The Great Canadian Baking Show Season 2

Complete season breakdown

Every episode and bake

Season 2 expands the tent's range across cake, biscuits and bars, bread, international baking, pastry, chocolate, French patisserie, and the finale. This guide records all 24 challenge briefs and includes one original home-kitchen adaptation inspired by the opening technical.

1. Episode 1 · Cake

   Cake

   Sep 19, 2018

   Cake Week begins with fruit baked beneath an upside-down cake, moves to a light orange chiffon, and ends with a personalized multi-layer birthday cake.

   • Signature

     Upside-down fruit cake

     Create an upside-down fruit cake with freely chosen fruit and flavours in two hours.

   • Technical

     Orange chiffon cake

     Make an orange chiffon cake with orange glaze and candied orange decorations in two hours.

   • Showstopper

     Layered birthday cake

     Bake a birthday cake for a chosen person in four hours, using at least three layers and two different flavours.

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

2. Episode 2 · Biscuits and bars

   Biscuits and Bars

   Sep 26, 2018

   The bakers layer dessert bars, temper chocolate for digestive biscuits, and engineer edible boxes filled with identical cookies.

   • Signature

     24 layered dessert bars

     Make 24 dessert bars with at least three clearly distinct layers in two hours.

   • Technical

     18 chocolate digestive biscuits

     Bake 18 digestive biscuits and finish them with tempered chocolate in one hour 30 minutes.

   • Showstopper

     Edible biscuit box with 36 cookies

     Build an elaborate edible biscuit box and fill it with 36 identical cookies in four hours 30 minutes.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

3. Episode 3 · Bread

   Bread

   Oct 3, 2018

   Bread Week contrasts a fast bread and spread with uniform hot cross buns, then turns savoury bread and fillings into decorated sandwich cakes.

   • Signature

     Quick bread with homemade spread

     Produce either two loaves or 12 individual pieces of a quick bread, plus a homemade spread, in one hour 30 minutes.

   • Technical

     20 hot cross buns

     Make 20 uniform hot cross buns with an apricot glaze in two hours 30 minutes.

   • Showstopper

     Decorated sandwich cake

     Create a smorgastarta-style sandwich cake in four hours 30 minutes, balancing homemade bread, savoury filling, and decoration.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

4. Episode 4 · International baking

   International

   Oct 10, 2018

   International Week spans hot-water-crust hand pies, strawberry-filled daifuku mochi, and a sculptural display made from two or more Italian cookies.

   • Signature

     24 hand pies with dipping sauce

     Make 24 freely shaped and flavoured hand pies with hot-water-crust pastry and a complementary dipping sauce in two hours.

   • Technical

     12 strawberry daifuku mochi

     Create 12 daifuku mochi in two hours, wrapping strawberries and sweetened red bean paste in glutinous rice dough.

   • Showstopper

     Italian cookie sculpture

     Construct a sculpture or diorama from at least two types of Italian cookie in four hours.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

5. Episode 5 · Pastry

   Pastry

   Oct 17, 2018

   Pastry Week moves from a large fruit slab pie to sweet and savoury rough-puff palmiers before demanding three kinds of breakfast pastry.

   • Signature

     Fruit-filled slab pie

     Bake a rectangular fruit-filled slab pie in a rimmed sheet pan within two hours 15 minutes.

   • Technical

     24 rough-puff palmiers

     Make 12 sweet and 12 savoury palmiers from rough puff pastry in two hours 15 minutes.

   • Showstopper

     Basket of 18 breakfast pastries

     Present six croissants, six Danish pastries, and six sweet buns in a breakfast basket after four hours 30 minutes.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

6. Episode 6 · Chocolate

   Chocolate

   Oct 24, 2018

   Chocolate Week tests tempered decoration on a tart, the timing of an individual souffle, and a modern interpretation of Black Forest cake.

   • Signature

     Chocolate tart

     Create a tart in any shape or flavour in two hours, keeping chocolate central and adding tempered-chocolate decorations.

   • Technical

     Chocolate souffle

     Bake one chocolate souffle in one hour 45 minutes, with staggered starts so each entry can be judged straight from the oven.

   • Showstopper

     Modern Black Forest cake

     Produce a modern reimagining of a Black Forest cake.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

7. Episode 7 · French patisserie

   French Patisserie

   Oct 31, 2018

   The semifinal layers crepes and filled almond sponge before asking for a coordinated set of puff-pastry canapes, tartlets, and finger sandwiches.

   • Signature

     Mille crepes cake

     Build a cake with at least 25 crepe layers and sweet filling between them in two hours.

   • Technical

     12 miniature jocondes

     Make 12 miniature joconde cakes with layered almond sponge, filling, and mousse in two hours 15 minutes.

   • Showstopper

     36 savoury canapes

     Produce 12 puff-pastry canapes, 12 tartlets, and 12 finger sandwiches in four hours.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

8. Episode 8 · Final

   Finale

   Nov 7, 2018

   The finalists make two flavours of miniature Swiss rolls, assemble a Swedish Princess cake, and build a tall choux tower with multiple shapes and fillings.

   • Signature

     24 mini Swiss rolls in two flavours

     Make 24 miniature Swiss rolls divided between two flavours in two hours 30 minutes.

   • Technical

     Swedish Princess cake

     Produce a Swedish Princess cake in two hours 15 minutes.

   • Showstopper

     Multi-tier choux tower

     Build a choux tower at least three tiers high, using at least two choux shapes and three filling flavours, in four hours 30 minutes.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3Episode source 4

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 1

Home Orange Chiffon Cake

A tall, light tube cake scented with fresh orange and finished with a simple citrus glaze.

Time

1 hr 25 min

Makes

One 23 cm tube cake, serving 10

Level

Medium

▶View ingredients and method

Ingredients

• 225 g plain flour
• 250 g caster sugar, divided
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 6 large eggs, separated
• 120 ml neutral oil
• 150 ml fresh orange juice
• Finely grated zest of 2 oranges
• 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
• 100 g icing sugar

Method

1. Heat the oven to 170 C, or 150 C fan. Leave a 23 cm ungreased tube pan ready.
2. Whisk the flour, 150 g caster sugar, baking powder, and salt. Add the egg yolks, oil, 120 ml orange juice, and zest, then whisk until smooth.
3. Beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar to soft peaks. Gradually add the remaining caster sugar and beat to glossy medium peaks.
4. Fold the whites into the orange batter in three additions. Pour into the pan and bake for 50 to 55 minutes until the top springs back.
5. Invert the pan immediately and cool completely before releasing the cake. Mix the icing sugar with enough of the remaining orange juice to make a pourable glaze and drizzle it over the cake.

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

Do not grease the pan; the batter needs to cling to its sides while it rises and cools.

Open the full recipe →

Episode guide sources

Challenge details verified 2026-07-14. en.wikipedia.org, eatnorth.com.

Season result

The winner stays hidden until you choose to reveal it.

See every Great Canadian Baking Showwinner, season by season →

Full cast

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

Season fact sources

en.wikipedia.org, en.wikipedia.org.