Things are heating up in the kitchen again in Bake Off: The Professionals 2024 as the Channel 4 hit series continues with new episodes this week.
In Monday, July 1's episode at 8 pm Liam Charles and Ellie Taylor welcome back the best three teams from each set of heats for a chocolate-fuelled pursuit to reach the final. For their first challenge, the chefs create two batches of chocolate bars, after which they must create a hanging showpiece made entirely from chocolate and delicately suspended from the ceiling, inspired by a Mythical Beasts theme.
In Tuesday, July 2's episode at 8 pm it's the quarter-final, and the five remaining teams take on a secret challenge to create a plated dessert celebrating caramel for each of the judges. For their second challenge, the teams have five hours to create a display of frozen lollipops presented within a delicate sugar sculpture, inspired by a Winter Wonderland theme
Here is everything we know about Bake Off: The Professionals 2024...
Bake Off: The Professionals 2024 release date
The next episodes air on Monday 1 and Tuesday 2 July at 8 pm on Channel 4. 10 episodes will air weekly on Monday and Tuesday evenings at 8 pm on Channel 4.
Bake Off: The Professionals started on Monday, June 10 on Channel 4 at 8 pm. The next episode aired the following evening on Tuesday, June 11 at the same time.
Bake Off: The Professionals 2024 episode guide
Episode 1 - Monday, June 10
Ellie Taylor and Liam Charles welcome a new batch of professional pastry chefs from hotels, restaurants and patisserie shops around the UK. To get things rolling, judges Cherish Finden and Benoit Blin have a French classic up their sleeve in a secret challenge for the teams, and without proper recipes to hand, the chefs must rely on their knowledge and teamwork to create 36 individual tarte aux fraise and one chocolate amenity in just three and a half hours.
Episode 2 - Tuesday, June 11
The teams turn their patisserie experience on its head by creating 24 identical reimagined custard tarts and 24 cotton cheesecakes, before making a carnival-themed showpiece.
Episode 3 - Monday 17 June
The four best teams from the last round take on Pastry Week. In their first challenge the teams turn their hand to viennoiserie, and make 18 cross-laminated pain Suisse and 24 savoury brioche doughnuts.
Episode 4 - Tuesday, June 18
Six new teams are thrown in at the deep end, with a secret challenge: to make a classic coffee éclair, accompanied by an amenity. They must draw on all their knowledge and experience as they have no recipe to follow. In their second challenge, the teams play illusionists as they create a Trompe l'oeil showpiece sculpture inspired by everyday household objects, within which a tarte Tatin to serve 40 must be hidden. Whose patisserie prowess will shine through?
Episode 5 - Monday, June 24
The remaining teams let their imaginations run wild as they're charged with creating 24 individual sticky toffee puddings and 24 individual charlotte à la russe, both of which must be reimagined and individually identical across each batch. In the second challenge, the teams need to channel their inner fashionistas as they create a haute couture inspired showpiece display in just five hours.
Episode 5 - Tuesday, June 25
In the first challenge, the remaining bakers must deliver 18 buttery, flaky savoury croissants and 24 perfectly filled maritozzi for judges expecting nothing but absolute perfection. In the showpiece challenge the teams will need to tap into their light-hearted natures, as they produce a towering choux and nougatine showpiece with a playtime theme and featuring 160 filled choux. All this needs to be delivered to the judges in just five hours. Which teams will have structured their ascent to a spot in the final six and whose time will come crashing to an end?
Episode 6 - Monday, July 1
Liam Charles and Ellie Taylor welcome back the best three teams from each set of heats for a chocolate-fuelled pursuit to reach the final. For their first challenge, the chefs create two batches of chocolate bars, after which they must create a hanging showpiece made entirely from chocolate and delicately suspended from the ceiling, inspired by a Mythical Beasts theme.
