The Great British Bake Off Series 16: Episode 7 Recap

Britain’s favourite baking show is back for its 16th series, airing every Tuesday for 10 weeks from 2 September to 4 November 2025. Now in week seven, we’ve become very familiar with this year’s cohort of bakers – which means it hurts all the more to see one of them leave the tent. This week, contestants faced the brand new challenge of Meringue Week: from left-handed handshakes to Alison doing the merengue dance, here’s a recap of everything that happened in Series 16, Episode 7 of The Great British Bake Off.

Alison Hammond, Noel Fielding, Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood. (Channel 4)

What Happened In The Great British Bake Off Series 16, Episode 5?

Ah, Meringue Week, a brand-new challenge to the Bake Off tent, and with it came brand-new stresses. What has previously been Dessert Week in past series – don’t worry, we are still getting that instalment next week – saw contestants knee-deep in egg whites as they grappled with sticky Signatures, sinking soufflés and a Showstopper that even the most seasoned baker would raise their eyebrows at… does anybody actually know vacherin glacé is?

But first: mini meringue tarts. In Prue’s words, ‘it’s a tiny little thing, but it’s very difficult to do’. Contestants could pick from Swiss, French or Italian meringue to top their tasty tarts (though Jasmine admitted she didn’t even know there were three types of meringue until ‘five days ago’), with all six in the tent opting to pair their tart with a layer of fruity filling to cut through the sweet meringue. Both Jasmine and Lesley opted for a touch of raspberry, while Tom and Iain went for rhubarb. Most bakers fared well, but it was Toby’s ‘apple lattice’ style tarts that won him that sought after Paul Hollywood handshake.

Onto the Technical – raspberry soufflés – which saw all the bakers par Iain vacate the tent for to endure a staggered-start challenge, so Prue and Paul could enjoy each contestant’s desserts straight from the oven. One by one, the bakers came back in to begin, and while it seems they had a slightly more in-depth recipe than in previous weeks, some struggled with measuring quantities (including Iain, who added double the amount of sugar he needed to his soufflés). The challenge also saw Lesley and Toby overwhip their egg whites, causing their soufflé texture to be lumpy – likely what Paul was referring to when he said ‘you’ve got one shot at this. You make a mistake on that, that’s it’.

It was ultimately Iain that saw his soufflé rise to the top – outshining the other bakers despite his sugar slip-up. Lesley, however, fell short, serving up the judges an undercooked dessert. After a tricky technical, bakers warmly welcomed the Showstopper challenge: a vacherin glacé. You would be forgiven for not knowing what this unique bake is: a traditional French ice cream cake, seeing layers of ice cream, sorbet and meringue piled on top of each other, finished with whipped cream. Bakers were asked to make three different types of ice cream or sorbet and were given free reign on inspiration for the challenge. Lesley created a wedding cake-inspired vacherin glacé in honour of her daughter’s engagement; Aaron, a seven-tailed fox inspired by Japanese folklore; and Iain, a bin. Taking inspo from his fellow Irish namesake, Iain from series 5, series 16 Iain choose to make a bin-shaped vacherin glacé in honour of that iconic scene from back in 2014 that saw Iain serve up a dustbin to judges after famously throwing his ice cream cake into it.

But maybe this series’ Iain should not have relied on series 5 Iain’s choices of coffee and chocolate, as the dessert’s too-rich flavours fell below par for Paul and Prue. Toby, though, came out on top with his pineapple and coconut flavoured ice cream cake that even won him an invite to enjoy a piña colada poolside with Paul.

Who Left?

However, ultimately, it was Lesley that drew the short straw. After her soufflé struggles, Lesley also had trouble in this week’s Showstopper. After Tom pointed out that she had mistakenly got her egg to sugar measurement ratio the wrong way round, she had to remake the meringues, resulting in them being underbaked and chewy. Despite the judges enjoying her final bake, there was little room for error with it being week seven – and Lesley was unfortunately sent packing after one too many small mistakes.

Lesley joins Nataliia, Nadia, Jessika, Pui Man, Leighton and Hassan as this year’s Bake Off contestants booted out of the tent so far, whittling our batch down to just five.

Who Won Star Baker?

Meringue week saw Toby join the Star Baker hall of fame once more after his success in biscuit week (episode two). Paul commented how Toby had been ‘sort of sniffing at Star Baker for a couple of weeks’ now, but after receiving a handshake in the Signature, third place in the Technical, and achieving ‘a very strong Showstopper’, he was ultimately crowned top of the bunch this week.

Paul and Prue

What’s Happening Next Week?

Next week, it is the quarter finals, and a return of the classic Dessert Week.

Channel 4 teases a ‘scorched Signature’ and an ‘old-school Technical’, as well as a ‘gravity-defying Showstopper’. From the sneak preview, we get an insight into some industrial-looking cake building, some serious oven watching, and even flames before Aaron states he is ‘a cake maker, not a joiner’. It is sure to be an intense watch.

The cast of The Great British Bake Off Series 16: Hassan, Leighton, Aaron, Tom, Lesley, Pui Man, Nataliia, Iain, Toby, Jessika, Jasmine & Nadia. (Channel 4)

What Else Have I Missed? Series 16 So Far

Episode 6: Pastry Week

Star Baker: Aaron

Who Left? Nadia

Week 6 saw the bakers contending with what Prue dubbed the ‘most important’ week in the Bake Off calendar: Pastry Week. The episode opened with a savoury pastry plait Signature Challenge, with Aaron’s Jamaican ‘platty’ earning him a Hollywood Handshake – and the honour of replacing Paul’s jacket potato lunch. This was followed by a hot water crust gala pie (that’s boiled eggs encased in meat for those of you under 50), which saw Aaron unexpectedly flake under the pressure while Jasmine continued to secure her upper-crust spot. 

