Episode 2 Celebrity MasterChef

Brand-new celebs, in this kitchen.

We are about to find out whether they can cook.

Now that I've got this far, I want to win.

Some of them think they can cook,

some of them know they can't cook.

Some of them are just delusional.

Why am I still here? Goodness only knows.

All we want is just a little bit of promise, a glimmer of hope.

I would like to go further

in this tasty terrain.

You can act, you can sing, but can you cook?

This week, five celebrities have taken on the challenge

to become MasterChef champion.

Last night, actor Todd Carty went home.

Now the remaining four are back to fight for their place.

The pressure is horrendous, actually, at times.

But I'm a little bit of an adrenaline junkie anyway

so I kind of quite like it in a sick way.

I'm feeling a bit jittery because I'm having

to pull from the recesses of my mind food to cook, rather than just eat.

I think once you start something like this,

as you go along things get harder,

people start doing that food where you do blobs.

I'm thinking that's way ahead.

I'm taking this very seriously.

This isn't a joke.

I feel like a racehorse in training, about to do the Grand National.

Today is a new day and our four cooks are going to be put to task.

We haven't given them an easy start, now it's about to get tougher.

We've only got two semifinal places

and at the end of today, that means two more go home.

Welcome back. First day on MasterChef and you four survived it.

Now we need to know what you know.

What comes next is the knowledge and skills test.

We are going to ask you to go back into your room

and we're going to bring you out here to test you one by one.

Right, we'll see you very soon. Off you go.

You know what, I think they're going to be OK.

I just want to vomit.

What do you think it's going to be? It's going to be pastry...

-I don't know how to make pastry.

-Nor do I.

I have no idea. Don't even go there with me.

-Skill and knowledge.

-I've got none.

Right, it gets a bit serious now.

We're going to ask them to identify four different biscuits,

four different creams.

Four biscuits, the first one is a classic tuile,

used in classic French cookery. It's a beautiful thing.

The amaretti biscuit, it's got the flavour of almonds,

and a palmier, classic bit of puff pastry rolled up

and it looks like a pair of spectacles.

The last one, an Anzac biscuit,

an oaty, sweet biscuit which was given to the Australian

and New Zealand Army Corps whilst they were fighting the First World War.

The four creams, this one I think is the most easily recognisable

and that is Chantilly.

If they taste it, they taste the vanilla extract in it.

Over here, this yellow one

is a creme patisserie,

and that is the essence of so much decorating and baking.

The next two they may have used in savoury cooking. That's sour cream

and this one over here is creme fraiche.

What's the skills test?

We're going to ask our celebs to make two brandy snaps filled with

ginger flavoured cream, and they have to do it within 15 minutes.

My grandmother used to make brandy snaps.

I haven't had one of those since I was eight or nine years old.

Show me how they do it.

This is raw biscuit dough.

You roll it into a ball,

with your thumb press it down a little bit.

180, takes us about three or four minutes.

Now I'm going to make the filling for the brandy snaps.

Some cream.

This is my flavouring mixture.

Ginger powder and sugar.

They do not want to overdo it with the ginger,

otherwise it's going to taste like fire.

At the moment it looks like a bit of cheese on toast under the grill.

Thankfully I'm wearing the white jacket.

That's a rarebit.

There's our two. These are the rollers.

I'm going to roll the brandy snaps around the outside.

Too hot and they stretch like that,

-too cold...

-And they'll just break.

Go on, have a roll. Go on.

That's marvellous, John. You remind me of my grandmother.

You don't want to take them off too early or they will collapse.

It takes a really good cook's brain to be able to work out

that's got to be at the right temperature to be able to shape it.

Look. Isn't that lovely? Look.

-That's lovely.

-There we are.

Look at that. Lovely.

Lovely, lovely.

There you have it. Brandy snaps. Ginger cream.

I'll tell you what, happy childhood memories.

That slight itch of ginger, the crispiness of the snap itself.

Sweet and creamy in the middle.

That is lovely.

I will be amazed and delighted if our contestants can turn these out.

Let's get them in.

First up is supermodel Jodie Kidd.

My dream knowledge and skills test would be if they ask me to chop

an onion, probably taste something

like spaghetti or pizza, omelette.

Something like that.

In the first round, she impressed with both her skill and ambition.

I think we might have a very special cook.

Wow.

Right now, we want you to identify what's on this tray.

Can you taste them, have a look at them

and write down what you think they are.

A load of biscuits.

There are four different ones, what do you think they're called?

This is the worst test I could possibly have.

Being a model, the one thing that was a big no-no was dessert.

That's not dessert, that's a biscuit!

I recognise that thing.

-Amaretto.

-That'll do.

Good start.

'My knowledge of cooking is growing.'

I should say it's at the baby stage.

This is so difficult.

I haven't quite made it to the toddler stage yet.

Brain's gone.

Let alone teenage or grown-up.

I'm just going to put "twirly things."

-Have you ever eaten one of those before?

-A biscuit?

One of those biscuits.

It's a...biscuit...

I'm still kind of crawling around the kitchen.

That's like a yoghurt.

-Custardy cream.

-Good.

Let's start with your creams.

Your yoghurt is sour cream.

Your double cream is double cream but it's been whipped with

vanilla and sugar so that's called Chantilly cream.

Your sour cream is creme fraiche and your custard cream is exactly that.

Amaretto biscuit, absolutely correct.

That's called a palmier,

-and a tuile. You only got two out of eight right.

-Terrible.

You're going to have 15 minutes to make for us

two brandy snaps filled with sweet and ginger cream.

-I don't...

-Have you had a brandy snap before?

-Yeah, but I've never cooked it.

-Off you go.

Don't know what I'm doing.

I don't know how much to add.

This is just my idea of hell.

How do I get that round that but thin enough?

Cook it first before you wrap it.

You cook it first?

If you put that on a tray as a biscuit, what's it going to be like?

-Very large?

-What would you do with the biscuit?

-Chop it.

-Thank you.

Right, let's get back to this.

You've got two and a half minutes.

-Come on, cakes.

-Biscuits.

-Biscuits.

Holy mackerel.

You've got about a minute left.

This is so difficult.

