By: Brendan Losinski | Troy Times | Published October 4, 2023
TROY — One of Troy’s most prolific, and youngest, bakers was back in the spotlight as she returned to the Food Network’s “Kids Baking Championship.”
Eleven-year-old Genevieve Kashat appeared on the show last spring as one of the contestants for the show’s 11th season. She faced off against 11 other kids to test their baking skills and came in fourth place.
“She was a semifinalist that season,” said her mother, Evon Kashat. “She was invited back along with three others for the Halloween baking special this year. It’s called ‘Blood Curdling Bakes.’ It’s on the Food Network. They competed to make a Halloween themed dessert and competed for a $10,000 prize package, which included cooking implements like a blast chiller and stand mixer.”
Genevieve has her own baking business, known as Gen’s Creations. She said she was excited to return to the show for the Halloween special.
“I was super excited,” she remarked. “I was really happy that I got to go back on the show and almost get a second chance and show that I could win.”
The special aired for the first time Sept. 25.
“It was a Halloween-themed fault line cake that the network determined they would compete to make,” said Evon. “Because it was a Halloween theme, they had a Halloween-themed dessert. They had to give it a special twist and include a candy bar flavor.”
Genevieve said it was a challenge, and she tried to balance her creativity with the time and recipe constraints of the show.
“I really wanted to use my time well and not run out of time. I wanted to keep it easy but show my skill so it tasted good but finish within the time limit,” she said. “I’m really happy with the group I was against. We were competing, but we are all such great friends. It wasn’t like we were angry when someone else won.”
Genevieve’s variation of the fault line cake won, something Evon said made her daughter feel vindicated after not making it to the final round on her initial run of the show.
“I’m mostly excited for her because she was determined to go back and show she could achieve her dreams and be called a champ,” Evon said. “She really wanted to redeem herself after season 11. I’m glad her determination and hard work paid off.”
The first time she was on “Kids Baking Championship,” the Kashats said, Genevieve’s saw a huge increase in business. The young baker hopes that will once again be the case.
“I think ever since I was on the show the first time, my business started blowing up,” Genevieve said. “We got so much more business. I hope that happens again now that I won. I have been getting so much support.”
While Genevieve said there aren’t currently any plans for her to return to “Kids Baking Championship,” she would be eager to go back if given the opportunity. In the meantime, she wants to keep on baking and encouraging others to try it out on their own.
“I’d love it if I got another chance to be on the show again,” she said. “Never stop, even if you fail the first time. You will always have another chance to try it again.”
More information on her business can be found at instagram.com/gens_kreations/?hl=en.