She is the sweet-toothed competitor who is vying for the title of Australia’s dessert queen.
Patricia Scheetz of Gymea is representing Sutherland Shire in the latest reality cooking show to hit television screens this month.
The new Zumbo’s Just Desserts, which premieres on Monday, August 22, at 7.30pm on Channel 7, will bring together talented bakers of all things sugary.
Australia’s most celebrated patissier Adriano Zumbo will put Australia’s most passionate dessert makers to the test alongside British chef Rachel Khoo, who will taste and critique their creations.
Under their watchful eye, contestants will put their skills to the test in a series of challenges that will make you drool.
Cooking to a brief and theme in every episode, they will have to create a dessert using their imagination.
There will be plenty of thrills and spills as they battle the factory clock and their nerves to finish on time.
Ms Scheetz, 33, is one of 12 contestants competing in the show.
A macaron pro, is the Shire’s chance of taking home the dessert crown.
She is affectionately known as ‘little Miss sunshine’ to her friends.
“I’m enthusiastic about everything – especially desserts,” Ms Scheetz said.
But things were not always rosy for the talented baker.
Diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes as a baby, she needed a kidney and pancreas transplant in 2011 to save her life.
And dessert is a form of culinary therapy, and it opened a door to a world she had never been able to previously enjoy.
“In my 20s my condition started to get worse and I started to go blind and my kidneys began to fail,” Ms Scheetz said.
“Now I can eat pretty much whatever I want.
“Post-transplant I wasn’t allowed to work for a while, so I picked up a recipe book for macarons and the first batch I made were perfect.
“I discovered it’s quite an art to making them, and that was it – I was hooked.
“What I’ve been through, it’s made me dig deep and find some inner strength, and I’ve got a real ‘never say die’ attitude.
“That’s why I’m here in this competition.
“I feel like I’m paying tribute to my donor by living life to the fullest.”
