Highlights 2 Celebrity MasterChef

16 celebrities are battling it out to win the coveted MasterChef crown.

If you don't impress today, you're basically on your bike.

These celebrities have already reached the top of their profession.

But can they cut it in the kitchen?

I would love to go through.

There's no two ways about it. Of course I would.

It just sucks you in.

The pressure is on today.

Cooking doesn't get tougher than this.

Last time, Linda, Michelle and Nick

got their first taste of life in a busy restaurant kitchen.

So two rib eye, medium rare.

Now, please.

The heat is on!

I really need three scallops, right now!

I can't make these cook quicker

and they're shouting for it and it's not ready!

Argh!

Now they're back to face two more challenges

before one of them is sent home.

We put our celebrities through the pressure of a true restaurant service.

And now it's time to understand what they've learnt

in that restaurant kitchen.

Every time you go in there, the pressure's right back on you.

Just got to cook really well and hopefully everything will go right.

I'm thoroughly enjoying MasterChef.

I'm just immersed in the whole thing.

I didn't think it would take over my life and it has.

My cooking is getting better by the day.

I've learnt so much.

On the benches next to me are a beautiful set of ingredients.

And from those ingredients, we want you to create two dishes.

You have to continue to perform if you want to stay in this competition.

Cos we are fast approaching a time...

where the weakest will leave and only the strongest will stay.

Please come and select your ingredients.

The celebrities now have ten minutes to choose from a selection of ingredients,

including Dover sole, smoked haddock, squid,

mussels, minced chicken,

berries, citrus fruit and vegetables.

I thought I'd do some garlicky mushrooms to start.

I don't know if that's adventurous enough.

My mind's changing all the time, actually.

Only four more minutes to choose your ingredients.

Come on, guys, we need to hot up. Nick, you really need to move, mate.

I love squid and I haven't cooked it here, yet.

Hopefully I'll cook it OK today.

I'm thinking sort of a moules mariniere with the mussels,

or something maybe with the squid.

I'm not sure, I'm really not sure yet.

Come on! You need to choose these ingredients, hurry up.

Decision made. Well done.

You have your ingredients.

Cook beautifully.

1 hour 15 minutes -

let's cook.

Oh, mate!

We've got ourselves three strong cooks.

All of them with different talents.

Now it's time to see what they're truly made of.

I think Nick's a great cook but I think he's had quite a strong competition.

-Very, very good mayonnaise. I think you've done a decent job.

-Thanks.

Your crab cakes are really good! Nick, good job.

He just panics a little bit too much.

It is still like eating raw cake mix.

Erm...bother.

Nick has to be a little bit more in control.

The pressure in this competition is unbelievable.

Panic sets in...

That's the most annoying thing cos you can't even think!

-Nick.

-Yes.

-The pressure's on today, you're back to your old huff and puff self.

-Yep.

-What are you doing for us today?

-Fried squid rings with mayonnaise

and I'm going to try and do something that you did yesterday

with the pasta and the white wine sauce

and I'll throw in some mussels instead, we did it with crab yesterday.

-I might add a bit of the squid and the haddock, as well.

-And where are the tomatoes going?

I'm not sure. I did another dressing yesterday

and I might do something with that if it goes Pete Tong.

Are you under more pressure now since that failed cake fiasco?

Yeah, definitely, I was going mad at myself the whole night after that.

So what do you need to do now?

Pull it out the bag, mate. Literally.

Nick isn't quite sure what his last pasta dish is going to be.

I hope he makes his mind up soon cos he's running out of time.

You've had 15 minutes, you have an hour to go.

Linda cooks at home for her family. She has a good palate.

She knows what people like to eat.

-Daa-raa!

-Is that a good daa-raa?

There's no such thing as a bad daa-raa.

That sauce is delicious.

Linda's foundations are solid. Sometimes her concoctions are a bit weird.

You have taken lovely things and made them silly by putting them all together.

Lesson learnt.

I'd like now to see a little bit of finesse.

Be a bit braver.

The invention tests I think are the worst of all, I hate them!

I am very scared about it.

Linda, what are your dishes?

I'm going to do a nice fruit crumble.

I've never done a fruit crumble before.

And then I'm going to do fish on a couscous with lots of things in it.

-I'm hoping it'll work. It's a creation.

-This is really experimental for you.

-Totally.

Nothing that you've done before rang any bells over there?

I've obviously cooked smoked haddock before but just plain, for the kids...

just in the microwave!

