--- title: ‘Great British Baking Show’ Stars Reveal the One Thing Every Amateur Baker Should Splurge On description: What should you splurge on in the kitchen? Great British Baking Show stars reveal their picks. authors: - name: Julia Glum role: Managing Editor url: https://money.com/author/julia-glum/ bio: Julia Glum joined Money in 2018 and specializes in covering financial trends that affect everyday Americans' wallets. She also writes Dollar Scholar, a weekly newsletter that teaches young adults how to navigate the messy world of money. education: University of Florida at_money_since: 2018 articles: 453 covers: - Lifestyle - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Economy and Politics - Education - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Loans - Mortgages - Personal Finance - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes - Technology also_seen_in: - Newsweek - International Business Times - CBS News - Good Morning America - WUSA9 - Pix 11 - The New York Times - Mashable - The Washington Post - CNBC - Politico social: - https://x.com/superjulia - https://www.linkedin.com/in/julia-glum published: '2019-05-02T18:00:55.000Z' modified: '2024-05-17T04:03:09.000Z' section: Lifestyle tags: - Cooking word_count: 614 canonical: https://money.com/great-british-baking-show-stars-reveal-the-one-thing-every-amateur-baker-should-splurge-on/ type: Article source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![190502-great-british-baking-show-products](https://img.money.com/2019/05/190502-great-british-baking-show-products.jpg) The secret ingredient isn't always love. Sometimes, it's money. It's not hard to be frugal in the kitchen, but the occasional splurge on a special ingredient or high-tech gadget can take your meals to the next level. Every chef has a guilty pleasure he or she believes is worth the cash: Alton Brown loves his [immersion circulator](https://www.mensjournal.com/food-drink/kitchen-gadgets-alton-brown-cant-live-without-w497653/pro-tip-some-of-the-best-tools-are-home-made-w497821/), Wolfgang Puck is obsessed with his [custom stove](https://www.wsj.com/articles/wolfgang-puck-fled-from-home-to-a-series-of-kitchens-as-a-teen-11554819514), and Jamie Oliver prizes good [olive oil](https://www.chatelaine.com/food/kitchen-tips/jamie-oliver-kitchen-tips/). The competitors on *The Great British Bake-Off* are no exception. As they prove, knead and frost their way through 10 weeks of challenges, the cooks often bring in homegrown herbs, imported ingredients and custom tools to boost their bakes. They're hoping to score a Paul Hollywood [handshake](https://www.buzzfeed.com/scottybryan/paul-hollywood-handshakes-too-many), of course, but they're also focusing on flavor and convenience along the way. Money asked stars from the series, known as *The Great British Baking Show* on American Netflix, which kitchen items they think are worth paying a little extra for. Here's what they said. ## Butter "As a rule, I will always try and obtain the best quality ingredient if and only if that item is the predominant flavor. An example of this is butter. If I'm using butter for a brownie recipe, I use the generic cheap one because the flavor of the butter is not the primary factor. But for, say, croissants, shortbread or pastry, where you want to taste the butter, I get the best one — in my opinion, [French Normandy](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002PJ24NU/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=money018f-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B002PJ24NU&linkId=c55cfe5e415c3cad2deedf626179f7cf). \[It's\] not that expensive, but \[it's\] worth the extra cost." — [Yan Tsou](https://yannybakes.com/) ## Spices "I am a flavor man and love mixing flavors for some interesting outputs, so I do spend money on flavors like Saffron essence, Cardamom essence, coconut essence, etc." — [Antony Amourdoux](https://twitter.com/aamourdoux?lang=en) ## Food processor "The one thing I recommend every cook \[have\] is a decent multi-purpose processor. And not just in the cupboard but on your counter all the time. I use mine every day for blitzing, kneading bread, chopping \[and\] liquidizing to make nut creams, milks, and soups." — [Stu Henshall](http://www.thealternativekitchen.net/) ## Citrus oils "Citrus [oils made by Boyajian](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00PUZA4XI/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=money018f-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B00PUZA4XI&linkId=5d8691c998b374c9422c6cc0d12caa05) — everything tastes so good with them. I credit lemon oil as saving me in the semi-final of GBBS, and the [orange oil](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00PUZA514/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=money018f-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B00PUZA514&linkId=02c0ef6164a212da13a92009f4925b4a) I used in the carrot cake I made in the final. I cannot recommend them highly enough!" — [Ian Cumming](http://www.icimages.com/info/info.html) ## Stand mixer "As a baker, I think a [stand \[Kitchen Aid\] mixer](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BU27HYO/ref=as_li_qf_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=money018f-20&creative=9325&linkCode=as2&creativeASIN=B00BU27HYO&linkId=f7229c0d63d6e85d72cea7c2e9c76d7c) is worth the splurge as it speeds up a lot of processes, and there are certain baking techniques that require it (e.g. Italian meringue)." — [Kim-Joy Hewlett](https://www.instagram.com/kimjoyskitchen/) ## Zester "A zester that \[I\] bought in [Crate and Barrel](https://www.crateandbarrel.com/microplane-grater-zester/s360417) changed my life. I can zest citrus fruits so easily; also, nutmegs and cheese. I have three, and I've bought most of the GBBO bakers one, as they saw mine and loved it." — [Val Stones](https://www.bakerval.com/) ## Slow-cooker "I’ve had so many gadgets over the years and not enough cupboards to put them when I’m bored, but I have to say I would recommend everyone to have a slow cooker, as large as you can manage. Portions of curry, Bolognese, soup or rice pudding can be frozen for mid-week meals to come. I think it's \[an\] essential piece of equipment to give to anyone setting up home or going away to college. I don’t constantly use it, but I do put a whole chicken in and cook it overnight. (Granted, it’s not a bird that you put on the table to be carved, but the meat is succulent and ready to be encased in pastry for a gorgeous chicken pie.)" — [Sandy Docherty](http://bakingdownbarriers.co.uk/) *We’ve included affiliate links into this article. 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