Hawthorns Northampton Head Chef Regional Finalist in NACC Awards 2023
We are delighted to share that Hawthorns Northampton Head Chef, Chris Burd, has been shortlisted as a finalist in the National Association of Care Catering (NACC) Care Chef of the Year Awards for 2023. Chris will take part in the regional heats at Leicester College on 12th June.
As the longest-standing care chef competition in the UK, the NACC awards challenge those who work within the care and retirement living sector to devise innovative and exciting recipes, meeting the nutritional needs of their clientele. The awards also serve to highlight the excellence achieved by those working in the sector nationally.
Through an inclusive programme of regional and national events, training, campaigns, research and guidance documents, the NACC provides support, information, and advice to caterers. It also provides a valuable platform for like-minded professionals to connect and share ideas and best practice.
Chefs entering the NACC awards are required to create a two-course menu, comprising a main course, and dessert. Chris created a pan-fried lemon sole fillet, potato rosti, petit pois à la Francais, broad beans, mussel sauce and poached egg for the main course. For dessert, a chocolate and orange ‘Jaffa cake’ mousse, orange gel with sponge cake, toasted hazelnuts, and orange segments.
Chris has worked at the Hawthorns Northampton since early 2022 and has held the position of Head Chef for a year. He also has experience working at 2AA rosette restaurants and a hotel. He states, “I use experience from my previous roles and from my travels around the world to create varied, seasonal, and nutritionally balanced meals for our residents and ensure they take an active role in the creation of seasonal menus. The menu I created for the competition is nutritionally dense, without sacrificing flavour or presentation. Both dishes represent the foods we serve on a day-to-day basis at the Hawthorns Northampton, and feature vegetables grown in our gardens by green-fingered residents. I am looking forward to taking part in the competition.”
We wish you all the best for the regional finals, Chris!
