Annual picnic celebrates local food and farms

By KEITH UPCHURCH

kupchurch@heraldsun.com; 419-6612

HURDLE MILLS -- It didn't take a detective to figure out who had the best food Sunday on Walnut Grove Church Road. All it took was a nose.

The smell of barbecue, grilled sausage and smoked trout was like an invisible hook pulling people right in to the W.C. Breeze Family Farm.

The farm's open field was the focal point Sunday afternoon of the Farm To Fork Picnic, an annual celebration of local food and farms that drew 40 farmers and 500 others with that golden ticket to a luscious feast.

Freshness. Flavor. Quality.

That's what kept people shaking their heads with delight at they moved from tent to tent, sampling pork belly biscuits, roasted duck, cornmeal breaded fish with green tomato relish and strawberry sangria with vanilla bean.

And who could resist the hickory-smoked trout with spring vegetables, or the blackened shrimp with vine ripe tomatoes, basil, shaved sweet onion and roasted red pepper?

Dessert lovers could indulge in strawberry cake with strawberry butter cream or sweet potato cake with bourbon and brown sugar butter cream.

Michael Lemanski of Durham, a big supporter of locally grown food, was chowing down on a deviled egg with dill, roasted new potatoes, roasted beets, pasta salad and fresh herbs.

"It's been really high quality," he said. "It's been incredible."

Farm To Fork is organized by the nonprofit Slow Food Triangle and the Center for Environmental Farming Systems, part of N.C. State University. Proceeds benefit farmer apprentice programs.

"When you taste [locally grown food], you realize it tastes better," said Mark Overbay, a board member of Slow Food, which he said works for a food system that is "good, clean and fair."

"This event is a way to showcase not only the incredible agriculture of our area, but also the chefs and food artisans and consumers that make our food possible."

Alamance County farmer Alex Hitt says he's seeing a trend by restaurant and consumers toward more locally grown food. "The real important thing is that people buy from local people, because that's going to keep farmers on the farm," he said.

Nancy Hook of Nash County was enjoying a plate of pulled pork and pork belly biscuits, which she called "very yummy."

And for Ryan Jacobs, 8, of Cary, the whole day was a feast.

Ryan paused from eating a bowl of sausage gumbo to answer a reporter's questions.

"It's good," he said.

Earlier, he had eaten cake with strawberries and cream. When asked what his favorite food was, he replied: "All of it."