Episode 85

Kate and Michael arrived at the MasterChef kitchen for the final time and were told the format of finale: it would be fought over three rounds, each scored, with a possible 100 points per finalist up for grabs.
The first round was a Mystery Box Challenge over 45 minutes, with the finalists having to select and prepare something from each box before moving onto the next. Michael chose to make a steak and oyster pie, while Kate made pan-fried Balmain bugs and crab and rémoulade salad. Michael raced through the boxes, but Kate struggled with getting her crabmeat ready, eating into valuable time. Michael scored an 8 from George and 9 from Gary, and Kate a 7 and an 8, giving Michael the early advantage.
The second round was an Invention Test, with the finalists having to produce something that represented how far they’d come in the competition. They had 2 hours and 15 minutes to complete their dishes. Michael made a butter-poached lobster with fennel, Kate a roasted breast of quail. Both finalists progressed well, although Michael’s decision to leave the tails on his leeks and add extra champagne to his sauce were ill advised. The scoring saw Kate racing back, with 9s across the board, but Michael could only manage two 8s and a 7.

The final Pressure Test round welcomed one of the world’s best chefs, René Redzepi, to the kitchen, who lifted a cloche to reveal the supremely technical ‘Snowman’ dessert the finalists would need to make. Featuring meringue, yoghurt and carrot sorbet amongst its many elements, this was undoubtedly one of the trickiest dishes ever seen on MasterChef Australia, yet both Michael and Kate proved their worthiness by plating up incredible dishes.

Once again scoring 9s, Kate took the Pressure Test win, and with it became MasterChef 2011 champion.

Episode 84

For the final Masterclass of the year both finalists enjoyed private tutorials with top chefs: Kate with Shaun Pressland and Michael with Martin Benn. Back in the Masterchef kitchen contestants from the Top 24 returned to watch the action as Gary cooked off against George, with their dishes judged by Michael and Kate. Matt Moran then paid a visit and cooked his version of rocky road against Michael and Billy.

Episode 83

The Pressure Test to decide who would join Michael in the finale had both Kate and Alana's hearts in their mouths, as the judges welcomed Patissier of Pain Adriano Zumbo back into the MasterChef kitchen. In his arms was a fully-edible gingerbread house, that he described to Gary as his most complex creation yet. Both contestants embraced the opportunity to play kids in a candy store, even though Kate got off to a rocky start by burning her gingerbread. Her second batch was a winner though, while Alana got so carried away with making jellies to adorn her house she left herself little time to focus on its actual assembly. Alana's creation had some issues holding together, while Kate had precious opportunity to create many jellies of her own. The judges commended both cooks, but said that Kate's house had the charm factor and that hers was the one they would have bought, winning her the Challenge and the final Top 2 spot.

Episode 82

The contestants arrived back at the house following the Pressure Test to find they were going straight into their next Challenge. Gary and Matt detailed the task: the hopefuls would each pick an envelope featuring a course to cook for a Three-Hatted restaurant. Alana chose entrée at Marque, Michael the main course at Est. and Kate dessert at Quay. Being guided through the task by the establishments’ heads chefs Mark Best, Peter Doyle and Peter Gilmore, the Top 3 discovered just how high a quality level was demanded. Michael’s stunning venison dish amazed the judges and food critics Terry Durack and Joanna Savill, winning him the Challenge and a place in the finale. Alana and Kate would cook-off in an Elimination Challenge to see who would take the final spot.

Episode 81

The Pressure Test was revealed to carry an autobiographical theme, with the contestants having three hours to prepare three dishes that represented the stages of their lives: childhood years, formative and now. Conceiving the recipes was a challenge in itself – the judges helping to steer some ill-conceived ideas in the right direction. Though the idea behind Dani’s dishes was good her time management and execution were clearly several steps behind her follow members of the Top 4 and the tasting revealed as much to the judges. Dani was subsequently eliminated, leaving Alana, Kate and Michael as MasterChef 2011’s final three.

