Mary Wessel Walker has been a FM@Selma regular from the start, and Friday morning she took the chef plunge with sous chef Anna Secreast at her side. Mary is an apprentice farmer at the Community Farm, and is the owner/operator of the Community Farm Kitchen. Anna currently works at the People’s Food Co-op, and is looking forward to spending the summer at Tantre’ Farm and then heading to Central Asia in the fall with the Peace Corp. We were really excited when Mary decided to bring her skills to our kitchen last week. She and Anna created two specials that were beautifully delicious. The first, apple spiced waffles, was like an apple pie waffle, sweet, cinnamon-y and even better with butter and maple syrup. The second special was a wonderful, savory, deep winter quiche with bacon for the omnivores, and bacon free for the vegetarians. The quiche had a corn meal crust that took it to a whole other level of tasty.

We also served our weekly regular specials: blueberry bread pudding and granola, yogurt and fruit parfaits.

Thank you to our Thursday night prep volunteers Peter Scherer, Michael McIntyre, Julie Ritter, Jason Bates, Lotus Yu, Anita Sherman Moran, Michelle Fortin, Sarah and Judith Rontal, Emily Stearns, Garin Fons, Jennifer Jensen, Nevon Clark, Claire Maitre, and Remi Holden. With so many helpful hands, prep happened fast, our dinner break was a party, and we finished up right on time.

Friday morning volunteers were in abundance! Thank you Robbie Moore, Siri Gottlieb, Nevon Clark, Jason Bates, Melanie Adams, Amanda Klain, Cynthia Hann, Kris Kaul, Anita Sherman Moran, Jeff Tenza, Larry Maguire, Susie Baity Stearns and Remi Holden.

It was a pretty impressive group of volunteers bringing you breakfast last week, and we are thrilled that nearly a year has gone by, and FM@Selma continues to grow and bloom.

If you have considered volunteering, but haven’t yet jumped on board, don’t hesitate any longer! Sign up, come on over, and we will find something fun and helpful for you to do.

We hope to see you around the kitchen soon!
~Lisa

I’m kicking myself that I didn’t have my camera charged and ready to go to capture the beauty of the lovely woven baskets overflowing with artisan bread placed in the middle of the island and on the dining room table.  And I missed out on a chance to get some sweet pictures of Rachel and Tarek’s colorful and creative bottles of super-duper kombucha that they generously shared with our guests through the morning.  Lucky for me, (and for you) both Mill Pond Bakery and Unity Vibration Living Kombucha Tea have terrific websites with great pictures.  I’ve included a couple of photos to spark your interest, but be sure to follow the links and check out their websites for yourself.

Mill Pond gave us two terrific specials.  First, a plate of softly scrambled buttery eggs from Dry Bucket Farms, served with a side of TMZ’s grass fed beef tenderloin and some hoop house greens.  This was the kind of breakfast that can keep a cowgirl going ’til supper.  The second special showed off the specialty breads of Mill Pond.  Slices of Mill Pond stollen and schnitzbrot (dried fruit and nut infused enriched whole wheat breads) soaked in eggs and cream made incredible French toast, topped with house made creme fraiche and served with Mama Mofoods seitan a rich and savory fermented wheat meat alternative.  We also had our weekly specials of whole grain waffles and blueberry bread pudding to round out the options.

I’ve never been a fan of Kombucha until I tried what Rachel and Tarek are brewing up in ypsilanti.  They brought lots of bottles with lots of flavors, including pineapple ginger, grape and pear.  The bottles are the perfect size for taking to a party, a potluck, or any other event where you want to share something gently fizzy, refreshing and fun with your friends.

We’ve had a wonderful surge of new volunteers, who along with those who’ve been around for a bit, combine to create a fun and efficient crew for Selma prep night.  Mill Pond’s exceptional crew was a bread-y trinity, with John Savanna (Mr. Mill Pond himself), Gabe Blauer and Sarah Ladd keeping everyone on track and with a job to do.  The other prep’sters were Michelle Fortin, Gary Hochgraf, Robbie Moore, Matt Burton, Joanna Campbell, Nick and Olivia Roumel, Garin Fons, Nevon Clark, Kate Long, Anita Sherman Moran, and last but not least, Remi Holden who has created some new protocols and organizational tools that really make the whole prep night run more smoothly.

Friday morning helpers this week included Rob Foley, Siri Gottlieb, Robbie Moore, Kate Long, Laura Matney, Ruthann Nichols, Evan Dayringer, Zoya and John Erdevig, Janet Shane, Matt Burton, Shawna Jo Lee, Remi Holden, and Susie Baity Stearns.  Big props to the early shift–they manage to get themselves here in the cold and dark of a January winter morning at 6:00 am to get things going on time and with a smile on their faces.  Huge thanks to one and all who made this past week a fun and delicious event–all for a great cause.

Please come help us keep FM@Selma sustainable.  Looking forward to seeing you in our kitchen soon,

Lisa