The Showstopper demanded the bakers create ‘an intricately sculpted tart’ (with Alison, Noel and even Prue strutting their stuff in demonstration). Jasmine bagged her third Star Baker of the series in spite of a dry tart filling, while Nataliia’s swan sculpture failed to glide her to safety, singing her swan song as the sixth baker to leave the tent. 

Episode 5: Chocolate Week

Star Baker: Aaron

Who Left? Nadia

Sweet, sweet Chocolate Week was as messy as ever – but not quite so melty as previous years thanks to rainy (not scorching) weather. From a Signature chocolate mousse cups (earning Tom a Hollywood Handshake) to a special white chocolate tart under the ominous gingham blanket, our batch of bakers were certainly put through their paces with Nadia.

The final challenge? A spectacular fondue display. Cue piping bags, hot knives and quick-freeze sprays galore in an epic building sequence which saw Jasmine earn a Hollywood Handshake and Aaron finally seal his fate as Star Baker. At the other end of the scale, this was the final nail in Nadia’s coffin, while Toby escaped elimination by the skin of his teeth.

Episode 4: School Week

Star Baker: Jasmine

Who Left? Jessika

Week 4 brought us our very first School Week. Yes, you read that right – top marks for you! Amid nostalgic jokes about our bakers being sent to detention for their shoddy creations, it all kicked off with the humble flapjack in the Signature Challenge, followed by School Cake in the Technical, with Aaron the runner up and Jasmine coming out on top.

Heading into the Showstopper, Nadia, Jessika and Nataliia were scrambling, but it was ultimately Jessika who was let down by her summer fete stall display. On the flipside Jasmine bagged her second consecutive Star Baker title, with Tom trailing just behind.

Episode 3: Bread Week

Star Baker: Jasmine

Who Left? Pui Man

As is tradition, Week 3 brought us Bread Week – a week many bakers dread each year, thanks to it being Paul Hollywood’s speciality. The Signature saw the bakers rustle up flavoursome savoury monkey bread (Jessika and Iain fared best), followed by the Technical, set by Paul: glazed ring doughnuts. Pui Man came last in the challenge while Jasmine was crowned winner, setting us up for the Showstopper.

Pui Man, Aaron and Nataliia were struggling, while Jasmine, Nadia and Iain were performing best. The Showstopper challenged the bakers to create a celebratory sweet bread with a minimum of three tiers, with Jasmine ultimately clinching the crown and Pui Man’s coconut and glacé cherry tiered bread sadly not quite enough to offset her disappointing performances in the Signature and the Technical.

Episode 2: Biscuit Week

Star Baker: Tom

Who Left? Leighton

The first day of Biscuit Week saw this series’ bakers tackling slice-and-bake biscuits and chocolate-caramel hobnobs. After a tent-ful of decent Signature bakes, many of the contestants struggled with the Technical Challenge, with Pui Man, Leighton and Lesley at the bottom of the leaderboard. Toby, though, won for the second week in a row – thanks to his ‘perfect hobnobs’ according to Prue and Paul.

For their Showstopper, the bakers were tasked with creating highly decorated biscuit time capsule filled with five edible mementos. Tom impressed the judges with a beautiful recreation of his grandmother’s cottage – earning himself a coveted Hollywood handshake as well as Star Baker. But with Pui Man just scraping her way out of the danger zone with an intricate Hong Kong-inspired bake in honour of her parents, it was Leighton who ended up leaving the tent.

Episode 1: Cake Week

Star Baker: Nataliia

Who Left? Hassan

Is it really a Great British Bake Off opener without some kind of quirky, cinematic skit? This series opened with Alison Hammond, Noel Fielding and a bearded (yes, really) Prue Leith driving a safari buggy through the gates of ‘Jurassic Bake’ to meet a dino-clad Paul Hollywood.

But after that skit, the dramatics were far from over: we had bleeped-out swears, collapsed Swiss rolls, a blind Technical Challenge (Fancy putting yourself to the test? Here’s the recipe for Paul Hollywood’s Fondant Fancies) and more than one gloopy Showstopper as the bakers attempted to craft a ‘landscape cake’ (although Iain did manage to pull it back in the end).

Alison Hammond, Noel Fielding, Prue Leith and Paul Hollywood. (Channel 4)

Bake Off Themes 2025

Every episode of Bake Off is governed by a theme, which changes every week. Some themes are consistent and appear every year; think Cake Week, Biscuit Week, Bread Week, Chocolate Week and Pastry Week. But there are also more surprising themes introduced by the producers each year, including in recent series things like Botanicals Week, Vegan Week, Autumn Week, Tudor Week and the regrettable Mexican Week. Frequent returners are themes like Halloween Week and Dessert Week, though we don’t know just yet if we will see them in 2025.

The themes we know so far for The Great British Bake Off series 16 are as follows:

• Episode 1 (2 September): Cake Week
• Episode 2 (9 September): Biscuit Week
• Episode 3 (16 September): Bread Week
• Episode 4 (23 September): Back To School Week
• Episode 5 (30 September): Chocolate Week
• Episode 6 (7 October): Pastry Week
• Episode 7 (14 October): Meringue Week
• Episode 8 (21 October): TBC
• Episode 9 (28 October): TBC
• Episode 10 (4 November): Series finale, usually a garden party or picnic theme

The contestants from Great British Bake Off series 16, Channel 4 / Love Productions

Where To Watch The Great British Bake Off

Catch up with The Great British Bake Off series 16 at channel4.com