A YOUNG chef has proved she can keep a cool head under pressure after impressing restaurant critics in a television contest.

Amelie Hunter, ten, from East Harlsey, near Northallerton, North Yorkshire has won through to the final of Junior MasterChef on CBBC after a series of tough cooking challenges.

On Tuesday’s show Amelie and the six other semi-finalists cooked in teams at London Zoo and prepared a sumptuous two-course lunch for the penguin keepers, using basic outside kitchens and with only barbecues to cook on.

She passed with flying colours and was one of four selected to go forward for tonight’s penultimate show (Thursday, November 20).

They were taken to legendary chocolatier Paul A Young for a masterclass in making chocolate before creating their own unique cocoa creations.

Then the young cooks faced MasterChef’s most nerve-wracking challenge of all – cooking for restaurant critics for a place in the final.

Luckily Amelie’s dessert of rhubarb and custard crème brulee with ginger biscuits won her a place in tomorrow’s final (Friday, November 21), after impressing food critics Charles Campion, Tracey Macleod and William Sitwell.

The Ingleby Arncliffe CE Primary School student has now won through to a place in tomorrow’s finals at 4.30pm (Friday, November 21).