KATY, TX (Covering Katy News) - Cinco Ranch resident Hemlata Basumatary and her team, known as Jingle Sprinkles, won Food Network’s The Big Bake.
Hemlata is known professionally as Hemu Basu. She spoke with Covering Katy earlier this month, about competing on Food Network, but she was not allowed to reveal her team won because the program had not been broadcast.
The show was taped in March and aired earlier this month.
She led her team, which included Joel Gonzalez, a pastry chef specializing in chocolate and sugar sculpting, and Kim Hall, a 3D modeling expert who designs cakes for the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks.
Once the show aired, Hemu was quick to talk about the win.
“We Won! Team Jingle Sprinkles is the new champion of The Big Bake,” she exclaimed on her Facebook page.
She told Covering Katy News that the months following the show’s recording have been difficult because her father died.
“I felt like I made my Dad more proud, and he’s watching me from the heavens.”
She’s also proud of her team.
“I feel grateful to my team. It’s like a dream come true moment,” Hemu said. “Winning takes talent, determination, and hard work, and I guess my team has it all.”
Hemu owns a home-based business called Hemu's Sweet Sensation where where she specializes in delicious, highly decorative cakes. She discovered her talent for baking specialty cakes when her son asked for a cake that looked like a fire truck.
Hemu was on Channel 2’s Houston Life following the victory. See the segment below.