I love baking, mostly because I like eating baked goods, but also because I love the process of creating something in the kitchen. So naturally, when the Great British Bake Off (dubbed the Great British Baking Show for American audiences) made it’s debut to Netflix, I had to watch. After binge watching all three available seasons, I think it’s fair to say I’m totally obsessed with it and my life has changed forever. I know I’m not alone. Here are all the ways the GBBO will transform your existence:
You will want to bake all the things. No, seriously, you will. And even the laziest of viewers won’t be satisfied with classic chocolate chip cookies or brownies from a box. When you see that perfectly swirled swiss roll, wonderfully crisp rough puff, or deliciously puffed choux, you can’t help but want to get busy baking.
You will gain a new baking vernacular that will make you sound pretentious. After just a few episodes of watching the GBBO, you’ll have developed the fancy baking vocabulary needed to describe all your best bakes. For instance, bread dough no longer rises, it proofs, and your cake doesn’t burn, it catches. But most importantly, you know that the number one thing to avoid when making a pie is a soggy bottom.
You will learn British colloquialisms and will be inclined to use them in everyday speech. By the end of your first season of the GBBO, you will be able to tell your friends how you just whacked your cake in the oven, and how chuffed you are because you know your bake is going to be cram jam full of flavor.
Every baked good you meet will be judged. Does this biscuit (that’s cookie in British) have a nice bake? Is that a soggy bottom on that tart? Is that a curdled pastry cream? After watching the GBBO, you will feel qualified to judge every pastry and cake you meet according the highest standards.
You will be tempted to secretly pretend to be on the GBBO when baking at home. Let’s be honest, this one’s kind of a side effect of watching too much of any cooking show. On the bright side, that dramatic whisking and rolling is sure to impress your friends with your baking prowess.
You will turn into a GBBO missionary. Cajoling your friends and family into watching an episode with you will become a daily activity. After all, you need somebody to be the Paul Hollywood to your Mary Berry when eating baked goods, or the Mel to your Sue when cracking a baking joke.
Mary Berry will become your new baking idol. Her name is Mary Berry and she knows everything there is to know about baking. Need I say more?
You will secretly want a Paul Hollywood handshake. I think we can all agree that Paul is kinda the worst. He’s pretty much the Simon Cowell of baking, but that doesn’t keep you from wanting one of his signature, rare handshakes.
Other cooking shows will be forever ruined for you. After the lovely spring day that is the GBBO, you won’t be satisfied by any other cooking competition. The lack of unnecessary drama in addition to the quirky and genuinely supportive environment under the tent make the show an addicting delight to watch.
On that note, here’s to many more seasons (or should I say series?) of the GBBO.