-Oh, Linda...

-The water in the microwave, but I should probably just...

-Sorry?

In the microwave, in a little dish of water...

-for a couple of minutes.

-I wish you'd cook with more confidence, I think you're good.

I am cooking with confidence! I'm happy here today, there's no tears. I won't cry.

-Linda, good luck.

-Thank you.

Linda's attempting two dishes she's not quite sure of,

if she can make it work, that's really impressive

cos she's cooking on instinct.

Halfway, guys. Halfway.

The start of the competition for Michelle was nothing short of a disaster.

-Michelle, you've cut yourself.

-Oh, dear!

It tastes like a piece of fish which is undercooked and not seasoned enough.

OK.

John, she's ambitious and she is working really hard.

It looks like a dish that should come out of a restaurant,

the way it's been presented.

That lady is nothing if not a fighter.

I feel...tired today!

It's incredible cos I do very long hours in the business...

..but I'm here again today, with all ten fingers!

Michelle, what two dishes are you cooking for us.

I am going to cook you squid with olive oil and chillies.

The main course, I'm cooking chicken with peppers, garlic

and a cream sauce.

Minced chicken with a cream sauce.

Is there anything firm in this dish at all?

Oh, pasta. I'm making pasta, too. Sorry?

We've seen you rise to the challenge.

-You obviously

-love

-competition.

I've given up my day job for weeks now,

but I think that when you commit to something you should do it really well,

so I've committed to this competition and I'm going to do my best.

She's got a pasta dish she's making with a creamy sauce

and minced chicken.

That's unusual.

Woah, guys, seven minutes. Seven minutes, that is all you've got.

Please move yourselves.

Guys, two minutes, please. Just two minutes.

You've literally got a minute.

That's it! Time's up.

Linda's two dishes - a smoked haddock and mussels on a bed of garlic and chilli couscous.

And mixed berry crumble with whipped cream.

That rich garlic, parsley, salty mussels...beautifully smoked piece of fish, cooked beautifully,

is really lovely.

It's all a bit wet, but I love the way it tastes.

Oh, good. Good.

Flavour-wise - great.

Texture of your fish, texture of your mussels - great.

But texture of the couscous- it doesn't do it for me.

It's like a smoked fish porridge.

SHE LAUGHS

-I don't think many people would order that on the menu, would they?

-No, they wouldn't.

From your haddock and mussels to crumble.

There are issues on here, Linda.

The first one is there is water coming out of your cream

and that signifies it's over-whipped.

Your crumble - first topping didn't work

so we've got a sort of pie top with lovely sweet, beautifully cooked fruit.

Oh! You see, I meant to say it's a little fruit pie.

Fruit crumble it's not,

but delicious it is.

Oh!

Mmmmm.

Mmm, that's really good, it's like a wet Bakewell tart.

Oh, it's changing by the minute!

Mmm, that is a very, very moreish, well-balanced pud.

Oh, I'm really pleased, thank you.

I feel like I've really achieved something today.

A creation - that did not exist until I cooked it, so that's fantastic. I'm really pleased.

Michelle's made pan-fried chilli squid

and macaroni with a minced chicken, red pepper and white wine cream sauce.

I really like that sweet but hot chilli sauce you've made.

I love the look of your dish,

but the squid themselves need some more cooking.

-OK.

-They are a little bit wet and slimy...

-Yep.

-..on the inside there.

I think the concept is a very good one,

salty squid, quickly cooked...

-but it hasn't quite worked. Squid's not cooked and not enough spice in the chilli.

-OK.

Let's have a look at the pasta.

It is slightly dry and also the chicken's slightly dry, but it tastes OK.

Glass of wine and a bit of company, you'd get it down you.

-Cream, chicken, peppers... Not for me, I'm sorry.

-Oh, really?

I'm really sorry. I just think peppers very acidic and sweet

and then cream.

Right, OK.

I'm just gutted cos

I thought my presentation on those dishes were lovely.

They just didn't taste as good as they looked.

Nick's made battered squid with mayonnaise

and macaroni topped with mussels in a garlic, chilli and white wine sauce.

The squid's really crunchy on the outside, the inside it's gone a little bit rubbery,

slightly overcooked, but not that bad. Your mayonnaise - lots and lots of lemon juice in it,

but I think for a lot of people that mayonnaise will be too sharp to go with your squid rings.

But not bad at all, Nick. Not bad at all.

