Next Great Baker

{{Infobox television

| image = Cake boss next great baker.jpg

| alt_name = Cake Boss: Next Great Baker

| genre =

| creator =

| presenter = Buddy Valastro

| judges =

| country = United States

| language = English

| num_seasons = 4

| num_episodes = 41

| list_episodes = List of Next Great Baker episodes

| executive_producer =

| producer =

| editor =

| camera =

| runtime = 42 minutes

| company =

| network = TLC

| first_aired = {{Start date|2010|12|6}}

| last_aired = {{End date|2014|08|19}}{{cite web|title=NEXT GREAT BAKER, THE (TLC)|url=http://thefutoncritic.com/showatch/next-great-baker/|access-date=25 October 2016}}

| related = Cake Boss
Kitchen Boss
Ultimate Cake Off

}}

Next Great Baker (also known as Cake Boss: Next Great Baker) is an American television series that airs on TLC, hosted by Buddy Valastro, the star of his own reality series, Cake Boss. The show features contestants participating in challenges that test their edible art baking and decorating skills. Each week, a contestant will be eliminated; the last contestant standing will win a grand prize package that varies by season. Other prizes for winning a challenge or the week's competition are also offered during the series.{{cite web|url=http://www.tvguide.com/News/Cake-Boss-Spinoff-1019881.aspx|author=Stanhope, Kate|title=Cake Boss Gets Competitive with New Spinoff Series|website=TVGuide.com|date=June 24, 2010|access-date=September 16, 2015}}

Gameplay

Each round has three stages:

Baker's challenge: Each contestant has to meet a challenge set by Buddy the Cake Boss, such as making a pastry, baking a cake or, as in the first-season finale, filling buckets of grease. The winner of this challenge receives a special bonus, revealed after the challenge.
Elimination challenge: Each contestant has a set amount of time over two days — usually three hours on the first day and the remaining time on the second — to make a cake to specifications set by Buddy.
Final elimination: Buddy and the judges (the judge from the Baker's challenge and a client) decide which three cakes are the best and which two cakes that are the worst. After the decisions are made, the contestants (who were waiting in the bakers' lounge) enter the judging room. Contestants determined "safe" are then dismissed. Then, the three contestants with the best cakes are announced, with the one with the best cake in the challenge singled out. The remaining contestants have the worst cakes in the challenge; one of these will be told to leave the competition, transported away by Danny (an employee of Carlo's Bakery and Buddy's close friend) inside a box truck marked "Not the Next Great Baker".

Episodes

=Season 1=

The first season of Next Great Baker was taped inside a special kitchen studio set up at the Hudson County Community College Culinary Arts Institute in Jersey City, New Jersey, and was televised from December 6, 2010 to January 24, 2011 on TLC. Dana Herbert, the last contestant standing out of a field of ten contestants, won $50,000 cash, a Chevrolet Cruze and an apprenticeship at Carlo's Bake Shop in Hoboken, New Jersey. Following his win, Dana was featured in some episodes of Cake Boss, but he had had his own bakery before his appearance on the show.

=Season 2=

The second season of Next Great Baker was set at the new Carlo's Bakery facility at Lackawanna Center in Jersey City, and was televised from November 28, 2011 to January 30, 2012 on TLC. Marissa Lopez, the last contestant standing out of a field of 13 contestants, won $100,000 cash and a four-page spread in Brides magazine,{{cite web|url=http://blogs.discovery.com/next-great-baker/2011/11/lots-of-perks-and-a-bit-of-baking.html|author=Elgart, Corina|title=Lots of Perks and a Bit of Baking|publisher=TLC|date=November 29, 2011|access-date=December 23, 2011}} along with an opportunity to work beside Buddy in the bakery.{{Cite episode|title=It's Go Time!|episode-link=Next Great Baker (season 2)#ep9|series=Next Great Baker|network=TLC|airdate=November 28, 2011|season=2|number=1|minutes=06:31|quote=The winner is gonna get to work with me, to learn what it's like to be at Carlo's Bakery, and I'm gonna teach you all my tricks.}} As of 2020, she is the manager of Carlo's Bakery Ridgewood, New Jersey.{{cite episode|title=Seeing Double|episode-link=List of Cake Boss episodes#ep129|series=Cake Boss|network=TLC|date=June 10, 2013|season=6|number=6}}