This is disastrous.

There we go, we're going to go for a really short one.

-Are you done, Jodie?

-Yes.

Jodie, if you'd have just calmed down,

I reckon we could have had some decent ginger snaps.

Your cream is sweet, got loads of ginger, so that's vibrant.

You've got a crispy end on the stumpy one,

so you got the texture and the flavour that works really well.

-It looks like it's been run over...

-Yes!

-..but it tastes good.

You've squashed one, decapitated the other one

but actually you got them out.

-Jodie, thank you. Go on.

-Cheers, guys.

That was just the worst thing I could have ever imagined.

Being a model, most of my life

I was never really allowed to have dessert.

Anyway, wasn't my finest hour.

Astrologer Russell Grant is up next.

What an entrance.

Yesterday he scored a success with his nan's bread-and-butter pudding.

You wanted good old-fashioned flavour of hot cross buns.

-Yeah.

-And that's exactly what we've got here.

I'm frightened.

Wow. Shoot me with an icing gun.

Look at that.

Could you write down what you think they are?

I've no idea what it is but it's tasty.

My knowledge of cooking, my knowledge of ingredients,

it's only what I've learnt from my grandmothers and mother.

I have no idea of what this is.

And trust me, being a '50s kid, when everything was on rationing,

there were hardly any ingredients!

None!

None!

That's it.

I tell you what, you might not know your biscuits

but you know your creams.

-Four out of four without even a hesitation.

-Blimey!

That will hold you in good stead.

It will do because that's as good as it gets.

I don't know about that.

-We would like you to make for us two brandy snaps...

-What?!

..filled with ginger flavoured cream.

-Blimey.

-You're going to have 15 minutes.

Better do this first, I suppose.

-Have you ever made a biscuit before?

-Never in my life.

How big is a biscuit? If it's for me, probably about that size.

-If not?

-It would have to be a little bit of that size.

-It might well be.

Once it's cooked, you'll find it's pliable.

-Oh, really?

-Yeah.

-In other words, then, I've just got to cook it.

-Correct.

I love spices.

You are halfway.

Something is happening. It's bubbling up.

-What are you doing?

-I can see it better from here.

Quickly. Got a minute left.

Just going to make this look pretty.

Well done, mate.

Interesting decoration,

your licence to turn it into an eclair.

That tastes like a very gingery brandy snap.

So much ginger, it's giving heat at the back of the throat.

I would rather you'd have put a bit in and taste it,

rather than dump it all in and keep your fingers crossed.

That whipped cream with lots of sugar and lots of ginger is lovely

but because of the size, the middle of it is all soggy and chewy.

-It should be about that long.

-Should it? Right.

Thank you very much indeed.

He loves food and cooking

and I think if he believes in himself more,

he might actually be a very good cook.

That was...daunting.

I've never made a brandy snap in my life.

But because I hadn't left enough time, it sagged a bit.

Next up is fashion journalist Susannah Constantine.

Hello, Susannah.

She had a nervous start to the competition.

I need a Valium, is what I need right now.

But went on to produce two stand-out dishes.

I don't know where this dish has come from.

If you made it up, you are bordering on genius.

Being the only one in front of John and Greg is a terrifying,

intimidating, vile, awful thought.

Because there is no escape.

Let's go.

I can make a mayonnaise.

My knowledge is OK within quite a small boundary.

This, I think, derives from Vienna.

It's a Viennese puff.

This, my grandmother used to make these.

Hobnob?

A natural yoghurt.

Sweet cream, whipped cream.

Custard-based, I can't remember the name.

-I'm going to put custard.

-Yes.

Actually, you didn't identify one of the biscuits.

I didn't nail it.

We said the next lot were creams,

which means yoghurt can't be amongst them,

so your Greek yoghurt - sour cream.

I should know, I love sour cream!

Your whipped cream is whipped cream with a bit of sugar. Chantilly.

Your creme fraiche is creme fraiche and your custard is custard.

-Not bad, are you feeling more comfortable now?

-Yeah.

You need to make for us two brandy snaps

filled with ginger flavoured cream.

You've got 15 minutes, Susannah.

Have you cooked a biscuit before?

I have never in my entire life cooked a biscuit.

This is an absolute first for me.

You're joking.

That's what supermarkets are for.

Lots of ginger because I love ginger.

My granny, I watched her doing it.

I would always sit in the kitchen because I was such a pig as a child

because I would always wait to lick the bowls out.

They're beginning to look like brandy snaps.

Take that now.

-Three minutes.

-Three minutes.

I've never seen anyone cut out a brandy snap with a pair of scissors before.

Be quick, be quick.

-Stop shaking.

-I can't stop shaking.

It's just the way I am.

Keep shaking.

I am very impressed, very impressed.

Look at that! That's brilliant!

What do you do have is this wonderful, thin,

very crispy, evenly coloured, perfectly made, cooked brandy snap.

The filling inside reminds me of my local Indian takeaway.

It's got far too much ginger

and it's going to that stage of almost curry!

I've never even tasted anything like it!

What I really love about this is that your ginger snap snaps.

-Oh.

-It's lovely.

-Thank you.

Reminds me of my grandmother's,

although hers had less ginger.

-Another impressive round from you.

-Thank you.

-Very well done.

-Off you go.

-Thank you very much. Bye-bye.

-Oh!

-There's a seat there!

She's not excited, is she, and happy?

Her grandmother is obviously a very good cook.

I'm chuffed to bits.

They liked my brandy snaps.

Something I used to have as a child all the time.

Just suddenly it came back to me. It was the strangest thing.

It's like a kind of little miracle that's just happened.

Finally it's actor Sophie Thompson.

Yesterday she showed skill and creativity.

I like your rolls.

Brilliant.

Except for one dish that refused to set.

It's a lovely, malty, white chocolate sweet drink.

-It would have made an even better dessert.

-Yeah...

Skills and knowledge.

I don't feel I have that in any area of life,

which is really a worry.

That was always the thing about, when you had a CV, what can you do?

I put down gluing.

Right.

What are they called?

An oat-y biscuit. It's not really a name, is it?

I don't really know what my cooking knowledge is like.

I've never been tested.

