Taste TV

'Best Baker' is back: Carla Hall hosts Season 4

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Author: 
Michelle Rose / TV Media
Host Carla Hall and contestants on "Best Baker in America"

Host Carla Hall and contestants on "Best Baker in America"

Looking for your next must-watch baking show now that "Spring Baking Championship" has ended? Luckily, a new season of "Best Baker in America" starts up this week on Food Network, and if you have a sweet tooth, you might not want to watch the weekly challenges on an empty stomach.

Premiering Monday, May 3, on Food Network, "Best Baker in America" throws together 10 talented bakers and puts their mastery of baking techniques to the test. Each weekly installment — there are eight episodes in total — features a Master Challenge and a Bake Off round, which will determine who gets cut from the competition. Ultimately, versatility and adaptability, combined with proficiency of course, are key to winning the title of "Best Baker" and the $25,000 prize.

Now entering its fourth season, "Best Baker in America" features a familiar competition format. It isn't exactly blazing a new trail for food competition shows, but there are a few twists. This season will deliver a taste of Americana with a weekly focus on creating unique versions of classic American desserts — think key lime pie and desserts made with sweet Kentucky bourbon, like the Kentucky May Day "PieCaken" featured in the premiere.

The other new "twist" is the host, Carla Hall. This is Hall's first season with the show: Adam Rapoport, the former editor of Bon Appétit magazine, served as both host and judge in Season 1, while "Chopped" judge Scott Conant was the presenter for Seasons 2 and 3.

You might know Hall from her time on ABC's "The Chew" (2011 to 2018) or her appearances in Bravo's "Top Chef" (she was in seasons 5 and 8) — she's even appeared on the British competition "Crazy Delicious." The restaurateur and author of several cookbooks (and a children's book, coming in November 2021), Hall has been a long-time contributor but wasn't working exclusively with Food Network until last summer, when she signed a new talent deal. Now she's a regular feature (and a viewer favorite), with frequent stints in "Holiday Baking Championship," "Worst Cooks in America" and on Food Network's Kitchen app. Thankfully, we can add "Best Baker in America" to that ever-growing list when it premieres on Monday, May 3.

Throughout "Best Baker in America's" run, Hall is joined by judges Gesine Prado and Jason Smith — two successful bakers in their own right and the ones to impress each week if the "Best Baker" hopefuls want to reach the next round.