Squid's cooked all right for me, but your mayonnaise is a little too lemony.

There are errors creeping into your food, dish by dish.

From squid...

..to pasta.

It's sweet and it's acidic and it's hot peppery and that's good.

Nice flavours.

But those flavours don't necessarily work with macaroni pasta.

When we asked you what you'd do you said, "It may be this and it may be that..."

And that's what we've ended up with -

a dish full of maybes.

It is a weird combination cos I love the mussels with that sharp white wine.

The pasta on the other hand then thrown into it...

For me, it doesn't quite work.

It wasn't quite right.

I didn't really know what I was doing until the end.

It's just... I just get annoyed with myself, but there you go. Them's the breaks.

Well done. Thank you very much.

The next time you cook for us,

you'll be cooking to stay in the competition.

Thank you. Off you go.

Today we wanted them to recreate food of a restaurant standard,

for me, actually, the results aren't as good as I wanted,

but they are showing they have potential.

The star of the day - interestingly enough - Linda.

She cooks crowd-pleasing food.

Food that people like to eat.

And her presentation, John, is good!

Really good.

It's an emotional rollercoaster, but you're learning so much.

I wouldn't have missed this journey for the world.

The creations Michelle has made don't really fill me with joy.

But she is a fighter.

She is resilient. You know, during prep she cut her finger really bad,

but she came back and she fought for her life.

If Michelle is going to survive in this competition,

she needs to match that fight with a fair amount of skill.

The next challenge,

there can't be any muck ups whatsoever. I've just got as much luck as anyone else.

I think Nick could actually be a class act.

If you look at the way he performed in the restaurant, Chef loved him.

Nick has great ideas but somehow or another, the man needs to settle down and have courage of his convictions.

I want to carry on and I want to get through to the next stage.

I'm just going to try and stay focused and not get into a tizz over silly things.

Just really try and keep calm.

Throughout this week,

these three celebrities have been through the toughest culinary challenges of their lives.

But after today, only the best can become semi-finalists.

Today there's just one challenge -

the perfect three-course meal.

This is it, the day of reckoning.

Do they have what it takes to continue on Masterchef?

We've pushed them really hard. Let's see what they've learnt.

Let's see them deliver three exceptional plates of food.

At the end of this, only the strong will survive.

Ladies and gentleman, this has been a very big week.

Everything comes down to these three courses now.

Served up not just to John and I,

but to three formidable cookery judges from the WI.

These ladies know their stuff.

This is your chance to secure your place in the competition.

Let's cook.

The contestants have just one hour and 45 minutes

to cook a three-course meal of their own design.

Today's three diners are all prominent cookery judges

from the Women's Institute.

Amy Willcock is one of the WI's national cookery judges,

popularly known as the "Queen of Aga Cooking."

Ruth Bond is the chair of the WI

and has been a member for over 30 years.

And Jill Brand is one of the WI's top authors,

specialising in the baking of breads, cakes and biscuits.

These three ladies will take no prisoners at all.

They'll be brutally honest, they want to taste great food.

Throughout the competition, entrepreneur Michelle has struggled.

-Oh!

-You're in my hands, you're in safe hands, don't worry.

Over-cooked tomatoes, under-cooked vegetables. It's not very good.

And at times has tried too hard to impress.

I don't want that many flavours with my scallop.

The cream in those potatoes is misplaced.

Don't try to be too ambitious.

But certain dishes have shown promise.

It looks like a dish that should come out of a restaurant.

I think it's delightful.

And have got her through the first elimination.

I feel like I'm waiting for an execution.

It's just so important that John and Gregg don't think that I'm an idiot.

-Big day today.

-Yeah, very big, uh-huh.

And how are you feeling?

I'm OK now that I've started, so I'm getting into my zone. Yeah.

Michelle, what are you cooking to secure place in the competition?

Scottish smoked salmon with tiger prawns in a seafood ragout,

with cucumber, hot cucumber.

OK. Main course?

Scottish lamb, roasted parsnips, potato fondant in a rosemary jus.

-And dessert?

-Chocolate fondant...

-Chocolate fondant?

-..with Chantilly cream.

-Ooh.

-And a warm chocolate sauce.

-Are you just taking on more than you think you should have?

-Yeah. Massively, yeah.

I did the chocolate fondant last night and it was awful. Yeah.

I'm nervous for her for the chocolate fondant. 90% of them fail here.

