Top Chef: Just Desserts -Season 1

[anthonylee86]

Top chef announced that they are officially going through with "Top Chef: Just Desserts", a new spinoff on Top Chef featuring pastry chefs. Looks like they are starting casting this week.

http://www.fancast.com/blogs/tv-news/top-chef-gets-sweet-spinoff/

Should be interesting to see how this pans out.

[TAPrice]

Will the judges complain when the chefs fail to produce a savory dish?

[Tri2Cook]

Sweet!

[Holly Moore]

Wonder if the show will resemble the holiday Yule Log on TV, a close up of an oven showing cake baking. For variety, an equally tight shot of a proofing cabinet.

[Tri2Cook]

Probably... since all pastry chefs do is bake bread and cakes.

[emmalish]

Nice! Looking forward to this one.

[Lisa Shock]

This is going to be great! (emailed the producers a suggestion for this back during season 1 of TC.)

I imagine that they'll intersperse basic techniques like making puff pastry with pulling sugar for showpieces and making bread sculptures.

[MattyC]

Actually really excited about this. Should be interesting to see pure pastry/baking challenges.

Although, I wonder about quickfires? Kinda see dough and other baking being a little rough in 45 minutes

[Tri2Cook]

Well I'm going to be the oddball here and hope they don't go too heavy on the basics and bread stuff. I want to see some cool pastry work and the use of cutting edge techniques and creativity.

[Lisa Shock]

Actually really excited about this. Should be interesting to see pure pastry/baking challenges.

Although, I wonder about quickfires? Kinda see dough and other baking being a little rough in 45 minutes

Given the right tools, I can make creme anglaise in 45 seconds and angel food cake in a couple of minutes. I can make a bouquet of sugar flowers in well under 45 minutes. Modern competition-style patisserie is very inventive and not as time consuming as people imagine.

Yes, a good loaf of bread takes time. But, a chocolate showpiece can be cast and assembled in under 2 hours.

[CKatCook]

WOOOOOOHOOOOOOO! I cannot wait!

[Toufas]

brioche ceviche anyone?

[Chris Hennes]

Tom Colicchio tweeted today that Gail Simmons is going to be the host of the new show.

[tino27]

brioche ceviche anyone?

Only if they are in the shape of scallops!

[jsmeeker]

any news on when this will start airing?

[Chris Hennes]

This show starts up September 15, 2010.

[ChickenStu]

Should be a nice change from the savory format. Johnny is also cool as shit.

I wonder to what extent they will supply the contestants? Is there going to be stabilizers, pectinex, and other modern products? Blast freezers? LN tanks and gear?

What about flavorings, fruit purees, liquors, and vanilla beans? They don't expect people to pay 11 bucks for a whole foods vanilla bean do they?

I think we will definitely see more outright failures.

[Chris Hennes]

I hope they basically gave them a fully-stocked pastry kitchen, though I bet there is some emphasis on from-scratch cooking (e.g. making your own purees, not using flavor additives, etc.). Agreed about the failures, hopefully they are spectacular!

[Chris Amirault]

All right, let's get this going. Some opening thoughts.

Basic TC structure, with expected twists, elimination, etc. etc. Nothing new there.

Does anyone know what that blowtorch to the side of the KitchenAid mixer bowl was for? I look forward to the first time that a KA engine implodes and spits pieces into someone's buttercream, btw: good TV that will be.

It seems pretty clear that we're not going to get too much information about process, at least at this stage, but I thought that some of the desserts promised interesting stuff down the road, when fewer contestants will allow for more exposition of the food.

Can someone define "cupcake" for me? (And, no, I'm not talking about Johnny Iuzzini as this show's cross-gender heart-throb a la Colicchio.)

I hope that this doesn't turn into Real World: Ganache, but it sure smells like we're headed in that direction....

[Tri2Cook]

Does anyone know what that blowtorch to the side of the KitchenAid mixer bowl was for?

I haven't seen the episode yet but the blowtorch on the side of the bowl can help a buttercream come together if it's looking grainy from too-cold butter incorporated too quickly.

[Chris Amirault]

Makes sense. I'm always trying to cool the bowl down, not heat it up.

[Genkinaonna]

It seemed like there was a lot of drama for a first episode. I found a larger proportion of the contestants (I refuse to refer to them as "cheftestants")to be annoying and overly high strung. But I was still totally sucked in! And Johnny Iuzzini is waaaay hotter than Tom Colicchio...no contest. Just sayin'.

[IndyRob]

I liked it. It looks like we have a lot of personalities.

Personally, it looks like I will have some problems at times as a chocolate purist. No citrus with my chocolate please.

I hope the challenge that "pastry chefs can do savory better than savory cooks can do pastry" will be taken up at some point, in some form.

I really get a first season Top Chef feel about this.

[MattyC]

I liked it. Johnny is awesome, and I feel he was probably the best pick for head judge, so no problems there. Seems like all of the contestants know their stuff for the most part - although one of my few gripes was that the contestants were a little on the... annoying side. Could they not find any party chefs who weren't queens? If every episode is going to involve crying, both in the top three and bottom three, it's going to annoy me. With that said, my only other problem with it so far is that Gail seems a little.... forced with her lines. Not a huge problem, I think she still did a decent job as the host this time around.

All in all, I like it so far, good addition to the 'Top Chef' family. It's about time.

[Doodad]

It seemed like there was a lot of drama for a first episode. I found a larger proportion of the contestants (I refuse to refer to them as "cheftestants")to be annoying and overly high strung. But I was still totally sucked in! And Johnny Iuzzini is waaaay hotter than Tom Colicchio...no contest. Just sayin'.

No kidding on the drama. But, I told my wife this would be TC with crying. From guys.

No real interest in sweets or the overly precocious characters in this, but will try a few more episodes.