Aldridge Chef Cooks up an NACC treat
Our lucky residents at The Hawthorns Aldridge are indulging in award-winning desserts from Head Chef Martin McKee, following his outstanding performance at the final of 2017 NACC Care Chef of the Year. Martin was delighted to walk away with a sensational ‘highly commended’ for his delicious dessert and has ranked in the top three for the second year running.
The NACC Care Chef of the Year is an annual competition that invites outstanding chefs in the care sector to showcase their skills and promote the standard of catering within the sector. Talented chefs from across the country create and submit a menu, following strict guidelines, before competing in a local heat, a regional semi-final with live cooking, and a grand national final. The judges are looking for innovation, costing, suitability for the environment, adherence to nutritional guidelines, taste and overall menu balance.
Martin McKee is a classically trained Head Chef who joined The Hawthorns two years ago with the ambition of enriching the standard of care food, and he has certainly achieved that goal. Martin certainly showcased why he was a finalist with his presentation and execution of zesty hake & fondant potato. However, his dessert of soft toffee apple chocolate cup, walnut shortbread with orange anglaise impressed judges so much, he was given the top award of “highly commended”.
Martin was overwhelmed that he retained a position in the top three as well as ‘highly commended’ dessert twice in a row. It is the third consecutive time that a chef from Avery Healthcare has made it into the national finals under the tutelage of Simon Lawrence, Group Culinary Manager for Avery Healthcare.
Simon was elated, “Martin should really be proud of his achievement as he cooked two fabulous dishes. The fact that he has only worked in the care sector for two years and has now competed in two National Care Catering Finals, winning four awards is simply outstanding. The highly commended dessert two years in a row speaks for itself and I look forward to his return next year!”
Martin joins many of our other fantastic staff who have recently celebrated awards, including Avery Healthcare employees graduating from the Advanced Senior Carers Programme and our recent success at the Qube Learning Awards 2017. If you are interested in joining our Avery team, you can find out more on our careers website.
