Holiday Baking Championship Season 9

Complete season breakdown

Every episode and bake

Season 9 moves from fall pavlova wreaths and Thanksgiving bakes into steakhouse desserts, holiday movies, international sweets, and a vacation-themed finale. This guide records all eighteen aired challenge briefs across eight episodes and includes one original home-kitchen adaptation inspired by the opening pavlova challenge.

1. Episode 1 · Fall wreaths and pie versus cake

   First Snow

   Nov 7, 2022

   The season opens with colorful fall-flavor pavlova wreaths before two teams settle a holiday pie-versus-cake debate through matched flavors.

   • Preliminary

     Fall-flavor pavlova wreath

     In two hours, create a nontraditional meringue pavlova in wreath form using an assigned fall flavor and visible color.

   • Main

     Holiday pie or cake in an assigned flavor

     Compete as Team Pie or Team Cake with matched flavors including candy cane, eggnog, pecan, apple, butterscotch, and pumpkin, then add snowflake cookies in the mid-round requirement.

   Make our home version →Episode source 1Episode source 2

2. Episode 2 · Thanksgiving ingredients and gingerbread

   Getting Ready for Thanksgiving

   Nov 14, 2022

   Thanksgiving dinner ingredients become desserts in the first heat, followed by layered and plated sweets that reinterpret gingerbread beyond the familiar cookie.

   • Preliminary

     Thanksgiving-ingredient dessert

     Create a dessert featuring an assigned savory ingredient associated with Thanksgiving dinner, such as carrot, stuffing mix, or sausage.

   • Main

     Gingerbread-inspired layered dessert

     Turn gingerbread into an assigned dessert format such as trifle, mousse cake, Swiss roll, cheesecake, tiramisu, or mousse cake, and add gingerbread cookies as an accompaniment.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

3. Episode 3 · Turkey techniques and pie flights

   Feeling Sweet and Thankful

   Nov 21, 2022

   The bakers translate turkey-cooking methods into desserts, then work in pairs on three-pie flights that move through a prescribed sequence of flavor qualities.

   • Preliminary

     Turkey-method-inspired Thanksgiving dessert

     Make a dessert inspired by an assigned turkey preparation: bacon-wrapped, brined, deep-fried, roasted, or smoked.

   • Main

     Three-pie flavor progression

     In teams of two, produce a flight of three pies, with one pie from each baker and one collaborative pie, following an assigned progression such as herbal-buttery-bright or warm-velvety-citrus; add alcohol when the twist is announced.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

4. Episode 4 · Steakhouse desserts

   Dining Out for the Holidays

   Nov 28, 2022

   Classic steakhouse sweets receive holiday makeovers before the bakers shape and flambe assigned-flavor baked Alaskas as Christmas trees.

   • Preliminary

     Holiday steakhouse dessert

     Transform an assigned steakhouse classic, such as bananas Foster, key lime pie, apple tarte Tatin, brownie sundae, or molten chocolate cake, into a holiday dessert.

   • Main

     Baked Alaska Christmas tree

     Build a Christmas-tree-shaped baked Alaska around an assigned flavor pairing, flambe it for the judges, and complete it with an edible tree topper.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

5. Episode 5 · Period drama tea and romantic comedies

   Holiday Movie Magic

   Dec 5, 2022

   A Regency-inspired high tea tests coordinated small sweets, while holiday romantic-comedy tropes drive the flavor and highly festive decoration of the main desserts.

   • Preliminary

     Three-sweet holiday high tea

     Working in pairs, create three different sweet treats for an English-style holiday afternoon tea.

   • Main

     Holiday romantic-comedy dessert

     Create a dessert inspired by an assigned holiday movie trope and its ingredient prompt, decorate it lavishly for the season, and incorporate popcorn when the twist is announced.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

6. Episode 6 · Kwanzaa and international desserts

   The World of Holidays

   Dec 5, 2022

   Fresh corn anchors a Kwanzaa display before each baker personalizes a holiday dessert from another culinary tradition and pairs it with homemade mulled wine.

   • Preliminary

     Fresh-corn dessert for a Kwanzaa display

     Create a dessert featuring fresh corn and present it as part of a traditional Kwanzaa-themed display.

