Blake Reetz and Helen Harding of EAT (you may remember them from Jefferson Market 1.0) made food last Friday morning that was so delicious and amazing the normal buzz and chatter of Selma guests turned to oohhs and aahhs of delight over their two specials.  The first, corned beef hash topped with a poached egg and horseradish sauce was just right for the omnivores in the house–wonderfully rich and meaty, the egg perfectly done, and the horseradish with just enough bite to round out all the flavors.  The second special, potato and parsnip cakes fried up with cheddar cheese, and served with a side of warm apple compote and creme fraiche was just as toothsome and satisfying.  These two EAT maestros can really bring it!

Helping with Thursday night prep was a great crew led by Remi Holden: Kate Long, Amanda Schott, Shana Kimball, Janet Shane, Deirda Stockmann, Claire Maitre, Holly Lubowicke all worked together to get it all ready for the morning.  Friday morning helpers, led by Susie Baity Stearns included Robbie Moore, Dan Blair, Jean Henry, Evan Dayringer, Nate Lada, Gary Mazzeo, Jennifer Jensen and Remi Holden.  Thanks to everyone for showing up with enthusiasm and stamina!

If you have been wondering what it might be like to volunteer for our FM @Selma activities, please sign up here and come on by for some fun.

Hope to see you in our kitchen sometime soon either helping or eating,

Lisa

Friday Mornings @Selma launched full on into the new year’s sea with Captain Dan Vernia and his devoted crew mates Katey Wietor and Jared Bogdanov-Hanna at the helm. Thursday prep flew by with this super organized gang of three! At the ready were awesome prepsters JD Rubin, Christine Deucher, Olivia May, Sara Schlotterbeck, Jennifer Jensen, Susie Baity-Stearns and Nevon Clark who were able oars folk with knife and cutting board in hand. They diced, sliced, poached, wrapped, baked and magically created the wonderful mix of winter veggies lovingly wrapped in a rich brioche dough. Coulibiac is a Russian dish that takes yummy things like fish, meat or veggies and covers it all over with a rich egg bread. In this case, the veggies were winter squash and peppers, and the meat was Jeff’s pancetta. Topped with a poached egg, peach chutney and delicate green pea tendrils, this was one toothsome and tasty repast. No wonder we call it a special!

Friday morning dawned snowy and cold, with many of us who work in a school setting wishing for our first snow day of the season. Okay, so I forgot to flush an ice cube down the toilet, put my pajamas on backwards and sleep with a spoon under my pillow. Sorry, I was busy thinking about gettin’ ready for Selma!!

Dan, Anne Brazauskas, Katey and Jared rolled into the kitchen from various guestrooms ready to poach eggs, fry bacon and plate all the wonderful food. We also had Remi Holden, Shawna Lee, Nate Lada, Evan Dayringer, Jenny Jensen and Robbie Moore on hand to help with every task that needed doing. It was really gratifying to have a bunch of volunteers showing up to take care of a smooth service and thorough clean up. Thanks to everyone who helped support FM @Selma on our journey into the new year.

If you’ve been thinking about volunteering, but need just a bit more encouragement–here it is: Please, we really need your help. Because Selma is an all volunteer operation, if we don’t have help, it just won’t happen. Come on a Thursday evening to prep food and set up the tables and chairs, or sign up for a Friday shift and make waffles, wait tables, wash dishes, brew coffee, or feed and water the chickens! Even a little bit of help is appreciated! Come on over and help when ever it works for you–early shift to serve food, or later shift for clean up. It’s fun, delicious and you’ll feel great knowing you are an active and important part of supporting our local food and farm economy.

Happy New Year, and I hope to see you soon in our kitchen,
Lisa