Potluck on the Farm

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About a week ago, a moderately cryptic e-vite showed up in my inbox asking me what I was up to Monday night. It was from Mary Bigham, the preeminent voice behind wcdish.com and one of my favorite (and craziest) food-obsessed acquaintances.

The e-mail continued with a temptation: “I have a very special invite for you ... not a press dinner. Total farmers ’n’ local stuff—kind of a secret, local-food Thanksgiving meal.”

Further correspondence informed me that the potluck hostesses were Sarah Reese—former Talula’s Table employee and current owner of He & She vintage boutique in Kennett Square—and Abby Morgan of Inverbrook Farm and Talula’s. The venue: Inverbrook Farm, home to the Murray family (check out our August Dining Guide for a profile of Claire Murray who runs the farm) and one of the finest CSAs in the area.

The approaching holiday season was a clear impetus for the soiree, but the ulterior mission was to bring together Chester County’s hip, young breed of farmers, horticulturalists, foodies, cheese mongers, chefs and musicians-for-good-food for social networking and an epic, edible gathering. Just getting so many folks with odd hours in the same room at the same time is an amazing feat.

My cyber ears were poised for more details, which arrived in a subsequent e-mail with this postscript: “We would love if people focused on using local ingredients in their dishes!” (To help guests out, the invite also listed several useful and informative links, which I tacked onto the end of this post for readers who wish to know more about the local foods available to us, particularly in the winter when choices might not be so obvious.)

With so many farmers on the guest list, keeping it local seemed like the logical theme: Those coming from farms were assigned vegetarian sides, people who were omnivores got meat dishes, and Claire Murray, who works with poultry during the season, got the all-important assignment of The Bird (which she handled with superiority, having cooked the skin of two turkeys to a beautiful golden brown and taken care to leave the meaty flesh overflowing with juiciness.)

Given the short notice, the only thing local I had in my fridge was a six-pack of Victory Hop Devil—which would've been perfect, had I actually remembered to bring it with me.

I did manage to remember the canned goods that would go to the Kennett food bank, as suggested by a very caring Tim Mountz of Happy Cat Seeds and Terrain—whom I regret not having the opportunity to chat with, as Terrain is now my new favorite haunt. (I’m combing my calendar for the perfect opportunity to dine at The Café and take in the colorful lights at Longwood Gardens.)  

The hour or so drive in pretty nasty weather was rewarded with the opportunity to get inside a very lovely home filled with imagery of yesteryear and a wonderful collection of silver serving pieces. The dining room was perfect for entertaining such a large group—which being a rainy Monday three days before Thanksgiving, was mighty impressive. (Of course, I was definitely one of the “more mature” guests in the house. That didn’t stop me from jumping in on the temporary body tattoos, though!)

It was a little bit strange walking into a room and not knowing anyone, but eventually, I saw a few familiar faces. It was a great group of people and reminded me that breaking bread with friends, old and new, and celebrating the harvest never goes out of style or loses its sentimental value.

The culinary highlight for me was the huge platter of baked mushrooms bursting with earthy flavor, having been doused with a really well-balanced olive oil and baked with sea salt until crunchy—the best stand-in for potato chips that I’ve ever tasted. They were beyond amazing in taste and texture, each bite better than the next. However, the corn soufflé prepared by Claire Murray’s mother was also out of this world. I must remember to get my hands on that recipe!
 

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