Woodbridge resident makes MasterChef cut
Vaughan Weekly
January 29, 2014
Julie Miguel of Woodbridge is rising to the top of the MasterChef Canada cooking competition.
As revealed Monday on CTV’s MasterChef Canada, Canadian chefs and restaurateurs Michael Bonacini, Alvin Leung, and Claudio Aprile have narrowed the field from 26 to 16 home cooks. The top 16 will continue to compete for the first-ever title of MasterChef Canada and the $100,000 cash prize.
Miguel, a wife, mom and senior bankruptcy analyst from Woodbridge, made the cut.
After the tragic passing of her mother when she was just a teenager, Miguel took on the responsibility of cooking for her entire family. Years later, Miguel now sees cooking as a stress release and a wonderful escape from her desk job.
Her passion is desserts, specifically fresh pastries and cakes. Miguel’s signature dish, which she made for the judges in the premiere episode, is Italian doughnuts (zeppole) with espresso and lemon creme anglaise.
If Miguel wins the competition, the prize money would go towards realizing her dream of attending culinary school. She also hopes to open her own dessert cafe one day, focusing on speciality coffees and ice cream. Miguel’s very excited to keep a promise she made in person to MasterChef judge Gordon Ramsay four years ago - if MasterChef ever came to Canada, she’d be the first to sign up, and the first to win.
The first elimination episode will air this Sunday, Feb. 2 following the Super Bowl. Canadians will get their first look inside the MasterChef Canada kitchen and see what the top 16 contestants bring to the table. The episode will re-broadcast in the program’s regular time slot on Monday, Feb. 3 at 8 p.m./7 p.m. CT.
In Episode 3 will face their first mystery box challenge. A classic and highly versatile ingredient sends them in both sweet and savoury directions. The winner of the mystery box gets a huge advantage in the elimination challenge, choosing between the judges’ favourite ingredients from the Canadian land, sea, and air.
