Look out world, one of these two Georgians could be the nation's next big baking champ.
Kaylon Harvey, 10, of Americus and Carrie Crespino, 12, of Decatur are competing for a $10,000 cash prize in the new Food Network show, "Kids Sweets Showdown," a think-on-your-feet baking competition set to premiere Wednesday, Nov. 30, at 8 p.m.
On the show, kids are paired up in teams of two to bake their way through the main showdown challenge and two "sugar rush" challenges, where one team member must make something in a very short time period to be judged during the overall showdown.
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Carrie, daughter of local folk singer Caroline Herring and Emory University history professor Joe Crespino, said she is a self-taught baker and first got interested in baking desserts a few years ago while channel surfing and stumbled upon the TV show, "Cupcake Wars."
“I was like, ‘I can do this and I got into it,” she said. “It was cupcakes for a year and then pastries and cakes, eclairs, macaroons.
Kaylon, too, has always been a big fan of cooking shows, according to his mother, Pamela Harvey, a high school business teacher at Quitman County High School.
"When he was a little guy following me around in the kitchen, he'd always stick his hands in stuff," she said.
Now Kaylon's a little chef celebrity around Americus and was invited to march as grand marshal in the local Christmas parade.
The budding baking experts joined their fellow competitors in Los Angeles for the taping back in September, but you can catch "Kids Sweets Showdown" in one of its three hour-long episodes:
Wednesday, November 30th at 8 p.m.
“Santa Express”
Hosts Alison Sweeney and Harley Morenstein ask the kids to bake and decorate Holiday Train Cakes. For the first round, the kids turn cookie stacks into decorative holiday trees. Then, they continue the reforestation with sugar cone trees.
Wednesday, December 7th at 8 p.m.
“Snow Day Doughnuts”
Hosts Sharone Hakman and Alison Sweeney make the baking teams go nuts with snow creatures made out of doughnuts! In the first challenge, the kids must create Cereal Treat Homes for their creatures; then in the second round, they have to create an "odd snowman out" to join their snow creature clans.
Wednesday, December 14th at 8 p.m. - the finale
“Extreme Cake Adventures”
Hosts Sharone Hakman and Alison Sweeney task the baking teams with creating a cupcake cake to illustrate an adventure theme: wild jungle, undersea adventures or space odyssey. First, the kids must turn cupcakes into Mini Layer Cakes. Then the teams must use their sculpting skills to make a Fondant Friend to add to their cupcake cake.
