A brand-new group of kid bakers introduce themselves via delicious "Selfieclairs"! Using a selfie as inspiration, the bakers create eclairs in assigned flavors and then decorate them to serve as a pate a choux pastry introduction.
Valerie Bertinelli and Duff Goldman have fond memories of the lunches they took to school as kids, so they're challenging the six kid bakers to look at lunch in a new way. From a PBJ sandwich to chicken nuggets to a turkey wrap, the bakers have to turn common lunchbox foods into lookalike dessert masterpieces.
It's school spirit day, and the theme is tie-dye! Valerie Bertinelli and Duff Goldman challenge the kid bakers to make tie-dyed doughnuts and ice cream with two different flavored swirls. It's a lot of color, a lot of flavors and a lot of fun as the four remaining bakers compete for the three spots in the finale. When the day is done, one baker will go home.
Hosts and judges Duff Goldman and Kardea Brown have noticed that a particular dessert can be easily shaped into animals like a turtle, a panda or a frog ... but the dessert itself can be tricky. So, for the macaron animals challenge, Duff shows the kid bakers how to create a silky smooth macaron batter before baking time starts. Then, since the animal macarons need a place to rest, the bakers must give their animals an edible habitat to hang out in.
There is one event that is the staple of any baking business, and it keeps Duff busy all year round -- birthdays! In order to find out which flavor they’ll be making, the kid bakers must record a commercial for their baking business and sell Valerie Bertinelli and Duff Goldman on why they'd make a great birthday cake. The top commercial maker will assign the flavors, and the best young baker wins $25,000 and the title of Kids Baking Champion!
It's every kid's favorite part of the school day -- recess! And what would recess be without the timeless game of hopscotch? Valerie Bertinelli and Duff Goldman ask the kid bakers to honor this classic game by making blondie hopscotch puzzles! Whose blondies will be hopping into Duff and Val's hearts and who will be hopping home?
With spring and summer approaching, Valerie Bertinelli and Duff Goldman are reminded of their favorite place to hang out -- the beach! To earn a place in the finale, the remaining four kid bakers are challenged to create a cereal treat sand castle filled with two different baked goods.
Creativity is the name of the game, and Duff Goldman and Valerie Bertinelli have a classic combination in mind -- cake and ice cream! They challenge the nine kid bakers to take new and creative approaches, like ice cream cone drip cakes, to their cake and ice cream desserts.
As any business owner knows, sales trends change all the time, and you have to keep up. In this cupcake challenge Valerie Bertinelli and Duff Goldman assign each baker a cupcake flavor that reflects current market popularity, including snickerdoodle, s'mores, PB&J, strawberry lemonade, cinnamon toast and peanut butter chocolate. Then in a super-sized twist, each baker must pair up with their neighbor to create a new cupcake that will predict a trendy flavor in the future. When the flour settles, one baker is eliminated.
It's no secret that Valerie Bertinelli loves lemon, but Duff Goldman's favorite ingredient is revealed in this season's kick-off challenge -- bacon cupcakes! Each of the 12 young bakers must make a cupcake featuring bacon and an assigned ingredient like maple, chocolate or cherry.