Epsiode 7 - Tuesday, July 2
It's the quarter-final, and the five remaining teams take on a secret challenge to create a plated dessert celebrating caramel for each of the judges. For their second challenge, the teams have five hours to create a display of frozen lollipops presented within a delicate sugar sculpture, inspired by a Winter Wonderland theme.
Bake Off: The Professionals 2024 hosts
Once again Bake Off: The Professionals will be hosted by Liam Charles and Ellie Taylor.
Judges Benoit and Cherish told us they are pleased to see Ellie back after making her hosting debut last year... "Ellie’s smart, funny and gives the show a good energy, while Liam’s always a joy. They’re great fun," Benoit said.
Cherish added: "They both bring warmth and a remarkable ability to calm down the chefs during tense moments."
Bake Off: The Professionals 2024 judges
As in previous years, Benoit Blin, who is Chef Pâtissier at Raymond Blanc’s two Michelin-starred Oxfordshire restaurant Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons, and Cherish Finden, international pastry consultant and former executive pastry chef at London hotel The Langham, will be judging the culinary competition.
Here, they tell us more about what is on the menu...
Welcome back for another series, Benoit and Cherish!
Benoit: "Ah, it’s always good fun. We have fantastic teams of pastry chefs, the best the UK has to offer – from big hotels, patisseries and small ventures – all coming to try to better themselves."
Cherish: "It’s a captivating glimpse into the world of professional pastry. Viewers will be amazed by the skill and entertained by the drama!"
What’s the standard like this year?
Benoit: "Very competitive! The teams have seen what others have done in the past, so know what skills they have to bring to the competition."
Cherish: "Yes, it’s exceptionally high – really impressive in their Showpiece sculptures."
Episode one also features a Secret Challenge, with the competitors tasked with creating 36 individual tarte aux fraise and one chocolate amenity. What can you reveal about that?
Benoit: "I love the Secret Challenge – not in a sadistic way because the chefs don’t know what they’ll have to do, but because it teaches us about their skillset. Another Secret Challenge in this series is to make coffee éclairs, something a chef does day in, day out in a kitchen, so you’d expect them to do a decent éclair. It’s a way of finding out if they’ve got rudimentary skills or lacking in some of the basics."
Do you get nervous watching them prepare their jaw-dropping Showpieces?
Benoit: "Oh definitely, especially during the last 15 minutes as the pressure increases. One team didn’t cook their sugar properly and a piece that was meant to stand vertically began falling down in front of our eyes. It was painful to watch."
Is it fair to say you’re the most straight-talking judges on TV?
Benoit: "If it’s a complete disaster, you have to go for it and tell them what’s wrong! But we always try to give some positive feedback with the negative."
Cherish: "As a judge, it’s vital to combine honesty with kindness. We must critique yet avoid doing unnecessary harm to a chef’s confidence."
What has been your favourite taste or creation over the show’s nine seasons?
Benoit: "There was a truffle plant-based donut I will always remember and a parmesan and white chocolate macaroon, and, in 2022, I loved a beautiful chocolate piece inspired by a Cornish harbor scene. Every year seems to get better."
Cherish: "One of my favorite creations was crafted by Emmanuel Bonneau and Sam Leatherby from London Hilton on Park Lane [who went on to win Series 3 in 2018] – a chocolate and sugar masterpiece, which included intricate chef figures and a miniature kitchen. It was a standout!"
We think you must have one of the best jobs in the world. But do you ever tire of sampling sweet stuff?
Cherish: "I don’t really eat sweet treats at home, I prefer crisps and sparkling wine. Or comfort food like beans on toast."
Benoit: "Unfortunately, I have a very sweet tooth! It’s my downfall and starting to show a little on my waist, but part of the job of being a good chef is eating what you’re making. My guilty pleasures are a Mars bar or Snickers – my wife tries to hide them at home but I always find them!"
Is there a trailer for Bake Off: The Professionals 2024?
No, sadly there isn't a trailer but if one is released by Channel 4 we will add it to this guide.
