The Great American Baking Show Season 2

Complete season breakdown

Every episode and bake

The second season expands to eight episodes, beginning with holiday cakes and cookies before moving through bread, pies, chocolate, custards, patisserie, and the final. This guide records all twenty-four aired challenges and pairs Bread Week with an original home-scale stollen adaptation.

1. Episode 1 · Cakes

   Cake Week

   Dec 1, 2016

   The new bakers begin with winter Bundt cakes, Mary Berry's apple-and-almond technical, and tall holiday celebration cakes that test structure as well as decoration.

   • Signature

     Winter-themed Bundt cake

     Bake a Bundt cake in under two hours with a visible swirl or filling inside and a frosted, laced finish outside.

   • Technical

     Apple and almond cake

     Reproduce Mary Berry's apple and almond cake, with evenly arranged fruit and a properly baked almond crumb.

   • Showstopper

     Multi-tiered holiday celebration cake

     Use five hours to build a decorated, multi-tiered holiday cake that remains structurally sound.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

2. Episode 2 · Cookies

   Cookie Week

   Dec 1, 2016

   Cookie Week starts with uniform bars, turns to twice-baked biscotti with fine chocolate piping, and ends with a large iced-cookie holiday scene.

   • Signature

     Twelve bar cookies

     Make twelve bar cookies that match in size and shape while showcasing the baker's chosen flavors and layers.

   • Technical

     Biscotti

     Follow Johnny Iuzzini's brief for twice-baked biscotti finished with delicate chocolate piping.

   • Showstopper

     Three-dimensional iced-cookie scene

     Construct an iced cookie scene with a holiday theme in five hours, combining stable pieces with polished decoration.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

3. Episode 3 · Bread

   Bread Week

   Dec 8, 2016

   Bread Week moves from savory dinner rolls to a rich stollen technical and then asks the bakers to turn multiple breads into freestanding holiday centerpieces.

   • Signature

     Twelve savory yeasted dinner rolls

     Produce twelve savory dinner rolls in two hours, allowing enough proofing time for an even rise and tender crumb.

   • Technical

     Stollen

     Make a German Christmas loaf with rum-soaked fruit and nuts and a centered log of homemade marzipan in three hours.

   • Showstopper

     Three-dimensional bread centerpiece

     Create a three-dimensional holiday centerpiece from one or more breads in five hours, balancing flavor with a stable construction.

   Make our home version →Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

4. Episode 4 · Pies and tarts

   Pies and Tarts Week

   Dec 15, 2016

   The remaining bakers torch meringue pies, shape a free-form pear tart without a mold, and prepare two distinct savory tartlets in party-sized quantities.

   • Signature

     Meringue pie

     Bake and torch a meringue-topped pie in two hours, with the pastry, filling, and meringue kept in proportion.

   • Technical

     Partridge in a Pear Tart

     Shape a pear-shaped, free-form tart without a mold, layering sliced pears over frangipane and adding the decorative bird in one hour and 45 minutes.

   • Showstopper

     Thirty-six savory tartlets

     Make three dozen holiday-party tartlets in four hours, divided between two flavors and two different pastry crusts.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

5. Episode 5 · Chocolate

   Chocolate Week

   Dec 22, 2016

   Chocolate Week tests controlled molten centers, two kinds of ganache in a large truffle batch, and precise layers of mousse over a baked sponge base.

   • Signature

     Twelve miniature molten chocolate cakes

     Bake twelve individual chocolate cakes in two hours, each with a liquid center that flows when cut.

   • Technical

     Twenty-five chocolate truffles

     Produce twenty-five tempered truffles using hazelnut-coffee white chocolate ganache and banana-coconut-rum ganache.

   • Showstopper

     Naked mousse cake

     Build a mousse cake on a baked sponge foundation with at least two distinct mousse flavors and finished chocolate decorations.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

6. Episode 6 · Custards and meringues

   Custard and Meringue Week

   Dec 22, 2016

   The quarterfinal combines caramel-topped custards, poached meringues in creme anglaise, and two dozen small pavlovas made in contrasting styles.

   • Signature

     Twelve creme brulees

     Make twelve flavored creme brulees in two hours, setting the custard evenly and finishing each with a crisp caramel top.

   • Technical

     Oeufs en neige

     Follow Mary Berry's brief for six poached meringues served with creme anglaise and a shaped caramel decoration.

