The Ultimate Baking Championship

Palmer divides the eight chefs into teams to craft laminated dough pastries worthy of display in a world-class pâtisserie case. Each baker creates one sweet and one savoury pastry for their team, hoping to impress judges Duff Goldman and Bryan Ford.

Palmer challenges the seven remaining chefs to find inspiration in grab-and-go gas station snacks. Then, the bakers create their own interpretation of a classic dessert, like an opera cake or a Sachertorte, for judges Duff Goldman and Zac Young.

Jesse Palmer tasks the bakers with creating a visually stunning chocolate sculptural piece along with a complementary baked element. Chocolatier Amaury Guichon joins Duff Goldman to judge the chefs' technical precision and creative storytelling.

Jesse Palmer challenges the chefs to craft a large-format dessert with a decorative sugar element that embodies their assigned element -- earth, air, fire, water, or space. Duff Goldman and Jacques Torres judge the striking sugar showpieces.

Jesse Palmer asks the remaining four chefs to create arctic-themed cakes with a frozen layer. The top two chefs move on to the finale, and the bottom two chefs battle in a sudden-death round, hoping to impress judges Duff Goldman and Molly Yeh.

Palmer challenges the final three chefs to create a spectacular dessert display inspired by one of three themes. Judges Duff Goldman, Shinmin Li, Jacques Torres, and Sherry Yard decide who will win $50,000 and the title of Ultimate Baking Champion.