I would say it's a biscuit.

-They're all biscuits.

-They're all biscuits.

-Yeah.

Obviously you can't phone a friend or anything.

This is another fancy one.

French.

Pastry, but I don't know the name of it.

We're amateurs, so I don't know what I know. I hope I know something.

This is one of those beautiful, fine...

It's very buttery.

I think it would be called a-a...

It's there, it's on your tongue.

It's a twirly name, but it's not twirl, it's...

It's a more refined name than a twirl.

But it's a buttery...

Twirl, twirl...

Do you know what?

That's enough for me.

You can use the normal end of the spoon if you want.

Ooh.

Right, you have got three out of the eight right.

I'm going to give you one straightaway. That is the tw-tw-tw...

A tuile.

A tuile! Which means tile in French.

Good. Now, you need to make for us

brandy snaps filled with gingered-flavoured cream.

-Right.

-15 minutes.

-15, wow. OK.

Have you made brandy snaps before?

I remember at Christmas my mum making them and her crying once.

Why was she crying?

Cos they'd all gone to mush. I did try it once.

Didn't cry, but I got quite tense.

How long have we got?

You've got three minutes.

They're going to have to come out sooner or later.

They've got to come out, because this bit, I'm sure, takes some time.

Remember your mum.

I'll try not to cry.

I don't think she had one of these. No, she didn't have a doofer.

-Maybe that's why she was crying.

-Maybe it was.

I'm going to make the end look a bit nicer.

Done.

BISCUIT SNAPS

Wow. SOPHIE LAUGHS

One of your brandy snaps is actually very good.

The other one is underdone and a bit pale.

-You can see the difference between the two of them.

-Mm.

I like it. The cream in the middle I think is sweetened perfectly.

Do you know what? The way you work - tasting, adding, tasting, adding -

I like the way you work.

-I think you've done pretty well.

-Thank you, fellows. Thank you.

I'm impressed with her. She knew what she was doing.

-She was a little rusty, but she knew what she was doing.

-She did.

It's funny remembering a brandy snap as quite an emotional foodstuff.

I really learnt from that.

I feel like I could try brandy snaps this Christmas

and maybe not even cry.

I think that was a particularly tough test.

We've had our fair share of ups and downs.

But I don't think anything they've done ever before can

prepare them for what comes next.

It's a new day, and the celebrities are heading to

North London's Mount Pleasant in Clerkenwell, to Royal Mail's

largest sorting office,

where they will face their most daunting outside challenge yet.

Well, as soon as they said Mount Pleasant, I thought

we must be going near the big post office.

I don't know much else at Mount Pleasant.

Isn't Sadler's Wells round there as well?

-Could well be, so we could be...

-We could be in the ballet.

That would be lovely.

# Everything was beautiful at the ballet... #

Good morning.

This is one of the biggest mail sorting offices in the world.

You are preparing lunch for the staff of Mount Pleasant.

Today's a big task. You are going to cook for 120 people.

What?! Get out of here.

Today is all about teamwork. Two teams - Russell and Sophie.

And Susannah and Jodie, you're a team. Lunch is at one o'clock.

Go and get it sorted. Off you go.

This is a day for careful planning, a fair amount of skill,

but it's roll your sleeves up, get your head down and graft time.

We're going to find out who the workers are here

and who's got the stomach for the fight.

The celebrities will be working under head chef Nick Vadis.

You have ten minutes now to choose your ingredients.

Think about cooking times.

Do think about the ingredients cleverly

when you construct your menus. It is important.

The larder includes chicken breasts, sausages, diced beef, kidneys,

a range of fruit and vegetables, pasta,

rice and a selection of herbs and spices.

Each team will have to cook 40 meat and 20 vegetarian main courses

and 60 portions of dessert.

-We could do pizza chicken.

-Bangers and mash.

-Why don't I do a steak and kidney pie?

-Steak and kidney.

Yeah, you know how to do vegetarian stuff, don't you?

I don't.

-You're going to do steak and kidney.

-Oh, nice.

-What do you think?

-Yeah.

-We're going to do cheesy chicken.

-Brilliant.

-Can we use the penne or do you want the penne?

-You have next choice.

We took the chicken first.

They want the penne, we could do a ratatouille.

We could do a ratatouille, so have that old pasta.

OK.

We need a pen and paper, is what we need.

We need a pen and paper.

60 dessert. I'm going to struggle with that.

Do you know how to make a cheesecake?

No. I'm not a dessert person. I mean, I'll try.

-SOPHIE: Baked apple. RUSSELL:

-Yeah, whatever you think.

Put currants in the middle of the baked apple.

-My nana used to do that.

-Baked apples with toffee sauce.

-Mm.

-SUSANNAH:

-We could do baked bananas. Do you think people like bananas?

You like a banana.

They're going to have to like it, aren't they?

-OK, Russ, we're going to do steak and kidney pie, mash and peas.

-Yep.

Ratatouille with a mozzarella topping.

I don't know what it is. I know what it is, but I've never made one.

I'm guided by you on that.

Baked toffee apples.

Lovely. That sounds lovely. It's all the fun of the fair.

-It's all the fun of the fair.

-All the fun of the fair.

-Hello, Chef.

-What are we creating?

We're going to do a spinach and chicken and cheese bake.

- Then we're doing pasta pomodoro. - A spicy penne.

Then we're doing baked bananas.

-Cool.

-With treats.

-With treats?

-Yeah.

-What's the treat?

-You have to wait and see.

-You have to wait and see that.

-Currants.

Sounds exciting. Let's get cooking, then.

-RUSSELL:

-My strength really is all the stuff my grandmothers

and my mum taught me.

Steak and kidney pie is something that I have cooked in the past,

but never in these quantities,

even though my brother is about 24 stone.

Mount Pleasant is a bastion of blue-collar Britishness.

Steak and kidney pie, I think it's a marvellous, marvellous idea.

That could be a winner.

While Russell prepares the steak for his pie,

team-mate Sophie is simultaneously chopping veg for her ratatouille

as well as prepping the apples for her baked toffee apple dessert.

You kind of want a whole apple, don't you, really?

-You don't want to be scrimping.

