The Old School Nashville
Last month, a group of friends braved the hour drive to The Old School for dinner and discovered that some places are simply much more than a dining destination.
For the last decade, everyone has been talking about farm-to-table dining.
In Nashville, there is one place that truly does it like no one else can. They grow the food, helping disabled folks learn new skills in the process. They make the plates, teaching a whole set of new skills to others. Then they create amazing menus from their own farm ingredients and celebrate each season with care and a clear eye to conservation and sustainability.
This is The Old School Nashville—farm-to-table at its finest.
Everything about The Old School is exceptional.
It is nestled in the heart of a residential area called Bells Bend, 10 minutes west of Nashville.
It is a nonprofit dedicated to producing fine farm-to-table cuisine using ingredients grown right on the property, creating sustainable jobs that benefit the community.
It is also a lovingly renovated old school building, with interesting dining areas, event spaces even an outdoor beer garden. It is also the home of Old School Farm Pottery, which provides meaningful employment opportunities for adults of all abilities while creating dinnerware.
In the midst of all this, one might think the hospitality might be lacking because of all the work put into remarkable programs.
But the truth is all of those programs contribute to exceptionally inventive and delicious menus served with grace and kindness throughout the year.
Executive Chef Kirstie Harris leads the innovative culinary team at The Old School farm-to-table. Their menus are carefully crafted, curated by micro-season, and inspired by their foragers, farmers growers.
Our host for the evening, Dustin Jacobsen, is not only a caring server, the executive director of the farm and the banquet director.
He guided us through a delightful dinner with amazing shared dishes that highlighted the best local produce, vegetables pork that area farms had to offer.
Just close your eyes and see if you can imagine these incredible dishes and flavors: Hazelnut Croquettes (pictured above)—a nutty flavored hush puppy served with a homemade garlic lemon aioli; Garlic and Parsley Sweet Potato Chips—thick cut sweet potato fries smothered in aged Kenny’s asiago cheese and seasoned with cracked black pepper; Charred Bells Bend Hakurei Turnips, roasted in a barbecue dry rub, accented with homemade buttermilk dressing, toasted mustard seeds shredded crispy cabbage; Tennessee Truffle Honeycomb and Butternut Risotto with Kenny’s brie and a sourdough tuille garnish topped with a Chuckey, Tennessee truffled honeycomb; and KLD Farm’s Pork Three Ways—crispy pork belly, braised pork cheeks a and pan seared loin, all served with apples, mustard greens, Dijon mashed potatoes and tomato.
As you might think, we enjoyed every bite.
And Kirstie was kind enough to give us a recipe to share with you all that may make it to your holiday party table as an appetizer, but would also make a great accompaniment to a fish entrée.
Hazelnut Croquettes
1 pound of hazelnuts (also called filberts in some parts of the state)
8 cups cornmeal
2 cups flour
¼ cup baking powder
4 teaspoons salt
8 eggs
6 cups milk
Toast the hazelnuts for five to 10 minutes—just until they are browned and you can smell a bit of nut coming from the oven. In a food processor, grind them up to a rough paste. If the mixture in the food processor gets too thick, you can add a bit of milk to loosen it up. Combine the hazelnut paste and all the rest of the ingredients together into a batter. Heat ½ inch of vegetable oil in a deep saucepan until a thermometer registers 360ºF. Working in batches, use a small ice cream scoop to carefully add the croquettes to the hot oil and fry them until they are golden brown, about 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove them with a slotted spoon and drain them on paper towels. Season them with salt. Serve with honey mustard or aioli.
