Food Network cooking up holiday competition series ‘The Elf on the Shelf: Sweet Showdown’

The Elf on the Shelf holiday tradition is being baked into an all-new competition cooking series for Food Network.

For the unfamiliar, the tradition’s conceit is that Santa Claus tasks his scout elves with planting themselves about the house and doing recon on who’s naughty or nice so he can adjust his gift-giving accordingly.

For parents, the constant surveillance of the ever-moving elf’s unblinking gaze theoretically grants them some much-needed good behavior from their kids during the silly season.

The Elf on the Shelf: Sweet Showdown will see “Santa and his loyal Scout Elves,” along with the help of Ace of Cakes veteran Duff Goldman, “challenge six teams of Sweetmakers in a competition full of surprises,” the network teases.

The contestants will be tasked each week with creating “edible showpieces that bring the holiday season to life” for judges Kardea Brown and Ashley Holt; the title of “The Ambassadors of Confectionery Concoctions” and $25,000 is on the line.

The Elf on the Shelf: Sweet Showdown premieres Sunday, November 19,at 8 p.m. ET on Food Network.