Foodie fun

This afternoon, a group of us drove to a small, rural, North Carolina town, Hurdle Mills, for a picnic in a big field.  This was, however, no ordinary picnic.  It was this year's installment of the Farm to Fork picnic, an event I missed last year and was looking forward to attending this year.  It was a foodie paradise, with 34 restaurant/farm pairings offering at least one dish apiece to all the attendees.  You wander the tents, check out the food, and eat small portions--usually a few bites--of whatever you want, however much you want.  The restaurant list was a who's-who of the Triangle's locally sourced culinary scene.  Every single dish I sampled was at least tasty, and quite a few were top-drawer.

The day was hot and muggy but not unbearably so.  The setting was lovely.

Click on any image to see a larger one.

Picking favorites from such a great set of dishes is tough, but I'd probably give the nod to the goat sliders with chevre from Mandolin and the corn dogs with aioli from perennial favorite Panciuto.  Here's chef Aaron Vandemark of Panciuto bending over the little grill on which he was making the corn dogs.

Though the event is pricey, I recommend it wholeheartedly.  I certainly hope to attend next  year.