Celebrity pastry chef Buddy Valastro's new show will help find him a business partner: 'Their prize is in perpetuity'

T he last time The National spoke to celebrity confectioner Buddy Valastro, star of reality TV series Cake Boss , in 2014, he was scouting the region for possible locations for the first M ena outpost of his New Jersey bakery, Carlo's. Valastro says that plan has been shelved for the time being, though he still hop es to expand his business globally, including to the Gulf. His TV career definitely hasn't stalled, however, and the popular patissier returns to the Food Network this weekend with new show, Bake You Rich . While Cake Boss followed Valastro and his family as they worked in Carlo's, Bake You Rich will bring new faces into the (pastry) fold, as contestants compete to win the chance to sell their favourite culinary creations as part of Valastro's range. Although long-term Cake Boss fans will have to get used to some new faces holding the rolling pin, Valastro insists the new format is simply an extension of the old one . "This is definitely trying to bring new people in because I always like doing different things, but I feel like I live the American dream ," he says. "I feel like I've started with one little bakery . I had a vision, I had a dream. I wanted to make my dad's bakery a household name. I feel like I did that. How do I help these people achieve that? How do I give them that opportunity? Because some people just need a little bit of help." Valastro seems convinced that the contestants on his latest show really will have the chance to bake it rich . "The prize for this show is actually being my partner in selling your product , using my distribution arm and my website to do it," he explains. " It's not like whe n you go on some shows and you get a $5,000 (Dh18,362) or $10,000 prize. Their prize is in perpetuity. If people like the product and they keep buying it, then they'll continue to get royalties from it." Valastro is something of an old hand at the reality TV/cooking show crossover game. Cake Boss had its premiere in 2009 and has since run for 10 seasons on TLC . Spin-offs in that decade have included Kitchen Boss and Buddy's Bakery Rescue. I ask Valastro if he had any idea all those years ago that his family bakery would become such a global TV phenomenon. "I really didn't , especially on an international level," he admits. "Honestly, I didn't even know that Discovery was all over the world the way it was. Doing my show, I always thought that it would be good for my business. I thought that any type of show couldn't hurt. But once I started to travel and I started to see people from all different parts of the world, all different cultures, all different religions, all different situations, all enjoy the show, it made me start to think about what the show is." Cake Boss has certainly become an unexpected global unifier – it screens in 190 countries, and the large crowd that turned up to see Valastro judge a cake competition at Emirates Palace in 2014 is testament to his popularity in the UAE. For Valastro, however, the key to the show's success isn't baking, but family . "The essence of the show is family. It's me and my family running a business," he says. "I think that no matter where you come from , family has got that dynamic that's the same all over the world. And I think that that's what really resonates, and I think that's inspiring people. I honestly, genuinely, inspire people without doing it intentionally." With so many reality/talent TV crossovers on the market , there's constant competition to stand out from the crowd. British chef Gordon Ramsay has enjoyed particular success in the food field with shows such as Kitchen Nightmares , which focus on some of the least talented restaurateurs out there, rather than undiscovered gems. Valastro has even embarked on a similar theme in Buddy's Bakery Rescue , in which he travelled across the US in search of struggling bakeries he could help. Can we expect any disasters in his new show? Or will he be selecting only the cr eme de la cr eme as his potential future partner? " Honestly, we vet the people pretty well in the casting process ," he says. "It's produced by my production company. So we're looking to protect me, protect the contestants and protect the show . Realistically, what I'm looking for is the next big idea. Everybody has got a recipe that they say, ' my grandmother's cookie, or my aunt's pie, or my m um's this, is the best in the world. And if I could just get noticed, I could become the next Oreo cookie'. Right? I want to be that conduit that helps them get there." Bake You Rich begins on the Food Network tomorrow at 10.50pm You might not bake yourself rich this weekend, but you can at least bake yourself full with these exclusive recipes from the Cake Boss himself. Buddy’s Linguini with White Clam Sauce (Serves 6) On Christmas Eve, my family sometimes serves a traditional Italian Feast of the Seven Fishes, made up of (at least) seven fish and shellfish dishes. The classic linguini with clam sauce was often part of the menu, an especially Hoboken-appropriate touch since clam dishes have a rich history in my hometown. (Frank Sinatra, a Hokboken native loved clams Posillipo.) Ingredients 8 cloves garlic, thinly sliced 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil Three 8-ounce bottle clam juice 3 dozen fresh littleneck clams, cleaned Salt 1 ½ pounds linguini ½ cip chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley Buddy’s Strawberry Shortcake recipe To decorate: Directions To decorate:

Celebrity pastry chef Buddy Valastro's new show will help find him a business partner: 'Their prize is in perpetuity'

The star of reality TV series 'Cake Boss' speaks to us about his new show, fame, and offers up two exclusive recipes for readers