Masterchef - the last post

Claire won! I knew she would - she didn't put a foot (or even a tiny egg whisk) wrong. Her winning main dish looked like an Ascot hat - quite beautiful (apparently it tasted lovely, too, although taste seems to come second to appearance in these competitions). Even Monica liked it.

The previous night, one of them had "issues with their hoggets". I love that. It sounds like a medical condition. (A hogget - I had to look it up - is a yearling sheep or colt. I do hope it wasn't a colt.) And there was a strong preference for scallops and fennel throughout the competition (maybe scallops and fennel are in this year?). But I shall miss it. Now, when I try to do anything remotely clever in the kitchen (like mashing potato), I think of Monica and her rolling eyes, and I shudder. Being a writer is hard. But being a chef....