Episode 80

The MasterChef kitchen welcomed Maggie Beer, who unveiled her terrine to the rest of the contestants, having shown Michael at the end of the previous Challenge. All the hopefuls were immediately aware of the complexity of the dish, and the pinpoint timing it would require. Having already done a dry run, Michael was the most assured performer, managing to get his terrine into the oven ahead of the others, who spent too much time on prep. Yet despite the extended cooking time Michael's dish was still judged to be undercooked, as were the other terrines, leaving the judges with no choice but to send all four competitors into the Pressure Test.

Episode 79

Finals week kicked off with a Cookbook Challenge mentored by guest Curtis Stone. The contestants had to conceive a recipe that would then be cooked and photographed, before being tested by some home cooks and finally judged. Dani discovered that simplicity is key, while the other hopefuls also learned that conceiving a successful recipe is far more difficult than it appears. Michael’s ‘Not Just Another Spring Chicken’ recipe won the day, giving him an invaluable advantage: a chance to see and get the recipe for the Maggie Beer terrine dish they would all be cooking in the following Challenge.

Episode 78

George began the week's Masterclass by showing Kate how to cook a memorable flounder dish, before moving onto the art of plating up and making food look as good as it tastes. Gary showed Dani how better to plate up her rabbit recipe from the Mega Mysery Box Challenge, then cooked a beautiful braised short ribs dish. The contestants then joined Anthea Leonard of Sweet Art, who took them through cake decoration and other sweet treats.

Episode 77

Dani wisely used her Immunity Pin, leaving Alana to cook against Ellie for a place in finals week. The theme was 'Fix Your Biggest Mistake', with the contestants needing to prove how far they'd come by revisiting a disastrous Challenge and righting their wrongs. Ellie was sent back to the Spanish Invention Test, deciding to cook a sweet rather than savoury dish second time around. Alana fixed her lamb cutlets and spiced pear dessert from an earlier Pressure Test. The judges praised the quality of both Alana's dishes and Ellie's creme caramel, but the former were judged to be marginally superior sending Alana through and Ellie home.

Episode 76

The contestants were shocked to see George in their dining room, who explained the next Challenge. Each cook would be given a nightmare core ingredient to work with, which were revealed by guest judges Colin Fassnidge, Donovan Cook and Ashley Hicks. Michael got sea urchin as his ingredient, Ellie the little-known vegetable salsify, Alana pig’s tail, Dani licorice and Kate pumpkin. Considering the left-field ingredients all the hopefuls managed to plate up interesting dishes, despite Ellie and Dani struggling more than the others when it came to utilising their ingredients. Kate won the Challenge with her pumpkin cake and maple bacon, sending her through to finals week and winning her a personalised Matt Moran Masterclass. Ellie and Dani were in the bottom two, leaving the latter to decide whether to use her Immunity Pin and send Alana through to the Pressure Test in her place.

Episode 75

Decked out in his chef’s whites, Michael arrived for his long awaited Immunity Challenge. His competition, guest Teage Ezard, unveiled the dish they would be cooking, which comprised prawn dumplings, deep fried polenta, stuffed quail egg and roasted pork belly. Michael performed admirably in the Challenge, and his efforts were duly recognised by the judges, who gave him fantastic marks across the board. Unfortunately Ezard pipped him at the post, scoring the 9 he needed from George to win him the Challenge and deny Michael an Immunity Pin.

Episode 74

In need of a pick-me-up, the contestants were overjoyed to discover that for their next Challenge they would be cooking for some very special guests: their loved ones. There would be no losers, but the chef responsible for the best dish would win an incredible prize – a night at home with their family, being catered for by the judges. The contestants were given carte blanche to cook a dish from the heart, and it was Alana’s crepes stack that the judges fell in love with, securing her a first Challenge win.

Episode 73

The week began with a Mystery Box Challenge – with a twist. Inside each contestant’s box was the name of the fellow hopeful they had to pick the ingredients for. Though the judges revealed there would be no penalty for the worst dish, the winner would not only fight for Immunity but also have their recipe printed in Taste magazine. The contestants tried their best to unsettle their peers with awkward ingredients – Dani particularly struggling with her Ellie-chosen Italian produce. After a close battle Michael finally won the right to cook for an Immunity Pin and potential safe passage into the final week.

