Fredericton, N.B.'s Kevin Gregory is Eliminated from CTV's MASTERCHEF CANADA

– The remaining Top 12 cook for students on the University of Guelph campus in their second Team Challenge when MASTERCHEF CANADA returns on Sunday, March 22 at 7 p.m. (8 p.m. CT) –
– Currently averaging 1.5 million viewers, MASTERCHEF CANADA is the #1 Canadian series among all key demos –

TORONTO, March 8, 2015 /CNW/ - An Elimination Challenge inspired by Season 1 winner Eric Chong trips up MASTERCHEF CANADA Season 2 Top 13 home cook Kevin Gregory (@Bistro113), an Applications Engineer from Fredericton, N.B., and judges Michael Bonacini, Alvin Leung, and Claudio Aprile eliminate him from the competition. Following a hiatus on March 15 for THE 2015 JUNO AWARDS, MASTERCHEF CANADA returns Sunday, March 22 at 7 p.m. (8 p.m. CT) on CTV, when the remaining 12 home cooks participate in their second Team Challenge on the University of Guelph campus.

In tonight's episode, the home cooks faced their second Mystery Box Challenge, featuring an iconic Italian favourite that proved to be difficult to master – artisan pizza. With the home cooks overwhelmed by the robust selection of gourmet ingredients, some struggled to find their focus. After the cook, the judges determined the Top 3 pizzas to be: David Jorge's "Fun-Guy" with mushrooms and arugula; Jennifer Innis' "Summer Fresh" with peaches and pancetta; and Cody Karey's "The Fifth Dimension" with mushrooms, figs, and quail eggs. With rich and bold flavours, Cody won the Mystery Box Challenge, which included immunity in the upcoming Elimination Challenge. Cody was also given the advantage to select the ingredient his fellow home cooks would use, which were all inspired by the journey of the first-ever MASTERCHEF CANADA winner, Eric Chong. Given the options of duck, lobster, and truffles, a confident Cody made the risky decision to waive his immunity and cook alongside his fellow home cooks using his chosen ingredient – luxurious truffles.

With the Elimination Challenge ingredient revealed, many of the home cooks questioned Cody's choice of truffles, and after a particularly hectic time in the pantry, Kristen Dwyer forgot to select a protein for her dish. After Jon Hameister-Ries generously offered her one of his steaks, Kristen struggled to get back in the competition. Once the hour was up, Sabrina Poirier's deep-fried poached egg with truffle shavings and asparagus and David's truffled ricotta agnolotti impressed the judges, and saved them from elimination, making them team captains in the next team challenge. Michael Motamedi, Kevin Gregory, and Mystery Box winner Cody found themselves in the bottom three. With his "Decadent Eggs" dish confusing the judges, and underwhelming them with its lack of truffles, Kevin was ultimately sent home.

**Media Note** – Download photos for MASTERCHEF CANADA at BellMediaPR.ca

Following its premiere on Feb. 1, MASTERCHEF CANADA has become the #1 Canadian series among all key demos for the broadcast year to date, and currently averages 1.5 million viewers.

In the next new episode of MASTERCHEF CANADA (Sunday, March 22 at 7 p.m./8 p.m. CT), the home cooks' second Team Challenge takes place on the University of Guelph campus, home to the school's ground-breaking food research department which has developed numerous food products, including the Yukon Gold potato. After being divided into teams, the home cooks test their culinary and entrepreneurial skills by creating crowd-pleasing poutine dishes to sell to hundreds of hungry students. Back in the MASTERCHEF CANADA kitchen, the members of the losing team must master a difficult stuffed pasta dish or face elimination.