If Michelle achieves her goal, I tell you what,

I'll be truly impressed.

Half hour already gone.

So far, some of Linda's dishes have had strange combinations.

Never before in my life have I had spaghetti,

toast and mashed potato altogether.

Neither have I!

It's like a smoked fish porridge.

I don't think many people would order that on the menu, would they?

No, they wouldn't.

-Really heavy, salty bacon with smoked salmon is ghastly.

-Really?!

Absolutely ghastly.

-But in-between the chaos, there's been real skill.

-Ta-da!

-Is that a good "ta-da"?

-There's no such thing as a bad "ta-da".

LAUGHTER

That is a very, very more-ish, well-balanced pud.

I'm really pleased, thank you.

I've learnt to believe in myself

and that food isn't a thing to be frightened of.

Chuck all the things in that you think might work,

because nine times out of ten they probably will.

Just cook from your heart and go for it.

Linda, it's a big day, pressure's on but you've got a smile on your face.

So far, so good, but it's early days yet.

Tell us your three courses today.

Linguine with mascarpone and mushroom to start,

and then I'm doing stuffed sardines with pines nuts

and anchovies on, my favourite, mashed potato and carrots.

Followed by a lemon posset

and I'm trying to do some little biscuits for the side.

-Linda, what's at stake today?

-Everything's at stake today.

It's all been a waste if I don't go through.

Are you worried at all about the WI ladies?

Yeah, of course, because I like to cook for my man and he likes

his food, but whether it's a ladies kind of dish, I don't know.

Have you done all you can do in this competition, or do you want to do more?

Of course I want to do more. The further you get on, the more hungry you get for it,

especially the comments I got on the last task really boosted me up.

-You're very confident.

-I'm not, you know. Inside I'm like jelly.

-Look at that.

-It normally shakes?

It is shaking, that's shaking for me.

Linguine, mushrooms and mascarpone - OK.

Sardines on mashed potato with carrots? A bit weird.

But I think the dessert could be an absolute triumph.

A lemon posset with the berries and the biscuits.

There is a set of people I would not want to be making

biscuits for right now - it's the WI ladies.

Right from the start, Hollyoaks star Nick has shown great potential...

Crispy outside, soft on the inside - your crab cakes are really good.

Your fish is absolutely perfectly cooked. Brilliant!

..but at times becomes flustered...

-Damn.

-..And makes silly mistakes.

It is like eating raw cake mix.

Bother.

It is a weird combination. For me, it doesn't quite work.

I've never sweated so much in all my life doing this programme.

I'd say I'm pushing myself as far as I can be pushed today with doing this.

I expect them to be shouting at me to put it on and get it out.

Nick, what a pace. Honestly, do you work better at this pace?

I don't know. I'm running around like a headless chicken once again.

I think I'm on course. I think I'm getting the timings I've set myself.

-I don't know, we'll see.

-What are your three courses, Nick?

Herb-roasted scallops with a pea and lemon risotto,

and then I'm doing rack of lamb with Chantenay carrots

dauphinoise potatoes and a blackberry jus.

-And dessert?

-A vanilla panna cotta with balsamic strawberries.

-Whoa!

-Problem with the panna cotta is you won't know whether it's worked

until you've got them out of the fridge. What will you do if they haven't set?

-Well, just cry probably.

-Serve a puddle.

-Yeah, something like that.

-Mistakes in the last couple of rounds, Nick.

-Yeah.

If something goes wrong today, how will you stop yourself from losing your head?

I have no idea, mate. Let's just hope something don't go wrong.

I really love Nick's menu, I think it's great.

But scallops on a risotto? We've got to make sure everything's cooked properly.

We can't have crunchy rice and spongy scallops.

It's whether he can get that main course to work.

Lamb and dauphinoise - really tricky.

First to face the critics is Michelle.

Not long now till your first course. Where is your first course?

-It's here.

-You've got 15 minutes.

-How long?

-15 until that ragout goes out.

-That's fine. 15.

So, what do we think about Michelle's menu?

"Ragout of tiger prawns, smoked salmon and cucumber."

I mean, it sounds interesting but, actually, urgh!

I'm not sure about that.

Smoked salmon hot is really nice. It could add another dimension to it.

It sounds surprising and we need an element of surprise.

60 seconds, Michelle.

60 seconds?

You're on time, you're all right. Well done.

Well done.

Good.

-She's still got a lot to do.

-Her first course is out on time. The parsnips are there.

