Madeline Bauer, chef assistant at Oregon Coast Culinary Institute (OCCI) of Southwestern Oregon Community College was named 2015 American Culinary Federation (ACF) Western Region Student Chef of the Year. Bauer received the title following a competition during the ACF Western Region Culinary Salon held at the College of Southern Nevada, Cheyenne Campus, North Las Vegas, Nevada, March 20-21, 2015. The ACF Student Chef of the Year Award, sponsored by Custom Culinary, Inc., recognizes an up-and-coming student who possesses a high degree of professionalism, culinary skill and passion for the culinary arts. Bauer, from Kennewick, WA, recently graduated with an Associate Degree in Culinary Arts from OCCI. Bauer started competing as a member of the OCCI student team that competed in the 2014 ACF Western Region Student Team Championship. Now, she has three silver medals from ACF-sanctioned student culinary competitions and a silver medal from an ACF-sanctioned professional culinary competition. At the regional competition, Bauer prepared two portions of a main dish that incorporated the assigned protein, Cornish game hen, for a panel of judges in one hour, 40 minutes. Her menu featured roasted breast of game hen and boursin thigh croquette served with a modern twice-baked potato, bbq spiced and glazed carrots and broccoli three ways. She will now prepare to compete against her regional counterparts at Cook. Craft. Create. ACF National Convention & Show, Orlando, Florida, July 30 – August 3, 2015 for the national title and $1,000. “Competing for ACF Student Chef of the Year is a great opportunity and I’m proud to be representing the ACF Western region,” said Bauer. “Winning my first gold medal and the regional title has really been amazing. I’m ready for and look forward to the next step in Orlando.” Madeline started cooking for her family at age nine and took culinary arts classes in high school. She is currently completing two externships and hopes to continue competing nationally. Her career goal is to work in restaurants in San Francisco or the East Coast. Bauer is a member of ACF Bay Area Chefs Association of Oregon. The 2015 ACF Western Region Culinary Salon was part of ACF’s Signature Series, which provides professional development for chefs and culinary students through educational programs, conferences and competitions. Learn more at www.acfchefs.org.
