Hints

Autographed Headshot

• Olivia's message to Julian shows that Olivia and Julian are on good terms, while Anastasia and Julian are not.

Bakely Article

• This article reveals that the bakery where Matteo got his start was called La Dolce Vita. It also shows that Belle is disdainful of Matteo's motivations for not coming to the aid of La Dolce Vita when it closed.

Bakery Snapshot

• The woman in the photo worked at a bakery called La Dolce Vita. Examining other documents for a mention of this bakery may help reveal a connection between characters.
• The date on this photo is Spring 1994. Examining other documents for similar dates may help reveal a connection.

Chef's Reserve Proposals

• This spreadsheet lists bakeries that have applied to Chef's Reserve for funding. Identifying characters who previously applied for funding from Chef's Reserve, and the result of their application, may help reveal a connection.

Contestant Profiles

Belle Buchanan

• Belle's specialty is Southern-style baking. Identifying the recipe with a Southern style may help you determine which cake is hers.

Camilla Siciliano

• Camilla mentions growing up in her family's bakery. The Chef's Reserve proposals reveal the name of this bakery: La Dolce Vita. The Bakely article describes this as a traditional Italian bakery, meaning that Camilla's signature style is Italian. Identifying the recipe with an Italian style may help you determine which cake is hers.
• Camilla grew up working in her family's bakery in New York. Identifying other characters with connections to this bakery will help reveal Camilla's potential motives.
• Camilla's mother is named Bianca.
• Camilla's birthday is October 15, 1994. Examining other documents for similar dates may reveal a connection.

Jean-Marc Legrand

• Jean-Marc's speciality is French pastry. Identifying the recipe with a French style may help you determine which cake is his.
• Jean-Marc mentions his vast collection of antique spatulas in his profile. The presence of spatula marks on other documents will indicate a connection to Jean-Marc.

Julian Vargas

• Julian's specialty is vegan baking. Identifying the vegan recipe may help you determine which cake is his.

Summer Savage

• Summer's specialty is fusion cuisine. Identifying the recipe with a fusion style may help you determine which cake is hers.

Cookbook Forward

• This excerpt from Julian's cookbook "Substitute Teacher: Your Simple Study Guide to Vegan Alternatives" reveals he was once fired for almost killing a customer by triggering an allergic reaction.
• Julian's discussion of flour substitutions mentions that lupin is a close cousin of the peanut. This means that lupin-based bakes will pose a threat to any judges with peanut allergies.

Letter from Queen of Puddings

• This letter's author, who calls herself the Queen of Puddings, wants you to examine the box's contents to find which contestant on the competitive baking show you co-produce with her is intending to poison a judge. Once you have figured it out, go to www.bakersdozenfanmail.com and send her a message. Put the nickname she uses for you, "Pie Chart", in the subject line. Put the first names of the guilty contestant and the judge they are attempting to kill in the body of the message.

Letter to Matteo

• This letter is signed from someone whose first initial is "B". Identifying other characters with the initial "B" may help reveal a connection.
• The letter is dated April 12, 1994. Examining other documents for similar dates may help reveal a connection.
• The final line, "Still wish you could read the first letter I wrote to you," hints at a method through which you can find a secret message encoded in this letter.

Name Cards

Alex McMannis

• Alex runs a restaurant investment firm called Chef's Reserve. Identifying other characters with a connection to Chef's Reserve may help reveal a connection.
• Alex is allergic to peanuts. Identifying recipes that contain peanuts or other closely related legumes may help determine whether Alex is the intended victim, and who the killer might be.

Anastasia Nalotrovna

• Anastasia is a food critic. Identifying the contestant Anastasia criticized will reveal a potential motive for murder.
• Anastasia is allergic to coconut. Any recipe that utilizes coconut might indicate Anastasia as the intended victim.

Edmund Cliffe

• Edmund is allergic to coconut. Any recipe that utilizes coconut might indicate Edmund as the intended victim.

Matteo Mancini

• Matteo got his start working at a bakery in New York. Identifying other characters from New York may help reveal a connection.
• Matteo is allergic to tree nuts. Identifying recipes that contain tree nuts may help determine whether Matteo is the intended victim and who the killer might be.

Olivia de la Huerta

• Olivia is allergic to tree nuts. Identifying recipes that contain tree nuts may help determine whether Olivia is the intended victim, and who the killer might be.

Recipe Cards

• Each recipe can be matched to one of the contestants based on the baking style and other context clues. The substitution notes can be deciphered to reveal secret annotations each baker made.

Blood Orange and Ricotta Cream Sponge Cake

• This substitution is encoded by scrambling the letters of each word.

Curry Mango Chiffon Cake

• This substitution is encoded by breaking every two-syllable word into two parts and scrambling the fragments.

Lemon Lavender Angel Food Dream

• Several phrases in this recipe are written out using the NATO spelling alphabet.

Mocha Dacquoise

• These substitutions are written using a shift cipher. The star symbols indicate the number of places the ciphertext should be shifted to reveal the plaintext.
• The stars relate to the number of Michelin stars the recipe's author hopes to earn: 3.
• Each letter of the message should be shifted 3 places backward in the alphabet.
• When shifted backward three places in the alphabet, the notes read: "on nacirema rettub, ylno hcnerf rettub" and "daetsni fo dnomla ruolf, esu nipul ruolf".
• The text of each word is backward.

