Spring Baking Championship Season 2

Complete season breakdown

Every episode and bake

Season two adds main-heat twists to six episodes built around fruit, outdoor food, rainbows, farm ingredients, Mother's Day, and destination weddings. This guide records all twelve aired challenge briefs and includes one original home-kitchen adaptation inspired by the berry-free shortcake challenge.

1. Episode 1 · Shortcake and berry cakes

   Berry Naked

   Apr 10, 2016

   The season opens by withholding berries from a shortcake makeover, then reverses the rule for tiered naked cakes in which berries must lead and key lime arrives as a twist.

   • Preliminary

     Berry-free shortcake makeover

     Reinvent shortcake in one hour using fruit other than berries.

   • Main

     Tiered berry naked cake

     Build a tiered naked cake centered on berries in two hours and incorporate key lime when it is announced mid-round; strawberries were reserved for the preliminary winner.

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

2. Episode 2 · Ballpark and barbecue

   Great Outdoors

   Apr 17, 2016

   Outdoor favorites become desserts twice: first through assigned ballpark snacks, then as complete barbecue-plate impostors that must look savory while tasting sweet.

   • Preliminary

     Ballpark-snack dessert

     Make a dessert in one hour inspired by an assigned stadium snack such as popcorn, root beer, peanuts, sweet potato fries, tortilla chips, churros, or pretzels.

   • Main

     Barbecue dessert impostor

     Create a dessert in two hours that convincingly resembles an assigned barbecue main and side, including combinations such as ribs with corn, steak with bean salad, or sausage with potato salad.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

3. Episode 3 · Dessert dips and rainbow colors

   Bake the Rainbow

   Apr 24, 2016

   A dessert fondue supplies the pot of gold before the main heat demands five rainbow colors and then adds black as a contrasting sixth color.

   • Preliminary

     Dessert fondue with dipper

     Prepare a dessert fondue and a complementary item for dipping in 45 minutes.

   • Main

     Five-color rainbow dessert

     Create a dessert featuring red, orange, yellow, green, and blue in up to two hours, then add black when the mid-round twist is announced.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

4. Episode 4 · Farmstand vegetables and breakfast

   Sweet Toothed Farmer

   May 1, 2016

   Farmstand vegetables drive individual desserts before a farmhouse-breakfast main heat combines bacon, eggs, and a late coffee-flavor requirement.

   • Preliminary

     Farmstand-vegetable dessert

     Make a dessert in one hour using an assigned vegetable: beet, fennel, summer squash, zucchini, or tomato.

   • Main

     Bacon-and-egg dessert

     Bake a dessert featuring both bacon and eggs in 90 minutes, then add coffee flavor when the twist is announced.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

5. Episode 5 · Mother's Day gifts and chocolate

   Moms Love Chocolate

   May 8, 2016

   Mother's Day gift boxes inspire the first desserts, while the main heat pairs chocolate with a difficult assigned flavor and then calls for a sugar decoration.

   • Preliminary

     Gift-inspired Mother's Day dessert

     Create a Mother's Day dessert in one hour inspired by an assigned gift object: a coffee mug, bracelet, purse, or perfume bottle.

   • Main

     Chocolate dessert with an unusual pairing

     Bake a chocolate dessert in 90 minutes paired with assigned Gorgonzola, aromatic bitters, Earl Grey tea, or curry powder, then add a sugar-work element.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2Episode source 3

6. Episode 6 · Wedding welcome baskets and travel cakes

   Destination Wedding

   May 15, 2016

   The finale begins with a groomsmen's welcome basket containing sweet and savory snacks, then assigns Hawaii, Mexico, and Italy as the visual and flavor settings for destination wedding cakes.

   • Preliminary

     Groomsmen's welcome basket

     Make two sweet treats and one savory snack for a destination-wedding welcome basket in 90 minutes, incorporating bourbon into one item when the twist is announced.

   • Main

     Destination wedding cake

     Create a wedding cake in five hours inspired by an assigned destination: Hawaii, Mexico, or Italy.

   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 1

Peach Ginger Shortcakes

Tender ginger biscuits layered with juicy peaches and lightly sweetened vanilla cream for a berry-free shortcake.

Time

48 min

Makes

6 shortcakes

Level

Easy

▶View ingredients and method

Ingredients

• 250 g all-purpose flour
• 35 g granulated sugar, plus 1 tablespoon for finishing
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 85 g cold unsalted butter, cubed
• 160 ml cold heavy cream, plus extra for brushing
• 3 ripe peaches, pitted and thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 240 ml heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

1. Heat the oven to 200 C, or 180 C fan. Line a baking sheet with baking paper.
2. Whisk the flour, 35 g sugar, baking powder, salt, and ginger. Rub in the cold butter until the largest pieces are the size of peas.
3. Stir in 160 ml cream just until a rough dough forms. Pat it 2 cm thick and cut six rounds, pressing scraps together once as needed.
4. Place the rounds on the sheet, brush with cream, and sprinkle with the remaining sugar. Bake for 16 to 19 minutes until risen and golden, then cool for 15 minutes.
5. Toss the peaches with lemon juice and let stand for ten minutes. Whip the remaining cream with powdered sugar and vanilla to soft peaks.
6. Split each biscuit. Spoon peaches and their juice over the bases, add vanilla cream, and replace the tops.

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

The recipe deliberately uses no berries to reflect the preliminary heat restriction.

Firm-ripe peaches hold their shape best; very soft fruit can be spooned on immediately before serving.

Open the full recipe →

Episode guide sources

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

Season result

The winner stays hidden until you choose to reveal it.

See every Spring Baking Championshipwinner, season by season →

Full cast

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

Season fact sources

en.wikipedia.org, en.wikipedia.org, blog.foodnetwork.com.