Zoë and Jordan Open Up About Their Return to 'Wizards of Baking'

Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking has been full of magical twists and turns, but during Episode 4, hosts James and Oliver Phelps (also known as the Weasley twins) revealed a shocking surprise that left the Season 2 bakers reeling.

Out of the fireplace and into the kitchen stepped cake artist Zoë Burmester and executive pastry chef Jordan Pilarski, the winning duo from Season 1.

"My first thought was, they're here to judge us. They're the guest judges," said Jenny Chambers, a cake artist and friend of Zoë's. (Jenny adopted Zoë's cat when she moved to New York.)

Once the bakers realized Zoë and Jordan had actually joined the competition to defend their title, the collective reaction was an audible and cohesive, "Oh, noooo!"

"I'm genuinely shocked," said executive pastry chef and Season 2 competitor Stefan Rose.

Of course, their return called for a supersized baking challenge — which James and Oliver promptly gave them. (Stream Season 4, Episode 2 on HBO Max to see it for yourself.)

Zoë and Jordan on Coming Back for Season 2

Food Network: What was your reaction when you got the call about coming back?

Zoë: The opportunity to be part of a show like this once in a lifetime is a huge thing. To be asked to be involved twice …

Jordan: Can't really say no, huh?

Zoë: It's calling, and we're not necessarily sure why, but we're here.

Food Network: How confident are you that you can take the cup for the second year in a row?

Jordan: Being as competitive as I am, I'm confident we can take it home again. There's going to be a lot of trials and tribulations and just hard work, but we did it once — so why not? Why can't we do it again?

Zoë: I love your confidence.

Food Network: Do you think it's an advantage or disadvantage that you’re entering the competition so late in the game?

Jordan: I think there's plenty of advantages. We've been through the gauntlet. We know the kitchen.

Zoë: We're a little seasoned, I suppose — to use a chef-y term.

Jordan: We know a lot of things and the processes, but there's also a lot of disadvantages.

Zoë: We're coming into a group that's already bonded, who are already up to speed, who are already in the rhythm — who already have a sense of what the competition is like and what the judges are looking for this time. We're coming in cold. We're also coming in as a complete and utter shock and surprise.

Food Network: Have you trained knowing you'll be coming back?

Zoë: Let's be real, you can't train for some like Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking. There is no real way to prepare for doing a Harry Potter challenge at Warner Bros. Studios. That happens in the moment.

Food Network: What do you think you'll do differently this time?

Zoë: I want to make sure I push myself even more than I did last time — push myself with my flavors; with how I conceive ideas … so that I can show [judges] Jozef [Youssef] and Carla [Hall] that we've grown as a team.

Jordan: I want to be a little bit more aware of my surroundings and what we're doing … I think in turn that's going to help conceptually with what we do and how we do it.

Have the stakes of the entire Season 2 competition just risen? Absolutely. Are we mad that we get to watch all the drama unfold? Absolutely not.

How to Watch Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking

Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking airs on Food Network Sunday nights at 8|7c. Stream all seasons and past episodes on discovery+ and HBO Max.