Buddy Valastro and the bakery crew are back in the mix! It’s hotter than ever as they bake even more elaborate and delicious creations! Buddy is one of the most renowned cake artists in the Unites States and the master baker at Carlo’s Bake Shop in Hoboken, New Jersey. This season’s colourful confections include an old-school robot for a gala event honouring the world’s most advanced artificial intelligence. Plus, Kiwis (both the bird and the fruit) feature on a cake to capture the spirit of New Zealand. What’s more, the whole family comes together on Mother’s Day to celebrate family matriarch, Momma, and Buddy hosts a decorating class for mothers and daughters to celebrate this special day.
From Saturday, 12 May at 19:00on TLC DSTV Channel 135
We chatted to Buddy to find out a bit more about the man behind the series
What was the most challenging cake of the upcoming season and why?
In this upcoming season we have a Sherlock Holmes cake which was a bit of a challenge, purely because of the way it was structured. It took quite long to make too. It was pretty hard.
What was the biggest cake disaster you had to date?
The biggest disaster I think we’ve ever had on Cake Boss was the solar system cake. I think it was in season one or two. Over the last 10 years of Cake Boss I’ve gotten to be a better baker and cake decorator by trial. You have to be able to learn from your mistakes, and that’s exactly what we did. I think we need another crack at the solar system cake – we’re smarter than we were back then, or just better at cake decorating at least.
How has Cake Boss changed your life and Carlo’s Bakery?
That’s a great question. I’ve been doing Cake Boss for almost 10 years now, but I’ve been in the baking business since I was 11 years old. So we’re going on 30 years now. Cake Boss has definitely changed my life in so many different ways, and all for the better. It has been a vehicle for me to be able to grow my business.
When I first started with Cake Boss, I saw it as an opportunity to turn my father’s bakery into a household name. I never knew that it would become such a great sensation worldwide, inspiring people to bake or spend more time with their families. I didn’t know it was going to help the baking industry that’s been so good to me. All of those things just happened coincidentally.
And now that I am a dad of four, I am so grateful for everything that I have. When I create content for Cake Boss or one of the other shows that I do, I try to make clean, good family entertainment that’s inspiring – something that I would like to watch with my children. It’s been an awesome ride.
What’s your favourite dish and your favourite dessert?
My favourite dessert is definitely the lobster tail at the bakery. It’s a flaky crusted pastry that’s filled with cream – it’s so good. My favourite dish is probably my wife, Lisa’s, eggplant parmesan. She makes that so, so good. When I travel the world and I do different things, I like trying out new dishes. Whenever I go to Brazil, I have to get a good feijoada.
Any words or advice to inspiring bakers or pastry chefs?
Believe in your heart. Follow your dreams. Never ever give up. Never believe you can’t do something, and learn from your mistakes. It’s not about if you fall down, it’s about how you get up and recover.
Imka Webb is a freelance digital marketing expert and the digital editor of Food & Home Entertaining magazine. www.imkawebb.com
