For November’s Simmer series dinner, the fabulous Chef Maneet Chauhan had the idea to host a Friendsgiving in our Community Dining Room. But rather than bring in the typical Thanksgiving turkey and sides, she wanted to see what she could whip up with just the ingredients we had on hand in our kitchen — a special Food Waste Challenge Friendsgiving to celebrate abundance.
Maneet enlisted the help of our team — chiefly Chef Director Bianca Morton who plans thousands of meals for TNFP partners each week based on the donated food we receive and vegetables we grow along with our farm partners. Then for dessert, we pulled in the talents of Sam Tucker, the fantastic baker behind Village Bakery & Provisions.
As the date approached, we provided Maneet with a list of possible ingredients: butternut squash, cabbage, onions, potatoes, canned coconut milk, tomatoes, bags of rice and beans. We figured Maneet might choose one or two items for her menu. But instead, she managed to work every item on the list into a meat-and-three-style feast. Every item!
Pork Vindaloo Kemma made a rich stew of meat donated from Whole Foods. Cabbage Butternut Squash Subji brought together vegetables gleaned from local farms by the Society of St. Andrew and from farm partners, S.E. Daugherty & Sons. Black Bean Lentil Daal, Vegetable Rice Palal and Yogurt Raita served alongside Papadum and Naan also included donations of black beans, lentils and rice from One Generation Away.
Papadum made with tapioca.
Our own Bianca Morton kicked off the meal with spiced meatballs made with a Whole Foods donation in a butternut and coconut sauce as well as a Spiced Lentil and Sweet Potato “Meat” Ball and Autumn Salad that tossed together lettuces with apple, almond, raisin and blue cheese.
The meal was bookended with a celebration of the organic apples we receive by the bushel from Joe Hodgson (“Apple Joe” as we call him). Joe followed his love of heirloom apples to plant his own orchard, and every few weeks he drops off a batch that we can toss into fruit salads or serve as a healthy snack for our after-school meal partners. For the welcome cocktail, we garnished an Apple Cider Mule (thanks to a donation by Pickers Vodka) with Joe’s apple slices .
Baker Sam ready to make dessert.
Then for the big finish, Sam Tucker created an Apple Walnut Cake with Joe’s apples and served it with cool dollops of Calvados Zabaglione and a warm Apple Compote. Maneet added her flair and pop of color with edible orchid.
Chef Maneet ended the dinner by talking with guests about her experiences on Food Network’s Chopped and family memories of making the most of every ingredient.
“Growing up in India, there was no waste,” she said. She recalled her parents buying milk, pasteurizing it and then using the cream that settled at the top to make butter on weekends.
“Sunday morning was the most amazing time to get up,” she said, remembering the sounds of her family making butter. Fresh butter would then become ghee and the milk solids would be turned into dessert.
She also spoke about what draws her to the work of The Nashville Food Project.
“Food, to me, is about connection. It’s about making sure people are nourished. When you are connected both with your soul and your stomach,” she said. And she recalled learning how TNFP makes that happen on her first visit to our previous headquarters. “Every aspect of food was so carefully talked through — such as making sauces and repurposing them. There are a lot of organizations that do great work, but The Nashville Food Project does it at a grassroots level and that gets everybody excited and the community involved.”
On a day when we hosted a Friendsgiving, Maneet says the richest people on earth are those with the most friends. We’re sure grateful to be friends with Sam and Joe and Maneet — and all our partners and all of you.
We have just one more Simmer dinner to close out the series for the year — a Sunday brunch on Dec. 8 with Chef Levon Wallace featuring Mexican home cooking influenced by his time growing up in Los Angeles. Tickets can be purchased here and all proceeds support our work. Join us!
