The Great British Bake Off is easing us all into autumn in trademark cosy style, but it's not been without a few bumps along the way this year.
Earlier this month, Biscuit Week came under fire over a ‘complicated’ challenge that people felt saw bakers ‘messing with a classic’, as contestants were tasked with producing chocolate Hobnobs topped with caramel and feathered chocolate decorations.
Judge Prue Leith admitted the classic recipe had been changed 'just to give them a bit more of a challenge', with many of the bakers struggling with the fiddly extra processes.
This week, the theme was 'Back to School', which meant viewers were treated to a number of nostalgic old favourites from our childhood.
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As well as a summer fête-themed Showstopper, for the Technical challenge, contestants had to cast their minds back to the school cafeteria - specifically, to garish desserts of their youth.
They had to make a 'school cake' and custard using a recipe from Leith, but, once again, all was not quite as it seemed.
"There is a twist," presenter Noel Fielding warned.
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"Headmistress Leith is demanding that you make everything from scratch."
Along with the simple sponge and water icing, the cake was topped with sprinkles, which sounds simple enough to the average amateur baker.
But just when you'd expect our unsuspecting contestants to be reaching for the tub of sprinkles, it turned out they had to make them themselves.
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Just how would you do that, you ask? Well, that's a very good question.
“I’m not saying that Bake Off has gone too far but making them make sprinkles is the most ridiculous thing they’ve ever made contestants do," one fan fumed.
Another echoed: “Making sprinkles from scratch seems like a punishment.”
A third added: “Next week on [Bake Off] they'll be smelting iron ore to make their own baking trays. Making sprinkles, honestly.”
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Others admitted they were surprised to learn you could actually 'make sprinkles', with one commenting: "I thought they just appeared on the shelves at Tesco.”I mean, fair.
If you're daft enough to recreate the recipe at home, you can find out how to make sprinkles using the recipe here. However, be warned that it involves whisking egg whites with icing sugar, dividing it into five bowls to colour each a different shade, piping individual straight lines onto a baking sheet and leaving to dry, and THEN popping them in an oven that's just been used, before cutting them into individual shapes.
if I were you, I'd just pop round to the shops...
Topics: TV and Film
Jess Hardiman