Spring Baking Championship Season 4

Complete season breakdown

Every episode and bake

Season four expands to eight episodes and moves through vivid color, flowers, picnics, eggs, berries, desert plants, changing seasons, and hidden beauty. This guide records all sixteen aired challenge briefs with their assigned ingredients and mid-round additions, and includes one original home-kitchen adaptation inspired by the agave-only challenge.

1. Episode 1 · Fruit, color, and fresh herbs

   Spring Colorburst

   Mar 12, 2018

   Fruit flavors run through miniature tie-dye cheesecakes before herbs and color gradients shape naked ombre cakes with sculpted chocolate accents.

   • Preliminary

     Fruit tie-dye mini cheesecakes

     In 90 minutes, make miniature tie-dye cheesecakes featuring an assigned spring fruit such as mango, blueberry, rhubarb, cherry, fig, plum, peach, raspberry, strawberry, or nectarine.

   • Main

     Herb and color ombre cake

     In two hours, make a naked ombre cake using an assigned herb and color gradient, then add a three-dimensional chocolate decoration.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

2. Episode 2 · Flower gardens

   Blooming Delicious

   Mar 19, 2018

   Cupcakes become floral arrangements flavored with flower essences, followed by glossy spherical desserts planted in fully edible gardens.

   • Preliminary

     Flower-arrangement cupcakes

     In 90 minutes, arrange decorated cupcakes as flowers and feature an assigned floral essence such as hibiscus, rose, orange blossom, honeysuckle, magnolia, lavender, elderflower, violet, or jasmine.

   • Main

     Mirror-glazed garden gazing ball

     In two hours, make an edible mirror-glazed gazing-ball dessert, plate it in an edible garden, and add an edible garden gnome.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

3. Episode 3 · Outdoor pies and picnic baskets

   A Perfect Spring Day

   Mar 26, 2018

   Teams first share a miniature-pie category, then partners draw savory picnic-basket ingredients and must produce complementary but different desserts with matching ice cream.

   • Preliminary

     Team mini pies

     Working in pairs for 90 minutes, make twelve miniature pies in an assigned nut, cream, fruit, or custard category.

   • Main

     Picnic-basket ingredient desserts

     Each partner has 90 minutes to make a different but cohesive dessert using all three ingredients in a shared picnic basket, such as peaches, potato chips, and salami or breadsticks, goat cheese, and mushrooms, then add ice cream that complements both desserts.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

4. Episode 4 · Spring eggs and baskets

   Spring Eggspressions

   Apr 2, 2018

   Eclairs take on spring scenes hidden inside plastic eggs before edible baskets hold two baked treats, hard-boiled eggs, and a jelly-bean flavor.

   • Preliminary

     Spring-themed eclairs

     In 90 minutes, make twelve eclairs decorated for an assigned spring theme such as honeybees, sunshine, rainbows, spring greens, cherry blossoms, or wildflowers.

   • Main

     Edible spring goodie basket

     In two hours, create an edible basket filled with two different baked treats, use hard-boiled egg in one treat unless exempted by the preliminary advantage, and incorporate an assigned jelly-bean flavor.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

5. Episode 5 · Tiny berry desserts and patterns

   Berrylicious

   Apr 9, 2018

   Tiny portions concentrate an assigned berry flavor before patterned roll cakes switch to a second berry and gain matching cookies.

   • Preliminary

     Tiny berry desserts

     In one hour, make twelve tiny desserts centered on an assigned blueberry, golden berry, raspberry, huckleberry, strawberry, or blackberry.

   • Main

     Patterned berry roll cake

     In two hours, make a spring-patterned roll cake with a different berry from the preliminary heat, then add six patterned cookies that coordinate with the cake.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

6. Episode 6 · Agave and desert plants

   Desert Desserts

   Apr 16, 2018

   Agave supplies the only sweetness in assigned dessert formats before seed and spice flavors support sculptural succulent cakes with prickly pear.

   • Preliminary

     Agave-only desert dessert

     In 90 minutes, make an assigned flourless cake, ice cream sandwich, cupcake, doughnut, or tart using agave syrup as the only sweetener and a desert-inspired presentation.

   • Main

     Succulent cake

     In two hours, make a realistic succulent-themed cake using an assigned dry flavor such as pink peppercorn, caraway, sesame, black pepper, or anise, then incorporate prickly pear.

   Make our home version →Episode source 1Episode source 2

7. Episode 7 · Avocado and winter makeovers

   Seasons Change

   Apr 23, 2018

   Avocado is paired with a contrasting flavor before heavy winter favorites receive lighter spring identities and a coffee addition.

   • Preliminary

     Avocado pairing dessert

     In one hour, make a dessert that pairs avocado with assigned orange, chocolate, lime, or ginger.

   • Main

     Spring-remodeled winter dessert

     In 90 minutes, transform an assigned pumpkin pie, pecan pie, bread pudding, or peppermint-swirl brownie into a spring dessert, then incorporate coffee.

   Episode source 1Episode source 2

8. Episode 8 · Unusual fruit and geodes

   Hidden Beauty

   Apr 30, 2018

   The finalists reveal the appeal of paired unusual fruits, then make geode cakes with colored sugar crystals produced from scratch.

   • Preliminary

     Two-fruit hidden-beauty dessert

     In 90 minutes, combine an assigned pair of unusual fruits, such as finger lime and dragon fruit, jackfruit and rambutan, or cherimoya and horned melon, in one polished dessert.

   • Final

     Geode cake with handmade crystals

     In five hours, make a vibrant geode cake in an assigned blue, amber, or purple color and create the rock-candy sugar crystals from scratch.

   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 6

Agave Lime Cupcakes

Soft lime cupcakes sweetened only with agave and topped with a tangy agave cream-cheese frosting.

Time

43 min

Makes

12 cupcakes

Level

Easy

▶View ingredients and method

Ingredients

• 190 g all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon fine salt
• 2 large eggs
• 160 g light agave syrup
• 120 ml neutral oil
• 120 ml whole milk
• Finely grated zest of 2 limes
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 225 g full-fat cream cheese, softened
• 55 g unsalted butter, softened
• 75 g light agave syrup, for frosting
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lime zest, for frosting

Method

1. Heat the oven to 175 C, or 160 C fan. Line a 12-hole muffin pan with paper cases.
2. Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
3. In a second bowl, whisk the eggs, 160 g agave, oil, milk, lime zest, lime juice, and vanilla until smooth.
4. Fold the dry ingredients into the wet mixture just until no flour streaks remain. Divide the batter evenly among the cases.
5. Bake for 17 to 20 minutes, until the tops spring back. Cool in the pan for five minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
6. Beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in the remaining agave and lime zest, then chill for 20 minutes if the frosting is soft.
7. Spread or pipe the frosting onto the cooled cupcakes and refrigerate until 20 minutes before serving.

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

Agave is the only sweetener in both the cake and frosting, reflecting the preliminary heat restriction.

The frosting remains softer than a powdered-sugar buttercream, so keep the finished cupcakes cool.

Open the full recipe →

Episode guide sources

Challenge details verified 2026-07-14. 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 4, listed alphabetically without result spoilers.

Season fact sources

en.wikipedia.org, en.wikipedia.org, sacurrent.com.