On Nov. 12, The Great Canadian Baking Show judge and renowned French chef Bruno Feldeisen will be hosting a mini-bake-off challenge at Bolen Books in Victoria, B.C. to promote his new cookbook, The Bacon, Butter, Bourbon and Chocolate Cookbook. The bake-off will be between three past bakers who starred on The Great Canadian Baking Show. The three contestants Feldeisen will be judging are Jude Somers from season one, John Fowler from season six, and Jen Childs from season eight.
“Jennifer’s an uber baker,” said Somers about her competition. “And John’s no slouch either. … I don’t know how I’ll do, but someone has to start the competition.”
The three contestants will be baking a recipe from Feldeisen’s cookbook, chosen by staff at Bolen Books. At the event, Feldeisen will be blind-tasting each baker’s creation, just like he does in the show. After the blind tasting, Feldeisen will crown one baker as the winner. Between the three dishes, plenty will be left over so the audience can also enjoy a taste of one of Feldeisen’s new recipes!
The first time an event like this took place was for the launch of Feldeisen’s first cookbook, Baking with Bruno. This upcoming book launch will be the third time this live baking event has taken over Bolen Books. “We are really excited to have him back,” said Madeline Holmes, an employee at Bolen Books. “We are such big fans of The Great Canadian Baking Show and The British Baking Show. … We had him here in 2020 for the launch of his first book, and it was so much fun.”
Holmes said this event is highly anticipated due to Feldeisen’s personality and adoration from fans. “He is charismatic and fun,” said Holmes. “And he took a lot of questions from the audience, which was neat. So we get a lot of really good feedback [about the event], especially for someone like Bruno.”
Because of Feldeisen’s career on TV, Holmes said the Q&A session differs from traditional book launches: “Usually, the questions are about the writing process. But with this event, we get a lot of questions about tips for baking and about the show and how [it works].”
Feldeisen’s first cookbook, Baking with Bruno, focused on recipes for baked goods. This cookbook, The Bacon, Butter, Bourbon and Chocolate Cookbook, will differ from his first as each recipe includes one of four of Feldeisen’s favourite ingredients: bacon, butter, bourbon, or chocolate. “He likes the finer things in life and has the ability to bake and cook the finer things in life,” said Somers. “So he probably took some of the most appealing ingredients out there and created some magical tastes with them.”
Somers said she is looking forward to seeing Feldeisen’s new cookbook in person. “His recipes are easy to follow and they’re straightforward food but always with a nice twist. They’re all wicked– but they’re super good.”
When it comes to Feldeisen, he is considered a fan favourite—particularly in Victoria. The event to launch his first book was considered “huge,” by Somers. She said she remembers it being like “in New York at the Barnes & Noble … when they get the truly famous people in there. It was like that because he’s such a star here.”
Feldeisen’s book launch is a free event hosted by the Bolen Books in Hillside Mall, making it nearby and affordable for UVic students. There will be copies of The Bacon, Butter, Bourbon and Chocolate Cookbook available for purchase and potentially the opportunity for an autograph from Feldeisen. The doors open at 6:30 pm for this event and is likely to fill up quickly, so it’s important to get there on time!