Welcome to another episode of "Dishing with Stephanie's Dish," where we dive into the world of food with our guests from all corners of the culinary landscape. This time, we're delighted to have Nicole Aufderhar with us, known for her Instagram page @TenThousandBakes, where she showcases her incredible baking creations. Our conversation traces her baking journey from family traditions to competing on the Great American Baking Show, where she reached the final three and participated in the finale. Nicole shares her love for Minnesota State Fair Baking and her insights into balancing a creative passion with an artistic career. Join us as we explore her baking adventures, inspirations, and the sweet success she's found along the way.

EPISODE TRANSCRIPT:

Stephanie Hansen [00:00:16]:

Hello, everybody, and welcome to Dishing with Stephanie's dish, the podcast where we talk to people in the food space. And today, my guest is Nicole Ofterhauer, and she is at 10000 Bakes on Instagram. And we became friends, kind of funny, through the Jason show's hottest day on record at the state fair.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:00:36]:

Yes. Where we were all dying and couldn't think straight.

Stephanie Hansen [00:00:40]:

Yeah. We were just, like, sweating ourselves off, and you had made these super beautiful blueberry macarons. And you were there to talk about your experience that you'd had as a state fair baker, but also on the Great American Baking Show, which if people don't know because I still think people don't know that that show exists.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:01:01]:

They don't know. Even, like, my friends and family sometimes don't know that it exists. It's yeah. Everyone knows the British version, but surprise, there's an American one.

Stephanie Hansen [00:01:10]:

Yes. So The Great British Bake Off, spun off a great American baking show, and Nicole was a guest on it and did very well. Weren't you, like, in the final 3?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:01:20]:

Yeah. Yeah. I made it all the way to the finals.

Stephanie Hansen [00:01:22]:

Okay. So that's exciting. And I just wanna point out, I don't know when people are gonna listen to this because I'm probably gonna release it maybe this Friday or the next Friday. I haven't decided yet. But

Nicole Aufderhar [00:01:34]:

Mhmm.

Stephanie Hansen [00:01:35]:

If you haven't gotten a chance, please go right now to Nicole's Instagram page and look at 10,000 Bakes. Because, honestly, she has some of the most amazing spooky treats on there. Girl, I mean, those the skull truffles with the raspberry filling, are you kidding me?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:01:51]:

Oh, yeah. Thank you. Yeah. I I've always been kind of a Halloween nut. Like, always been my thing. The spookier, the better. And so for me, Halloween baking is kinda all about embracing kind of the quirky and weird. So I just go all in with it.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:02:07]:

It's always fun every year.

Stephanie Hansen [00:02:09]:

I mean, your stuff is real cool looking. Very beautiful. There was also a black was it what kind of a, cake was it?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:02:18]:

Yeah. So I made it was a peri breast, actually. So, like, a patichou base pastry.

Stephanie Hansen [00:02:26]:

Yeah. It looked like chew pastries stuffed or filled with, like, a cream of some sort.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:02:31]:

Yep. Yeah. So I used, black cocoa creme pat, and then there was also you couldn't see the picture, but there was, like, a raspberry gel as well. So kind of that dark chocolate raspberry thing kinda fitting with Halloween.

Stephanie Hansen [00:02:44]:

I mean, it was unbelievably fantastic looking.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:02:47]:

Oh, thanks. Yeah. Like I said, it's I get to be my weird artistic self this time of year, so it's kind of fun.

Stephanie Hansen [00:02:53]:

I like your weird artistic self. Take that and the listener kind of on the journey of how this whole thing started for you.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:03:01]:

So I have kind of been baking my entire life. You know, like, most people grew up mom in the kitchen, Nestle Toll House, Christmas cutout. You know, nothing, like, crazy, but just, you know, family baking. And as I grew up, I just kinda started to dive more and more into it. I'm kind of a shy person. So when I would go to parties, like, talking to people is stressful, but if I bring a bank, that gives me something to talk about. Sure. So, you know, I kind of started doing that more.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:03:30]:

And in college, I actually studied photography with, like, emphasis on food photography. And because I don't wanna take pictures of babies. So I decided to do the food route, and then I kinda decided that, well, if I wanna take pictures of beautiful things, I might have to learn how to bake some of these things. And so it's just kind of continued to grow and grow, and it's always been kind of my creative endeavor that's just for me and just for fun and really lets me express myself without the pressure. You know, I'm an artist full time, so I have that pressure there. So this is just just for fun, just for me. And when I saw that there was a great American baking show, which I didn't even know. You know, I've watched the British version for years, and then I saw online that they were casting for the American version.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:04:19]:

I thought, oh, well, let's let's see. Why not? You know? And I put my hat in the ring, and I made it all the way to the final round of 1st year, which I wasn't expecting. It's a very long process, and I just what I thought would maybe just be something that I'd enter and never hear from again ended up being this multiyear journey of traveling with baked goods and auditions. And after a couple 2 years of auditioning, I was cast on the show.

