A YOUNG chef has been praised for her ‘cleverness and style’ by Jamie Oliver after coming first in a national competition.

Clayton-le-Moors teenager Alice Williams won the Jamie Oliver Home Cooking Skills Competition with a Lancashire versus Yorkshire themed spread.

Her efforts have been described as ‘wonderful’ by the TV star who also praised her catering teachers at Accrington and Rossendale College.

Announcing her as the overall UK winner for her War of the Roses style menu, Jamie describes her as “A clever, clever girl”.

He said: “It was a wonderful effort from Alice and her teacher Anthony Muldowney. It’s a really well thought out execution covering all the criteria of the competition.

“The table was amazing, it just looked like something from the WI. Alice did a terrific job and clearly has a wonderful sense of style. The narrative of Yorkshire versues Lancashire was great; a clever, clever girl”.

The 17-year-old triumphed in spite of the national challenge attracting the best catering students around the country.

She said: “I knew there would be a lot of entries and the competition would be really high, so I wanted to try as hard as I could. I’m really delighted to win. I’m passionate about Lancashire and its cuisine and the opportunity to show it off was a real privilege for me.”

Competitors had a choice of three challenges and Alice picked the option of planning a food stall to run at a school fete. With the help of her father John, Alice built a food cart to display her work.

She then cooked traditional dishes from both Yorkshire and Lancashire, demonstrating both the similarity of the food, but also the interesting regional differences.

Her menu included Yorkshire curd tart and tea loaf plus Lancashire hotpot pies, Eccles Cakes and gourmet Manchester Tarts.

Chef Lecturer Lee Hyatt said: “Alice is definitely talented, but it is often hard work which makes the difference in this industry. The overall effort she put in was incredible. It was obvious that there was a lot of thought behind even the smallest detail in this project and the entire college is really proud of her for bringing home this award.”

Alice’s prize is a meal for five at a Jamie Oliver Italian restaurant and £50 worth of books and cookware vouchers. To see Jamie’s public praise of Alice visit www.youtube.com and search Home Cooking Skills Competition.