The Great British Bake Off series 15 episode 5 recap: Andy left in tears as he drops his toffee podium

The Great British Bake Off series 15 released episode 5 on October 22, 2024, which saw eight amateur bakers trying to become the next champion baker. Another baker was eliminated by the end of the episode after their showstopper challenge became a crumbled disaster.

Mike bid his farewell to the other contestants in the fourth week, during which the amateur bakers tried to keep up with Caramel Week challenges. In the signature bake challenge, they were instructed to prepare caramel biscuits. Then, they had to make pear tart tatin in the technical challenge.

The last and most important challenge of all was the showstopper, in which bakers made mousse cake, which ultimately decided who was eliminated.

Alison Hammond returned to The Great British Bake Off for a second year in the running to share the hosting duties with Noel Fielding. Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood returned as beloved judges, giving their expertise while guiding the bakers and rating their creations.

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What happened in The Great British Bake Off series 15 episode 5?

The Pastry Week started off with Alison and Noel instructing the bakers to prepare 12 frangipane tarts where they could experiment with new flavors or stick with the classic recipes.

For frangipane, bakers had to mix flavor with texture as the outer crust was supposed to be buttery, crunchy, and flaky. It had to be balanced out by the delicate almond filling inside. With two hours on their hand, bakers raced to start the week with a good foot forward. Gill and Andy dedicated their baked creation to their family by following the recipes of their ancestors.

Georgie went a more traditional route with her raspberry and almond frangipane tart. Nelly gave a tangy twist with blood oranges in her iceberg frangipane tarts, which boasted Italian meringue on top. While others took a more fruity approach Dylan went with coffee and chocolate as his main ingredients on The Great British Bake Off.

Illiyin also gave a tropical twist to her bake by making a coconut frangipane topped with a passion fruit dome. She suffered a major scare when Dylan pointed out to her that the pastry was crumbling up. Illiyin couldn't help but exclaim that she was "going home" tonight but quickly recovered to bake a second batch.

Judges gave their assessment and pointed out that Andy overburnt his pastry, while Illiyin's dessert was a little soggy. This led to the technical challenge which was designed by the "prince of pastry," Paul Hollywood, who advised the contestants to rest their bakes.

Paul asked the bakers to prepare a spin on the Greek pie, spanakopita. Dylan's bake was voted number one by the judges of The Great British Bake Off with the pie not getting wet in the bottom and the spinach filling especially praised. Afterward, the bakers assembled for the final time this week to compete in the showstopper challenge.

The bakers were asked to create Paris-Brest for their final challenge of the week on The Great British Bake Off, but they also had to make a freestanding pastry podium along with it. Here's what the bakers came up with:

• Illiyin made 'Crown of Nuttiness' Paris-Brest⁣
• Gill made Lemon & Thyme Meringue Paris-Brest⁣
• Christiaan made Orange & Pecan Paris-Brest⁣
• Nelly made Pistachio Paris-Brest⁣
• Sumayah made 'Tree of Life' Paris-Brest⁣
• Georgie made Pistachio & Raspberry Paris-Brest⁣
• Dylan made 'Contrasts of Tea' Paris-Brest⁣
• Andy made 'All You Need Is Love' Paris-Brest

Some bakers took inspiration from famous landmarks, constructing intricate pastry towers, while others drew on more personal stories to craft their podiums. During the challenge, Andy shattered his stand while trying to place it. This became the determining factor in the judge's decision when it came to elimination. Andy was voted out, while Gill was awarded the star baker.