Hello out there! It’s been a busy few weeks which has contributed to me getting behind in the “thanks and appreciation” department. This is a reflection only on my being spread a little thin– the excitement and enthusiasm about our FM @SELMA remains constant. I promise I’ll try to keep up in the future. AND, there is always room for others to post their thoughts too! Please contribute.
Let’s catch up a bit, shall we? 3 weeks ago Janea Mikowski from Carson’s American Bistro thrilled us with her specials–biscuits and gravy with an herb scramble, and a poached egg a top a veggie ragout. I loved the variety of flavors in Janea’s dishes, and so did everybody else–we ate it all! Even better, Janea clearly knows her way around a kitchen–and matches Silvio for calm and an easy going approach.
The following week I got my bake on with some help from Eve Aranoff’s perfect bread pudding recipe. Rich and eggy, with fresh raspberries, this recipe is easy to follow and is a real crowd pleaser. For our gluten-free friends, I also made a potato and kale strata with garlic and cheddar cheese that was served with some hoop house greens. I could not have pulled this off without the tons of help from all our hard working volunteers.
Last week, Olivia May stepped up with two lovely offerings–a baked zucchini and cheese tart in a buttery herb crust, and the same herb crust gently cradling an egg baked with our home cured bacon. Wow! She’s young, but the girl rocks out the food! Both dishes were topped with a wonderfully flavorful tomato and walnut tapenade, and served with spicy home fries and hoop house greens.
Since I have a way lighter work load in the summer, I’ll be bringing you breakfast again this Friday with two offerings– blueberry bread pudding (thanks again dear Eve!) made with my own home made challah, and chipotle flavored deviled eggs a top a mix of zucchini, onions and garlic, served with a fresh herb infused shortbread and a side of oven roasted potatoes and hoop house greens.
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Due to the length of time between this post and my last, I don’t have a comprehensive list of all the many volunteers who showed up Thursday nights and Friday mornings to make the magic happen. I’m truly sorry about this, since the volunteers are the ONLY, and I mean ONLY way our weekly breakfast salon can sustain it’s juice. So, if you helped out, in any capacity, which many of you did, massive appreciation and thanks are heading out of my finger tips and heart right to ya! I hope you can feel the love.
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Nearly two weeks ago I had a meeting with the legal counsel and staff of the County Department of Planning and Environment to discuss their concerns regarding our FM @SELMA activities. Thanks to the help of our exceptionally generous friend Kurt Berggren, and the good people of the County Dept., the meeting was cordial, thoughtful and very productive. If things go as planned, I will tell all next week– but in the mean time you can relax, dream about the good breakfasts to come, and visualize hoop houses springing to life around us, knowing that FM @SELMA is ok to go. Stay tuned.
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Finally, I want to give a shout out to regular SELMA friends Nick Durrie and Carisa Wilder who, along with their older daughter Leila, welcomed the newest addition to their family– little baby girl Iris. Nicely done Carisa! Hope to see you soon in our kitchen.
Until next time, enjoy these long summer days, and take a long moment to appreciate all the bounty the earth, sun and rain bring to us through the hard and steady work of our local farmers. ~Lisa