Meet the Massachusetts bakers competing on ‘Spring Baking Championship’

From piping patterns to frosting flowers, two Massachusetts bakers are putting their skills to the test during the latest season of Food Network’s popular baking competition “Spring Baking Championship.”

Pastry chefs Alexandre Bonnefoi and Robert Gonzalez were among 12 bakers who stepped into the SBC kitchen when season 10 of the show kicked off on Monday, March 4.

With the thawing of winter as a theme for the first episode, the contestants got into the spirit of the season by creating sweet treats perfect for spring break. From there, the bakers will face several more challenges.

So who are the two bakers hoping to take home the gold for Massachusetts? Here is more about each of them:

Robert Gonzalez

Robert Gonzalez felt right in his element during the season premiere of SBC. The pastry chef grew up in Miami, Florida with Spanish and Cuban grandparents, so making tropical-themed treats was right in his wheelhouse.

This also isn’t the first time Gonzalez has been on Food Network. He told MassLive he was on an episode of “Chopped Sweets” in 2018.

“It feels good,” he said. “Especially once we got there and we got going, it felt great to get back into it and just be creative and do what you do best and let yourself shine. It was unbelievable.”

Gonzalez is hoping to use his past experience of being on a cooking competition to help carry him to victory.

Aside from having past television experience, the pastry chef said life experience will be his best tool in the SBC kitchen.

“As a chef or a pastry chef, you get thrown so much stuff at you,” he said. “Once you’re in the Food Network kitchen … you have to feel confident in anything and everything they give you.”

Gonzalez, who does most of his work in Sherborn and Quincy, moved to Massachusetts with his husband in July 2015. The couple got married on the Charles River in Boston before settling down in Lunenburg.

From there, Gonzalez worked at Bistro du Midi in Boston alongside Executive Chef Robert Sisca, where he was recognized as an Eater Young Guns Semi-Finalist in 2016.

Gonzalez then opened a restaurant called Cultivar with chef Mary Dumont before leaving that venture to run the culinary team at the Concord Market in Concord.

Gonzalez also published his first cookbook titled “Baking: The Ultimate Cookbook” in January 2022. The book features more than 300 recipes from beginner to intermediate and advanced levels.

Now, Gonzalez curates desserts for JP Fuji Group in Quincy. He is also working to open a bakery pop-up with Fuji this spring along with a steakhouse this fall, also in Quincy.

Turning back to SBC, Gonzalez said the bakers who win know how to prioritize tasks.

“You can’t just go in there and bake the cake at the end of the challenge. That’s got to be the first thing you do,” he explained. “You got to make your batter. You got to cool it because you can’t decorate a hot cake. So it’s these little things you got to really think about ahead of time.”

Alexandre Bonnefoi

Alexandre Bonnefoi said you need to take risks to succeed on SBC.

“If you don’t take a risk, you’re pretty sure it’s finished for you,” he told MassLive. “You need to take a risk for each episode.”

It is also equally important to know when to not take risks, like trying to make a mousse in less than an hour and 30 minutes, for example. So Bonnefoi had to walk a fine line while competing on the show.

“You have to do something very specific and very challenging,” he said. “Pastry is something very precise, very accurate. And when you start the show, you don’t know what’s happen[ing].”

Bonnefoi has been a pastry chef for more than 25 years. Hailing from Marseille, France, Bonnefoi spent four years apprenticing at the renowned Patissier de Mazargue. He then worked at Patisserie Riederer in Aix-en Provence, France where he worked under acclaimed Master Pastry Chef Philippe Segond.

Bonnefoi then worked as a pastry sous chef at Four Seasons Terre Blanche, Le Bristol Paris and Four Seasons George V Paris. During his time at George V, Bonnefoi often created menus, designed custom wedding cakes, and oversaw the production of chocolate and sugar sculptures for holiday events.

Bonnefoi is now the executive pastry chef for Strega Italiano in Boston. He assumed the position after moving to the United States with his wife and two children in 2015.

While Bonnefoi’s decades of experience did come in handy while on SBC, he mentioned that there is a huge difference between watching the show at home and actually competing.

“I’m confident with me, with myself,” Bonnefoi said. “The problem is, I don’t know what I need to expect.”

Bonnefoi said this especially applies to the mad dash the bakers make when they pick out their flavors at the start of each challenge. Sometimes you get a product that is difficult to work with, while other times you hit the jackpot. Either way, you have to make it it work.

“You don’t have time to make tests,” he said. “You need to make (sure) something is the best the first time.”

While the two pastry chefs did not know each other personally before the show, both said the competition brought them closer together and helped them become friends.

The three final bakers will face off in an epic wedding cake battle when SBC’s finale airs on Monday, April 29. Only one baker will be crowned the new Spring Baking Champion and take home a $25,000 cash prize.

You can watch episodes of SBC every Monday night on Food Network. You can also watch episodes for free on Philo, DirectTV or Fubo. You can also follow Gonzalez on his Instagram and Bonnefoi on his Instagram for updates on either of their careers.

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