She's got 15 minutes. Lamb's in the oven, potatoes are done, there's no spinach,

the sauce hasn't been started. The chocolate fondant is nowhere to be seen.

-There's the chocolate fondant and the starter's gone.

-Ah.

-Hello, guys.

-Hello.

-Hello. Thank you.

Thank you very much. Thank you.

Michelle's starter is a ragout of tiger prawns,

smoked salmon and cucumber.

Presentation could have been done in a more dainty manner, I think.

It's all very...pinkish.

Well, I think it's all over-cooked.

It is very tough and the prawn is definitely chewy.

This dish just has no wow factor for me.

I think it's really well flavoured. I think the broth is a bit thin.

I can't work out do I eat it with a knife and a fork and a spoon.

But I like the base flavour of that.

I like the broth with the fish,

-but the broth on it's own is a little too strong.

-This is the first course.

The issue we've got now is can she get a main course

and a dessert on a plate?

-What are you going to do?

-What do you mean?

We've got 15 minutes, your parsnips aren't done,

your sauce hasn't been started and you haven't started your fondant.

You've got to make a decision now because you've got 15 minutes to go.

I don't think you can carry on regardless, can you?

Oh, man. Why is it all going so wrong?

The roast rack of lamb - well, that's one of my favourite meats.

-From a menu, this is the one I would choose.

-This sounds like a really good dish.

I love parsnips. They're one of my favourite vegetables.

I'll have them for anything. So, we'll wait and see.

The only thing I've not got is my parsnips and I'm raging. Raging.

-I practised them till four o'clock this morning.

-You should have practised till five.

-You've got about four minutes. Do you think you'll be on time?

-Yeah.

-And what are you going to do about your chocolate fondant?

-I don't know.

-They should actually be out now.

-Oh, really?

-Really, yeah.

-OK.

I've lost it.

-Push, push now.

-OK.

Come on, mate. Finish the other two and let's go.

Yeah? Done? Is that it? Good. Well done, you. Don't run.

Don't run with hot plates.

-Knock 'em dead.

-Straight back here and get your fondant done, yeah?

We have still got fondant in its little containers.

-That's the pudding, right?

-That's the pudding. There.

SHE GASPS

-Smile.

-Hello there. Thank you.

This is Scottish rack of lamb with potato fondant,

rosemary jus and my cranberries have been soaked.

It's not perfect, but...

Oh, dear.

-You can really smell the rosemary.

-The rosemary's coming out, isn't it?

But...I can't see any parsnips, can you?

No, and that's what we were all looking forward to,

unless they're hiding under a cutlet.

What do we think the cranberries are soaked in?

Well, till we try...

I don't think that these are cranberries.

I think these are probably cherries.

The flavour of the meat is very good. The Scottish lamb is delicious.

What I'm concerned about is the fat on the meat hasn't been rendered.

It's almost raw, the fat.

The potato is not adequately cooked. It should have been creamier.

John, she was very late taking this to the ladies.

There are splashes of sauce all over the plate

and there aren't any parsnips on there.

OK. Fondant time, yeah?

I hate working in a mess.

Look at this.

At this stage, Michelle doesn't have a hope of getting her dessert out on time.

-Your dessert is supposed to be on that table in seven minutes.

-Oh, I'm not going to do it.

-As soon as it's in the oven, will you tell me?

-Do you know this brush?

-I don't know it, no. I've never met it before.

-Things are coming off it.

As soon as your fondants are in the oven,

-tell me because you'll have to go and tell the ladies you're running late.

-OK, fine.

Chocolate fondant with chocolate sauce - mmm! Yummy!

If it's done right, it'll be good,

but I would never choose to do something like that. It's risky.

It's all about timing.

Chocolate fondants, they have to be timed to perfection.

If you don't have that wonderful unctuous, gooey centre, it's just a sponge.

-Michelle.

-Yeah?

-You're five minutes late on your desserts.

By the time you get them in and cooked, you'll be at least 20 minutes late.

The least you can do is tell the ladies you'll be 20 minutes late.

-OK. No problems.

-OK?

-Yep.

I'm so sorry. I'm going to be 20 minutes late.

-I'm sorry.

-20?

-20, yeah.

-That's quite a lot of time to be late.

That's a lot of time, I'm sorry.

Can I just ask you, these are cranberries?

Erm...cranberries. No, they're my cherries.

Do you know what? They're my cherries for my dessert.

-I'm sorry.

