MasterChef Season 16, Episode 9

You never really know how long a month is going to be until you are forced to wait an entire month for a show to return, with little to no shows to occupy your time during the hiatus. But, here we are, one month later, with the return of Season 16 of MasterChef! I had been looking forward to this because it would give me something new to share with all of you. And best of all, when I saw the description for this episode, and the other upcoming episodes, I saw that there would be no more tie-ins to the World Cup! But seriously, if there are anymore references or tie-ins to it this season, I am going to cringe so hard. Especially considering it ends on Sunday. 

So, with all this out of the way, let’s get into the actual episode!

This episode was yet another Mystery Box Challenge, and underneath the boxes was just about every variety of Chocolate you can think of. I’m not even joking, here’s what was underneath the boxes.

Yeah, they really got every variety of Chocolate you can think of. Dark Chocolate, Cocoa Butter, Cacao Nibs, Caramelized White Chocolate, Black Cocoa Powder, White Cacao Bean, Red Cocoa Powder, Caribbean Drinking Cacao, Yuzu White Chocolate, and Milk Chocolate, among others. 

From there, the challenge was very simple. Each home cook had to make a Chocolate Dessert that was reflective of their home country. The best dish of the night would give that home cook the Immunity Pin, as well as baking tools and utensils from OXO. 

Everybody had 75 minutes to make their Desserts, but there were going to be some exceptions. 

Jaime, who had won the previous challenge, now had a unique advantage going into this challenge. She could now give one team an additional five minutes, and take five minutes from one team. She chose to give Asia-Pacific five extra minutes, and take five minutes away from Africa. This meant that Asia-Pacific had 80 minutes, Europe and The Americas had 75 minutes, and Africa had 70 minutes. 

Then Chef Ramsay shared something that made this challenge even harder: Two home cooks would be leaving by the end of the challenge.

From there, the bake time had started for Asia-Pacific.

Foo said that he was making Chocolate Dipped Madeleines with a White Yuzu Chocolate Pastry Cream, which I would absolutely be willing to try. He also said that the dish was a play off of Vietnamese Iced Coffee.

Shortly after that, the bake time started for Europe and The Americas. 

While they were gathering additional ingredients, Joe said to Tiffany and Chef Ramsay that time matters much more in a baking challenge than in a savory challenge, where you could easily compensate and choose Shrimp instead of Chicken, to the point that a five minute penalty doesn’t matter anymore, but with baking, you cannot hurry the oven. 

Shortly after that, the bake time had finally started for Africa. 

Aishu then said that she was making a White Cardamom Chocolate Tart with Mango-Passion Fruit Curd, which is something that I would consider trying. She then said that her reason for making it was because India is known for Mangos, but she was worried about whether or not the Crust was going to work out well.

Tkaiya then said that she was making a Jamaican Black Cake, which is a Cake that is filled with Dried Fruits that have been soaked in Dark Rum and Sweet Red Wine. This is a dish that I might consider trying.

Heidi then said that she was making a White Passion Fruit Mirror Glaze Cake, which I am not sure if I would want to try because I have never had Passion Fruit.

When Joe came over to ask Britny what she was making, she burnt the Brown Sugar right in front of him, which told me right away that she was probably going to be in trouble. 

A little later, after the show had come back from commercial and Chef Ramsay shouted that there were 30 minutes remaining, Joe for some reason said to Tiffany “I suck at baking.” I have no idea why he said this, nor why they left it in, but it’s funny and I love it. And considering he’s a restaurateur, he also might not be the best chef.

Aghata then said that she was making a Chocolate, Olive Oil, and Orange Cake with Orange Curd, which I might consider trying.

A little later, the bake time was up, and the judges walked around for one final look at everyone’s Desserts. 

Here’s an image of what Maria’s Dessert looked like. I don’t know about you guys, but I would be willing to try it.

Here’s an image of what Tkaiya’s Dessert looked like.

Here’s an image of what Dave’s Dessert looked like. It’s called Jawhara, and it consists of Layers of Fried Pastry Sheets and Pastry Cream that has White Chocolate and Orange Blossom. I don’t know about you guys, but I would consider trying it.

Unfortunately, Chef Ramsay said he couldn’t taste any Chocolate in it.

Here’s an image of what Aghata made.

Chef Ramsay then asked her if it turned out how she wanted, to which she responded that it did, to which Chef Ramsay asked if they play Ice Hockey in Valencia, which is a great way of insulting someone without making it seem like you’re directly insulting them. 

Chef Ramsay then asked Basia if her Dessert should be that dry, to which she apologized for it.

Here’s an image of what Aishu’s Dessert looked like.

Chef Ramsay asked her if she was happy with the consistency inside the Tart, to which she said that she needed to let it set a little longer and made a bad choice.

From there, the judges agreed on the four best Desserts.

The best Dessert from Asia belonged to Shompa, who made a Chocolate Chai Biscuit Cake with Spiced Chantilly Cream, Ganache, Jaggery Caramel, and Pistachio Cookie Crumble, which is a Dessert that I would absolutely be willing to try. Here is an image of what it looked like.

The judges immediately acknowledged that it looked beautiful.

Tiffany then told Shompa that she has a way of making Spices sing, which also made the Chocolate be better. 

