20 Extraordinary Creations From 'Harry Potter: Wizards of Baking'

Remember the scene from Chamber of Secrets where you had to cover your ears as a kid? Angel Figueroa and Rui Mota do, and they made sure to give the judges earmuffs before their edible mandrakes wailed them to victory. Rui, who specializes in molecular gastronomy and gastrophysics, may be a man of science, but his and Angel’s culinary creations are pure wizardry.

One of Season 2’s most iconic duos, Jujhar Mann and Katie Bonzer, kicked off their Wizards of Baking stint with a model of the Dark Lord himself. The striking sense of motion appeared from the precise folds in He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named’s cape, and the detailed texture in the spiral of water was made with a base of isomalt and cotton candy dusting.

With a finals appearance on the line, Jordan Pilarski and Zoë Burmester stunned the judges with their chocolate ode to the Time-Turner for their visit to Dumbledore’s office. The initial awe came from the clocklike movement, but with the flip of a switch, a secret stash of sherbert lemons with a white chocolate and cocoa butter shell, stuffed with frangapine, cherry confit and cherry mousse, appeared. It’s only fitting that the headmaster would have his favorite sweet (and office password) on hand.

The Diagon Alley challenge in Season 1 had contestants re-creating an assigned business from the wizard equivalent of Rodeo Drive. The twist? They had to accommodate 50 Harry Potter superfans with a handheld treat. Each of Jordan and Zoë’s self-opening books held nine edible minibooks. Fun fact: their combined page count is still less than Order of the Phoenix.

For the Season 1 Tunnels and Carts challenge, Lisa Reyes and Mitzi Altfest crafted a chocolatey homage to the escape from Gringotts. With candy treasures spilling down the tracks, the base is a cave made of — you guessed it — cake.

Tearing through an enchanting purple cloud, Jujhar and Katie’s replica of Hagrid’s motorbike rises and dips as any soaring motorcycle would. Every aspect of this cake was crafted with immense detail: the coloring of the smoke, the chrome detailing on the bike and the texturized rubber wheels.

Every young Potterhead has had a nightmare where blue Cornish pixies took over their Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. The only way to overcome that fear is by seeing them in cake form. Molly Robbins and Priya Winsor expertly re-created the motion of their mayhem by suspending the pixies from an edible chandelier, while giving each a distinct personality.

No one associates cake with a trip to the restroom — until they see Jenny Chambers and Alex Madrigal’s edible replica of the Whitehall Underground Public Toilets. With the pull of a chain, the toilet flushes the emerging arm and uncovers a classic Victorian sponge cake with an almond twist.

Jujhar and Bonzer continued their hot streak with a supersized Death Eater mask. The light-up eyes beamed Slytherin green through a fog of dry ice, with a snake emerging from each eye. The nose was made of a toasted cake with apple chutney, sourdough crunch and torched Swiss meringue buttercream.

In a classic game of deception, the bakers were tasked with creating hyperrealistic models of an array of items unique to specific characters. Jujhar and Katie chose the Weasley twins’ collection of sweaters and trinkets. Their love potion bottle and Quidditch beater’s bats were so accurate that the judges were certain the Screaming Yo-Yo box and Extendable Ears were chocolate (they weren’t).

Ribbits aside, we’ve all wanted to try a chocolate frog. You can order a normal-sized one here, but it’s nothing compared to the jumbo chocolate frog that secured Jenny and Alex a victory in Season 2, Episode 4. The detailed facial features earned them abundant praise from the judges, but what really stunned them were the curry chocolate eyes with roasted peanut nougat.

In the Season 2 premiere, the eight teams were each tasked with a specific house to honor via cake. Molly and Priya’s Hufflepuff display perfectly embodied the whimsical and curious nature of the house with its badger mascot’s adventure into the woods. Hufflepuffs don’t always get the respect they deserve, but Molly and Priya progressing to the next challenge was a victory for Hufflepuffs everywhere.

The final cake that secured Jordan and Zoë the title of “Wizards of Baking” in Season 1 was a two-in-one event of the Yule Ball and Christmas feast. Magic was on full display with moving ornaments, hyperrealistic chocolate fruits and vegetables, and an indoor blizzard of sugar. The gaze of childlike wonder in the judges’ eyes was proof that you’re never too old for a trip to Hogwarts.

The bane of every fifth-year wizard’s existence is the O.W.L. exams. But a prank pulled by our favorite twin hosts left the evil Umbridge in shock and gave Elizabeth Rowe and Juan Gutierrez inspiration for their Season 1 finale cake. The re-creation of the firework sequence was complete with a dragon head that knocked down a wall full of posters as their mini Umbridge was chased out of the cake.

Nothing screams “Hogwarts” like a magical painting capable of screaming the word “Hogwarts.” They weren’t able to create a talking portrait, but Miko Kaw Hok Uy and Chris Teixeira did make an edible optical illusion that showed both Dumbledore and Professor Snape, depending on the viewer’s angle.

Inspired by the zaniest Ravenclaw, Lisa and Mitzi’s salute to Luna Lovegood had all the personality and quirk of the beloved witch. The re-creation of her trunk had her signature shoes, scarf and an edible copy of her father’s magazine, The Quibbler. The real magic was in her Spectrespecs, which reveal a hidden (and delicious) message.

Fresh out of the Prisoner of Azkaban, Miko and Chris’ Dementor is a beautifully haunting visit to the Forbidden Forest. They used cotton candy clouds to create a floating effect for the chocolate fabric Dementor. With the help of Miko’s butterfly Patronus, the two took home the gold for the Season 1 Forbidden Forest challenge.

When the Weasley twins task you with creating an edible homage to their store, there’s no margin for error. But under the self-lifting hat, a pair of multisensory wares unearthed themselves — and awe from the judges. The Screaming Yo-Yo and chattering teeth made for the perfect bite-sized treats for the 50 Potterheads in attendance.

In the Season 2 finale, the reigning champs pulled out all the stops with their bubbling Prefects’ Bathroom (the second bathroom cake of the season). The chocolate faucets and pipes elevated out of the isomalt water, along with a Golden Egg replica that rose to the top of the surface of the fountain, complete with the sounds of merpeople.