Currently head chef at The Pompadour (Waldorf Astoria Edinburgh), Ashmore completed his Catering, Patisserie and Hospitality Management NVQ at Level 3 at Sheffield in 2008.
Returning to the college, the 28-year-old imparted his culinary expertise and fine dining skills with 30 catering and hospitality students.
He said: “I am indebted to (lecturers) Len (Unwin), Neil (Taylor) and Mick (Burke) for all the knowledge, time and expertise that they passed on to me.
“Their passion, drive, creativity and care are inspiring. I still use their recipes today because they are so good.”
Ashmore then joined Sneddon, executive pastry chef at The Balmoral Hotel (Edinburgh), as guest chefs for the night at the college’s Silver Plate training restaurant.
While Ashmore worked with apprentices and Level 3 students on the starter, fish and main course, Sneddon created the breads and dessert with apprentices and part time pastry Level 3 students.
The menu comprised: salt baked beetroot with aged balsamic and hazelnut; sea trout with pickled endive and orange; soft herb custard tart, spring vegetables and truffle dressing; assiette of venison, quince, red cabbage and sauce grand veneur; celeriac and pearl barley “risotto”, crisp quail egg and kale; millefeuille of chocolate with caramel ice cream and petit fours.
Ashmore added: “It's really important to inspire young people going into the catering industry. I gained so much from my time at Sheffield College and wanted to come back to share my experience and skills with current students.”
Celia Robotham, assistant principal of Business and Enterprise at The Sheffield College, commented: “It’s very rewarding to see our alumni come back and share their career success and skills with our current students, to help them go further.
“(Sheffield) has a strong reputation in the catering and hospitality industry and we are very proud of Daniel and our other highly successful alumni.
“It’s fantastic that Daniel and Ross have taken the time to share their industry expertise with our students, who all did an amazing job on the night.”