Strawberry Cloud Chocolate Cake

• This substitution is encoded by a shift cipher, based on the ingredients's number in the ingredient list.
• #12 refers to the 12th ingredient in the list. To decode this, shift the letters in the phrase backward by 12 spaces in the alphabet.
• #16 refers to the 16h ingredient in the list. To decode this, shift the letters backward 16 spaces in the alphabet.

Restaurant Review

• The chef responsible for baking the cookies that nearly killed Anastasia had the initial "J". That chef was fired following the incident and might hold a grudge.

Shopping List

• This letter was written by someone with a vendetta against the establishments "Ma Petite Choux", "Sweet Streets", and "Glaze of our Lives". The letter mentions that all three of these bakeries share the same wealthy backer.
• This letter contains a secret message that can be revealed using one of the items in the box. Look closely at the letter to determine which item will reveal the hidden message.

Whisk Magazine Page

• This profile of Summer suggests she holds a grudge against a judge who previously called her signature fusion style "played out".
• The other side of the page features an interview with Baker's Dozen's host, Helena Haddock. Pay close attention to some of the behind-the-scenes information Helena may reveal.

Reveals

Bakely Article

• The bakery where Matteo got his start, La Dolce Vita, is the same family bakery where Camilla's mother, Bianca, worked, suggesting the two knew one another. Taken together with the snapshot and the letter to Matteo, it is revealed that Matteo is Camilla's father.

Bakery Snapshot

• The woman in this photo worked at a bakery called La Dolce Vita in the spring of 1994. Combined with the details in the Chef's Reserve proposals spreadsheet and the Bakely article, it can be concluded that this woman is Camilla's mother, Bianca, and that she worked with Matteo at La Dolce Vita.

Contestant Profiles

Camilla Siciliano

• Camilla and Matteo are both connected to the bakery La Dolce Vita in New York. Camilla's mother's name is Bianca. Bianca is the only person with the first initial "B" who could have written the letter to Matteo. Camilla's birthday is October 15, 1994. This is the same year as the dates on the letter to Matteo and the bakery snapshot.

Cookbook Forward

• Julian is "J", who worked at Benevolent Leavening. His cookies nearly killed Anastasia, resulting in his firing.

Fanmail Page

• The subject of your message to Helena should be the nickname she calls you in her initial letter: "Pie Chart". In the body of your email, you must include the first names of both "Jean-Marc" and "Alex" to unlock the ending.

Jam Jar

• This jam jar confirms that Edmund was correct in his suspicion on the Round 8 judge rubric that Belle was using store-bought jam in the last round.

Letter to Matteo

• The letter is signed from "B". Three characters in this mystery have the first initial "B": Belle Buchanan, Belle's daughter Bryanna, and Camilla's mother, Bianca. However, Belle and her daughter are both too young to have written the letter. This means that Carmilla's mother, Bianca, was the author of the letter.
• The first letter of each sentence forms a secret message that reads: "BUN IN THE OVEN IT IS YOURS". This means that, several months before Camilla was born, her mother wrote a letter to Matteo explaining that she was pregnant with his child. Matteo is Camilla's father.

Recipe Cards

Blood Orange and Ricotta Cream Sponge Cake

• Camilla's specialty is Italian baking, which identifies her as the baker of the Blood Orange and Ricotta Cream Sponge Cake recipe.
• The presence of marzipan appears to target Matteo, who is allergic to tree nuts.
• When deciphered, the substitution reads: "Leave out marzipan! Use apricot seed paste instead."
• The substitution for apricot seed paste, also called persipan, is tree nut-free and clears Camilla from suspicion.

Curry Mango Chiffon Cake

• This is a fusion-style bake, revealing it as Summer's recipe.
• The presence of crushed peanuts appears to target Alex, who is allergic to peanuts.
• When deciphered, the substitution notes read: "Increase curry powder if it's not spicy enough" and "Remember to leave off the crushed peanuts!"
• The removal of crushed peanuts from the recipe clears Summer from attempting to murder Alex.

Lemon Lavender Angel Food Dream

• The author of this recipe mentions having a daughter, and the cake is a Southern-style bake. This is Belle's recipe.
• There are no potential allergens in Belle's recipe. Belle cannot be the culprit.
• When deciphered, the phrases translate to: "superfine", "cream of tartar", and "cake".

Mocha Dacquoise

• This is a French dish, identifying it as Jean-Marc's recipe.
• The presence of almond flour appears to target Matteo, who is allergic to tree nuts.
• When each word is revealed, the message reads: "no american butter, only french butter" and "instead of almond flour, use lupin flour".
• The cookbook page mentioned that lupin is closely related to peanut.
• Jean-Marc's substitution of almond flour for lupin flour, taken into consideration alongside the knowledge of his grudge against Chef's Reserve and the fact that none of the other contestants are using potential allergens in their bakes, proves that he is planning to kill Alex.

Strawberry Cloud Chocolate Cake

• The presence of coconut oil appears to target Anastasia or Edmund, both of whom are allergic to coconut.
• When deciphered, the phrases read: "non-dairy butter" and "coconut oil".
• The removal of coconut oil clears Julian from attempting to murder Anastasia and Edmund.

Restaurant Review

• Anastasia's scathing review of the restaurant Benevolent Leavening cost Julian his job.

Shopping List

• When the spatula is aligned with the spatula stain on the paper, a secret message is revealed.
• The slats in the spatula reveal the phrase "Chef's Reserve will pay for their bad taste".
• Jean-Marc's passion for spatulas, as well as his rejection from Chef's Reserve, strongly suggests that he is the author of this letter.