-OK. You know what, take a deep breath.

-OK.

And if you were at home, you'd be pouring us champagne and we wouldn't notice a thing.

Really?

You just feel for her. I just want to go and cuddle her.

I'm just so passionate about getting it right

and I'm so angry with myself.

I can't believe I'm crying. How pathetic? Over food!

I don't even cry in the hardest board meetings. This is pathetic.

It's taken over my life. I need to do my dessert, OK?

Michelle, look. You've gone 20 minutes over.

I need to know how long you're going to be.

-I'm not going to be long.

-What's that mean? How long?

-Like, five minutes.

-So you'll end up being half an hour late?

-I'm sorry.

All right. All right. Happy?

Really have to go, Michelle, OK? Got to go now.

I'm more exhausted than she is.

Half an hour late.

-Chocolate fondant.

-Thank you.

-There you go. Sorry.

Michelle's dessert is warm chocolate fondant with chocolate sauce

and Chantilly cream.

This is the one I've been really looking forward to

and, actually, it looks quite interesting.

That looks really good, yeah.

Well, mine was a proper fondant. It oozed beautifully.

It tastes delicious and the cream with it is just spot on, I think.

I think the flavour is excellent.

Yes, we did have to wait, but I think she's nailed it.

It tastes great, really good.

Chocolate - not too rich, not too sweet.

I like the cream, I like the way it tastes.

Flowing with liquid chocolate.

I'm late and that's not good.

So I'm gutted.

You know, I couldn't have done any more with my planning,

but somehow I did take on too much.

-Linda.

-Yeah?

-11 minutes till your starter goes out.

I know. I think I'm all right. I just want to get these in the oven quick,

because they won't be ready for the main otherwise.

Wow! This is a bit a menu, isn't it?

This is very different and a lot to get right on this menu.

She's going to have her work cut out, that's for sure.

-Linda, you've got five minutes till that starter goes out.

-OK, babe.

It'll be interesting to see whether the linguine is homemade or not. I suspect it won't be.

She's got to get the texture of that pasta right from the start.

When it's good, it's very good.

Come on, come on, come on.

It's getting cold on those plates the more you mess around with it.

-Cheese on top?

-Yep.

-Is that the last bit?

-Yep.

-OK, mate, got to go.

-Hello.

-Hello. Here you are, girls.

-Thank you.

Linda's starter is linguini with mushrooms and mascarpone sauce.

-This looks very interesting.

-It does.

-Mmm.

There isn't nearly enough seasoning in this.

It's pretty tough as well.

The presentation was good, there's no doubt about that,

but the lack of mushrooms doesn't add to it.

One, two...

three little slivers of mushroom. I think that's really mean.

It's a bit bland and it's a bit stodgy.

The pasta's not cooked enough, the sauce needs to be more liquid,

those mushrooms are seasoned nicely, there's lots of garlic in there.

That's all a bit gluggy.

Don't run!

-Right, give me that.

-Plates to do now.

-What have we got?

-Quickly, list it, tell me what have we got?

-I've got to do the carrots.

-One minute.

-What? No, you're using up my time!

'The sardines with the pine nuts and the anchovies, you know,'

I feel it could be Mediterranean, but I'm not sure.

How is she cooking them? I quite like them barbecued, actually.

That's my favourite, so it'll be quite interesting

to see if she's griddling them.

Let's do this main. You've got two minutes to get it out.

Come on, Linda.

-What's got to go on the plate?

-Carrots. That's it.

Great, let's go.

-Well done, Linda.

-Well done.

Oh, my good...!

-There you go.

-Thank you.

For her main, Linda has made fresh sardines with pine nuts,

raisins and anchovies on a bed of mash with carrots.

I have to say, this reminds me of my mum's portions.

It's not that delicate, is it?

The fish is beautifully cooked. And the flavour of that filling,

you can taste the anchovies.

The pine nuts give that little bit of crunch to it.

The whole texture blends together really well.

If it was just a smaller portion of potatoes, we would've been

much more positive,

because the flavours, they are very good.

You've got Mediterranean sardines here with pine nuts. It's lovely.

Then you've got buttery, smooth mash with carrots.

Those two shouldn't combine.

But she's managed to make them work OK.

It's very homely. I feel like I'm at home.

-Linda, ready to go with the desserts. Let's go, please.

-OK.

Posset is straightforward to make, but it can curdle,

and it can curdle quite quickly.