-Oh, yeah, use plenty apples.

The initial thought is make something really tasty that

people go, "Oh, it's lunch. Oh, yeah, that's what I want.

"That's going to keep me going for the rest of the day."

Susannah and Jodie's menu I'm unsure of.

They've got a chicken breast bake with a crusty top.

This is something I make at home a lot for my kids.

Jodie and I have chosen things which are quite simple

and that are quick to do.

I just hope they're going to please the 120 people

that are waiting for their lunch.

Yeah, it's pretty daunting, I have to say,

to cook for this many people. It's a first.

Do you have a big frying pan?

Use the Bratt Pan for steaming the chicken.

We can switch this on

and you can cook all 40 chicken breasts in one go.

Perfect, do I put a bit of oil in there first?

Yeah, a little bit of oil and we'll get it flashed up for you.

-I'll season the chicken first.

-Yeah, super.

I put Susan in charge because she's a lot bossier than I am,

and she's got some great ideas. I'm really happy chopping.

I love chopping, I love dicing.

She is a demon chopper. It's like you've been fast-forwarded.

-Jodes?

-Yeah?

Make the white sauce now.

-You want me to make the white sauce?

-Yeah.

I've just got my orders to make the bechamel.

I'm still trying to do the pomodoro, so I'm going to be like,

"I need eight hands today."

I'm so tall, I have to go down like this.

This is a first for MasterChef - I've never seen somebody sit down before.

-How do you do that?

-My knees are going, love.

-Your knees are going?

-Yeah.

Steak and kidney pie, I love the idea of it. What's the crust on top?

It's going to be a short-crust pastry.

-Have you got to make that pastry then?

-No, it's all there in layers.

Sophie's tasked with desserts, by the look of it.

How many have you done of these?

Three, six, nine, ten...16. I've two more to go.

20?

-Aren't you doing 60?

-Have we got 60?

-60 desserts.

-Oh. 60?

-Oh, flipping hell, why did I think it was 20?

-20 vegetarians.

Oh, 20 vegetarians. Yes, I'm doing that as well.

Do you think maybe 60 of the same thing?

We're supposed to do 60 of the same.

-60 of the same.

-What you could do is cut the apples in half,

put the stuffing inside and then bake them in a sauce,

so you've only got to do 30, but you've got 20 done.

Oh, good. That's good, John. I'm so glad I met you.

You're glad you met me?

I bet you don't feel that way at all, really, do you?

-I do. I do. It's true, it's true.

-You've got a lot of work to do.

-Yep.

-Lunch in an hour and a half.

Watching Sophie work started to frighten me.

She had no system at all.

Sophie's organisational skills, they're not the best.

With the pressure on, Susannah and Jodie are under way with

their mains, but their baked banana dessert is still a work in progress.

-With the bananas, I might add some butter as well.

-Yeah, lovely.

-Make it a bit toffee.

-Butter, cinnamon.

Some currants, orange juice. It'll just be like an explosion of fruit.

Susannah, explain this dessert to me. Is it just baked bananas?

It's kind of like...

Yeah. It's "wing it" baked bananas.

Is there no sort of lovely top or anything on it?

If you made something like granola to go with it, then some yoghurt

or something, it might be nice.

At the moment, it sounds to me like you've got baked bananas and sugar.

We've not finished yet.

I'm putting on some orange zest and some orange juice.

-Oranges and banana.

-I promise you, trust me, I've made it before.

It's delicious. I am cooking for my children.

Trust me, you have to trust me on this one.

On the other team, Russell has finally chopped the onion

and mushrooms, and can now start bringing the steak

and kidney pie filling together.

BOTH: # Stop, wait a minute, Mr Postman! #

Look at this. This is, like, mahoosive!

SUSANNAH: Oh, it sounds beautiful.

-NICK:

-That's it, Chef, let's get it cooking.

It's in now.

-SUSANNAH: Oh, well done, that smells yummy.

-Fantastic.

-It's a great thing to cook in, though.

-Isn't it amazing?!

This is so exciting. I've never seen anything like this.

So how long should I keep it in here for?

You want to seal that now till it's nice and brown,

you've got a little bit of caramelisation on the onions.

-Obviously it's crucial now that we get this cooked in time.

-Yeah.

Ideally we want it in the oven for a good hour,

so you've got about 20 minutes...

-Right.

-..to get this finished.

-Where are your kidneys?

-Here.

Go and prep your kidneys now, then we'll come back to this.

Meanwhile, Sophie's resolved her portion problem

and is now topping her apple halves with brown sugar and cinnamon.

The smell, I think's important, don't you,

to draw them to the counter?

It will, hopefully, with the toffee sauce,

draw them in, the posties.

I love a postman...and a postwoman.

We've got a wonderful parcel lady called Roz

and she just lifts your day if she's there.

So hello, Roz. You're a winner.

A toffee apple...

Has it got a stick in it?

-Like a toffee apple?

-No, but it is stick-Y.

So it's a sticky toffee apple without the stick.

You're worried. I know.

-Sounds odd.

-Yeah, it does, doesn't it?

But I'm hoping odd's going to work today.

I'm hoping.

Across the kitchen, Jodie has moved on to the spicy tomato sauce

for her pomodoro pasta dish.

-Do you think that's enough for 20 portions?

-Yes.

-Do you?

-I'm being assertive.

-If you're confident.

-I'm very confident.

-OK, fine.

-I'm confident.

The exciting vegetarian dish coming from Jodie and Susannah

is pasta with tomato sauce.

Wow(!)

But the big surprise for me is the girls' dessert.

I mean, a culinary masterpiece - baked banana with brown sugar.

Really?

John did have a point, it does need something a little bit extra,

although, personally, I think it's delicious like that.

What about if you used some of the bread we've got

and made a bread and butter on top of that?

So you had a banana bread pudding

with an egg custard going through it?

-Just...personally...

-Not your cup of tea.

No, I love bread and butter pudding,

but I just think the clagginess of the bread, and then the banana...

I think it's going to be like a wet banana sandwich.

JODIE: Pineapple slices, and then put..

..a nice, kind of, sauce or something.

JOHN: Susannah and Jodie are stuck on an idea of baked bananas

and they're trying to evolve a dish.