The remaining home cooks vying for the title of MASTERCHEF CANADA and the $100,000 cash prize are:

• Andrew Al-Khouri, a Tax Officer from Halifax, N.S.
• Christopher Siu, a Pharmacy Student from Markham, Ont.
• Cody Karey, a Recording Artist from Vancouver, B.C.
• David Jorge, a Concrete Contractor from Surrey, B.C.
• Jennifer Innis, a Dental Hygienist from Vernon, B.C.
• Jon Hameister-Ries, a former Pro Football Player and Financial Advisor from Vancouver, B.C.
• Kristen Dwyer, an Early Childhood Educator from Conception Bay South, N.L.
• Kwasi Douglas, a Community Facilitator from Ajax, Ont.
• Line Pelletier, a Canadian Military Veteran and Computer Specialist from Moncton, N.B.
• Michael Motamedi, an Entrepreneur from Toronto, Ont.
• Sabrina Poirier, an Office Manager from Montréal, Que.
• Tammy Wood, a Retail Clerk from Agassiz, B.C.

MASTERCHEF CANADA also streams on demand on CTV GO and CTV.ca, and episodes encore following their broadcast premieres Fridays at 9 p.m. ET on M3, Saturdays at 7 p.m. ET/PT on CTV Two, and Sundays at 5 p.m. ET/PT on CTV. Viewers can also enjoy the Season 1 cooking all over again, with the full season of MASTERCHEF CANADA available exclusively on CraveTV.

The MASTERCHEF format is represented internationally by Shine International, the sales and distribution arm of Shine Group, and is based on a format originally created by Franc Roddam.

MASTERCHEF CANADA is produced by Proper Television in association with CTV. President of Proper Television, Guy O'Sullivan is executive producer, along with Proper's Vice-President and Creative Director, Cathie James. Shine America's Paula Warwick is Creative Consultant. For Bell Media, Tina Apostolopoulos is Production Executive, Factual and Reality, Independent Production. Robin Johnston is Director, Factual and Reality, Independent Production. Corrie Coe is Senior Vice-President, Independent Production. Mike Cosentino is Senior Vice-President, Programming, CTV Networks and CraveTV. Phil King is President - CTV, Sports, and Entertainment Programming.

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:

Twitter:
#MasterChefCanada
@CTV_PR
@CTV_Television
@MasterChefCDA 
Michael Bonacini – @MichaelBonacini 
Alvin Leung – @TheDemonChef 
Claudio Aprile – @ClaudioAprile 
Andrew Al-Khouri – @Zataartheory
Christopher Siu – @Baker_Siu 
Cody Karey – @codykarey
David Jorge – @concrete_cook 
Jennifer Innis – @JenniferInnis 
Jon Hameister-Ries – @jonhr67 
Kristen Dwyer – @kristenstar23 
Kwasi Douglas – @splashdafoodgod 
Line Pelletier – @TheSaucyLine 
Michael Motamedi – @MichaelBaffi 
Sabrina Poirier – @Sabrinapmtl 
Tammy Wood – @saucysgotgame 

Facebook:
facebook.com/ctv 
facebook.com/MasterChefCDA

Instagram:
MasterChefCDA
BellMediaPR
Claudio Aprile – claudioaprile1
Andrew Al-Khouri – Zataartheory
Christopher Siu – baker_siu
Cody Karey – codykarey
David Jorge – concrete_cook
Jennifer Innis – jensheninnis
Jon Hameister-Ries – jonhr67
Kristen Dwyer – kristendwyer23
Kwasi Douglas – da_Food_God
Line Pelletier – TheSaucyLine
Michael Motamedi – MichaelBaffi 
Sabrina Poirier – Sabrinapmtl
Tammy Wood – saucysgotgame

About CTV

CTV is Canada's #1 private broadcaster. Featuring a wide range of quality news, sports, information, and entertainment programming, CTV has been Canada's most-watched television network for the past 13 years in a row. CTV is a division of Bell Media, Canada's premier multimedia company with leading assets in television, radio, digital, and Out-of-Home. Bell Media is owned by BCE Inc. (TSX, NYSE: BCE), Canada's largest communications company. More information about CTV can be found on the network's website at CTV.ca.

- CTV -

Source: Numeris (BBM Canada), Sept. 22, 2014 – Feb. 22, 2015, final data.

SOURCE CTV

Tanya Koivusalo, CTV Networks, 416.384.2664 or [email protected]; Christy Sullivan, CTV Networks, 416.384.3624 or [email protected]