Hosted by acclaimed pastry chef Stephanie Boswell and French-born chef and restaurateur Ludo Lefebvre, Food Network’s newest culinary competition Next Baking Master: Paris gives ten ambitious and highly-skilled American bakers unprecedented access to the most iconic pastry shops, as well as mentoring from renowned French baking experts.
Premiering Monday, May 6 at 9 pm EST, the series tasks competitors to prove themselves in the pillars of great baking and pastry: technique, artistry, flavor, innovation and inspiration. Each week, the lowest performing baker will be sent home, until only one is named Next Baking Master.
“As the world’s attention turns to the City of Lights leading up to this summer’s Olympic games, Paris is not only a location in Next Baking Master: Paris, it’s a main character,” says Betsy Ayala, head of content, food, Warner Bros. Discovery. “From walking the banks of the Seine to gain inspiration for romantic chocolate desserts to exploring the Paris farmers’ markets with their bountiful fresh produce, viewers will experience this incredible city though the eyes of our competitors.”
The ten bakers competing for bragging rights, a full suite of France’s top-of-the-line professional kitchen appliances and baking equipment valued at $25,000 are:
- DeAndra Bailey (Baltimore, Maryland)
- Brooke De Jong (Dothan, Alabama)
- Jeremy Intille (Minneapolis, Minnesota)
- Lindsay Miller (Los Angeles, California)
- Keely Moore (Atlanta, Georgia)
- Paige Nickless (Brooklyn, New York)
- Joe Settepani (Morganville, New Jersey)
- Cedrick Simpson (Atlanta, Georgia)
- Robert Toland (Willingboro, New Jersey)
- Jennalyn Walbolt (Union, New Jersey)
“This Paris experience is a once-in-a-lifetime dream for the chefs,” says Stephanie Boswell. “As a professional pastry chef, I know the inspiration they received by visiting the city’s most renowned patisseries and meeting the supremely talented experts was life-changing for these up-and-comers.”
“Though my culinary career and restaurants brought me to the United States more than 20 years ago, I was born, raised and grew up as a chef in France,” says Ludo Lefebvre. “It’s so cool to now welcome these competitors to Paris to live and breathe the amazing baking and pastry culture the city offers – it’s the best in the world. I am so excited.”
In the supersized 90-minute premiere, the bakers are welcomed to Paris for their first challenge: make a dessert that represents their culinary point of view, while demonstrating their knowledge of French techniques. The bakers will also take a field trip to the luxurious Royal Monceau Hotel to meet pastry chef Quentin Lechat, sample his delicacies and learn about a fundamental French ingredient: cream. Once they get back to the kitchen, they must demonstrate both technique and innovation as they create one showstopping cake that features two uses of cream to determine who will be named the crème de la crème. Upcoming episodes feature a visit to famed Jade Genin Chocolate with a lesson from Jade herself, a quintessential French soufflé challenge and a trip to Ladurée, the most iconic patisserie in the world.
Fans can bring the sweet flavors of Paris to their home kitchen by watching the digital companion series hosted by Stephanie Boswell, in which she shares easy, can-do recipes for elegant French desserts. Food Network’s social pages will also feature an exclusive tour of the Paris penthouse where the bakers will be staying.