JODIE: A load more biscuits.

Make a bit, fat crunch on top.

Disgusting.

Actually, you can't really evolve the dish.

You haven't got any ice cream in a tub?

What they need to do is forget the bananas altogether

and start all over again.

Or we fill them up so much on main course, they don't want dessert.

Yeah.

What am I going to do with my baked bananas?

Well, I would do something like...condensed milk.

It needs something else. It needs to be baked bananas and...

-Rum.

-Get a little tot of rum to go with it?

They'll love it, those postmen.

We'll get deliveries all over the place.

The mail centre runs on a 24-hour operation

and we process about 1.8 million items a day.

My people do work on shift work and it can be difficult,

balancing your diet, when you're doing different hours.

So it's very important to me that they get the opportunity to have a healthy and nutritious meal

when they go to the staff restaurant.

There's just over an hour till lunch.

They really have to ramp it up another gear, now,

if they're going to get it out on time.

We're getting there, Soph.

Russell is making American mash

to go with his steak and kidney pie.

American-style mash is when you steam them with all of the skins on

and then, when they come out,

we will mash them with rosemary butter.

So they'll be lovely and creamy,

but you get all of the goodness of the skin.

The British earth is digestible and delicious.

God, I did a load. Is that going to be enough?

Yeah, it'll be enough.

Cor, strewth! That's hot in there.

With the potatoes in to steam,

Russell moves on to the pastry topping for his pie.

These machines are amazing.

Russell, what are you putting across the top to make that a pie?

I've got some little pastry things that I've been cutting out, here.

We're doing it rustic, so you get one half a crust.

I love the idea of the pie.

-I think that's fabulous.

-It's very me.

-And whose idea was it?

-Mine.

Minute I saw steak and kidney, it rang a bell,

because British traditional is me.

I've seen it all my life.

Sophie's more sophisticated. She's from East Finchley.

I'm from Uxbridge.

So she's doing, like, you know...the sprauncy stuff.

I'm going to bake that down and then put the cheese topping on,

to make it nice and brown and squidgy.

She's got ratatouille in the oven.

But is that really a main course?

Isn't ratatouille a side dish?

I don't understand it.

Right now, Sophie's grating more cheese to go on top of the cheese

which is on top of the ratatouille.

Who knows?

It's a variation on a theme, you know?

I used to be a vegetarian years ago,

so...you know, cheese and veg and herbs.

But you want it gungy, you don't want a dry veggie thing,

or you just feel depressed.

-# Bananas...

-# In pyjamas... #

Chefs, you've got 45 minutes now to service.

On the other team,

Susannah has come up with a solution to the banana issue.

This is a lot of cream...to whip...

-Do you want to use the machine?

-You have a machine?

-Yeah.

Oh...yeah!

Think it needs to go to zero, first, then you press that.

It's not going to zero, is it?

-Ah! It's not working.

-Oh, my God!

Why isn't it working?

You're going to need this for the mash in a minute, aren't you?

One second - Nino? This machine, have you had it going yet?

This machine has got to work.

The banana's great, but it's not sublime without the cream.

-It needs the cream.

-It needs the cream.

OK, you ready?

No, let's do it by hand.

Right...it's going to be mash time. I'll check the spuds.

The mashed potato machine's broken, so we've got to do it all by hand.

You could have done with the mashed potato machine actually working,

but it's not.

SUSANNAH SIGHS

Do you think that's going to be enough cream?

I'm not touching a whisk for a very long time.

A very, very long time.

OK.

There's 15 minutes till service and time is running out.

Chefs, the queue is forming for lunch,

so start thinking about service now.

Right - here we go.

-I'll show you how...

-Oof!

-Love peas. Do you?

-I love them, they're my favourite.

They're my favourite.

There seems to be no sense of urgency in here today,

and any minute now, there's going to be 120 standing at that counter,

asking for their lunch.

-Oh, your pastry's looking gorgeous.

-Are they going up?

-Yeah, they are.

-Oh, look at my puff pastries!

They're puffed!

Gorgeous. They look fantastic.

Darling, go and do your pasta.

Smells brilliant.

We've got, like, four minutes...argh!

We're cutting it fine. It is...to the wire.

It looks wonderful.

Wow, we're a team.

-That's...good job.

-Good job, darling.

Don't go.

We'd expect today something more like a main dinner you'd go out for

rather than the canteen sort of dinners we have normally.

Susannah and Jodie have made chicken breast on a bed of spinach,

topped with bechamel sauce and breadcrumbs,

served with turmeric rice and sweetcorn

and a vegetarian spicy pomodoro pasta.

Russell and Sophie's main dishes

are steak and kidney with pastry tops,

American-style mash, peas

and ratatouille topped with mozzarella and extra cheese.

Here we go!

Yeah, yeah, yeah!

Vegetarian delight!

Are you hungry?

Steak and kidney, please.

Here you are, love. Take care.

With service under way, Russell's steak and kidney pie

seems to be an early hit.

Steak and kidney.

-What would you like, darling?

-Pie.

-Good girl.

What I chose for lunch today was steak and kidney pie.

It looked so nice when I went up, the way it was presented,

and it tastes gorgeous, I must say.

The meat's nice and tender. Yeah, very nice. Enjoyable.

I think the pie filling and the gravy is absolutely lovely.

But Sophie's ratatouille is not proving so popular.

Anyone for mozzarella magic?

-Steak and kidney.

-Are you coming after my old steak and kidney?

Steak and kidney, please.

Anyone for veggie, lovely...? Oh, yeah, mozzarella. Magic, this is.

Peas, would you like some peas?

-Here you are, darling.

-Fantastic, thank you.

-Hope you enjoy it.

The ratatouille - there was a lot of vegetables.

I do not eat tomatoes, but I did thoroughly enjoy it.

It was really nice.

Sweet Mediterranean vegetables with tomatoes,

and then the saltiness of mozzarella

is a tried-and-tested formula

and she's got that right.

Even if it tastes filthy, you've got to say it's yummy, OK?

On the other team, Susannah's cheesy chicken

seems to be a firm favourite.

Anyone else for cheesy chicken?