Stephanie Hansen [00:04:51]:

So yeah. So exciting.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:04:53]:

Yeah.

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Stephanie Hansen [00:04:54]:

So how long from the beginning of you arriving to start the taping to when you go home is that length of time?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:05:04]:

So you are there basically for an entire month. For us, it was the entire month of August. You do a lot of prep work stateside before you go, you know, coming up with your own recipes and stuff. But once you are there, you are there the whole time. Even if you're eliminated, then you just kinda get a London vacation, but you're there for the entire month.

Stephanie Hansen [00:05:24]:

So they do it in the Great British Bake Off same space?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:05:28]:

Yeah. So for the Great British Bake Off, there's 2 tents. There is a tent where they film the version everybody knows, and then there's a tent where they film, like, celebrity versions, and I believe it's coming from Janae Baycock is still there as well, but, yeah, there are 2 tents. We're in the the other tent, like so it's not the tent, but it's one of theirs.

Stephanie Hansen [00:05:51]:

Yeah. And Paul and Pru are still judges.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:05:55]:

Yeah. Yeah. It's the same judges. It's Paul and Pru. We have American hosts. You know, that's the difference. People always kind of, I don't wanna say, hate on the American version, but they always say, oh, we don't like it because they're hypercompetitive, and they don't have the accents and all this. And I'm like, well, yeah, we don't have the accents.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:06:12]:

Sure. And that's the baddest. Yeah. Yeah.

Stephanie Hansen [00:06:16]:

So there's that.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:06:18]:

Yeah. So, you know, I mean, if you wanna nitpick, but it's still, like, a heartwarming, friendly show. Like, once people sit down and watch it, they're like, oh, that's actually enjoyable. I'm like, yes. That's what I've been telling you.

Stephanie Hansen [00:06:32]:

It is funny that the perception of Bake Off and what people love and what attracted me to it too was just how kind and supportive everybody is. And we've gotten used to watching these, you know, chopped and these sort of aggressive male dominated, like, shows of competition. And it is funny because I do think America in general this is a very gross generalization, but I do think we're more competitive. We're very aggressively business focused, like, success focused. And I think what is nice about The Bake Off is there's a lot of people from all these different walks of life, and they just happen to make pastry too or they're bakers.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:07:20]:

Yeah. Yeah. That's exactly what it is. And that's when I auditioned because I talked a lot about my state fair, you know, competing background. And they purposely were, like, asking me, well, are you hypercompetitive? Are you how do you feel if you don't win? You know? And so I had to make sure that I expressed that I'm not competitive despite all that. Like, I love the community behind these competitions and the friends that I've made, and they are trying to seek out people for that show that are there to just be with other bakers and have fun and get this experience and aren't there because I wanna win. And, I mean, the prize is a cake plate. You know? Like, you're not getting $20,000 or a book deal.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:08:01]:

You know? You get a cake plate. So if you're not there to just have a good time, you know, they're not gonna put you in the tent.

Stephanie Hansen [00:08:09]:

You happen to mention the state fair. Can you talk a little bit about your state fair baking experience? Because you're pretty well known and traveled in the state fair scene too. Minnesota State Fair.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:08:23]:

Yeah. Yeah. Especially the last year, people have kind of, I don't know, found my like, I've always shared about my journey with it. That's kinda why I started my Instagram page was because I wanted to share this community and show how accessible it is. Like, you don't have to be an incredible baker to enter. You just start. You just start entering stuff, and you get to meet people on entry day. And sometimes you get feedback from the judges.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:08:48]:

Sometimes you get head scratching feedback from the judges, but, like, it's just a super fun thing. And so I grew up with a step grandma who competed and kinda taught me the ropes from a young age and was kinda harsh about it, but it served me in the long run. And, so then about gosh. It's been 10 years now, I believe, I started. I did my first contest. I just entered three things, you know, just to kinda feel it out, and all 3 of them ribbon. I got 2 seconds and a 5th, and I was like, oh,

Stephanie Hansen [00:09:20]:

okay. You know? That's either this is

Nicole Aufderhar [00:09:24]:

you know, I wasn't sure what to think. I'm like, oh, this is easier than I thought, or I might actually be kinda good at baking because your friends and family are always like, oh, everything's fantastic, but is

Stephanie Hansen [00:09:33]:

it really? You know?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:09:35]:

So it's kinda given me this avenue to try new things and meet new people. And over the years, you know, I've I've done pretty well, and I've made some really amazing friends, and I just it's something I look forward to all year round.