My first thought too, cos I've had that happen to me.

-I can't believe you curdled your lemon posset!

-This is some time ago.

I think you need MY recipe for lemon posset because mine never curdles.

-Is it set?

-Looks like it is, yeah.

-Shall I go?

-If you're ready.

-Yeah.

I'm a little slower with this one.

That's a long way!

-Thank you.

-That looks pretty.

Linda's dessert is a lemon posset with fresh berries

and shortbread biscuits.

The posset isn't set.

You can see how runny it is. I'd like it a bit longer in the fridge.

But the flavour's good.

Nice, sharp lemon flavour, and certainly very pleasing to the eye.

Biscuits need to be a bit crisper,

but having said that, they look very good, don't they?

-Mmm!

-I'm really pleased she's done the biscuit, shows skill.

-I like the posset, the cleanness of the dish, it's presented really well.

-That's a good pud, John.

I think I did really well. I got all the dishes out dead on time.

If I go out today, I will go out with my head held high

because I did the very best I could today.

Last to face the cookery judges is Nick.

-Ten minutes for your first course.

-OK.

So Nick's menu...looks great.

Every course sounds just superb.

Can he pull it off?

Herb roasted scallops with sweetpea and lemon risotto.

Yum!

The big danger in this first course,

if you cook scallops for too long, you've had it. Like rubber.

We want to see a nice, creamy risotto.

-I don't want any stodge on the plate.

-I hope he can manage it. I do hope he can.

If those are cooked well, you're onto a winner.

Cooked OK? Soft, no crunch in the rice?

Good.

-You happy with that?

-It's not going out yet.

-Can we go with this?

-Yeah.

-Yeah? Let's do it.

Give 'em a big smile, mate.

Good afternoon, ladies. You all right?

-There you go.

-Mmm, thank you.

Enjoy.

Nick's starter is herb roasted scallops

with sweetpea and lemon risotto.

-The scallops are done to perfection.

-The flavour of the rice is lovely.

I think it's really well cooked, which is good for a risotto.

I don't think the risotto is actually very well cooked.

I think the rice is very stodgy. It's not creamy as it should be.

I'm afraid I don't agree with you, Amy. I think it's lovely.

I've been to Italy on a cookery course where

we were taught by Italian chefs the right way to cook risotto.

And that's how they would present it.

It's OK. I like it.

-We can beg to differ.

-I think so.

I think it's nicely cooked. It's a nicely designed dish. It's almost there.

The risotto is lovely.

It's light and it's sweet with the pea as well, and it's fragrant with some herbs.

A big "mmm" for the risotto.

Right, Nick, main courses, please.

Nick covers his lamb in Dijon mustard...

..rolls them in breadcrumbs

and places them under the grill to crisp.

-What have you not got done for your main course?

-I've just got to get these carrots on.

-So your carrots aren't on yet?

-No.

The lamb, I just think that sounds lovely.

As long as it's the right colour, not overcooked or undercooked...

-How's that lamb?

-It's a bit underdone, to be honest.

Getting faster and you're making mistakes. Calm yourself down.

That's it.

You've got about three minutes left, Nick.

Let's go!

Oh, my God!

Here you go, ladies.

-Thank you.

-There you go.

Nick's main is roast rack of lamb,

Dauphinoise potatoes,

Chantenay carrots and a blackberry jus.

This has got really eye appeal.

It's really lovely.

The lamb, one is more well cooked than the other.

I would have liked it a bit less pink.

The potatoes are cooked.

And the cream hasn't separated out, so that's really good.

And the carrots are really lovely carrots.

But I think that the sauce... I'm not really getting the blackberry.

Also, it's a bit salty.

Sweet carrots, really lovely, creamy dauphinois,

I don't mind the sauce - although it's very, very rich and sweet -

some of the lamb is cooked really nicely,

but some of the lamb is not.

That lamb is too rare.

Dessert, Nick. That's it, yeah?

-How do they look?

-They're all right.

Wahey!

Vanilla panna cotta - too much gelatine and it will be standing upright,

and won't move, too little, and it'll just fall apart.

And of course, balsamic strawberries at the end, well...

to die for, really!

Go, let's do it!

Let's do it!

Hi, ladies, you all right?

Sorry I am in such a tizz!

There you go.

-There's a nice wobble on that!

-Is there? Yeah! See you later.

-We think he's probably fun in the kitchen!

-I wouldn't be surprised!