Can I have one more spoonful, please?

Sweetcorn? It's a bit yellow.

Even if you think it's disgusting, you've got to go, "Taste sensation!"

There you go. Enjoy it.

Is that enough? Enough rice for you?

I ordered cheesy chicken with rice

and it is really tasty.

It was absolutely gorgeous. Really nice.

The chicken, really moist. Absolutely lovely.

I liked the spinach underneath, that was tasty.

A nice little surprise, but it was very tasty indeed.

I'm impressed with the chicken dish from the ladies.

Yeah, I like that spinach at the bottom of that.

And that crusty breadcrumb top and white sauce,

it's a lovely, comforting thing.

You want some pasta?

But the spicy pomodoro pasta is not faring so well.

-Is that all right?

-Yeah, thank you.

-And there's some Parmesan there.

I had the spicy pasta. It was lovely.

Pasta was gorgeous, perfectly cooked.

Quite nice, but a little disappointed.

It could have been a little bit spicier.

A little bland, a little bit "just" tomato

and I wanted a little more kick in it.

I'm unimpressed with the pasta dish -

pasta and tomato sauce is...pretty much kids' stuff.

There's a little bit of chilli, a little warmth,

but there's no real kick to it.

Anyone for mozzarella magic?

Sophie's still struggling to sell her ratatouille.

Sir, what can I get you?

-Steak and kidney, please.

-Steak and kidney, steak and kidney.

-Steak and kidney, please.

-Oh, Lordy!

Hope it tastes as good as it looks, otherwise it's serious trouble.

I'm going back to dancing.

Russell - he did a good job.

And he was good at serving.

His customer service was brilliant.

He had a big smile.

-There you are, darling.

-Thanks, mate.

-Help yourself.

We're running out of cheesy chicken.

Anyone like some pasta?

I'm going to go for the cheesy chicken.

I like chicken.

Hands up - who wants cheesy chicken?

OK, we'll have to do a lottery,

because there's only two pieces left.

Whoever is going to be the nicest

and most complimentary about our food gets the cheesy chicken.

I'm afraid...oh!

That's it for the cheesy chicken, sorry.

We're out. Well, that's a good sign.

Yeah, we did OK, baby.

Guys, that's the mains done,

so shall we start looking at dessert, now?

They're looking nice and oozy. Going to put some toffee sauce on.

They can have extra sauce if they want, can't they?

That's so clever of you, to be doing the sauce.

No... Where did you put them? Here they are.

They look like sausages. Oh, this is a failure.

They look really filthy.

We're not very good at desserts. We might have a bit of a fail, here.

But it does taste, actually, really yummy.

It does. And it smells amazing.

You know what? We will sell, sell, sell.

And it sounds good.

-Pudding, now.

-Yeah.

Do a bit of harvest festival scattering.

-Russ...

-Argh!

That looks a lot better.

Tricks of the trade.

Amazing...

Susannah and Jodie's dessert is toffee orange bananas

served with whipped cream.

Have we got enough portions?

Russell and Sophie are serving baked apples

topped with raspberries and a toffee sauce.

-Sticky toffee apple?

-Yes, please.

-Yeah?

-Thank you very much.

-Enjoy, sir.

Sticky toffee apple, darling? You got it.

-Enjoy.

-Thank you very much.

-Toffee apple, love?

-Yes, please.

-There you are, my darling.

I went for toffee apple.

The presentation, it was lovely - a lot of colours in it.

I'm enjoying it.

Something I've never tried before, toffee apple -

it was really nice, it was different.

Got cinnamon flavours in there that come across.

It was really tasty.

I've travelled all over the world, eating puddings.

And I've never seen anything quite as bizarre as that.

The apples are sweet, but they're too sharp, too sour.

You have whatever you want. You might fancy a banana.

Anyone else for banana?

One...

How are your bananas going, you two?

I keep looking down at these, thinking they're frankfurters,

then I suddenly remember they are actually bananas.

I hope they taste better than they look.

The only thing that let the banana dessert down was the presentation.

Yeah, the presentation is not that charming.

It's just there, banana and cream, just on the plate.

Its appearance is slightly disturbing.

Its texture is even more disturbing,

cos the banana isn't even cooked.

You've got the soft exterior and a rubbery interior.

Toffee apple, please.

Although both teams' desserts are selling well...

I will have one each.

..on the canteen floor,

the posties are finding further issue

with the baked bananas.

Have you got a knife and fork?

They're very tough. Seems like it's still in its skin,

but I'm sure it isn't.

You need to come back more often!

THEY LAUGH

They want us back already!

Group hug, group hug.

Russ, you're eating again - surprise, surprise!

I'm coming after your banana.

Today was really good. I came in with a certain trepidation.

I didn't know what they were going to be like in the kitchen,

but to be quite honest, once they got down and did it

and focused on the job in hand,

they were a pleasure to work with in here.

I tell you what, the girls actually struggled with the content.

Some thought and creativity went into the chicken, and after that,

everything was just a complete muddle through.

What those girls were aiming at is "What can we get away with?"

Not, "What can we serve that will impress?"

I thought we did all right. We didn't do too many things

to scare us or, you know, have to do too much preparation.

We kept it really simple and nice and tasty

and, hopefully, it was all those things.

Ugh...feeding the 5,000.

I think Jodie and I performed a little miracle.

I am absolutely shattered and have lost the will to live.

I want to give Russell a pat on the back -

pie, mash and peas, in the middle of a busy staff restaurant,

is a great idea.

For me, personally, it was just amazing.

I just can't believe that we've catered for 120 people.

It's unbelievable! It's unbelievable.

Unbelievable.

I get really nervous at the beginning with the time thing.

And I just think, "We'll never get it done."

But we did. We did get it done.

Today was first class, it really was.

JOHN: I've mixed emotions, now, about our four.

Today they're going to have to raise their game.

Welcome back. Today is a big day.

You are going to be cooking for three previous finalists

of Celebrity MasterChef.

Andi Peters...

Phil Vickery...

and Emma Kennedy.

Today, two of you, you become semifinalists.

Two of you will be leaving the competition.

Impress our guest judges.

Your two courses - one hour and 15 minutes.