Stephanie Hansen [00:09:48]:

What do you remember what the three things you were that you made in the first?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:09:53]:

Yeah. They weren't even I'd call them baking light. Honestly, it was like a granola bar and then some granola, and then they used to do this thing called the recipe challenge Yep. Where everyone would get the same recipe. You know? So it's kinda like the technical on the makeup, honestly, which is what appealed to me is you all get the same recipe. You kinda have to interpret it. And so I got a second place on that. I got a second place on the bars, and then I got a 5th place on the granola.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:10:23]:

And the the funny thing with the cookies was I was always under this belief that you had to enter things freshly baked that morning, you know. So I woke up early to do my final round, and they didn't they failed. The dough, I don't know what I did wrong or if it was the heat, it failed. And so I'm crying in the kitchen. I'm like, what do I do? Well, I had ones that I had stored in the freezer, like, 3 weeks ago. I mean Yeah. I was like, I wanna save them just in case, and I'm so glad I did because that's what I ended up entering were 3 week old transfer cookies, and they still placed.

Stephanie Hansen [00:10:55]:

Yeah. And a lot of people do that. Like, I know another woman, and she enters, like, 82 contests. And some of her stuff comes

Nicole Aufderhar [00:11:03]:

in

Stephanie Hansen [00:11:03]:

the freezer, and she pulls it out the night before, and that's what they enter.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:11:07]:

That's what I and that's what I've been telling people this year, especially, people are surprised to learn that I did that. And I'm like, yeah. And they're like, well, but don't they taste them? Like, yeah. You know, you can kinda tell freezer goods from the fresh, but that's what everybody else is doing. So if you're the best of the freezer bunch Yeah. You know, and it works.

Stephanie Hansen [00:11:25]:

How many categories did you enter this year?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:11:28]:

This year, I ended up doing 12, I believe it was, which I'm not I mean, there's people that show up with laundry baskets full of stuff, you know, and max out at 20. I doing 12 was a lot for me. I usually, like, keep them in the single digits. But, yeah, it went really well. Half of them ribboned. I got a smoked steaks for the first time, so it was a lot of fun this year.

Stephanie Hansen [00:11:52]:

Yeah. And what people maybe don't know I mean, you said mentioned that you're an artist. You make, leather bound journals and leather goods. And, what's your website for that? Because I wanna make sure we tell people because your work's really

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Nicole Aufderhar [00:12:07]:

So my website is wayfaringgoods.com, and it's not wayfair like that big furniture supply place or whatever. It's spelled wayfaringgoods.com.

Stephanie Hansen [00:12:21]:

I love it. Yeah. Because you're not doing this in a professional scope.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:12:28]:

No. Baking is right now, you know, probably, you know, I don't know, forever. It's just for fun. I I love what I do with my leather business. That has been something I've been doing full time for 15 years. Like, that's really where my I don't know. I'm as passionate about baking as I am about leather, but I like keeping my leather as my business and my baking as my creative passion, which I think is important for professional creatives to have that thing without the pressure of selling.

Stephanie Hansen [00:13:03]:

And let's talk about that for a second because that's sort of uniquely American too. I think that this idea is like, oh, well, she's making all this stuff. She's in competitive realm. She's doing really well, so she must be planning a bakery because we, like, don't really just allow ourselves to have these creative outlets without making them into something. We feel the pressure from ourselves.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:13:28]:

Yeah. Oh, exactly. And I think I mean, it's so important to have that creative passion that you don't have that pressure behind. And I I think so I started my business right out of college. I could have either gone the professional photography router than what I did. And so I think because I started young, I learned how important it is to have that creative passion just for fun. I see a lot of my friends that have since pursued kinda similar art businesses, and I see them now struggling with this. Like, oh, well, I'm also good at this, so I should sell this and I should do that.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:14:05]:

And it's like, no. You don't have to sell everything you make. Like, if you're a creative person, you might be good at a lot of different creative things.

Stephanie Hansen [00:14:13]:

Yes.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:14:14]:

You know? And it stops being fun when you know, like, if I have a failure in the kitchen, I'm disappointed. You know? I get frustrated, but it's okay because it's not going anywhere. I don't have to worry about someone a customer coming. I don't have to, you know, it's a different kind of failure versus the feeling when you're struggling with the business. And so I I like having those two things very separate.

