'Top Chef: Just Desserts' Recap - 'Step Right Up'

Sally woke up and realized that she was the last girl standing. She talked to Orlando about missing the girls. Chris talked to his wife and she explained about their baby's surgery which cost almost 50k. The contestants arrived in the kitchen with Gail and Francois Payard. Gail announced that the contestants have to bake the best pie. Francois emphasized making amazing dough. Gail announced a twist: the contestants had to create a one-handed pie. The prize was $5000, one-tenth of Chris' baby surgery. Sally wanted to do plum and strawberry pie and felt like a moron trying to cut food. Orlando decided to do a mixed berry pie after realizing he couldn't peel apples. Chris decided to do a multiple layer banana cream pie. He decided to work with Matthew to get a pastry bag filled. Carlos tried to one handedly try to use liquid nitrogen. Matthew used his left hand for a split second and hoped that no one noticed, except for the camera focused on him.

Orlando's berry pie had positive feedback. Sally's red plum and strawberry pie had silence from the judges. Chris' multilayer banana cream pie was considered sweet. Gail joked around with Carlos about using liquid nitrogen. Matthew was called out for using his hand and was disqualified. François thought that the bottom contestants were Sally and Chris. The top two were Orlando and Carlos and Carlos won his third win in a row.

Gail announced that the contestants would be going to the carnival. For the Elimination Challenge, the contestants would have to create upscale carnival desserts for Food & Wine magazine's Dana Cowin. The contestants had 30 minutes and $400 to shop. They had to think about decorating their tables and other presentation elements. Sally decided to do a corn theme and grabbed corn tablecloth. Matthew wanted to find a game so he thought of raffling off three pigs. Orlando was over his budget and had to give back pieces. The contestants returned to the kitchen and had only three hours to cook. Chris decided to make two different types of ice cream and grabbed all the paco jet containers for himself. Sally decided not to complain and push on. She explained about fighting as a female in the pastry industry. Matt wanted to redeem himself from the quickfire by doing a good pie. Orlando explained that a Caribbean carnival was more of a street festival and less of carnival rides. Carlos wanted to do Latin style desserts.

Johnny arrived for evaluations and talked to Chris. Chris hoped that the funnel cake ice cream needed to be distinctive. Orlando was happy about timing and decided that his take on a candy apple was good. Johnny called him out on how chocolate wasn't part of the dish. Carlos was next and he created a dish that looked like fries, a burger, and soda. Johnny warned him about the guest judge being the macaroon king.

The contestants only had a short amount of time left and Carlos was worried about his macaroons. Time was up and Sally forgot her pudding in the blast freezer. She'll have to worry about it the next day. The contestants decided to sit around and play Never Have I Ever. The best part was when Carlos wanted to punch Johnny in the face. Carlos, Orlando, and Matthew were so drunk they amused Chris and Sally.

In the morning the contestants had two hours to finish. Sally's pudding was a block in the freezer. Carlos' macaroons were hard and dry. He decided to make an angel food cake in hopes that he could quickly cook the dish. They all talked about how much they missed their family; the support would have been amazing. With time running out, Carlos managed to get his "buns" done and still have time to pack.

The contestants had an hour to set up with everything set to a grown-up carnival. Chris was first at the door and was happy to be there because his funnel cake's smell wafting through the air. Matthew joked around about raffling out the pigs as one woman left her number. Dana Cowin and the judges wandered around in two groups. The judges asked about the sweetness of her dish and Dana didn't eat much. Carlos was next and his burger, fries, and soda was playful but called sloppy. Chris was next and his funnel cake ice cream was slowly executed; Chris tried to explain that he liked to interact with the guests. He continued to talk for a good half hour. Matthew had a fried apple pie and the apples maintained its tart nature. Orlando's name changed to incorporate the word chocolate; he explained that the candy apple was his inspiration, even though there wasn't any crackle. Matthew raffled off his pigs to the amusement of the guests.

Gail called Matthew and Sally first to the Judges' Table. They were the top two desserts of the challenge. Matthew's dish was well balanced and looked clean. Sally's multiple dimensions of the corn and the balance with peanuts were great. The winner of the challenge was Matthew and he felt like he redeemed his pie fail. Orlando, Carlos, and Chris were in the bottom. Orlando's apple flavor was lost in his chocolate; he defended the fact that chocolate would enhance the apple. Carlos explained that his macaroons were too hard. The angel food cake was too soft and fell apart. The mini churros were too cold. Chris' biggest complaint was the agar jelly. His dish had multiple techniques that lacked refinement. After the judges deliberated, the eliminated contestant was Carlos. He regretted the macaroons and felt like he let his kids down.

Next Week: The final four contestants are pushed to their limits.