Unlike other reality show contestants from across the country who audition for a shot at fame, Jeffrey De Leon didn’t plan on baking in front of cameras.
Producers of the third season of the Food Network series “Best Baker in America” sought him out.
“It was a nice call out of the blue,” said De Leon, a 38-year-old pastry consultant based in Downtown Los Angeles. “I thought it would be a fun experience.”
The weekly series, which premiered May 13 on the Food Network with nine professional bakers, pushes contestants “outside their comfort zone to whip up beautiful and delicious baked goods” for $25,000 and the coveted title of “Best Baker in America,” Courtney White, the network’s president, explained in a press release.
The season features the bakers making miniature versions of pastry classics, from smashable desserts to a flaming Bombe Alaska.
On the first episode, bakers were tasked with creating six miniature princess cakes and then a royal celebration cake flavored with elderflower and lemon in honor of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry’s new baby, which landed De Leon in the bottom three.
“I was at the very end of my row and the ingredients were on the other side of the kitchen, so I did a lot of running,” he said, with a laugh. “But, you know — you’re in a new kitchen, you’re learning new ovens, and you’re getting used to having cameramen and everything around you. And you just want to do the best that you can.”
Born the eldest of two sons in Torrance, De Leon was mostly raised in Mission Viejo, where he discovered his love of cooking. Although he spent time in the kitchen with his midwesterner mom and Filipino dad, it wasn’t until he took a job at the now-defunct Tortilla Flats restaurant on Lake Mission Viejo that he decided to forgo pursuing a degree in computer science for the culinary school.
“I get a lot of gratification from what I do just seeing people enjoy not just the food but the experiences that they have,” he said. “If it’s at a restaurant and they’re meeting friends, and it’s just a great meal and good conversation, or it’s a celebration, being able to be a part of someone’s every day is kind of a neat thing to me.”
But he’s got a competitive streak, too.
Baking has taken De Leon around the world for different competitions, including as part of the three-person Team USA at the Olympics of bread, officially known as the Coupe du Monde de la Boulangerie in France in 2016. In the competition, de Leon’s specialty was croissants, danishes and brioche doughs.
“For the competition, we practiced and trained for over a year, traveling all across the United States to different bakeries practicing our routine.” De Leon said. “And for the show, they give you challenges where one day it might be cakes, one day it might be desserts, one day it might be something else, and so you really have to pull from every little pocket of experience to pull through.”
‘Best Baker in America’
When: 9 p.m. Mondays
Where: Food Network