Let's cook.

Our guest judges have been through the competition.

They excelled. They showed off in this round.

They dared, they pushed it.

They went through.

Today, cooking for ex-finalists, is really extraordinary, actually.

I suspect they won't pull any punches.

They've got to be honest,

and we're going to have to take it on the chin.

-Sophie?

-Yes.

Is there any comparison at all between this

and first night stage nerves?

Yeah. There really is!

I just said that to Russ. I said, "This feels like a first night."

Yep. When you've just got to go out there and, you know... Yeah.

I'd like to know what it is you're going to make for us and our guests.

Well, it's sea bass on potatoes and wild mushrooms

with a beetroot caviar.

Dessert, Sophie.

Dessert is a blackberry brownie cake with vanilla custard.

-Wow! It sounds delicious.

-I hope so.

-You - do you?

-I really do.

-Get on with it.

-All right!

-You've got brownies to make.

-I know!

Nice menu from Sophie.

I like the idea of sea bass...

..on crispy potatoes with wild mushrooms.

And beetroot caviar!

Very, very nice indeed.

Dessert - I think blackberry chocolate

and vanilla custard could be an absolute gem.

The issue is timing. She's given herself a huge amount of work to do.

If Sophie delivers what she intends to, I think we're in for a treat.

A proper treat.

A place in the semifinals of Celebrity MasterChef

would be utterly awesome.

I really would love to be able to go home tonight

and be able to say to the boys, "I'm through."

That is a dream.

-RUSSELL:

-I never give up.

I always like to do my best.

I've got to prove to myself, more than anything,

that I can come up with the goods in just an hour and a quarter.

-Russell...

-Yeah?

-Tell us your menu.

I'm doing a toad-in-the-hole

with three different sausages from three different counties,

and then I'm doing apple and honey and almonds crumble,

which I've never made before in my life.

Real old classic comfort food.

What does that say about you, do you think?

It says to me about my happy childhood with my grandmothers.

It's all about family, it's all about memories.

-So it's an emotional day for you today, then, Russell.

-It is.

It is, quite, actually. Yeah.

Ooh, smell that!

-Cor!

-Wow!

That is awesome.

I've never made this before, but I love it already.

I want to eat what Russell is cooking.

A toad-in-the-hole

and an apple crumble with custard are delicious things.

That toad has to have a crispy top,

and it's got to be the sausages cooked all the way through.

The cabbage has got to be delicious and salty, and smoky from the bacon.

And then his crumble's got to be well-spiced, crunchy on top...

..and that custard's got to be perfect.

Tough gig.

35 minutes for the first course.

The determination is proving to myself that I've learnt something,

that I've listened to Gregg and John,

that I can take what they taught me and deliver it.

Jodie, you've got a very interesting array of ingredients upon your bench.

-Yes.

-Duck, strawberries, beans...

-Yep. Kind of an eclectic lot.

What are you making for us?

I'm doing a chorizo and pancetta cassoulet

with duck breasts on the top

and strawberry with a lovely kind of strawberry jus

with an elderflower sabayon on the top.

It's very continental, Jodie.

Yeah, well, I've spent a lot of my time in France,

modelling in Paris, especially, doing all the shows,

so, you know, I went to a lot of lovely restaurants there

and picked up a few bits and pieces.

You do really push yourself, and by the looks of it you've got cassoulet,

you've got duck, you've got little vegetables going on over there,

-a sabayon to make, stewing strawberries, making jus.

-Exactly.

-You've got a lot of work to do.

-Can you go now, then?

I love the idea of Jodie's cassoulet, I think that's lovely.

She's got loads of root vegetables in there.

And then she's got paprika sausage.

And duck on the top.

Its appearance is going to be rustic,

but it should taste delicious.

I'm not sure about Jodie's dessert.

A sabayon?

Sabayon - mixed up eggs and sugar with elderflower?

And then we've got strawberries,

and then fruit sauce.

And then there's a tuile - but is a tuile enough?

I don't think so.

You've got 15 minutes left.

This means an awful lot to me now.

And I will be GUTTED to leave today.

I'm so astonished by how much I want this.

-Susannah, you have a very serious face today.

-Yep.

I'm wearing red underneath here because it's a fighting colour.

-You're up for battle today, are you, Susannah?

-Yep. I am.

I still love my friends, but I want to get through to the semifinals.

Right, amazing array of components on your bench. How does this work?

The mango will go with the scallops,

and with the lamb I'm doing a tomato and mint hollandaise sauce.

So, scallop and mango. Have you tested this out on people?

No, I haven't.

I've tested it out on myself, and I think it's quite delicious.

I tell you, testing yourself out with concoctions like that

-could be dangerous.

-OK, thanks for that.

With these two dishes I'm trying to show

that I can do a lot of things at the same time.

There's more preparation in it than actually cooking time.

If I don't do it methodically,

the tower of cards will crumble.

Susannah, today, is being really daring.

And I actually think slightly dangerous.

Scallops, Jerusalem artichokes and a beurre noisette.

But she's adding to that mango.

I'm sorry, Susannah, it's just too weird for me.

The lamb and potatoes, yeah.

Asparagus and a mint hollandaise -

I'm just unsure, I've never had it before.

With a semifinal place at stake, I have to get my recipes right.

It has to be absolutely perfect.

I tell you what, this is a day of reckoning.

But for our four, it must be nerve-racking.

And that's where the difference will be.

Can they hold their nerve under this pressure?

EMMA: The main thing I want to see is ambition.

Someone has fire in their belly, and is making a concerted effort

to up their game.

For me, if you cannot bring out

everything you've got as far as what it is you're about as a cook,

then what are you doing here?

At this stage in the competition, it's about presenting a dish

which you've tried and tested on friends, on family,

and you hope works.

Testing it out on us three is a different matter.

Sophie's roasted sea bass stuffed with herbs

on a bed of wild mushrooms...

tatties, served with beetroot caviar.

I'm going to be interested to see how she does her beetroot caviar.

Cos it's quite technical.

If she pulls that off, that'll be really great.

We'll have to see.

JOHN: OK, four minutes on your main course, please.

Nice looking fish.

