The Food Network’s Kid Baking Championship continued last night with 12-year-old Piper Lowe, from Princeton competing. Their challenge…create terrariums turned into truffles, with a selected bug as part of the theme. Piper was given a scarab beetle, and for the twist, she chose a sunflower as her flower, sharing with the audience that it’s her state flower. Piper created a layered masterpiece, starting with a vanilla sponge cake topped with toasted peanuts. She followed this with a “dirt” layer made of crushed oreo cookies, cream cheese, and whipped cream. Next came a peanut butter mousse, and for the finishing touch, she created more “dirt” using crumbled cookies. Piper’s sunflower was meticulously made from fondant, and the center was a molded truffle filled with cookie batter. She also painted her scarab beetles to look metallic, using corn syrup and powdered food coloring—an idea that host Duff Goldman admired, even joking about stealing it! Piper’s creation also featured a mushroom for her beetles to live on, along with green fondant leaves on top.
The judges? Extremely impressed, praising not only the beauty of the dessert but also the perfect balance and flavor of her layers. But, was it enough?… Yes! In the end, it was Piper winning the challenge with the judges commenting that her inside layers were just as spectacular as her stunning exterior. She had made it to the final four!!! Tune in Monday night at 7:00 as Piper goes for the championship!