   • Main

     Personalized international holiday dessert

     Put a personal interpretation on an assigned international holiday sweet, such as Filipino leche flan, Japanese Christmas cake, Puerto Rican guava rolls, or Canadian sugar pie, then make mulled wine and use it in or with the dessert.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

7. Episode 7 · Hanukkah, cake makeovers, and choux

   Holiday Rush

   Dec 12, 2022

   The semifinal compresses three heats into one episode: halvah-flavored ugly sweater cakes, rapid store-bought cake transformations, and snowman croquembouche centerpieces.

   • Preliminary

     Halvah ugly sweater cake

     Carve and decorate a Hanukkah ugly sweater cake featuring assigned chocolate, pistachio, or vanilla halvah.

   • Reheat

     Holiday store-bought cake makeover

     In 60 minutes, transform a basic chocolate, vanilla, or confetti birthday cake with new filling, frosting, and decoration, without baking a new cake.

   • Main

     Snowman croquembouche

     Build a snowman-shaped croquembouche from filled choux buns as a polished holiday centerpiece; the planned top-hat twist was canceled by the reheat winner's advantage.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

8. Episode 8 · Holiday vacations

   Happy Holiday Getaways

   Dec 19, 2022

   The finale travels from desert succulent tarts to a ski-trip cream tart bake-off and large destination cakes paired with regionally themed cookies.

   • Preliminary

     Desert succulent tart

     In two hours, make a holiday tart decorated with edible succulents and styled around a warm desert vacation.

   • Elimination

     Ski-trip cream tart

     The two lowest-ranked bakers create cream tarts decorated around a holiday ski trip, with only one advancing to the final heat.

   • Main

     Holiday dream-vacation cake with cookies

     In five hours, make a large cake depicting an assigned destination and feature its paired cookie: Swiss Alps with Swedish butter cookies, Paris with macarons, the Caribbean with spice cookies, or New York City with black-and-white cookies.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

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

Maple Cranberry Pavlova Wreath

A crisp-chewy meringue ring topped with lightly sweetened cream, tart cranberry compote, maple syrup, and toasted pecans.

Time

2 hrs 5 min

Makes

One 25 cm wreath, serving 8

Level

Moderate

▶View ingredients and method

Ingredients

• 4 large egg whites, at room temperature
• 200 g superfine sugar
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 200 g fresh or frozen cranberries
• 75 g granulated sugar
• 60 ml water
• 1 tablespoon orange juice
• 300 ml heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup, plus more to finish
• 35 g toasted pecans, roughly chopped

Method

1. Heat the oven to 140 C, or 120 C fan. Draw a 25 cm circle and a centered 12 cm circle on baking paper, turn the paper over, and place it on a baking sheet.
2. Whip the egg whites to soft peaks. Add the superfine sugar one spoonful at a time, beating until the meringue is thick, glossy, and no longer gritty.
3. Fold in the cornstarch, vinegar, and vanilla. Spoon the meringue between the guide circles and shape it into a continuous wreath with a shallow channel on top.
4. Bake for 90 minutes. Turn off the oven, prop the door slightly open, and let the pavlova cool completely inside.
5. Combine the cranberries, granulated sugar, water, and orange juice in a saucepan. Simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, until the berries burst and the compote thickens. Cool completely.
6. Whip the cream to soft peaks, then fold in 2 tablespoons maple syrup. Carefully transfer the pavlova to a serving plate.
7. Fill the top channel with maple cream and spoon over the cranberry compote. Finish with pecans and a restrained drizzle of maple syrup, then serve immediately.

This is an original Baking Show Guide home adaptation inspired by the episode brief, not a contestant recipe or an official Food Network recipe.

Keep all bowls and beaters free of grease so the egg whites reach full volume.

The undecorated meringue can be kept airtight at room temperature for one day; add cream and fruit shortly before serving.

Open the full recipe →

Episode guide sources

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

Season result

The winner stays hidden until you choose to reveal it.

See every Holiday Baking Championshipwinner, season by season →

Full cast

Everyone recorded for Season 9, listed alphabetically without result spoilers.

Season fact sources

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