   • Showstopper

     Twenty-four pavlovas

     Use four hours to make twenty-four small pavlovas divided between two meringue styles and two fillings.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

7. Episode 7 · Patisserie

   Patisserie Week

   Jan 5, 2017

   The semifinal narrows the field with fondant-covered petits fours, fried choux crullers, and a sharing-size mille-feuille built from the bakers' own puff pastry.

   • Signature

     Twenty-four petits fours

     Create twenty-four miniature cakes with neat fondant and icing finishes.

   • Technical

     Twelve crullers

     Make twelve fried choux-pastry crullers in under ninety minutes, aiming for uniform shape and an airy interior.

   • Showstopper

     Sharing-size mille-feuille

     Prepare a large mille-feuille from scratch, demonstrating precise puff-pastry lamination, even layers, and a clean finish.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

8. Episode 8 · Final

   Final Week

   Jan 12, 2017

   The final moves from handheld savory pastries to a checkerboard Battenberg and concludes with a winter dessert display spanning three separate pastry disciplines.

   • Signature

     Twenty-four handheld savory pastries

     Bake twenty-four handheld pastries in two hours, split between two fillings, two doughs, and two distinct shapes.

   • Technical

     Battenberg cake

     Recreate Mary Berry's Battenberg with a precise checkerboard crumb, jam between the sections, and an even marzipan covering.

   • Showstopper

     Winter celebration dessert display

     Use five hours to present three different desserts in a cohesive winter display, drawing from cakes, cookies, custards, pastries, or related disciplines.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

Inspired by the briefs

Bake it at home

These are original Baking Show Guide adaptations for a home kitchen. They are inspired by the challenge briefs, not the contestants' recipes or an official recipe from the show.

Inspired by Episode 3

Cranberry Almond Stollen

A gently spiced holiday loaf packed with dried fruit and almonds, wrapped around a simple almond center and finished with butter and powdered sugar.

Time

1 hr 13 min

Makes

One large loaf, serving 10 to 12

Level

Medium

▶View ingredients and method

Ingredients

• 100 g dried cranberries
• 75 g golden raisins
• 3 tablespoons orange juice
• 375 g bread flour
• 7 g instant yeast
• 45 g granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
• Finely grated zest of 1 orange
• 160 ml whole milk, lukewarm
• 1 large egg
• 85 g unsalted butter, softened
• 75 g sliced almonds, toasted and cooled
• 100 g almond flour
• 50 g powdered sugar, plus more for finishing
• 1 large egg white, divided
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 25 g unsalted butter, melted, for finishing

Method

1. Combine the cranberries, raisins, and orange juice in a small bowl. Let them stand for 30 minutes, then drain off any liquid that has not been absorbed.
2. Mix the bread flour, yeast, granulated sugar, salt, cinnamon, cardamom, and orange zest in a large bowl. Add the milk, whole egg, and softened butter, then mix to form a soft dough.
3. Knead for 8 to 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Work in the drained fruit and toasted almonds at low speed or by hand, stopping as soon as they are evenly distributed.
4. Place the dough in a lightly buttered bowl, cover, and leave to rise for 75 to 90 minutes, until visibly expanded by about half.
5. Mix the almond flour, 50 g powdered sugar, half of the egg white, and the almond extract. Add only enough of the remaining white to form a firm paste, then roll it into a 25 cm log.
6. Press the dough into a 30 by 22 cm oval. Set the almond log just off center, fold the shorter side over it, then bring the opposite side across while leaving the lower edge visible to form the traditional offset profile. Seal gently.
7. Transfer the loaf to a lined baking sheet, cover loosely, and proof for 35 to 45 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 190 C, or 170 C fan.
8. Bake for 35 to 38 minutes, until deeply golden and the center reaches about 93 C. Brush the hot loaf with melted butter and sift over a thick layer of powdered sugar.
9. Cool completely before slicing. Add a fresh dusting of powdered sugar just before serving.

This is an original Baking Show Guide adaptation, not a contestant recipe or an official show recipe.

The loaf is moderately fruited so it remains manageable in a home mixer and bakes through without an excessively dark crust.

Wrap the cooled loaf tightly and rest it overnight for a softer crumb and more integrated spice flavor.

Open the full recipe →

Episode guide sources

Challenge details verified 2026-07-14. en.wikipedia.org.

Season result

The winner stays hidden until you choose to reveal it.

See every Great American Baking Showwinner, season by season →

Full cast

Everyone recorded for Season 2, listed alphabetically without result spoilers.

Season fact sources

en.wikipedia.org.