Episode 72

Gary welcomed the top 5 to the week’s MasterClass, which began with George cooking a turnip and mushroom ravioli. Bodega Restaurant’s Ben and Elvis then stopped by the kitchen to cook a BBQ spatchcock, before Gary cleansed the palette with a delightful ‘smashed cheesecake.’ Kate and Michael ended the Masterclass by enjoying a private tutorial with Mark Olive, who introduced them to outback produce and then cooked a kangaroo in paperbark dish.

Episode 71

Hayden, Michael and Kate faced elimination after losing The Qantas First Lounge Challenge. They welcomed the news from the judges that today's elimination challenge was open. Each would be given 90 minutes to create a dish of their choice with the entire pantry at their disposal. With this dish they were to show why they deserved to stay and what they had learnt from the competition so far. Michael cooked Chicken with Crispy Skin, Kate a Stuffed Squab with Parsnip Puree, and Hayden a Sesame Encrusted Coral Trout. Unfortunately due to a salty slip up, Hayden was eliminated out of the competition and his MasterChef journey came to an end.

Episode 70

The contestants arrived for their final Team Challenge of the year: cooking for travellers in the Qantas First Lounge at Sydney Airport. Dani, Ellie and Alana formed the Red Team, while Michael, Hayden and Kate comprised the Blue Team. Alana and Hayden were captains, and cooked off in a Mystery Box Challenge to see who would win the Team Challenge advantage. Alana's dish narrowly won, sending her Team first into the Qantas kitchen where they had the advantage of their food prep being done for them, needing only to fill the orders. The Blue Team then took over, with Hayden's nerves clearly getting the better of him as his Team suffered from lacking a strong leader. With his fish dish being described as the worst of the day, Hayden's performance proved to be his Team's undoing, losing them the Challenge and sending them into Elimination.

Episode 69

The judges introduced guest judge Philippa Sibley before revealing who Dani would be competing against: Celebrity MasterChef winner Eamon Sullivan. The dish was the chocolate delice he scored 10s across the board for during his time in the MasterChef kitchen. The stress of the occasion unsettled both contestants yet Eamon and Dani each managed to plate up an impressive dish. Dani needed a score of eight or above from Matt Preston’s final vote, and was awarded a nine, making history as MasterChef’s only winner of two Immunity Pins.

Episode 68

Rather than face another Pressure Test Ellie wisely used her Immunity Pin, leaving Kate and Billy to battle it out. Guest Katrina Kanetani was introduced, unveiling an extremely complex autumn dessert for the contestants to cook. Both Kate and Billy had their problems, having to redo certain elements which further ate into their cooking time. The judges ruled that Billy was the clear winner in the presentation stakes, but in the all-important matter of taste it was Kate’s dish that triumphed, keeping her safe for another week.

Episode 67

Shortly after arriving back from their New York adventure the contestants discovered that would be flying off to Melbourne, with only a cryptic clue suggesting who they would be cooking for. At the Melbourne Convention Centre the judges revealed they would be preparing a meal for His Holiness the Dalai Lama, with each contestant cooking either a savoury or sweet vegetarian dish. Guest Kylie Kwong would be mentoring them through the task. After the tasting Michael and Dani were announced as the top two performers, with Dani taking the overall win and securing another shot at Immunity. The bottom three were Billy, Ellie and Kate, who would face an Elimination cook-off.

Episode 66

Concluding New York week the contestants had a Masterclass at the Marriott Marquis. Guest Daniel Boulud took them through cooking a clay-baked Alaskan salmon; Sandy Levine of Carnegie Deli made the perfect sandwich; and the Marriott's executive pastry chef Steve Evetts was on dessert duty. Meanwhile Alana and Michael were rewarded for their week's efforts with a private Maserclass going around NY's best eateries with George and Gary.