TownElec, a leading supplier of energy, has organised a baking competition for teens. The first prize is an all-expenses paid week’s stay at a world-famous cookery school in Japan. Hundreds of wannabe teen bakers entered the first rounds of the competition, but now there are only three contestants left and they will take part in the tough final next week. They have to bake their signature dish. Listen to what the three finalists say about the final cook-off.
Contestant 1
Voice: Congratulations, Jake, on getting so far in the competition. Well done.
Jake: Thank you.
Voice: What has been the hardest bit so far?
Jake: Oh, definitely week three when we had to make bread. I thought I would be out of the competition that week. The sesame bread buns that I made were not good at all. They were too hard inside and the crust was too soft. I was very disappointed with myself.
Voice: But you got through and now you’re in the final. What are you going to bake this week? The judges have given you the choice.
Jake: This week has to be something we know we can bake perfectly. I'm going to make a Black Forest Gateau.
Voice: Is that a French cake?
Jake: No, no. It’s a chocolate cake from the Black Forest region of Germany. My family loves it when I make one. I've baked a Black Forest Gateau many times.
Voice: How long will the cake take you to make?
Jake: About twenty-five minutes preparation time and thirty minutes in the oven.
Voice: What are the ingredients? Does a lot go into it?
Jake: Not really. Sugar, unsalted butter, six eggs, flour, cocoa, black cherries, double cream and dark chocolate.
Voice: It sounds delicious. Good luck, Jake. I hope all goes well.
Contestant 2
Voice: Which has been your favourite week so far?
Claire: Week two when we had to make a selection of sweet buns. It was my delicious ginger buns that got me through to week three. Both of the judges said they were the best they’d tasted.
Voice: Have you had any disappointments?
Claire: None so far. Fingers crossed. I was a bit nervous about the bread baking week, but it all turned out well. I thought baking bread was my weakest skill.
Voice: What are you going to do for the final?
Claire: I’m going to do one of the hardest things a cook can do. It is so tricky to do well and there is a lot of room for disaster. I'm going to make a soufflé.
Voice: What flavour? A sweet or a savoury soufflé?
Claire: I am going to make a classic French lemon soufflé. A French friend of my mother’s gave her the recipe about twenty years ago. It was a recipe that had been passed down in the family from her mother’s mother.
Voice: What ingredients do you need for this?
Claire: Three eggs, three quarters of a cup of sugar, two lemons, three quarters of a cup of double cream. That’s it.
Voice: That sounds easy.
Claire: The ingredients are simple - but cooking a soufflé is tricky. You've got to make sure it doesn't collapse.
Voice: Well, the best of luck. I hope everything goes well.
Contestant 3
Voice: How confident are you about the final?
Alex: I’m not as nervous as I have been the other weeks. The previous weeks we have been told what to bake, but this week we can do our own thing and make something we know we can do well. I am much more confident with that.
Voice: And what will you be baking in the final?
Alex: I am going to bake what is probably the most mouth-watering pudding ever invented!
Voice: That sounds promising! What is it called?
Alex: It’s called Queen of Puddings.
Voice: Is it French?
Alex: I don’t know where the recipe comes from. Britian, perhaps. No, I don’t really know.
Voice: And what exactly is a Queen of Puddings?
Alex: It is a fruit sponge pudding with a cloud of meringue on top.
Voice: Yum yum. Is it served cold?
Alex: No, you serve it as soon as it comes out of the oven.
Voice: Do you serve it with cream?
Alex: Ooooo... no. I think that would be too much.
Voice: So, what do you need to make a Queen of Puddings.
Alex: A litre of milk, fifty grams of butter, a hundred and ten grams of white breadcrumbs, fifty grams of sugar, the zest of one small lemon, two large eggs and three tablespoons of raspberry jam.
Voice: All the best, Alex. Your baked pudding sounds delicious. May the best baker win!