Jesse gave an insight into the real reason Duff was missing when he explained how Zac Young is filling in for him.

Introducing the judges, Jesse introduced Nancy Fuller, Kardea Brown and then revealed why Duff wasn’t there.

Jesse said: “Duff’s still feeling a little bit under the weather,” before he introduced Zac Young.

Earlier this month, viewers were stumped when Duff, 50, slipped out ahead of the elimination in the final minutes of the Food Network show.

At the time, he left host Jesse and fellow judges Kardea and Nancy alone.

During the final scene of the December 8 episode, Duff was mysteriously absent, as Jesse joked to the bakers that he “left early” for a “Chrismukkah party.”

He had appeared earlier in the episode for the blind tasting of the contestants’ bakes.

Fans were baffled over Duff’s unexplained absence.

“What really happened?!” asked one Reddit follower.

“Normally a sudden absence like this I’d chalk up to illness, but seeing that guest judges are lined up, it seems to me it was known about in advance,” guessed another.

“Sometimes these shows have backup judges ready to go just in case,” argued another.

Duff has not commented on his absence, but seems to be doing well.

He just announced he and wife Johnna are expecting their second child, and he revealed he just opened his very first restaurant, Duff’s Deli and Market in Atlanta.

This comes after earlier this year, fans were left devastated over the axing of both Christmas Cookie Challenge and Holiday Wars from the 2025 season schedule.

Not only were those two fan favorite shows axed this year, but another beloved program was too.

Kids Baking Championship will not have a holiday special this year, as it has since 2019.

Kids Baking Championship’s last Christmas special, Frosting the Snowman, aired on December 2, 2024, but there was not a scheduled special for 2025.

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Duff is a beloved holiday baking judgeCredit: Food Network