Delaware pastry chef to compete on Food Network Nov. 7

Delaware pastry chef Dru Tevis will duke it out with his peers on Food Network’s “Holiday Baking Championship,” premiering at 8 p.m., Monday, Nov. 7.

Tevis oversees the dessert program for SoDel Concepts. Thompson Island Brewing Company, one of two brewpubs in the company’s portfolio, will host a live watch party Nov. 7. Guests can taste the very dessert that Tevis creates for the competition.

“It was the most challenging yet thrilling experience in my life, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything,” said Tevis, a graduate of the French Culinary Institute of New York, now the International Culinary Center. “I competed with some of the most talented bakers and pastry chefs in the country, and we developed genuine friendships – we learned from each other.”

Not everyone would pit themselves against the best on national TV, but Tevis wanted to see how well he could perform under pressure when the stakes were high. “This was about facing my fears,” he said.

On the show, he also faces celebrity judges with impressive pedigrees.

The panel includes Duff Goldman, who owns Charm City Cakes in Baltimore and Los Angeles; Nancy Fuller; owner of Ginsberg’s Foods, a multimillion-dollar business; and Carla Hall, a “Top Chef” alum. Jesse Palmer is the host.

Each episode has two cooking rounds, and the topics cover the feast-centric holidays in November and December.

“I was so proud to represent SoDel Concepts and the state of Delaware,” Tevis said.

Just don’t ask him who won. Fans will have to to tune in to find out.