July 2013
“Farm Week” is a collection of daily posts recapping a summer of Farm Dinners…
On average, there are 160 sunny days per year in Pittsburgh, PA [unless the internet is completely lying to me]. This statistic is reason enough to take a Vitamin D supplement. It is also reason enough to be outdoors whenever the sun is shining, adding even more appeal to a Sunday Farm Dinner.
As beautiful as that table was, extending into a horizon of bright blue dotted with puffy, cotton-candy clouds, the teetering conditions of the sky very quickly reminded us of the reverse side of that statistic. Pittsburgh is a rainy city.
Pittsburgh soaks up approximately 37 inches of rain per year! Inevitably, rain and the farm dinners had to collide at some point, and this was the collision Sunday. As it turned out though, the rain did little to dampen spirits.
Though it did dilute the cocktails, or rather, it gave us an excuse to top off our drinks quickly…
Under the canopy of trees, we waited, but the rain showed no signs of ceasing.
In a really impressive, impromptu, on-their-toes approach, the Cure team devised a Plan B. To the tool barn!
This dampened dinner reinforced the casual, communal nature of these gatherings. Rather than complaints and grumbles, there was laughter to be heard.
Diners ducked under umbrellas or trees to help move place settings. They grabbed towels to dry chairs and glasses. They squeezed onto a porch, and they ate off coolers and adirondack chairs.
They did all of that without complaint because the food was worth it!
Salumi
mustards, pickles, crostini
Laurel Hills Farm Smoked Trout
garden beans, spalla, pickled shallot, golden crumb, goat feta, dill flowers
Porchetta
pickled zucchini, golden raisin- hazelnut soffritto
Chanterelles
smoked spelt berries, peaches, bacon, pesto, frisee
Pennsylvania Cheeses (not shown)
blackberries, blueberries, candied nuts, honey olive oil
When it rains, it pours [rosé], so really, how could we complain? In the end, this will probably be the farm dinner we all remember the most!
Farm Dinner series by Justin Severino & Cure Restaurant
White Oak Farm
Allison Park, PA