Stephanie Hansen [00:14:41]:

Yeah. I can see that too. And, also, like, this idea that because you're good at something or because you make something, then it's becomes less a hobby and then a job. And sometimes I struggle with that because I'm just cooking now between the cookbook and the show and the adjacent appearances and, my blog.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:15:02]:

I feel

Stephanie Hansen [00:15:02]:

like I'm just cooking all the time. And sometimes, like, I feel another like, I have to, like, videotape everything I'm doing. And, like, the other day, I was like, I'm not pulling out the video camera. I'm going to cook something that could I? Sure. But, I'm just going to make these apple muffins because I have apples and I feel like an apple muffin and I'm not going to videotape it and you know what? I'm not even going to write down the recipe. And I just was like I just sat in the moment. I enjoyed the bake. I loved the smell it made my house.

Stephanie Hansen [00:15:33]:

The muffins came out. I ate 1. I gave one to the dog and then I went and distributed them the neighborhood and got rid of them and came home and was like, oh, that was fun.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:15:43]:

Yeah. Isn't that's the best. That is those are that's the best feelings. And I know exactly even though, like, I don't do my baking on a professional level, just in the world of social media. Like you said, you have this pressure to film everything you do and turn everything that you do into some form of content. And that just sucks sucks the fun out of it. You know? Like, you know, sometimes it's fun, you know, but if you're not feeling it, like, don't do it. If Yeah.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:16:11]:

I don't know. You know, it's important to, like obviously, for you, it is part of your work.

Stephanie Hansen [00:16:17]:

But But is it I mean, also and I'm sort of like I don't know. I'm just sort of working through this too. Like, we give a lot away of ourselves as creators, as people in a social media space, and it's just demanding. And I don't wanna, like, sound not grateful because I am because you build a platform and people really dig your stuff and that's fun, but also, like, trying to recognize what's real and what's not real sometimes.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:16:50]:

Yes. Yep. Yeah. Because people see a version of you and and a version of what you do, and they expect that over and over and over again.

Stephanie Hansen [00:17:00]:

Yeah.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:17:00]:

And it can be exhausting. Yeah. And some days

Stephanie Hansen [00:17:04]:

you don't feel like delivering that.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:17:06]:

Yeah. I don't. You know? And and then sometimes I feel like, oh, I have to put it out there because I put everything out there, and then I do it and it doesn't do well or whatever. And then I stress out about that. It's like, why? Why?

Stephanie Hansen [00:17:17]:

Yeah.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:17:18]:

You know?

Stephanie Hansen [00:17:20]:

Well, you and I had coffee, and I think you well, we met at the hottest day of the year, and then you followed up. And you're like, would you ever wanna have coffee? I was like, yes. Of course. And I I also loved that you reached out to me because I do like bringing this creative online life sometimes into the real life of you and I just sitting and having a cup of coffee and talking about what we're into and what's fun. And I just I was I was appreciative that you reached out. And I I wish more people would do that kind of in a real space because I think that's how you grow and how you can help mentor others and help others find their path because so many people have helped me along the way. My goodness.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:18:04]:

Yeah. No. Yeah. And I I'm still so grateful you said yes because Sure. It is super important. And I think that people are kinda surprised when others are willing to do stuff in person and meet in person. And even for my tiny little thing that I do at the state fair, I met people online and they were worried about bugging me or asking me questions. And I'm like, why? Like, oh, I Yeah.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:18:27]:

I I and maybe not I love talking about that kind of stuff. If I can help somebody else, like, I go to competition. I'm like, so, like Yeah. Like, it's better for all of us in the long run, you know, if we're encouraging others to do it and get better and help the people where we can with stuff that we've learned along the way. And, like, I personally enjoy doing that. So that's why it was so exciting to Yeah. Get to sit and talk with you and, you know, meet someone else of the food, you know, yeah, and just learn from each other.

Stephanie Hansen [00:18:59]:

So what's next for you, Nicole? Have you thought about that?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:19:05]:

All the time. No. Again, after having done the show and now I've I've been very fortunate since the show came out with opportunities that have come my way. You know, you never know if anyone's gonna notice or pay attention or anything, and I've honestly been quite overwhelmed with the amount of stuff that I have done. And so people, you know, they expect the bakery. They expect us to expect that. That is not that's not on my realm. That's not what I'm thinking at all.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:19:36]:

I long term dream, short term dream. I don't know. I always tell people I would like to do a cookbook. That is something I thought of wanting to do years. I mean, that's kinda always been in the back of my head because Yeah. I enjoy the recipe development portion of baking. So that's kinda where my strong suit is. That's where I that's what I enjoy the most.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:19:59]:

So, you know, obviously, I'm gonna be continuing on with my leather business as always Yep. Gearing up for holiday season right now. So that's, you know, the main part of my life, but I'm just gonna continue to create recipes, share that, share the state fair knowledge, and just be willing to embrace and be open to whatever might come from it.

