After a King’s day and night that got out of hand and a sleepover at R. in Rotterdam for several days, I’m happy when I settle down on my own couch again on Saturday evening. Kat K. lies purring contentedly at the feet of my ever-enthusiastic friend K., who needed little persuasion for her All of Holland Bakt– defloration tonight. I celebrated Prince Pils’ birthday under the guise of ‘form over function’, so dressing up was not an option. The result: I cough a lung on my lap every fifteen minutes. K. is an extremely caring type and makes tea with honey. Together with cat K. she makes a liquid snack soldier. When everyone is fed and hydrated, I use my last bit of lifting power to open the NPO app on my smart TV. Did someone say semi-finals there?
Bernese Mountain Dog Incarnate
The theme of episode seven is Easter. When I think of Easter, my brain fills with visions of caramel sea salt eggs, Easter bunnies tens of centimeters high of cheap, but oh so delicious chocolate and those sugared cookies from Bolletje. The production of All of Holland Bakt paints a different picture, namely that of Easter bread. A shame, but I still have good hopes for the spectacle round. Zeinab turns out to be half Kazakh and makes three small Russian Easter loaves: kulichi. Both Janny and Robèrt (K.: “That man looks so friendly, a kind of Bernese Mountain dog incarnate.”) agree that with her ‘super soft, cake-like dough’ she has made a ‘very successful’ attempt. did. Tom’s ‘tasty, spicy, just right’ Easter babka looks beautiful and makes Janny happy too – great score. Marieke’s ‘victory bread’ is not entirely a winner, but is nevertheless ‘good in taste’, says Janny. Surprisingly enough, the ‘Italian peace nest’ by two-time master baker Enzo can count on little praise. Next round better. Oh no, because then almost everyone fails.
Dead inside
The Tech Round: An Easter Lawyer Pie. Bonus points if you can say the last three times in quick succession. What exactly is a lawyer and how you make it, not all bakers have decided yet. “A yellow substance with alcohol that tastes quite strong”, Tom recalls. “I know what it looks like and that there is egg in it,” Enzo says. Marieke has made it once. Mariekepedia, to which André has renamed her, is therefore asked several times for advice. And she’s not afraid to give it to her competitors. The sweetheart. “Enzo is not a danger to me, he is in the final anyway,” she argues. “And it’s a sweetheart too.” Marieke’s advice can reassure him to some extent – until about twenty minutes before the deadline for the Easter eggnog cake and accompanying marzipan chicks. “I’m dying inside,” he says with a nervous smile, before quickly recovering. “But I also built all of Downtown Abbey in fifteen minutes.” He is referring to his impressive spectacle from an earlier episode. “What a birth, boys”, says Zeinab when the final signal sounds.
Blind finches in all of Holland bakes
Time for the assessment. Zeinab gave birth to an almost perfect baking. Marieke’s lawyer is a bit too warm, her buttercream too grainy. However, her dough and almond paste are fine. Janny suspects that Enzo’s nest has ended up in an Easter storm: it lacks branches and the chicks have no eyes. “Maybe they are blind finches”, André suggests. Tom’s chicks also have separate viewers. With such huge caps I would have diagnosed them with a thyroid or drug problem. But: “The buttercream is beautifully soft. Just like cake”, says a satisfied Robèrt. Zeinab wins this round. Enzo takes last place. “It was a bit of a ‘far from my nest’ show.” His pun is well above average.
All of Holland bakes chatterboxes
During the spectacle round, the bakers can give their creativity free rein. The basis must be a cake, in the Easter theme – they’ll just figure it out. Enzo is mainly busy telling what he is going to make: a vegan cassata siciliana. “Enzo, you talk too much. You won’t be able to finish it soon,” warns Zeinab. “That used to be on my report card: Enzo is doing well at school, but chats too much,” he says with his trademark grin, which has actually been on his face all season. Marieke makes a second attempt with a lawyer. The end result looks good, but her ‘Frothy Easter Egg’ isn’t enough for a spot in the final. “I already saw it coming. But it was super cool. Really, really super cool. Of course I regret it, absolutely. But I give it to the three of them, they have earned it. I have to make do with this, but I’m super happy.” She doesn’t lie: you can see it from head to toe. For the first time, it is Tom who is crowned master baker. “I wanted to try to make it difficult for Enzo and Zeinab, but I didn’t know if it was possible. This weekend I proved it,” he says with his endearing Belgian accent. Will he still be fried during the grand finale next week?