HE might only be 12 years old but Rex Fisher could be a master chef in the making. The young talent from Beaminster scooped third prize at CookIt!, the national children’s cookery competition run by the Guild of Food Writers.

Rex beat five other talented young cooks for third place at the final, which took place in London earlier this month.

The panel of expert judges, including TV chefs Stefan Gates and Valentine Warner, were blown away by his menu of Poached Mackerel Pockets followed by Cinnamon Porridge and Ice Cream with Honey.

“I had a great time cooking my recipes and it was a brilliant surprise to have won third place,” says Rex.

CookIt! judge, Stefan Gates says; “This was my first year judging the competition and I was very excited to see what the kids cooked up. It was a tough decision to make but were very impressed with Rex’s creativity with his dishes and performance in the kitchen!”

The six finalists were selected from hundreds of entrants who were challenged to let their imagination run wild and “create a dream meal for you and your friends”.

The main winner won a family holiday at Boccadon Farm, a working Guernsey dairy farm in Cornwall, courtesy of Gold Top milk, who sponsored the event.

Rex and the other runners up also received exciting prizes including a |cookery course and state-of-the-art hand mixers.