Looks great. Hope it tastes as good.

(I hope so too!)

Right, they need to go.

Hello, you lovely people.

I've made for you sea bass with herbs on wild mushrooms and potatoes

with beetroot caviar and samphire.

I hope you enjoy your meal.

Thank you very much, Sophie.

It's an honour to... to bring it to you!

LAUGHTER

-I think it looks great, actually, I'm really happy.

-Yeah, I do.

It says elegance, doesn't it, actually?

I'm really looking forward to trying it.

Oh, well done, Sophie Thompson!

That is delightful.

This fish is cooked to perfection.

It's absolutely perfect.

-The mushrooms, I think, go very well with the sea bass.

-Yeah.

I think the potato works brilliantly with the mushroom.

My fish - it's just gorgeous, with the herbs, it's not overpowering.

The only thing she's done wrong

is she's blended raw garlic with the beetroot caviar.

My word.

I can't kiss anybody for the rest of this week.

Whew, dear.

-If it wasn't for that garlic...

-Yeah.

..that's the best dish I've ever tasted on MasterChef.

-GREGG:

-I love the dill on that sea bass, giving that fennel flavour.

Love the sweet beetroot with the fish as well.

That's rather good, John.

The beetroot - it's like a really lovely, fiery, garlicky, rich relish

that goes with the fish.

I think it's a lovely, lovely thing.

The dessert is singing to me.

Blackberry brownie cake with vanilla custard?

Aww, come on!

But in an hour to make a good cake...

it's a tough deal.

-How's your cake, Sophie?

-It's a bit...separating.

I'm hoping taste-wise it's going to pull through.

Happy?

Aaahh...

-Good job, Sophie.

-Proud of you.

Thank you.

Mmm...

-It's not perfect, is it?

-No.

Oh, phew.

-Phew.

-Phewie.

Sophie, look at that!

Like, properly amazing.

For pudding, it's a blackberry brownie cake with vanilla custard.

-Thank you.

-Thank you very much.

-Thank YOU!

Enjoy your pudding.

Sophie...

your sea bass was unbelievable.

Sophie billed it as a cake.

It's neither a cake nor a brownie.

It's close-on doughy in the middle, but, bizarrely, burnt on the edges.

But the flavours, together, are great.

There are some technical issues with the custard.

There's a thickening issue.

But do you know what? I still love it.

The taste, the flavours, the chocolate, the blackberry,

the cream, the vanilla...

It's... It's gorgeous.

I love the flavour of that brownie with vanilla custard.

Those two things together are yummy and creamy.

But I don't like the addition of blackberries.

I don't like that sharp flavour inside the cocoa and vanilla.

Of course you're entitled to your own opinion.

Cos I love it.

That brownie has split, but I love the flavour,

I love that soft,

hot fruit all dripping with chocolate on the outside.

And you're wrong, because it tastes good.

Overall, I would have liked to have been more in control.

But it was like, "Argh!"

And it was like those men that used to go with the plates

in variety shows...

Where are they now?

Phewie.

Wahey!

EMMA: So, Russell's menu - a three counties toad-in-the-hole.

Hello, my friend.

What I don't want is soggy batter.

I want it crisp. I want the sausages to be succulent, not dried out.

JOHN: You've got four minutes. Looking good, Russell.

School dinners are all right by me.

But there's got to be some liquid somewhere on the plate.

Just the sauce?

Got a little gravy boat.

-Right...

-Russell, well done, brother.

-Go and knock 'em dead.

-Thanks, Gregg.

Oh, Russell.

This is so nerve-racking.

This is three counties sausage toad.

The top one is Cumberland, that is Lincolnshire, that is Middlesex.

I do hope you enjoy it.

Thank you, Russell.

And also onion gravy in there.

The presentation is average.

I just hope it tastes great - but I can't wait.

Cos I love toad-in-the-hole.

It's a great shame that his batter is a little bit underdone,

because actually it tastes really nice.

I love the fact that he's put some fire in his cabbage with the bacon -

I didn't expect that.

That adds a new dimension to it.

It all tastes lovely. It's a nice dish -

but I don't think it's a dish I would have served up

if I wanted to stay in MasterChef.

As nice as it is, it's just toad-in-the-hole.

If toad-in-the-hole is one of his all-time favourite dishes,

and he's cooking his favourite food to stay in this competition,

then well done him.

Gregg will love this, John will hate it.

I just love it.

Big fat peppery pork sausage,

and plenty of pepper in the cabbage as well.

Lovely flavour combination.

It's not the best toad-in-the-hole I've had in my life.

I don't think it's perfect.

Now, you've got 15 minutes to get your dessert out.

His dessert looks delicious!

Apple, honey and almond crumble with vanilla custard.

Another vanilla custard - so it might be the battle of the custards today.

Oh, yes.

Here we go.

-Yeah!

-Custard.

There's creme anglaise, there's infused cream -

I want good, old school, school custard.

Death becomes me.

You're just in the nick of time.

I'm off.

Well done, Russell.

-I'm better at dancing.

-LAUGHTER

-There you are.

-Thank you.

It's apple, cinnamon and honey and...

-well, crumble, but with almonds in it.

-Right, lovely.

-And that's home-made vanilla custard.

-Lovely.

-Thank you very much, Russell.

-Thank you.

-Thanks, Russell.

Bye!

Oh, dear.

Oh, no, no, no. No.

No, no, no.

That's... That's milk.

-It's not bad.

-Mm.

My issue with it is that I don't think he's got

-the proportion of fruit to crumble right.

-Well, I agree with you.

Not just about the proportion, but it's not a crumble. Mine's a cake.

-This topping is very heavy and dense.

-So many elements are wrong.

It's too sweet, with too much cinnamon and custard

that is watery, warmed-up milk with a little bit of vanilla in it.

We've had a custard disaster today.

-That hasn't worked at all.

-The custard's too thin.

The amount of cloves he's stuck in there,

I feel like I've just had a visit to the dentist.

It tastes OK.

You'd probably eat it, but it is very similar to something

your grandmother didn't quite get right on the day.

Uggh!

HE SIGHS

I did it.

I do feel really proud of myself,

that I got so much done in such a short time.