Did The Great British Baking Show “Biscuit Week” crown the right Star Baker? Sure, we’re only two weeks into this 2023 season of the Netflix import, but we’ve already got opinions on which bakers are our favorites, which are underrated, and which should have gotten the boot. But while we can totally understand the judges’ thinking sending sweet Keith Barron home, Josh Smalley‘s spectacular, Hollywood Handshake-earning Showstopper seemed to make him a shoo-in for Star Baker. Except that’s not what happened. Tasha Stones took home the honor of Star Baker on The Great British Baking Show “Biscuit Week” on Netflix.
Did Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith make the right call? Even Tasha was shocked that she edged out Josh’s incredible dessert, complete with ingenious biscuit tomatoes! Did Josh deserve to win Star Baker purely on the grounds of his instantly iconic Showstopper? Or did Tasha deserve Star Baker on The Great British Baking Show “Biscuit Week”?
One of the nicest things about this season of The Great British Baking Show so far is that it really does feel like the producers are keeping their promise to simplify the challenges. For “Biscuit Week,” the bakers were first asked to present their take on a marshmallow biscuit before tackling Custard Creams for the Technical. The Showstopper Challenge tasked them with making an illusion biscuit display inspired by their favorite savory meals.
Heading into the Showstopper, Tasha had shown brightest in the Signature Challenge, earning the season’s first Hollywood Handshake. Last week’s Star Baker Dan Cazador and early favorite Abbi Lawson aced the Technical Challenge, while Keith and Nicky Laceby appeared to be in trouble. Tasha continued to dazzle Paul and Prue in the Showstopper Challenge, crafting a delicious and divine biscuit display designed to mimic the look of a traditional Japanese katsu dish. Keith and Nicky? Well, they both struggled with the quality of their bakes and the aesthetics.
However one baker blew everyone else away this week. Like others in the tent, Josh assembled a burger and fries-inspired Showstopper. The difference was his flavors were sublime, his design absolute perfection, and he dazzled everyone with his inventive tomato biscuits. While Keith’s tomato biscuits were just simple red cookies with a few errant blobs of beige on top — good on him for joking that’s how tomatoes just grow in the South Coast! — Josh had melted Isomalt between three carefully constructed holes to create the seed effect. As Prue pointed out, it was genius. (So was the shady decision to cut away to Keith! Shady, but genius!)
It was already clear to everyone that Josh knocked it out of the park when Paul decided to break with convention to follow the baker to his bench to bestow the second Hollywood Handshake of the episode. At this point, Tasha revealed during a confessional that she was privately hoping that she might be in the running for Star Baker, but her hopes were now officially dashed. In her mind, Josh was the obvious winner of the week’s festivities.
Not so fast, however. When coming to their final decision, Paul and Prue didn’t just consider the Showstopper, but all three bakes. Tasha’s Showstopper might have been second fiddle to Josh’s outrageously good illusion biscuit display, but she had shown the most consistency throughout the weekend. In the end, Tasha became Star Baker.
Josh shouldn’t feel too sore about missing Star Baker this weekend. While I think the judges’ decision was sound, Josh’s Showstopper is already one for the Bake Off history books. People will likely remember it alongside other jawdroppers like Paul’s lion bread or Nadiya’s freestanding pop cake. The innovation to use isomalt in the tomatoes alone is going to be one of those hacks you can see future Great British Baking Show contestants riffing on.
Josh might not be Star Baker this week, but he’s proven he’s not just a major contender in the tent, but an early breakout on this season of The Great British Baking Show.