The twelfth season of Food Network‘s Holiday Baking Championship premiered on November 3, 2025, introducing a brand-new team format. Host Jesse Palmer divided the twelve bakers into Team Naughty and Team Nice, setting the stage for a festive battle where the first elimination saw baker Gia sent home.
The New Team Format
For the first time in the show’s history, the competition began with bakers being split into two teams of six. Jesse Palmer welcomed the contestants to a holiday village, explaining that the season would be a fight between Team Naughty and Team Nice. The judges for the season are Duff Goldman, Nancy Fuller, and Kardea Brown. The bakers are competing for a $25,000 prize and a feature in Food Network Magazine.
The premiere episode, titled “Welcome to the Holiday Village,” immediately put the new team dynamic to the test. The winning team in each challenge would be safe from elimination, while the losing team would have to send one baker home.
First Challenge: Warm vs Frosty Desserts
The initial Preheat Challenge required the teams to bake desserts matching their team’s theme. Team Nice was tasked with creating “warm and toasty” desserts, while Team Naughty had to make “chill and frosty” treats.
Team Nice presented their desserts first. Jean Carlos started strong with a spiced apple caramel cake that the judges loved. However, the team’s performance was uneven. Alyx‘s bananas foster bread pudding needed more custard, and Chase‘s mulled spiced pear tarts had an underwhelming frangipane, though the pears themselves were praised. Erin‘s chai Paris-Brest was found to be too spicy and not sweet enough, Violet‘s smoky spiced s’more was overcooked, and Camrey‘s honey sweet potato pie was tasty but simply presented.
Team Naughty then faced the judges. Nico‘s chestnut sable was considered overly sweet. Ashleigh‘s triple citrus tart was a standout, impressing the judges with its perfect balance of curd and zest. Charles received mixed feedback for his blueberry jalapeño mousse cake; the judges liked the flavor combination but found the white chocolate mousse too gummy. Tarek‘s mimosa mini pavlova was also gummy, though the flavors were good. Daniel‘s berry and mint tequila cream pie lacked any detectable tequila flavor, and Gia‘s coconut chocolate mint cake was dry with dense frosting.
The judges named Jean Carlos’s dessert the best for Team Nice and Ashleigh’s citrus tart the best for Team Naughty. Ashleigh won the round, giving Team Naughty an advantage heading into the Main Heat.
The Main Heat Challenge
The Main Heat Challenge required both teams to create a complete edible holiday village display, with each baker responsible for one individual dessert. The team with the best overall dish would win immunity for all its members. The baker with the weakest dessert on the losing team would be eliminated.
Thanks to their win in the Preheat, Team Naughty gained a significant advantage: they could remove one of three flavors—citrus, nuts, or chocolate—from Team Nice’s available ingredients. They chose to remove chocolate, limiting their opponents’ options.
During the challenge, Team Naughty struggled with coordination. Despite this, Ashleigh continued to impress with an oatmeal cream pie that included cranberries. Judge Nancy Fuller, who famously dislikes cranberries, said she loved the dessert. Charles’s black cocoa peppermint cake had good texture but an overly firm marshmallow topping. Tarek’s key lime and rum pie had a broken meringue and a failed crust. Gia’s cinnamon orange sugar cookie tree failed to meet flavor expectations. Daniel’s coffee liqueur brownie drew mixed opinions, and Nico’s black sesame and lemon Paris-Brest needed more lemon flavor.
Team Nice managed to create a more cohesive visual display for their village, though the judges had mixed opinions on the individual desserts. Jean Carlos’s pate a choux teddy bears were lacking sugar, and Erin’s gingerbread sandwich cookies were too sweet. Camrey’s ginger citrus olive oil cake was mild, Violet’s snowman macarons were slightly overbaked, and Alyx’s spiced chiffon cake divided the judges. The team was saved by Chase‘s brown butter coconut chess pie, which received rave reviews. Nancy Fuller declared it the best crust she had ever tasted in the history of the show and even asked for the recipe.
Chase’s pie won the challenge for Team Nice, granting his entire team immunity and putting Team Naughty up for elimination.
The First Elimination
As the losing team, Team Naughty faced the judges’ final review. Based on their performances across both challenges, Gia and Tarek were placed in the bottom two.
Gia had struggled in both rounds. Her coconut chocolate mint cake in the Preheat was dry and dense, and her cinnamon orange sugar cookie tree in the Main Heat did not deliver on flavor. After deliberation, the judges decided that Gia would be the first contestant eliminated from the competition.
On a personal Facebook post, Gia shared that nerves got the best of her during the challenges. She expressed gratitude for the opportunity and hoped she had made Alabama proud as the first contestant from the state on the show.
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