After last weeks episode this week seems a little muted.  Not only have we lost Diana at the start (from an injury unrelated to the show), but two time star baker Richard had a poor week, and the youngest baker Martha had a really emotionally time.  Other than the custard tarts the boyfriend is not keen on this weeks challenges, he even asked if I would do the showstopper instead….Three tiered pie (only if they were savoury)!

Signature bake – A Family Sized Custard Tart
There were some interesting flavour combinations going on with this weeks tarts, the main one that stood out for me was Chetna’s.  Rice in a custard tart, that’s new! It was just a shame that her flavours weren’t strong enough to make an impact, the presentation was beautiful though.  One of the technical challenges last year were custard tarts, and that was the first time I had made them.  They were smaller, and could have been baked a little longer, so I’m looking forward to improving on the skill.  The main thing to remember, according to Paul, is that the tart needs to have good textures, crispy pastry and a silky custard.

Key Points:

1. Don’t work the pastry too much otherwise you’ll end up with it being tough chewy rather than crispy and melt in your mouth.
2. If adding fruit puree to the custard, be careful as to the quantity of eggs to liquid. It needs to be correct so that the custard still sets in the oven.

I have few ideas in mind for this.  I’m taking my inspiration from a roasted fruit breakfast I once saw on a programme from Nigella Lawson.  Its got an amazing subtle flavour from the orange flower water. I’ve got to make that stay present and not get lost with the other flavours, without it being over powering. It’ll definitely require some creative thinking!

Technical Challenge – Mini Pear Pies
Other than this weeks challenge I will side with Louis on this and I won’t be wrapping fruit in pastry any time soon.  I’ll agree they did look impressive once they were done, but I am not the biggest fan of pears, I simply don’t like their graininess.  I have however poached pears before, as a sweet accompaniment for cheese and oat crackers. Now these almost turned me, I just didn’t have enough cheese to mask the grainy texture! The last time I made puff pastry it was far to warm. Although I took my time, everything including the cold pie filling was just too warm and there was not much puff in the layers.

Key Points:

1. The pastry must be well chilled between each rolling out and folding
2. The pear must cool down before attempting to wrap the pastry around it.
3. Coat the cold pear with poaching liquor to act a glue for the pastry

The main question to consider is, do I try to do this within the 2 hour time frame as on the show?

Showstopper challenge – Three Tiered Pie
I do not envy the bakers this challenge. Hotwater pastry, its great, strong and crispy, but can be a pain to make and you almost burn your hands doing so! The benefit of using this pastry is that you can put every thing in the pie raw and cook it all in the oven. It was good to see Chetna get her groove back with this last challenge, it shows that sometimes you should trust in what you know!

My Favourites this episode:

1. Yippee, finally Kate has been awarded Star baker.  Her tart may not have been particularly strong with the flavour of Rhubarb, but it definitely looked impressive.
2. Nancy was definitely brave this week. She didn’t let Paul shake here with the shallowness of her tart and with choosing to do hand raised pies, that takes guts!.
3. Louis had another good week, almost faultless.  It is bad that I’m getting bored of his success?

Sadly it was Normans times to go this week, and there was no amount of fancy french accent or scottish poetry that was going to save him. Paul even gave him a big pointer as to what he was expecting to see from his tart, only to be disappointed with Norman’s offering. And lets not even mention the lavender Meringue!

This weekend, I’m going to be faced with an extra challenge. I will doing my baking in a different kitchen.  I’m visiting my parents, but they are in the middle of having their kitchen refurbished and only have a camping stove and a microwave! Instead I will be relying not he charity of their friendly next door neighbour.  On the plus side, it means there will be more mouths to feed and less pears for me!