September 30, 2016

Culinary-star-studded fundraiser offers rare regional foods from a bygone era

Liquor, chow chow and “city chicken” will be served up in a scenic setting

By Caroline Russock

Dean Carlson/for PhillyVoice

Wyebrook Barn in Honey Brook, PA will be the setting for a fundraiser for the Keystone Center.

What do you get when you bring together a Pennsylvania food historian, a legendary Lancaster County farmer and enough kitchen talent to set a certain restaurant critic’s bells a ringing?

This Tuesday you’ll get a glorious collaboration dinner set on the grounds of a scenic farm in Chester Country — with all proceeds going to benefit one of the state’s most fascinating culinary history endeavors.

The Keystone Center is a foundation devoted to preserving Pennsylvania’s historic foodways, unique recipes and techniques, as well as propagating and preserving regional plants and seeds for farming. The advisory board of the foundation brings together folks who are passionate about hanging on to the state’s edible heritage, a lineup that includes wine and cheese makers, restaurant owners, horticulturists and professors specializing in everything from Pennsylvania German heritage to hospitality.

For this particular meal, the Keystone Center has assembled an all-star team to curate an evening devoted to Pennsylvania born-and-bred eats and drinks on the pastoral grounds of Wyebrook Farms in Honey Brook. William Woys Weaver, an unparalleled expert on the state’s edible history is keeping the menu authentic while Glenn Brendle will be supplying produce from his Green Meadow Farm in Gap and Wyebrook owner, Dean Carlson who will be providing some of the proteins for the meal.

The menu is a collaborative effort from Le Bec Fin and La Croix alum chef Steve Eckerd and Spike Gjerde, owner of ‪Woodberry Kitchen in Baltimore. A number of familiar Philly names had hands in menu planning as well, including Jon Adams of Rival Bros. Coffee, all-star bakers Alex Bois and Jenny Bardwell, caterer Alex Garfinkel, and Doe Run Farms’ cheesemaker Sam Kennedy.

The event opens with a cocktail hour beckoning back to pre-Prohibition times. The meal kicks off with rye and fish house punches, and small bites like local cheeses and pickled trout.

The remainder of the meal is a trip back in time that includes chow chow (a vinegary vegetable salad gussied up here with black currant leaf vinaigrette), a Caribbean trade-influenced pepper pot soup made with chiles and tripe, and a regional curiosity known as city chicken — a dish with decidedly rural roots and not a hint of poultry in the mix.

Local beers and wines from Galen Glen of Andreas, PA will be flowing all night long.