Last week local pastry chef Chris Wick was the sous chef for Nick Roumel, when Nick and his daughter Olivia cooked for FM@SELMA.  It was clear to everyone that she has it goin’ on!   Thanks to Chris’s enthusiastic willingness to come back again this week, the tables were turned.  Chris took the controls, and Nick was her wing man.

These two are a great team, whoever happens to be driving, but this week Chris got a chance to shine in the starring role.  Her two specials were both so good Jeff and I decided to get one of each, and share. Note to self: next time remember Jeff eats way faster than I do.  Needless to say, I went back for seconds.  And it was all incredibly delicious and satisfying.

Let’s start with the crepe.  Made with buckwheat flour from Westwind Mill,  the flavor was rich and toothsome.  Served with a single bright orange yolked egg from Dry Bucket Farm smack in the center, these crepes were beautiful and luscious.  The garden greens from our front yard beds, along with a choice of bacon or sausage rounded out the dish perfectly.

Chris’s second special was fresh sour cherry clafoutis, a wonderful baked dish made up of  eggs, milk, sugar and a bit of flour.  Clafoutis is like a bread pudding without the bread– a creamy, richly luxurious dish that was made even more incredible by the sour cherries.  Served up with a mixed berry sauce made of blueberries, cherries and raspberries, chantilly cream, almond caramel brittle, and a side of bacon or sausage, this lovely offering was a Selma Cafe winner for sure.

This weeks bread pudding was also a celebration of the season.  Peaches from the farmer’s market were layered inside, creating a fabulous sweetness and texture, and to make it even better, it was topped with a raspberry honey sauce, and served with a side of bacon.

Thanks to everyone who helped bring Selma Cafe to life this week.  Thursday evening prep brought record numbers, and we got done in record time.  Thanks to Susie Baity Stearns and Michelle Fortin for facilitating prep and finding jobs for everyone, Dan Vernia for his ability to do everything with ease, and his absolutely spot on cherry sauce for the waffles.  Thanks too, for everyone else who got everything ready for today: Nick and Olivia Roumel, Jennifer Jensen, Amanda Schott, Anne Karle Zenith, Elaine Alexander, Rachel Gooze, Elizabeth and Shane Beers, J.T. Lee, Olivia Molitor, Melissa Roach, Noah Miller, Brittany Brown and Joy Shannon.

Thanks also to our Friday morning crew.  Thank you thank you to Remi Holden and Kelen McGee for expediting, Susie Baity Stearns for hosting, and Michelle Fortin, Jennifer Jensen, Joel Panozzo, Lisa Dugdale, and Dorran Dihle for an awesome (as usual) clean up brigade, plus Rob Caplis, Rachel Gooze, Ellen Maloney, JD and Christine Deucher, Noah Miller, Brittany Brown and Nevon Clark for  doing everything else to make our morning spectacular.

Next week we look forward to Tammy Coxen coming back into our kitchen to whip us up some terrific breakfast specials.  Be sure to stop by next Friday morning to enjoy breakfast with us, and if you’d like a chance to come help us out for Thursday prep or Friday service, please sign up here.

Until then, enjoy everything summer in the mitten has to offer, and I look forward to seeing you in our kitchen sometime soon,

~Lisa