With Food Network’s Halloween Baking Championship right around the corner (no spoilers for those of you who haven’t seen theme park pastry pro Alan Alas compete yet!), all competition shows of the winter season are ready.
Orlando has not one, but three locals.
From the Wizarding World to Winter Wars to the Holiday Baking Championships, meet the Orlando people you love while crafting seasonal cakes and cookies.
Harry Potter: The Baking Wizard
Season 2 of this all-inclusive Potter Baking Contest is kicking off, with the first edition taking place on November 2nd. There, keep an eye out for chocolatier Katie Bonzer (instagram.com/katiebonzerchocolatier) who has her eye on the prize.
Raised as a military man, Bonser was born in Spain and raised all over the world, but claims Michigan’s Upper Peninsula as her home. There, she and her husband (also a pastry chef) owned and operated three restaurants in Gwinn and Marquette towns before relocating to Orlando. Bonzer initially worked at Walt Disney World.
“Two years later, we’re ready to get back to business. Practical Chocolate provides wholesale bonbon chocolates, ornaments, and showpieces for luxury hotels, resorts, and restaurants to Orlando’s great area.”
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Translation: Bonzer, a graduate of Le Cordon Bleu Pasadena, brings some serious skills to the show, but competitive grilling on television wasn’t what she had in mind.
“I get asked to appear on TV about twice a month, but it’s never been part of my career goals,” Bonzer told the Orlando Sentinel. “But when Harry Potter Season 1 was released, I was in awe because I’ve been a huge Harry Potter fan my whole life. I had a scheduling conflict with season 1 and I was so grateful that the team remembered me and gave me another opportunity.”
Bonzer said the group of 16 contestants hit it off right away and were cracking inside jokes by the end of the first day.
“No one took themselves too seriously, which created an explosively interesting and creative environment. We’re very diverse culturally and globally. We all took this huge leap of faith together to film in London, so far from home, that I believe that fusion created a great interest in each other and camaraderie.”
Watch Bonzer with Potter cast members James and Oliver Phelps (Fred and George Weasley) and judges Carla Hall and Joseph Youssef, as well as Harry Potter stars.
holiday baking championship
If you don’t want to wait a week to cheer on your home team, you’re in luck. Because the Holiday Baking Championship debuts the very next night, November 3rd. This time, baking for 407 is a Walt Disney World veteran.
“When one of the most iconic hotels invites you to work there, you just pack your bags and leave,” says Jean Carlos, a Brazilian pastry chef at Walt Disney World’s Swan Hotel. “Prior to Orlando, I lived in Atlanta and worked at both the Ritz-Carlton and InterContinental hotels.”
This isn’t Carlos’ first rodeo on TV. He made his television debut in 2021 on a show in his home country.
“That one was more focused on cake,” he explains. “I’m interested in being on a TV show because I want to challenge myself and tell my story through dessert.”
The story goes back to when Carlos was 10 years old.
“We moved next door to a bakery and you could see people working there from the window,” he says. “That gives me sprinkles!”
While it’s great to learn new skills and learn how to perform under pressure, he says the hardest part of a competition show is waiting to be judged.
“(The experience) had mixed emotions but a lot of fun… I was very impressed with the set. They created a really cute little Christmas village in the middle of the kitchen. And this year we had a new format. We were divided into two groups: Team Nice and Team Naughty.”
Tune into the show to find out if Carlos was “nice” enough for judges Duff Goldman, Nancy Fuller, and Chaldea Brown.
Sweet Empire: Winter Wars
Originally from Strasbourg, France, François Paille is a veteran of Orlando’s food scene, starting with the popular Croissant Gourmet in Winter Park, where he is chef and partner. During that time, Paille logged time at Norman’s (an original Ritz-Carlton) and helped open My French Café in Winter Garden.
Paille specialized in chocolate while studying in Lyon, and there will no doubt be some luck in the layers of lamination technology he will bring to his colleagues in this new show. There, bakers form teams, shape their vision, and fight for bragging rights – not to mention $50,000.
“Pastry for me has mostly been about making people smile,” says Paille, who has been baking in her grandmother’s kitchen since she was a child. “When the opportunity came to join ‘Sweet Empire’…I felt it was the perfect moment to take on a new kind of challenge. I wanted to represent Croissant Gourmet, meet amazing chefs who share the same love for the craft, and hopefully inspire others through creativity and passion.”
Even though he had formidable chops, Paille found the experience terrifying.
“As a chocolatier and as a pastry chef in a high-end restaurant, I had the opportunity to use all my skills, but the challenge was working in a field that was far from ideal. I am used to stress in the kitchen, but this time was different as I was constantly being filmed.”
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Although he can’t say much about what will unfold on the show, Paille says the experience was a joy and an honor, saying, “In the first episode, I tried to bite off more than I could chew and gave myself too much work.”
In this new show, bakers form a team, shape their vision, and fight for sweet supremacy…or their endeavors fall apart. Hosted by Wells Adams, Yolanda Gump, and Jacques Torres, only the most daring pieces will make their mark at this event. Bet: $50,000.
Gourmet fans, it’s time to support Orlando. If all goes well, all three chefs will be able to take home their winnings during the holidays.
Find me on Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, Instagram @amydroo or the OSFoodie Instagram account @orlando.foodie. Email: amthompson@orlandosentinel.com, and for more foodie fun, join our Let’s Eat, Orlando Facebook group.
