‘MasterChef Australia’ 2016 recap and spoilers: Dessert diva Karmen misses the top-10 mark; plus see her tweets after elimination episode

In a day when there’s so many good cooks and so much at stake, it all boiled down to the tiniest details. This is main take-away for episode 40 of “MasterChef Australia” Season 8. On June 23, Karmen Lu learned this the hard way when she failed to impress George Calombaris, Gary Mehigan and Matt Preston. Despite playing to her strengths by serving a sweet plate, the judges found her dish too underwhelming, and she was sent home.

The 24-year-old waitress was unsuccessful to secure a spot in the top 10, in what could be one of the most shocking eliminations this season. Karmen will be missing an exciting week featuring one of the greatest chefs in the world, Heston Blumenthal.

Spoiler Alert! This article contains "MasterChef Australia" Season 8 spoilers. Read only if you want to know more about it.

Network Ten posted a sneak peek of Sunday’s episode, featuring the much-awaited comeback of Chef Heston. The remaining “MasterChef Ausralia” hopefuls could not hide their glee when they see the renowned culinary master, who will be the guest chef for the upcoming week.

They don’t have time to savour the moment, however, as they are in for an extremely challenging set of tasks. The contestants are informed that they have to open a different pop-up restaurant every single day. Setting the bar high, they would start with making the biggest revolving restaurant in the world, located at the Melbourne Star.

This year’s top 10 would have to measure up to Chef Heston’s galaxy-inspired theme. Fortunately, they’ll be working in teams. The trailer hints that one team will create a dish so spectacular, it will be totally out of this world and completely blow the judges away.

“MasterChef Australia” Season 8 recap

Similar to the previous elimination tests, the contestants on the chopping block all wore black apron as they prepare to cook for their lives. Karmen, along with Elise Franciskovic, Matt Sinclair, Mimi Baines and Trent Harvey, walked into the “MasterChef Australia” kitchen preparing themselves for a daunting pressure test.

The judges informed them that this particular challenge centres on a “MasterChef” classic, the time auction, but with a twist. In front of the contestants were five mini pantries, which the judges say they would uncover one by one in a 15-minute interval. This meant that the contenders in black had to choose which is more important: time or ingredients. If they choose the first pantry, they’d have 90 minutes on the clock but with a limited spread of ingredients. If they waited for the last, they can use all pantries but can cook for only 30 minutes.

When the judges uncovered the first pantry containing herbs, no one stepped up. After 15 minutes, the contents of the second pantry were revealed: a wide selection of vegetables. Matt, Karmen and Trent decided the pantry’s good enough. They picked up the baskets to signal their choice, giving them 75 minutes to cook. Mimi and Elise opted to wait for the third pantry, which contained fruits. This was exactly what they’re hoping for, so they didn’t mind that they lost 15 minutes on the clock.

Elise, who faced her seventh time in the pressure test that night, became overwhelmed with the choices of fruits. She didn’t know what dish to prepare and just picked up whatever looked good. When Matt came over her bench, he cautioned her that there were too many flavours going on. Over on Trent’s bench, George questioned his decision to boil pumpkin with water, saying it might dilute the flavour. Trent heeded the judge’s advice and threw away the pumpkin to start from scratch again.

Meanwhile, George also expressed concern over Karmen’s dish, particularly on her basil ice cream. However, Karmen was confident with her dish – she even turned emotional at the end of the cook, happy that she got everything done.

When it was time to taste the contestants’ plates, Trent was called in first by the judges. George commended Trent’s pumpkin and ricotta rotolo with cauliflower, claiming that it was a clever dish. George also commended in particular the rich meaty dish, with its silky cauliflower puree and rich buttery sauce.

Another standout dish for the evening belonged to Matt, who plated a roasted carrot tortellini with confit leeks and burnt butter sauce. The judges said it was absolutely delicious, and each had their favourite elements. Judge Matt loved the rich, intense flavour and acidity of the tomatoes, George raved about the smokiness in the leeks and Gary deemed it a beautiful dish that sings.

It was Mimi’s beetroot parfait with rosemary shortbread and beetroot caramel that blew them away. While they were tasting it, the judges could not hide their enjoyment. George said Mimi’s plate was yum, and the other two echoed his sentiments. As a result, Mimi was called first to safety, followed by Trent and Matt.

It was clear who the bottom two were: Karmen and Elise. Elise’s charred apricot parfait with passionfruit curd left the judges confused about its taste. Gary repeated what Matt said earlier during the preparations – there were far too many flavours. George put it succinctly: it reminded him of fruit loops. However, Elise’s parfait and crumble redeemed her dish – Matt said he liked them.

Karmen, on the other hand, prepared a tomato and ricotta mille-feuielle with a basil ice cream. After tasting the dish, Matt said that he thinks Karmen may have a problem and the other two agreed. While Gary liked the idea of the dish and the puff pastry, Matt said he was underwhelmed by the ice cream. In front of the contestants, the judges questioned the presence of the meringue in a dessert that is already sweet enough. They also commented that the basil ice cream lacked the vibrant color and depth that would have made it successful. For failing to address these two tiny details, Karmen was told it was her time to leave the “MasterChef Australia” kitchen.

To say that the other contestants were in shock is an understatement – each of them was caught completely flabbergasted with the judge’s decision. It’s understandable, considering Karmen was considered a worthy contender, delivering exceptional dishes most of the time. She also stepped up to the plate as a team leader in a previous challenge, and earned chances to fight for the immunity pin.

[READ: “‘MasterChef Australia’ 2016 recap and spoilers: Karmen loses her cool amid heated cook-off”]

Karmen took to Twitter to share her sentiments after the elimination episode. “It was always going to be tough today,” she wrote. “I am grateful for all the support. I have learnt so much, and not just about food.” She also thanked another eliminated contestant, Charlie Sartori, who tweeted, “She was quiet and shy, but she is amazingly talented and so so kind!! Karmeno I wish you all the best!”

In her Instagram account, Karmen added that she's working on opening up a dessert bar. "As tough as this competition was, there's so much more hard work to come," she wrote.

Find out what happens next week on “MasterChef Australia,” and stay tuned for episode spoilers. “MasterChef Australia” Season 8 airs every Sunday to Thursday at 7.30pm on Ten.