Holiday Baking Championship Season 8: Info We Know So Far

Now that October has begun, get ready for the onslaught of various Halloween-themed programs to finally arrive in all their glory. However, it's never too early to start looking ahead to see which holiday-themed shows are gearing up to give 2021 a final, delicious send off. 

Inevitably, the upcoming slate of seasonal programming will include a holiday version of the ever-present "Baking Championship" series. In fact, we've been lucky enough to have "Holiday Baking Championship" around for seven years now and it's a big hit for Food Network and all the fans that tune in week after week. While we all probably know the general shape of the show by now, there are details that sometimes change from season to season regarding the cast, the challenges, and the guest stars.

So, when will we cozy up to watch bakers panic over the icing for their Christmas cookies? Who will we most appreciate for their takes on holiday memories rendered in pastry form? And what kind of challenges lay between the competitors and the thousands of dollars awaiting the champion? Here's everything we know so far about "Holiday Baking Championship" Season 8. 

As of publication, official news regarding the production of "Holiday Baking Championship" Season 8 has yet to be released. However, since "Halloween Baking Championship" has been airing this year, it seems a safe bet that the Food Network will produce one for the festival holiday season as well. 

Presuming that "Holiday Baking Championship" does in fact run for an eighth season, we predict that it will probably launch sometime in November. Fansided more specifically points out that the show has always begun each season on the first Monday in November, which would be November 1 this year. If we also do the math, it seems likely that this new season will continue to air until December 20 as the previous two seasons both had eight episodes for the full run — making it a solid Advent calendar for counting down the days until Christmas. 

Of course, the episode count could be shorter. However, in previous seasons, the smaller number of episodes were made up with the one-offs like the "Homecoming Special."

Though the official new season has not been announced yet, it's likely that the same cast for "Holiday Baking Championship" will return, as many familiar faces have appeared on multiple editions.

In Season 7, the host was Jesse Palmer, an ex-quarterback and reality television veteran who has another Food Network credit for hosting "Food Truck Face-Off" (per Discovery). The judges have frequently been Duff Goldman, Carla Hall, and Nancy Fuller. Carla Hall replaced longtime judge Lorraine Pascale. However, all three should be recognizable to any "Baking Championship" fan. Duff Goldman also judges the children's version of the show among other series, Nancy Fuller appears with Duff on "Spring Baking Championship," and Carla Hall has hosted "Halloween Baking Championship" for its entire run. 

Of course, we have yet to meet any of the aspiring baking contestants who intend to bring some spice to the holiday programming with their creations — and their personalities.

By this point, it's unlikely that the Food Network would redesign the basic format of the competition so we can safely assume the same rubric will be part of Season 8.

Each episode traditionally has two parts. The first consists of baking a small treat, like cookies or brownies. The second part gives bakers the task of constructing a large-scale, edible, and thematically relevant Christmas dessert. Halfway through the second challenge, however the show introduces a twist (like throwing in the need for brownies in addition to their main task). The winner of the first part always gains an edge when entering the second half, and the loser of the second half always gets eliminated. In each episode, one contestant will be eliminated until there's a three-person finale to determine the final winner.

The show may veer towards the formulaic, but as the nights grow longer and people want more simple, repetitive pleasures, the appeal of "Holiday Baking Championship" becomes clear. The Food Network would be wise to push out an eighth season to make us all feel cheery and bright.