State: QLD

Age: 29

Occupation: Naturopathy Student

A lover of desserts and sweet cooking, Christina says her cooking inspiration lies with fan favourite Maggie Beer. She describes her own style as beautifully rustic, with dishes akin to stone fruits in tarts with ice cream. Working with seasonal produce and earthy flavours, Christina says she loves to use local ingredients, leaning towards bold, bright and colourful dishes with fresh and zesty herbs.

Born on the Gold Coast, Christina grew up in Brisbane alongside a large combined family of 10 children.

After finishing high school Christina started a Bachelor’s degree in Health Science and Naturopathy, before turning her attention to starting her own family, welcoming daughter Willow in 2011. Two years later she had son Jethro before hitting the road in a caravan, travelling around northern Queensland until 2016 when she briefly moved to the Sunshine Coast before settling in the Gold Coast last year.

Describing cooking as a natural passion which kicked off while baking beside her mum as a child, Christina says her food dream is to develop her own recipes. She wants to host local cooking demonstrations and teach people how to cook from scratch.

She loves to run on the beach and spend time outside. Alongside Maggie, Christina says she’s inspired in the kitchen by Gordon Ramsay and Jamie Oliver. While sweet treats are her strength, she thinks her weakness may be staying calm and keeping her bench tidy in a pressured cook.

With her children now older, Christina was excited to resume her studies last year, and supported by her partner Adam, now feels the time is right for her MasterChef journey.