“The stars aligned” – Jamie Li reflects on journey to Spring Baking Championship

Jamie Li, a San Mateo baker and stage 2 breast cancer survivor, joined 12 other contestants for season 11 of Food Network's Spring Baking Championship, which premiered on March 10, 2025. Talking about her entry in the show, Jamie revealed how Food Network reached out to Li about joining season 11. After careful consideration, she accepted the opportunity.

"The stars aligned and here we are. It's a pretty wild journey," Li shared in her NBC Bay Area interview published on March 15, 2025.

She added:

"I looked at that email for... about a good month before I responded... I thought to myself, am I actually going to do this? Am I going to put myself out there?... it's once in a lifetime... When I'm 80 years old, am I going to look back thinking, 'Oh, is that something I wish I should have done?'"

Li won the concept cake award at the 2024 National Pastry Conference before receiving the show invitation. The mother of three operates a bespoke cake business from her Peninsula home, creating wedding and corporate event desserts.

The Spring Baking Championship contestant appears alongside Northern California bakers Paul Feybesse from Vallejo and Julian Perrigo-Jimenez from Folsom. The show has judges Duff Goldman, Kardea Brown, and Nancy Fuller, who throw challenges ranging from flower-themed desserts to Minecraft-inspired creations.

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Mother of three joined Spring Baking Championship after winning pastry award

Jamie Li's baking journey began during a critical life moment, a cancer diagnosis while pregnant with her first daughter. During her 20-year marketing career, she discovered baking's therapeutic value. In her NBC Bay Area interview, the Spring Baking Championship contestant explained her transition.

"I did bake quite a few cakes during cancer treatment. It really kept my mind off of things. It kept me calm, it kept me focused on things. Before I went back to work, I decided I'm going to take a baking course, just kind of see what's going on and see if I like it. And here I am now,” she said.

After recovery, Li enrolled at the San Francisco Baking Institute, marking her first step toward professional baking. By 2020, she launched her career, earning recognition at the 2024 National Pastry Conference with her concept cake victory.

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Building a baking business

Li's home-based company specializes in custom designs for weddings and events. Explaining her love for building a business around baking, she stated:

"My favorite part of the entire process is designing the cake and telling my client's story through cake... One of my favorite things when it comes to baking is developing a flavor for the client."

The Spring Baking Championship star’s initial kitchen experience contrasted significantly with the competition setting.

"Walking into the kitchen was amazing. It's everything that you see on television. It's big. It has every ingredient that you could possibly imagine, but it was also nerve-wracking because you're walking onto this set with 12 other bakers who are just as talented," Jamie shared.

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First episode challenges

The Spring Baking Championship premiere tested contestants with two distinct tasks. The opening challenge required creating a flower-themed dessert showcasing personal style and technique. For the second round, bakers tackled an intricate honey pie decoration task.

The competition kitchen differed from Jamie Li's home workspace, featuring multiple cooking stations arranged for optimal filming. Bakers accessed an extensive ingredient pantry while working under studio lighting. The challenge format required quick decisions about flavor combinations and design elements within set time constraints.

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To know more about Jamie Li, fans can follow Spring Baking Championship contestant on Instagram, @cakebyjamieli.