Colossal croissants and underdone iced fingers proved to be Janet’s downfall in the Great British Bake Off Semi Final.
“Can I just say I’ve had a great time,” gushed the humble baker after learning her fate. “Thanks to everyone for your generosity, your kindness and everything.”
Despite taking a risk in the opening Signature Bake Challenge by using a shortbread base, Janet’s Chocolate Amaretto Mousse Cake was praised by the judges, with Paul Hollywood stating that “it tastes lovely”. Mary Berry felt that another layer of sponge was called for, but staunchly approved of the shortbread.
However, the Technical Challenge of Iced Fingers saw Janet fall down the pecking order – with a suitably icy reception for her bake. The judges were united in their criticism, as Paul said “it needed another couple of minutes” and Mary pointing out that it was “not quite done at the bottom”.
“Obviously I’m going to have to pull out all the stops tomorrow,” proclaimed Janet ahead of the Final Challenge, which involved making a selection of pastries from the same dough. Alas, her concoctions were too large for life, leading Paul to quip that they were like something from ‘Land Of The Giants’.
Janet admitted that her croissants had “proven to be a disaster” even before the judges attempted to tackle the portly pastries. Although they were praised for their taste and texture, Paul summed it up by saying: “That’s purely your downfall – the shape.”
All four semi-finalists were strongly commended for their sterling efforts with their pastry baking, but Janet’s efforts were not enough to keep her in the competition. Nonetheless, she left with a smile on her face and was rightly proud of her baking throughout the series…