These four amateur chefs will need to keep their cool this weekend when they cook in front of a crowd at new event A Thought For Food.

Under the tuition of top local chef Lawrence Murphy from Fat Olives in Emsworth, the finalists will whip up a tasty dish in our fantastic competition to find the area's best amateur cooks.

They will take to the stage at Stansted House for 45 minutes on Sunday – the final day of the three-day food and drink extravaganza – to cook a main course suitable for a dinner party at home using local ingredients from a pre-selected list.

Their aim will be to impress a panel of judges, including News restaurant critic Carol Godsmark, and be crowned You CAN Cook! Amateur Chef 2008, sponsored by the Co-op and in partnership with Fat Olives, The News and Hampshire Fare.

A panel of judges will assess the four finalists based on their kitchen skills and their passion for food – and the winner will be crowned You CAN Cook! Amateur Chef 2008.

The winner will also get prizes including dinner for two at Fat Olives, a year's membership of Hampshire Fare and a six-bottle case of Canard-Duchêne Champagne.

All four finalists will also receive a Co-op food hamper as well as tickets to A Thought for Food.

>> David Field has been cooking since he was seven and goes into his kitchen to relax.

The accountant's favourite dish is Cataplana, a Portuguese fish stew, and his store cupboard essentials are saffron, stock cubes and dried apricots.

David, 54, of Tonnant Close, Stubbington, spent 16 years in the Royal Navy and his travels have influenced his cooking style.

He admires chef Rick Stein and said: 'He's a thinking man's cook. Cooking is a creative outlet for me.'

>> Cooking with Lawrence Murphy is a dream come true for Ian Foice as the Emsworth chef is one of his food heroes.

The 55-year-old, of Vectis Road, Gosport, said: 'I've eaten in his restaurants a couple of times and I like his style and the atmosphere. I've been cooking for about 30 years and I've got a passion for it.'

The project manager's favourite dish is southern barbecued pork ribs and his store cupboard essentials would be smoked paprika, ground cumin and ground coriander.

>> Linda Gale started cooking to impress husband Andrew and she gradually fell in love with it.

Her favourite dish is liver and onions on mash with runner beans and her dream dinner guests would include musicians Freddie Mercury and Pink.

The 51-year-old from Bitterne, Southampton, is an accounts assistant but dreams of working in catering.

She said: 'I'm not nervous about Sunday I'm just going to get on with it.'

>> Brazilian Silvana Correa De Castro finds that many styles influence her cooking, not least the native dishes of her French husband Quentin.

Her favourite dish is chicken stew with fried rice and she would love to cook for Roald Dahl, Audrey Hepburn and Elvis Presley.

The 40-year-old, of Festing Road, Southsea, said: 'It's very exciting. It will be the first time I've cooked in front of people. I love cooking very much, it's a passion I've had since I was a child.'