'For his dessert, Nick has made vanilla panna cotta

'with balsamic strawberries.'

Really good consistency.

Very nice wobble, that's a good sign, for me.

Delicious!

Just enough vanilla.

And the balsamic just helps it nicely, doesn't it?

This is my dish of the whole day.

The flavour, the consistency, really, really good dish.

10 out of 10.

Lovely, fresh, summery fruit. Beautiful.

Well-set vanilla rich panna cotta. Delicious.

I love it. A great dish.

I've never been under so much pressure in all my life.

I know my lamb was under, which is annoying,

because I had a few more minutes and should've thrown it back in the oven.

I gave it all in there and if it wasn't good enough, it wasn't good enough.

We said at the start of this, the strong stay, the weak go home.

I think, today, the pressure is absolutely enormous.

The amount of food they cooked is a huge amount of food to be done

in a pretty short period of time.

Nick was ambitious. Three pretty good courses when you consider it.

A lot of work in there. A lot of work.

Our first course, the lemon risotto, nicely made,

good tang, fresh with herbs.

But I could have done with a little bit more colour on the scallops.

But I loved the sweetness.

The main course, the lamb, not a bad effort.

Dauphinois was nice, I liked his sauce, but the lamb was underdone.

And he had enough time. He had five or six minutes left over,

he could have put that lamb back into the oven

and finished it off to make sure it was cooked.

The dessert, the vanilla panna cotta, great.

That was a good pudding.

If I did get knocked out, I can't say I didn't do my best.

I'm really enjoying it, so, yeah, I don't want to go.

To be fair, I think even Michelle would admit

she had a lot to prove today.

This is why she pushed herself so hard. She needed a stand-out round.

She messed up, John, messed up again.

The first course with the prawns and the salmon,

I didn't mind it, you didn't like it, nor did the WI ladies.

Hmm. Seafood, bit overcooked, the broth was a little too strong,

and too watery.

The lamb we all thought was very, very good,

there was a question mark over the potatoes.

She got so flustered. She served the alcoholic cherries

meant to go with the pudding, she served them with her lamb!

She was in a state.

Michelle came back from serving her main course

and had not started making that chocolate fondant.

You can't have a pudding turn up half an hour late.

Even if they love it, 30 minutes late is unacceptable, anywhere.

Her timing was awry, little mistakes all over the place.

She was close to the edge.

I thought, any moment now, she's going to throw herself on the floor

and just start sobbing!

This has been the toughest challenge of my life.

I've just loved every minute of it.

It's been...amazing.

Linda, today, her linguini with mushrooms and mascarpone

wasn't quite right.

It was too stodgy and too bland.

Sardines, raisins, pine nuts, garlic, bread crumbs,

sitting on mashed potato with carrots,

actually, it was pretty good.

But John, that's crazy!

It shouldn't work.

But...it actually tasted all right.

I thought the posset was an absolute knockout.

Really good blend of sweetness and sharpness.

And really good little shortbread biscuits.

At least she pushed today, her food may have looked a bit homey,

but, as always, Linda delivered food that tastes good.

What are we going to do with her? She's really frustrating.

I'd be absolutely gutted to go home today.

I feel I've given the show a lot of me.

It would be a shame. I'd be disappointed.

Because I want to experience the other things there are to come.

Who goes?

-Oh, God!

-Who stays?

I've been here so many times, it never gets any easier.

Look, there's chinks in all their armour,

but at the end of the day,

I think that you know, like I do, who should stay and who should go.

Great effort, today.

And I just want you to realise how far you've come

in a short space of time.

Incredible!

But, as you know, we can only take the strong cooks with us.

The first person to leave us...

..is Michelle.

(Good luck.)

Disappointed, because I've had such an amazing time,

and learnt so much.

I've put everything into it.

But obviously I'm just not good to go on in the competition.

That's life.

So...

Nick, Linda...

..you two, tough decision.

You both have your strengths,

you both have your weaknesses.

Because of that,

you're both staying in the competition.

Oh, my God!

Don't cry!

Oh, thank you so much!

Very well done! We'll see you both in the next round.

Oh, I can't believe it!

Oh, my God!

My heart was going so fast then,

I just thought I was out the door.

I'm over the moon. Semi-final?! Me?!

What's that about?!

These are tears of joy, now!

I pushed myself to the absolute limit.

Hopefully I can go on and win it now.

I'm buzzing. I'm really happy.

Will definitely have a drink tonight!

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