Stephanie Hansen [00:20:26]:

Alright. Let's do something fun. Are you ready for fun? Maybe. Always. I have, like, 5 to 10 questions. We'll see how it goes. Just random kinda rapid fire questions.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:20:40]:

Oh gosh.

Stephanie Hansen [00:20:42]:

They're not hard. They're they're all about you. They're not hard.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:20:46]:

Okay.

Stephanie Hansen [00:20:46]:

Oh, okay. Here's number 1. What is the first bake you remember making yourself?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:20:54]:

Cupcakes. Cute. Yeah. Like, as a kid? It's so basic, but that's yeah. Strawberry cupcakes with Swiss meringue buttercream. Yum. That was my first, quote, unquote, real bake that I did.

Stephanie Hansen [00:21:08]:

I love it. Okay. When you go to a potluck, what do you typically bring?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:21:16]:

Macarons.

Stephanie Hansen [00:21:18]:

Oh, fancy. Yes.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:21:20]:

They're easy to share. They look impressive, but they're pretty easy to whip up.

Stephanie Hansen [00:21:25]:

Okay. What is the first thing you eat from a Halloween candy bucket?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:21:32]:

That's funny. Snickers popped into my head first, but Reese's are my favorite, but I guess Snickers would be my first.

Stephanie Hansen [00:21:37]:

Okay. I love that. Reese's is the number one popular candy. You probably know that.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:21:41]:

Yeah.

Stephanie Hansen [00:21:41]:

Yeah. What, is the restaurant that you've been to more than any other?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:21:51]:

Well, green scene since moving up to Walker. That would be yeah. Okay. I love the green scene here in town.

Stephanie Hansen [00:21:57]:

And you live in Walker. I should mention that. Yes. What's your most used pan?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:22:05]:

I my little I have a little saucepan, and I will shove anything I can into it even if it's not supposed to fit. I love it.

Stephanie Hansen [00:22:12]:

I have one of those too, and it's funny. Yeah.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:22:15]:

Yeah. Yeah. Doesn't fit. Okay. I just did that last meal with some jam. It was poor decision but I think it worked.

Stephanie Hansen [00:22:21]:

But you still loved your pan. Okay. This is your last question in the in the final round of the rapid fire questioning. What's an existing cookbook you wish you had written?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:22:36]:

Oh. Oh. I'm looking at all my cookbooks. I know. It's a

Stephanie Hansen [00:22:41]:

hard one.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:22:42]:

That is a hard one. I can't I well, it's funny because I feel like picking any of them. I'm not worthy of any of them, but I have they're all old vintage ones. Like, I have this rose what's her last name?

Stephanie Hansen [00:23:03]:

Birnbaum Levy Birnbaum.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:23:05]:

I use a lot of her books. I wish I had the skill and the abilities to write something like that.

Stephanie Hansen [00:23:11]:

Do you know that that cake bible book that she wrote is having its 35th anniversary this year?

Nicole Aufderhar [00:23:17]:

I don't see that. I know. I can't believe it because except I have all, like, the real old vintage ones of it, and it's it's so cool that it still has stood the test of time.

Stephanie Hansen [00:23:27]:

Yeah. No. I love that you have those. That's amazing. Well, Nicole, I hope people will follow you on Instagram at 10000 Bakes. We're gonna for sure have you on, Jason's show next summer so we get a chance to connect with her there again. Wonderful. Also been doing reviews of Great British Bake Off with Bradley and Dawn on my talk 107.1.

Stephanie Hansen [00:23:50]:

Yeah. Yep. People should follow you, and you're making really cool Halloween stuff right now.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:23:56]:

Yeah. Thanks. Yes. We're having fun over here.

Stephanie Hansen [00:23:59]:

Yeah. It's amazing. Alright. Well, when you're gonna be coming down to town next or not downtown, down to town, next, give me a shout, and we'll have coffee again. It was fun.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:24:09]:

Oh, definitely. Totally.

Stephanie Hansen [00:24:10]:

Alright. Thanks, Nicole. I appreciate you spending time with us today. Yeah.

Nicole Aufderhar [00:24:14]:

Thank you.

Stephanie Hansen [00:24:14]:

We'll talk soon. Bye bye. Bye.

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