If you love ‘The Great British Bake Off,’ here are 7 more cooking and baking shows to watch
Hearts are sure to be as warm as a preheating oven when “The Great British Bake Off” returns for its 15th season.
If you can’t get enough of the show’s delicious treats, innocent vibe and adorable backdrop set at Welford Park in Berkshire, England, here are seven other shows you might enjoy, including a few Halloween-themed shows set to debut this month:
1. “Bake Squad,” Netflix
If your favorite part of the “The Great British Bake Off” is the camaraderie and good-natured love between the contestants, you might enjoy this Netflix baking competition that isn’t much of a competition at all.
Christina Tosi, founder of Milk Bar, hosts a show where four skilled bakers are asked by a client to come up with stunning creations for a specific event. At the end of each episode, the client picks the best one. It’s that simple.
“The squad is on a mission to sprinkle a little bit of happiness into big events,” Tosi explains during the show.
The bakers create masterpieces for a child’s birthday, an over-the-top wedding, a daughter who beats cancer and an array of other clients who have a difficult choice at the end of the episode. It’s light-hearted fun for the whole family with an emphasis on sportsmanship. The winner gets no money, just pride, and the results are as sweet as the desserts.
Streaming now.
2. “The Chef Show,” Netflix
Who can forget the scene in “Chef” when Jon Favreau cooks up the simplest, yet most delicious-looking grilled cheese ever before seen on the big screen?
Carl Casper (Jon Favreau) and Percy Casper (Emjay Anthony) in ‘Chef.’ (Merrick Morton/Open Road)
Well, Favreau returned to the kitchen in this under-the-radar show from 2019-2020, where he was reunited with Los Angeles-based chef, Roy Choi, who was a consultant for the cooking scenes in “Chef.” The two bond onscreen as they teach celebrities how to make delicious foods while providing the most entertaining discussions.
Comedian Bill Burr, one of the guest celebrities, says the grilled cheese scene in “Chef” is the entire reason he’s on this show. Other guests include David Chang, Robert Downey Jr., Tom Holland, Seth Rogen, Sam Raimi, The Russo Brothers and Gwyneth Paltrow.
Whether new seasons of the show, which scored 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, will ever materialize is a bit of a mystery. But you can stream “The Chef Show” series on Netflix — and catch the much-loved, original “Chef” on Hulu, Amazon Prime and other streaming services.
3. “Master Chef,” Fox, Hulu, Tubi or Disney-plus
Back for its 14th season, “Master Chef” returned with a clash of generations, pitting chefs from Gen-Z, Gen-X, Millennials and Boomers against each other for a chance at winning $250,000.
Judge Gordon Ramsay during a ‘Masterchef’ finale. (Greg Gayne/FOX)
This season’s theme may sometimes feel forced, but it also provides an interesting perspective on the culinary differences between generations. This year’s edition, which will crown a champion on Sept. 18 (no spoilers!), brought back judges Gordon Ramsay, Aaron Sanchez and Jose Bastianich while adding chef and food influencer Priya Krishna as a guest judge.
4. “Halloween Baking Championship,” Food Network, Max
One channel is going all-in on a certain spooky holiday after the Food Network reported drawing 28 million viewers for its 2023 Halloween programming, making it one of the top five non-news/sports cable networks among adults 18-49.
The “Halloween Baking Championship” returns for its 10th season on Sept. 16, bringing in 10 new bakers from across the country to compete in a haunted science lab. Weekly challenges include a battle of mummy-themed desserts, treats that look like broken glass and all things Beetlejuice. Returning host/comedian John Henson brings the fun while Stephanie Boswell, Carla Hall and Zac Young are the judges. New this season: immunity is on the line each week.
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5. “Halloween Wars,” Food Network, Max
From the company that produces “Cupcake Wars” and “Cake Wars,” a 14th season of “Halloween Wars” will debut Sept. 22. New episodes can be streamed the next day on Max.
Jonathan Bennett (“Mean Girls”) returns to host the show, which will pit eight teams against each other to carve pumpkins and create their spookiest desserts.
6. “Outrageous Pumpkins,” Food Network, Max
If pumpkin carving is your thing, “Outrageous Pumpkins” launches its sixth season on Sept. 29, and this time, 14 new carvers will be paired up to make gravity-defying structures and mechanical monsters, according to the network. Host/chef Damaris Phillips, the former “Food Network Star” champion, will challenge contestants to bring their terrifying structures to life and create gruesome crime scenes, all from gourds.
7. “Harry Potter Wizards of Baking,” Food Network, Max
Harry Potter fans will be taken onto the actual Warner Bros. Studios set where the movies were filmed when the new “Harry Potter Wizards of Baking” debuts sometime this holiday season.
In this new baking competition, professional pastry chefs will create enchanting masterpieces themed exclusively with Harry Potter characters and events — with Fred and George Weasley, er, actors James and Oliver Phelps hosting.
Based on the teaser, the series promises to give bakers unprecedented access to the actual film sets, including The Great Hall at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Platform 9¾, Gringotts Wizarding Bank and The Burrow.
A series premiere date has not yet been announced.