A student from a college in Eastleigh has won a national competition after travelling to Italy to compete in the final.

Hettie Anderson, 17, from Eastleigh College, battled over 3000 students to win the 2025 CombiGuru Challenge in Venice.

Hettie clinched her victory by preparing the highest-scoring main course and dessert within a strict three-hour time limit.

Each competitor was given a "mystery ingredient box" to centre their dish around.

Hettie's box contained tomato and chives for her main course, and pistachio for her dessert.

Her main course of roast chicken with romesco sauce, heritage tomato salad, and lemon caper butter oven-steamed potatoes was praised for its "vibrancy and freshness."

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Her pistachio financier dessert, served with vanilla bean chantilly, blood orange, and caramelised white chocolate, was commended for its taste and presentation.

As the overall winner, Hettie received a Unox Oven for Eastleigh College, £1,000 worth of Italian cookery classes, a set of specialist Italian knives, and a kilogram of sustainable cooking flour.

Hettie said: "This was a fantastic experience and I am beyond thrilled to have won the 2025 CombiGuru Challenge.

"Beyond the competition itself, it was such a fun trip, exploring beautiful Venice, enjoying so much wonderful food from the local restaurants and the hotel was very nice too.

"This competition caught my eye when I first joined the college so to have gone all the way and won it feels amazing."

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Hettie earned her place in the Venice final by being the top college performer after a 21-day app-based culinary test.

Caroline Perrett, curriculum director at Eastleigh College, said: "We are incredibly proud of Hettie’s remarkable achievement at the 2025 CombiGuru Challenge.

"Her success is not only a testament to her talent, dedication and creativity, but also to the quality of teaching and support provided by our Hospitality and Catering team at Eastleigh College."

The 2025 competition was the eighth edition of the CombiGuru Challenge, which offers aspiring chefs an engaging educational experience, designed to both challenge and enrich cooking skills and knowledge.