National Nursery Management Today Award for School’s Out Chef
Helen Krawczyk, the children’s chef at Woodlands Day Nursery and School’s Out Holiday Club (part of the Elmscot Group and both in Timperley, Cheshire), has won the award for Best Nursery Chef UK at the Nursery Management Today Awards 2013. She was presented (in centre, below) with her trophy by Austin Healey at the high-profile Gala Night at the Hilton Metropole Hotel in London, attended by 600 guests.
Back in October, after finding out that she was one of the top five finalists from nurseries across the whole of the UK, Helen was invited to the Inspired Gourmet Cookery School, Milton Keynes, to take part in Masterchef-style cook-off: she had 1½ hours to prepare and present a two-course meal, nutritionally tailored to perfectly meet the needs of a child aged under 5 years, to the team of judges.
To impress the judging panel, which included Nigel Denby, a registered dietitian and trained chef and Ady Delaney, a qualified nutritionist who specialises in teaching children, staff and parents about nutrition and food, Helen chose to prepare one of the children’s favourite vegetarian meals from the Elmscot Group nursery menus: a Roasted Mediterranean Vegetable and Red Lentil Lasagne with finger food salad followed by a fruity Carrot Cake served with Orange and Mascarpone Cream. Helen plans the menus for the entire Elmscot Nursery Group, supported by a paediatric dietician, to ensure meals meet the nutritional and developmental needs of very young children.
Earlier this year, Helen was inspired at a training day for Elmscot chefs held at the Vegetarian Society in Altrincham to help them develop the vegetarian meals on offer to nursery children. Alex Connell, Principal Tutor of the Society, was delighted to hear of Helen’s win, saying “Congratulations to Helen on a fantastic achievement. The winning dish, being vegetarian, shows how popular and tasty vegetarian food can be.”
According to the judges, Helen was a clear winner and they all agreed on the reasons why. ‘We have chosen Helen because her awareness of nutrition shines through in her food. She created a very well balanced, beautifully presented meal which tasted excellent. Her passion and energy was second to none. She truly has earned the award of Nursery Chef of the Year.’
Helen, who has worked at the Ofsted Outstanding Woodlands Day Nursery since it opened in 2006, said, “I feel extremely honoured to be recognized by food and nutrition experts as the best nursery chef in the whole of the UK. I am so passionate about what I do. I am very proud of this achievement and of the fact that not only do I provide healthy and nutritionally balanced meals for the children in our nursery so they have the best start in life, but the children and staff tell me my meals look and taste wonderful too, which is so rewarding.”
Woodlands Day Nursery was also a top five finalist in the Nursery Outdoor Learning Environment category of the NMT Awards 2013.