Cake Boss: Season 3

After 50 years working the bakery, Mama announces her retirement. Buddy knows what cake he'd like to make for her party, but a prime ingredient is no longer manufactured. On top of that, New Jersey's Governor-elect wants a cake for his inauguration, Lisa's birthday inspires Buddy to make a life-size cake of his wife, and Buddy initiates an Employee-of-the-Month Award to raise standards.

Brrrr. It's winter and Buddy's feeling the cold extra-keenly. The Coney Island Polar Bear Club wants a cake and Buddy aims to join them with his bakers in their next ocean dip. Also, Buddy's son Marko wants an ice cream clown cake for his third birthday, a difficult cake which has to be iced inside the freezer.

A massive group-wedding requires wedding cakes for 14 couples, each a different flavor, which an out-of-style old-school idea ties all together. It's also Valentine's Day, which makes for a "crazy-busy" week at Carlo's Bakery; delivery boy Anthony takes out baker Danny's daughter, making it even more so.

An unheralded knight bearing a double-edged sword cuts to the head of the line to beseech a cake from Buddy's ovens for the king of Medieval Times, an authentic Italian seeks an authentic Italian cake, and Cousin Anthony begins his quest to become a baker.

The mother of a sweet sixteen wants an Egyptian princess cake, an Indian baby shower wants an animal cake, and a husband wants a pink hearse cake for his wife's birthday.

Danny's substandard fondant work on a Marie Antoinette cake leads Buddy into doing a superior make-up job, pregnant Lisa finds an eating companion as the baking staff works on her cravings cake, Anthony starts learning how to do pastries from Joey, and Mauro's health takes a nosedive.

While cakes are desired for the 10th anniversaries of NASDAQ and O Magazine, Anthony wants to turn baker full-time, so Maurizio (Buddy's brother-in-law) is tested to take over on deliveries.

Buddy builds a St. Louis skyline cake in which a replica of the St. Louis Arch proves most difficult. Mary's twins want a pirate and princess cake, but Mary goes too far in expressing her displeasure over Buddy.

Fiore's Deli, a former business neighbor, wants Carlo's Bakery to help celebrate their 100th year in business, so Buddy builds them a 6' authentic-looking deli sandwich cake. Maddalena clues Buddy in on Mauro's health issues, so Buddy summons the other bakers for an intervention. And while Joey guides Anthony through the annual making of cold cut pie, Danny gets heat for forgetting an oil change and burning the Easter zeppoles.

Commissioned to make an All Star Paintball cake, Buddy accepts a fun challenge to take on two professional paintballers along with five of his staff. Back at the store, Buddy inaugurates the first annual Cupcake Day while plotting a paintball-inspired surprise for Anthony and Maurizio.

A rockin' sweet order for a gnarly 80's cake, and an invite to accept the Key to the City of Little Ferry (where Buddy grew up), sends Buddy and his stoked staff spazzin' on a radical retrograde trip down totally tubular memory lane.

For the 45th anniversary of his favorite barber shop, Buddy builds a barber shop cake with a rotating barber's pole; and, to help a cowboy bar celebrate the purchase of a new mechanical bull, Buddy builds a riding bull cake that moves.

It's Mother's Day. The Adoptive Parents Committee wants a special cake to celebrate new moms, and Buddy's very willing to execute an especially beautiful job for them. To beat the summer heat, Joey makes the old "lemon ice" recipes that the bakery hasn't made in years, and Lisa finally gives birth to Baby Isabella, to which Buddy follows up with a special announcement for the newest mother in the family that makes her day.

A train cake for Train Day - complete with working model trains - is to be far bigger than Buddy first thought. Even with the whole crew working on it (and bumping up against each other in the bakery), it can't be completed except at Penn Station itself, where unmanageable heat could take its toll on it. Elsewhere, Mauro begins his doctor-prescribed mid-day constitutionals along with his son, Buddy C., and Joey helps decorate a fireman's retirement cake for his other boss.

What a time for the old bakery ovens to start giving out! Häaden-Dazs Ice Cream wants to celebrate its 50th birthday with a three-flavor cake at their original Brooklyn location, and the Broadway production of "Come Fly Away" wants a Frank Sinatra cake to celebrate its 100th performance. Buddy informs the bakers of his plan to replace the ovens along with reorganizing the bakery.

Buddy, Mauro and their immediate families visit Italy for Second Cousin Claudio's wedding. Of course, the happy couple wants a cake form him - seven tiers, no less. And as long as he's there, another cousin wants a baby shower cake for his expectant wife. But while in Italy, Buddy has three personal goals to check off as well: (1) learn how to make Mama's favorite bread, (2) snag a new cookie recipe for the States, and (3) spend one-on-one quality time with his son.

A good client of the bakery back home wants Buddy to create an art cake for his art collector friend while in Rome. Later, Buddy and Lisa make a wish at a fountain.

Still vacationing in Italy, Buddy returns the graciousness of a vintner by making him a wine bottle cake in honor of his new vintage. Irritated that their husbands are working on their family vacations, Lisa and Grace shop for skimpy Italian swimwear - for the men to wear. And while on a romantic dinner for two, Lisa cannot fully join in with Buddy on a toast.

Now back in the States, Buddy creates a 10' long flip-flop cake for a new pier opening at Myrtle Beach. Not only is it huge, it's a ton, requiring concerted effort and muscle from the staff to move. There's also a giant peanut butter and jelly sandwich cake for a 2nd grade class. Progress falters when the old ovens finally give out with a crash, requiring Buddy to step up his plan for new ones. Additionally, for a woman helping others in need, Buddy gives lessons in making better apple cakes (but not his family recipes).

The two-day installation of the new ovens, along with an exchange of the baking and decorating rooms, makes things a little tight at Carlo's Bakery. Mama gets riled when she finds herself left out of the loop on this, also when the transition impedes the store's ability to serve its customers. Meanwhile, an Irish pub wants a phoenix cake to celebrate their survival after a fire.

Carlo's Bakery puts out two specialty cakes. A cake for the S.S. Normandie based on the ship's interior, and a cake for the mother of Snooki of Jersey Shore fame. To impress Snooki when delivering the cake, Anthony has the shop gals work on transforming him.

Mauro Castano's daughter Mary wants a sweet-16 cake with a Hollywood theme, and West Point gets ready to celebrate the 100th year of their cadet chapel. Meanwhile, Anthony makes a mistake with some cookies.

It's a week of anniversaries. A man wants an all-out, over-the-top chocolate cake for his 15th wedding anniversary, and the Mayor of Hoboken wants to honor the 100th year anniversary of Carlo's bakery by renaming the street Carlo's Bakery Way. Buddy also reveals the new building to expand their business and gives out an extra-special award.

'Tis the week before Christmas and, in Buddy's bakery, the output quadruples on cookies and cakery. With honey balls, cupcakes and love knots to bake, its not a good time for machin'ry to break. But it's a small glitch in the bak'ry's survival, with customers well-served before Santa's arrival.