Nick Roumel, local attorney, writer, chef, and way cool cat has cooked for us before with local chef and baker Olivia May. This time, he teamed up with his daughter Olivia, and pastry chef Christine Wick to show us some Selma Cafe love.
Olivia, a soon-to-be 9th grader at Pioneer high school, decided on a vegan inspired breakfast special, with moist and delicious blueberry muffins, and sliced, marinated and baked tempeh as a substitute for bacon. Served with apple sauce and garnished with raspberries, this special was a great way to gently start the morning for vegans and omnivores alike.
Meanwhile, Nick and Christine focused on a platter of Greek inspired breakfast treats. Straight from the oven and still warm, the pita bread was a perfect compliment to baked eggs and kale with sheeps milk cheese, and the thinly sliced gyros made from local lamb and ground pork. Served with some garlic scape, cucumber and raw milk yogurt tzadziki and a fresh tomato topped with green peas, this dish rocked the house.
In addition to the usual early morning excitement of Selma Cafe, for the first time, we had live music inside our kitchen during breakfast service. Lea Detlefs and Alex Belhaj came by to serenade us with violin and guitar. Jeff and I first heard this sweet duo last weekend at Pickerel Lake. They were playing some great songs, we started to chat, and within minutes, a plan was formed. They would play music for Selma Cafe the following week, and we would feed them a Friday Mornings@SELMA breakfast. The music was beautiful, they ate well, and we hope they come back soon. Thank you both for such lovely tunes.
We have some extra big thanks to give our volunteers this week. Jeff and I slipped away early from Thursday prep to celebrate our anniversary at Brandon John’s The Grange, one of our favorite local foods restaurants in town. When we came home, prep was complete, and sweet Joanna Campbell had left us this delightful paper message. In addition to Joanna, our Thursday evening crew included Susie Baity Stearns, Megan Zlatos, Emma Saireld, Denise Toomasian, Corky and Matt Burton, Shannon Riffe, Janet Max, Ed Weymouth, Greta Spivey, Olivia Gramprie, Mary G., Remi Holden, and Michelle Fortin. Thank you everyone!
Friday morning’s crew deserves some extra thanks too. It was a really busy morning, and there was a whole lot to do. Thank you Siri Gottlieb, Courtney Peterson, Nevon Clark, Marian Turner, Rex Roof, Noah Miller, Brittany Brown, Andrew Bozio, Megan Zlatos, Joel Panozzo, Gary Mazzeo, and Michelle Fortin.
Friday mornings wouldn’t be the same without Sunseed Farm’s CSA delivery. Take a look at what is available these days, including fresh chicken and duck eggs from Sunseed Farm’s neighbor Sue.
Well, it’s the end of the post, and I just can’t help myself. I’m sharing with you this photo I snapped of Jeff as we were heading out the door to serve the guests at the Bona Sera BBQ pig roast dinner last night. Hey, Wonder Woman told him to wear some Daisy Dukes, and we all know it’s best to do what Wonder Woman wants. Lest she get angry and never cook for Selma Cafe again. I know!! I know!! Those legs just won’t quit! And those bicpes, oo lala. With his suede boots and straw hat rounding out the look, I was fighting back the groupies the whole night. What is it about a man in short shorts??
Have a happy week, and I hope to see you in our kitchen soon,
~Lisa
This salsa included fresh, local, juicy tomatoes from the Ann Arbor Farmer’s Market, along with green onions and cilantro from our front yard garden. The salsa was served with Linda Diane’s huevos rancheros special.
Linda also offered a wild greens and veggie soup, with miso and a mandala of egg swirled into the broth, served with service berry corn bread.
And, last but not least, I have some exciting news to share. I am pleased to let you know that a Selma Cafe cook book is in the works. Our guest chefs have cooked up some delicious, creative and beautiful specials over the last 16 months, and they have graciously agreed to share their recipes with you! I’m in the process of collecting the recipes, and my plan is to pull the book together this summer. Do you have a favorite special that you would like to make at home? Let me know what it is and who made it, and I’ll see what I can do. In the meantime, please sign up 
The first special this week was a lovely Swedish pancake, Ann Arbor style, with local everything. The pancake was rich with eggs and milk, topped with luscious strawberries and Calder dairy whipped cream. We served it with some smoky bacon and a beautiful salad mix given to us from Beverly at Needlelane Farm. Not too sweet, just full of the juicy deliciousness of fresh berries, balanced by the perfect salty finish of the bacon. I can see Swedish pancake, which was a first for us, becoming a regular feature as more and more fruit becomes available through the summer.
The second special featured Mill Pond Bread’s Lithuanian Rye which is the most flavorful rye bread around. Toasted and slathered with butter, it was a toothsome balance to the soft and creamy omelette, filled with sheep’s milk goat cheese, garlic scapes and two kinds of choi. This was also served with bacon, a side of salad and garnished with a baby carrot harvested from our Tessmer Farm hoop house.
It continues to amaze us how much a dedicated, passionate and hard working crew of people can get done in a day while connecting with wonderful people, eating amazing meals, and knowing that their efforts will bring fresh, healthy food to our community.
Oh! One last thing. Remember, we have 
