Why Lorie From Crime Scene Kitchen Looks So Familiar

This summer we got to see 12 teams of amazing bakers come together on an entirely new kind of baking competition. Fox's "Crime Scene Kitchen", hosted by Joel McHale, didn't simply ask these contestants to create beautiful desserts: These teams had to first comb through sticky whisks, crumbs, saucepans, and frosting schmears of the test kitchen to figure what had been baked. They then had to recreate the exact confection for the scrutiny of the judges, Michelin-star Chef Curtis Stone and Food Network star Yolanda Gampp, a self-taught baker and cake decorator known as the "Beyoncé of Cakes" (via How To Cake It).

Between the limited amount of time contestants have to first examine kitchen clues and then create elaborate and flawless desserts, followed by the stress of presenting their work to these discerning judges in hopes of winning $100,000 — that's a heck of a lot of pressure to work under. It must have been especially daunting for the bakers that had never been in a televised competition. Two bakers had a leg up in that department, having appeared on baking shows before. Thomas McCurdy appeared on and won a Season 1 episode of Food Network's "Chopped Sweets" only a year prior. And viewers that were charmed by the bubbly personality (and cotton candy-colored hairdo) of Lorie Burcham may remember her from these shows. 

Though she didn't have her color-striped hair back then, "Crime Scene Kitchen" viewers might have recognized Burcham from the 2011 show "Food Network Challenge: Extreme Alien Cakes" (via Video Detective). Burcham appeared with her husband Jason, who served as her assistant. On this Food Network show, Burcham created not just a cake, but a towering, lime-green alien-shaped cake with tentacles and special effects like glowing eyes and squirting ooze (via YouTube). Despite the stress of building such an over-the-top cake, and show twists that included hiding the countdown clock from contestants and "abducting" their assistants, the judges complimented Burcham for her calm demeanor and poise. Burcham took third place on the show, and there's no doubt that her experience there also helped her reach the finals of "Crime Scene Kitchen." 

Through her now-closed Nashville bakery, Crumb de la Crumb, Burcham gained experience baking for celebrities including Taylor Swift, Jewel, and Garth Brooks, according to the Williamson Source. She also befriended Julie Chrisley, who stars with her family in the USA Network reality show "Chrisley Knows Best" (via YouTube). That connection got Burcham a few guest appearances on the show, including a Season 5 episode where the Chrisleys travel to Burcham's bakery for a cake decorating lesson. Though she has returned to baking and catering in Nashville, Tennessee, we bet we'll see Burcham on a baking show again soon.