=Season 3=

Season 3 premiered on Monday, November 26, 2012.{{cite web|url=http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2012/11/01/season-three-of-tlcs-next-great-baker-to-premiere-monday-november-26/155724|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121109031307/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2012/11/01/season-three-of-tlcs-next-great-baker-to-premiere-monday-november-26/155724/|url-status=dead|archive-date=November 9, 2012|title=Season Three of TLC's 'Next Great Baker' to Premiere Monday, November 26|work=TV By the Numbers|access-date=November 1, 2012}} 13 contestants compete for $100,000, a spread in redbook magazine and to work with Buddy. The winner was Ashley Holt. She now owns her own bakery called Sugar Monster. She previously worked at Buddy's bakery and appears on Buddy's other show, Cake Boss from Season 5. She announced her withdrawal from the bakery on Season 6. (Ep. 28: Up, Up and Away)

=Season 4=

Season 4 premiered on Tuesday, June 24, 2014.{{cite web|url=http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2014/04/30/next-great-baker-season-four-to-premiere-tuesday-june-24-on-tlc/259165/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502052102/http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2014/04/30/next-great-baker-season-four-to-premiere-tuesday-june-24-on-tlc/259165/|url-status=dead|archive-date=May 2, 2014|title='Next Great Baker' Season Four to Premiere Tuesday, June 24 on TLC|work=TV By the Numbers|date=April 30, 2014|access-date=July 1, 2014}} This season, contestants competed in pairs.{{cite web|url=http://www.thewrap.com/tlc-next-great-baker-new-judges-season-four/|author=Nededog, Jethro|title=TLC's 'Next Great Baker' Returns for Season 4 in June With a Few Twists (Exclusive)|work=The Wrap|date=April 30, 2014|access-date=July 1, 2014}} Ten pairs total vied for a $100,000 grand prize and an opportunity to work for Buddy Valastro at the new Carlo's Bakery at Las Vegas's The Venetian. Chocolatier Jacques Torres and Magnolia Bakery chief Bobbie Lloyd were permanent judges for season four alongside Buddy.{{cite web|last=Acken|first=Lori|title=We talk Next Great Baker Season 4 with new judge Jacques Torres|url=http://www.channelguidemagblog.com/index.php/2014/06/20/talk-next-great-baker-season-4-new-judge-jacques-torres/|website=ChannelGuideMagBlog.com|access-date=July 1, 2014|date=June 20, 2014}} Co-workers Al Watson and Lia Weber were the winners.{{cite web|url=http://tv.msn.com/tv/episode/cake-boss-next-great-baker/vegas-showstoppers|title=Vegas Showstoppers|work=Cake Boss: Next Great Baker: Episode Info|publisher=MSN TV|access-date=August 13, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140813221301/http://tv.msn.com/tv/episode/cake-boss-next-great-baker/vegas-showstoppers/|archive-date=August 13, 2014|url-status=dead}}

Versions

class="wikitable"
Country/Region ! Name ! Network(s) ! Winners
Arab World \| Arab Baker حلواني العرب \| Dubai TV MBC 1 SBC TV Abu Dhabi TV \| {{plainlist\| Season 1, 2004: Iraq: Yousef Amer Season 2, 2008: Egypt: Chef Kadry Season 3, 2019: Lebanon: Michel Assaf Season 4,2020: Egypt: Ahmed Selim Season 5,2021: Egypt: Massoud El Sherbini Season 6,2023: Kuwait: Mohamed Hassan }}
rowspan=2\|Brazil \| Batalha dos Confeiteiros Battle of the Bakers \| rowspan=2\|RecordTV Discovery Home & Health \| {{plainlist\| Season 1, 2015: Rick Zavala Season 2, 2018: Iara Cavalcanti }}
Batalha dos Cozinheiros Battle of the Cooks \| Season 1, 2016: André Neto & Adelino Bilhalva
{{nowrap\|25px Latin America}} (Except Brazil) \| El desafío de Buddy: Latinoamérica Buddy's Challenge: Latin America \| Discovery Home & Health \| {{plainlist\| Season 1, 2014: Catalina Moroni Season 2, 2015: Daniela Galarza Season 3, 2016: Current season }}
United States \| Next Great Baker \| TLC \| {{plainlist\| Season 1, 2010: Dana Herbert Season 2, 2011: Marissa Lopez Season 3, 2012: Ashley Holt Season 4, 2014: Al Watson & Lia Weber }}

class="wikitable"

Country/Region

! Name

! Network(s)

! Winners

Arab World

| Arab Baker
حلواني العرب

| Dubai TV
MBC 1
SBC TV
Abu Dhabi TV

{{plainlist|