the Dough Together: He sifted in 1 cup of all-purpose flour and ¼ teaspoon of fine sea salt, mixing on low speed just until a cohesive dough formed.
Roll and Chill: He turned the dough out onto a sheet of parchment paper, placed a second sheet on top, and rolled it thin—about ⅛-inch thick. Sliding the rolled dough onto a baking sheet, he chilled it in the refrigerator for 20 minutes to ensure crisp edges.
Bake to Golden Perfection: Ian preheated the oven to 350°F (175°C). He removed the top sheet of parchment, sprinkled the dough with ½ teaspoon of flaky sea salt (pressing it gently into the surface), and baked for 12 to 14 minutes until the edges turned a delicate golden brown.
Cool and Shatter: Once fully cooled on a wire rack, he snapped the sheet into jagged, rustic shards and set them aside.
Phase 2: The Chocolate Crème Brûlée
With the shortbread resting, Ian lowered his oven temperature to 300°F (150°C) and set four shallow 6-ounce ramekins inside a wide roasting pan.
Infuse the Cream: In a heavy saucepan, Ian combined 1½ cups of heavy cream, ½ cup of whole milk, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. He brought the mixture to a low simmer over medium heat, then immediately removed it from the burner.
Melt the Cacao: He stirred in 4 ounces of finely chopped bittersweet chocolate (60–70% cacao), whisking steadily until the chocolate fully melted into a smooth, glossy, velvet cream.
Temper the Eggs: In a separate medium bowl, Ian gently whisked together 5 large egg yolks and ⅓ cup of granulated sugar. He was careful not to whip excess air into the yolks. Slowly, a few tablespoons at a time, he ladled the warm chocolate cream into the egg mixture while whisking constantly to temper the eggs without scrambling them.
Strain and Pour: Ian passed the entire custard through a fine-mesh sieve into a liquid measuring cup to strip out any stray air bubbles or small bits, ensuring a silky finish. He divided the mixture evenly among the four ramekins.
The Water Bath: He placed the roasting pan onto the middle rack of the oven and carefully poured boiling water into the pan until it reached halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
Bake and Chill: Ian baked the custards for 30 to 35 minutes, checking them until the edges were set but the centers still held a gentle, uniform jiggle. He lifted the ramekins out of the water bath, let them cool to room temperature, and transferred them to the refrigerator to set completely for at least 4 hours.
Phase 3: The Spiced Blackberry-Sumac Compote
While the custards set, Ian pulled out a small saucepan to build the bright, tart counterpoint to the rich chocolate.
Simmer the Fruit: He combined 2 cups of fresh blackberries, 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar, 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice, 1 teaspoon of ground sumac, and a small pinch of ground cinnamon over medium heat.
Break Down and Thicken: As the mixture warmed, Ian used the back of a wooden spoon to burst about half of the berries, allowing their juice to blend with the sugar and spices. He brought it to a gentle boil, then reduced the heat to low, letting it simmer for 8 to 10 minutes until the liquid reduced to a glossy syrup wrapping around whole berries.
Finish: He stirred in ½ teaspoon of ground sumac right at the end to keep its citrusy, astringent kick vibrant, then poured the compote into a glass bowl to cool to room temperature.
Phase 4: Assembly and Presentation
When dessert time arrived, Ian gathered his components for the final sequence.
Torch the Sugar: He retrieved the chilled chocolate custards and dusted an even, thin layer of superfine sugar (about 1 teaspoon per ramekin) across the top of each. Using his kitchen torch, held at a steady angle, he swept the flame in slow circles over the surface until the sugar bubbled, darkened, and fused into a deep amber glass.
Garnish: Ian let the caramelized sugar harden for two minutes. He then spooned a vibrant ribbon of the room-temperature Spiced Blackberry-Sumac Compote along one side of the sugar crust.
Plating: He gently pressed a Salted Thyme Shortbread Shard vertically into the compote, letting it stand upright against the side of the ramekin, and finished with a tiny sprinkle of fresh thyme leaves over the berries.
Ian carried the finished ramekin to the table, where the crisp crack of the burnt sugar under a spoon revealed the dense, dark cream below.
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