by Michael J. Lamp

"FonDon't'

After tending to Rebecca's ailing arm, the chefs are off to the kitchen.

Margaret Braun, famed pastry chef and author, is with Gail and will serve as this week's guest judge. She makes real purdy stuff, ya'll.

For their Quickfire Challenge, the chefs get a bunch of lemons. Not nasty cars, just the ol' fruit. Each chef must create an original lemon dessert.

Margaret's least favorites are Nelson, who basically ran out of time, as well as Orlando, and Amanda. Margaret didn't approve of Orlando and Amanda's decisions to pair lemon with chocolate and caramel, respectively.

Matthew's simple cake was a hit, and Katzie and Carlos round out the top three. Matthew gets the win and the immunity. He's happy yet humble.

For this week's Elimination Challenge, the chefs are split into groups and told they'll be cooking for the LA Philharmonic at the Disney Concert Hall. Teams will create cakes that will be served to 150 guests. Each chef is responsible for one tier of the cake.

The judges arrive at the venue and begin to make their rounds. They visit Matthew, Chris, Megan and Melissa (Red Team) first. The group gets mostly high praise on their understated aesthetic, but Johnny (and his hair) notice some fondant issues.

Vanarin, Katzie and Amanda (Blue Team) are next. Their cake suffered from being sorely overdone, and the judges immediately notice the lack of editing. Where is Coco Chanel when you need her?

Next, the judges head over to Orlando, Craig and Nelson (Black Team). Their cake doesn't appear as haggard as the last one, but they did lose their conductor's wand, due to the heat outside. Orlando says that, if forced, he would recommend sending Craig home. Orlando is definitely on sass watch.

Finally, Gail and company make their way over to Rebecca, Carlos and Sally (Green Team). Their cake ended up with a hint of pink, which was not their goal. As per usual, the judges pick up on this right away.

Overall, most of the cheftestants got at least decent praise. If aesthetic lacked, taste usually made up for it. Still, there were some that missed the boat completely.

Gail calls the Green and Red Teams to Judges' Table first. They are the top groups this week. Rebecca's arm has clearly made her an emotional mess, as she proceeds to cry. I feel like tears of ‘yay, I'm safe' need to be reserved for the second half of the season. Just sayin'.

Margaret liked the cohesiveness of the Green Team's cake, while Hubert and Johnny compliment the Red Team on their blend of aesthetic and flavor. Team Red claims the victory. Matthew is on a (cinnamon) roll! Get it? I know ya do.

The Black and Blue Teams are on the losing end this week and head to Judges' Table. Margaret mentions that the Black Team's cake looked like three, separate cakes, and Johnny thought their detailing work was sloppy. Nelson's cake was the best received in terms of flavor.

The Blue Team gets the obvious criticism that their cake was messy and unedited. The flavor in Amanda's tier was Hubert's favorite part of their cake.

Vanarin (of the Blue Team) gets the boot. He's disappointed but grateful for the experience. Always nice to see a graceful exit, no matter how rare they are.

Top Chef: Just Desserts airs Wednesdays at 10/9c on Bravo.

(Image courtesy of Bravo)

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