Regina Troy Barrios

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Botanical Garden by Miko Aspiras

<p>When you invite <strong>Miko Aspiras</strong>—one of Asia’s best pastry chefs, the man who’s altered the Philippine pastry scene forever—to the <strong>MasterChef Australia </strong>finale<strong></strong>, you know he’s not showing up with banana bread.</p><p>Instead, he brought <strong>Botanical Garden</strong>, a fully edible potted plant that looks like it belongs in a gallery, not on a plate. Contestants Laura Sharrad and Callum Hann had four and a half hours to recreate it from memory after just one taste and viewing, guided by a 149-step recipe so intricate Laura deadpanned: “There’s like 7000 pages to this recipe.”</p><p>Aspiras himself warned: “This is the most technical and complex dessert I’ve ever created.” Translation: abandon hope, all ye who pipe profiteroles.</p><p>Here’s the breakdown, ranked from mild insanity to full-blown derangement.</p><div><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-0" src="https://www.instagram.com/reel/DNQGBFaTzQa/embed/captioned/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=1080&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A590266%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="1005" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-0" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px 0px 12px;min-width:326px;padding:0px"></iframe></div><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><div><br/></div><h2><strong>7. The Edible Pot</strong></h2><p>A chocolate pot, hollowed and filled with cocoa nibs, deceptively simple as the vessel holding this madness together. Easy compared to what’s inside—but still, have you ever worked chocolate this precisely? Didn’t think so.</p><p><strong>Madness ranking:</strong> Low. The calm before the storm.</p><div><br/></div><h2><strong>6. The Twigs and Tuilles</strong></h2><p>Chocolate twigs with wattleseed tuile leaves. Pretty, delicate, and technically precise. The two contestants even pulled them off decently. But don’t be fooled—break one and the whole “garden” looks like a crime scene.</p><p><strong>Madness ranking:</strong> Manageable. Until you realize there are five harder things ahead.</p><div><br/></div><h2><strong>5. The Flowers</strong></h2><p>Raspberry and strawberry gum truffles, filled with strawberry-raspberry ganache, dipped in raspberry chocolate, shaped into perfect lollipop flowers. Uniform structure, crisp snap, impeccable flavor. The judges called them gorgeous. The contestants stressed over their tricky execution. It’s not easy crafting a flawless edible bouquet under TV lights.</p><p><strong>Madness ranking:</strong> Fiddly. Gorgeous. Possibly survivable.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:900px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1755658869667HERODISH_5.jpg" style="width:900px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner">The Botanical Garden: a 149-step dessert challenge | Photo: MasterChef Australia </span></span></span></div><h2><strong>4. The Pebbles</strong></h2><p>Made of profiteroles—the most complex I’ve ever seen. Each edible stone has a center of Earl Grey mousse encased in a profiterole shell that is then dipped in dark chocolate coating, cloaked in mandarin ganache, and finally a dark gray chocolate layer  sprinkled with lemon myrtle crumble. Six precise layers in something the size of a literal pebble. If your choux didn’t puff? Game over. Aspiras: “A small mistake could cost a lot.” Translation: it’s perfection or nothing.</p><p><strong>Madness ranking:</strong> Diabolically demanding for anyone who’s wrestled with choux pastry.</p><p>.</p><h2><strong>3. The Flavors</strong></h2><p>Not a component, but the heart of the dish. The flavors of this dessert weave a tribute to Australia and the Philippines, blending wattleseed, lemon myrtle, and strawberry gum with calamansi and aloe vera. Seemingly straightforward ingredients, yet their mastery demands juggling distinct profiles across truffles, ganaches, mousses, and gels. The flavors come together all vibrant, refreshing, and intricately layered.</p><p><strong>Madness ranking: </strong>Deceptively simple, fiendishly complex.</p><div><br/></div><h2><strong>2. The Aloe Vera Spikes</strong></h2><p>Tempered chocolate cones, sprayed green, piped with calamansi–aloe vera gel. Fragile, sharp, and likely to explode in your mouth (in a good way). Aspiras himself called them the hardest element. One wrong dip and your spike looks like swamp muck.</p><p><strong>Madness ranking:</strong> Sadistic.</p><div><br/></div><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:900px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1755659236023HERODISH_6.jpg" style="width:900px" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner">Filipino pastry genius Miko Aspiras, standing proud with his creation | Photo: MasterChef Australia</span></span></span></div><h2><strong>1. The Whole Thing Together</strong></h2><p>Of course, none of these components could stand alone. Contestants had four and a half hours to rebuild the entire garden from scratch, a challenge that tested nerves as much as skill. Laura tried juggling too many tasks, stumbled, and scrambled to recover. Callum played it safe, focusing on one element at a time—until the clock turned traitor. It wasn’t just baking; it was survival.</p><p><strong>Madness ranking:</strong> Peak insanity. Pastry as psychological warfare.</p><div><br/></div><p>After all that madness, Laura and Callum still managed respectable versions. Laura’s aloe vera spikes were “even better” than Miko’s, though her profiteroles were too small. Callum nailed his puff but skipped a layer. Still, Aspiras declared their work comparable to what he’d expect from his own sous chef. High praise, considering that in their place, most viewers would probably still be trying to finish reading the recipe.</p><div><br/></div><p>As for Aspiras? He spent the challenge watching the contestants, clearly impressed. “To see the top two contestants battle it out and make the best recreation of that dessert is such a feat,” he later said in an interview with Metro. “For them to be able to give my dessert justice is such an awesome thing to witness, live for four and a half hours.” Difficult? Yes. Impossible? Apparently not. But madness? Absolutely.</p>

<p>A playful deep dive into Miko Aspiras’ Botanical Garden finale dessert on MasterChef Australia, ranking every intricate element by sheer delicious madness</p>

A playful deep dive into Miko Aspiras’ Botanical Garden finale dessert on MasterChef Australia, ranking every intricate element by sheer delicious madness

Every Element of Filipino Chef Miko Aspiras' MasterChef Australia Dessert, Ranked by Madness

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Every Element of Filipino Chef Miko Aspiras' MasterChef Australia Dessert, Ranked by Madness

Troy Barrios

Published Aug 18, 2025 11:20 AM PHT

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Updated Aug 20, 2025 11:19 AM PHT

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149 step dessert challenge

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