Chef Ramsay then told her that the Sponge was delicious, but he would have done less Cream, as it was outweighing the magic of the Chocolate, but the Ganache was delicious.

Joe said that it was technically done well, and a very cool Dessert.

The best dessert from Europe belonged to Julia, who made Sicilian Chocolate Ricotta Cakes with Chocolate Almond Bark and Orange Pastry Cream, which is another Dessert that I would be willing to try. Here’s an image of what it looked like.

Two things I should let you all know: First of all, Julia is the granddaughter of Season 6 contestant Veronica, and 16th Place was where she got eliminated, and the only reason I know this is because they said so in the episode, and she wanted to make it farther than her grandmother. Second of all, she was going to make a much larger Cake, but with just five minutes to go, her Cake did not come together as she took it out of the pan, so she had to pivot at the last minute, and ended up landing in the top. 

Chef Ramsay said that it looked beautiful and elegant. Tiffany then praised the way the Custard came together, because it was a Cake you wanted some Creaminess with because it was dense, and she ultimately said that she loved everything that was on the plate. Chef Ramsay also said it was delicious, and also praised how thin the Chocolate Almond Bark was. Joe then told Julia that she used each iconic Sicilian ingredient efficiently. 

The best Dessert from Africa belonged to Rita, who made Chocolate Puff Puffs with Plantain Cream Filling, Spicy Peanut Crumble, Raspberry Coulis, and Chocolate Ganache, which is another Dessert I would be willing to try. Here’s an image of what it looked like. 

Tiffany immediately said that it was elevated, and she liked that she was seeing different layers of chocolate in different ways.

Chef Ramsay then said that it was delicious, and the Chocolate inclusion was wonderful, and the Plantain was delicious.

Tiffany then said that the texture was nice on the outside, and she felt it needed the Raspberry because there were such rich Dark Chocolate notes going on. 

Joe then said that it was an eye-opening Dessert for him, because he had never had anything like it. Yeah, Joe has a lot of unique compliments where he praises the dish without actually saying that he loved the dish.

The best Dessert from The Americas belonged to Jake, who made a Champurrado Cake with Chili-Chocolate Mousse, Masa Harina Cocoa Crumble, Passion Fruit Sabayon, and White Chocolate Miso Ganache, which is another Dessert that I would be willing to try. Here’s an image of what it looked like.

The judges immediately commented on the fact that there were so many components to the Dessert. 

Chef Ramsay then told Jake that he was like this season’s Willy Wonka, because there were so many things happening in the Dessert, and then he said that the Chocolate Mousse was melt in your mouth Chocolate, but he didn’t think it needed the Sabayon, because it was irrelevant. 

Tiffany then told him that she didn’t think anyone else could have pulled off the Dessert the way he did, as the level of Spice was right there on the edge. 

Joe’s compliments towards the dish were more just talking about Jake’s career as a man of science.

From there, the judges decided that the best Dessert belonged to Julia, which is impressive considering she literally had to scramble to present something with minutes to go. 

This meant that she won the Immunity Pin, and everybody else from Europe was also safe for the night, which proved to be a good thing for Aghata, as Chef Ramsay told her that he, Tiffany, and Joe were not impressed with her Hockey Puck Cake. His words, not mine. 

From there, the judges had to pick out the Desserts in the Bottom Three, and from there, two home cooks would be eliminated. 

The worst dessert from Asia-Pacific belonged to Daniel, who made Five Spice Brownies with Black Sesame Cream, Lemon Caramel, and Black Vinegar Cherries, which I might be willing to try if it was made correctly. Here’s an image of what it looked like.

Chef Ramsay said that he was disappointed because not only was it just a Brownie, it also looked like a Brownie from a bake sale. He also criticized the fact that the Brownies were solid and had such a fragrance of raw Chinese Five Spice.

Tiffany then said that it was an intense Chocolate Brownie, and everything else did not balance it out.

Joe kept his criticism simple, and said “You don’t really follow the rules. And when you don’t follow the rules, there’s two outcomes. You’re brilliant, and you prove everyone wrong, or you bear the consequences of those actions. 

The worst Dessert from Africa belonged to Peter, who made a Deconstructed Chocolate Cake with Coconut Shuk-Shuk, Coconut Chantilly Cream, and Raspberry Coulis, which is another Dessert I would be willing to try if it was made correctly. Here’s an image of what it looked like.

Chef Ramsay said that it looked unfinished, the essence of the dish was the Cake, and it needed more Cake. He then said that the Cake actually tasted good, but everything surrounding it was bringing it down. 

Tiffany also agreed, saying that Peter did not execute the dish the way he should have.

The worst Dessert from The Americas belonged to Britny, who made a Chocolate Bajan Black Cake with Rum Caramel Sauce, Vanilla Bean Whipped Cream, and Chocolate Ganache, which is another Dessert that I would possibly consider trying if it was made correctly. I don’t know, on the show, they made it sound like there was supposed to be a lot of Rum in it. Here’s an image of what it looked like.

The judges all had the same criticism, which is that it did not have any Rum in it whatsoever.

From there the judges had to decide on which two home cooks would be going home, and they decided on Daniel and Britny, which did not surprise me. 

Overall, this was a very good return for the show, and I’ll see you all next week when the home cooks take on the Wheel Of Fusion, and someone has to cook Frog Legs!