Check out the menu… and come hungry!

William and Jessica of Son of a Sailor - fantastic local jewelry designers and great friends of ours – are throwing a collection launch party to kick off the fall season in style. The big unveiling of POLARIS is happening tomorrow night (Sept 20), 7-10pm at Parts and Labour on South Congress. It’s sure to be a delightful evening… full of local art, music, drinks, food (by yours truly) and of course beautiful jewelry.

We’re even more excited about this opportunity because we’re super inspired by their style, and our food will reflect their bold colors and geometric aesthetic. PLUS, we’re creating a special watermelon and mint agua fresca that will pair nicely with that Deep Eddy Vodka… a sweet and slightly spicy complement to the local fare. The watermelons all come from -W Farm and Ranch in Mullin, TX and they are DELICIOUS.

Check out the menu, and come hungry (and thirsty!) tomorrow night…

More info about the event HERE>>

Without giving away ALL of our secrets… here are the basics:

1. Roast the veggies (in this case sweet potatoes, red peppers and onions from Johnson’s Backyard Garden)

2. Beat the eggs (from Soncrest Egg Farm)

3. Pour the eggs over the veggies and cook at 300.

4. Let cool, slice it up, and serve on skewers!

Here are a few snapshots of the process…

We’re always excited to plan for a whole new season, and so while it’s still 100° in Austin, we’re dreaming about apples, butternut squash and roasted pumpkin seeds. We’re also excited to hear that lots of farmers will have tomatoes, corn, and various fruits well into the harvest season.

Did you know that our farm-fresh fare also pairs well with locally crafted beer, tunes, and even handmade jewelry and art? We love to team up with other creative folk, and everyone knows that a party is much more fun if there’s a theme. So… let us know what you have going on, and we can design a menu to complement! You can even fill out our SOURCE Catering Questionnaire so we can get to know you a little better off the bat.

We’re also adding a Brunch & Lunch menu this fall, to better serve those of you who are asking for healthy alternatives to the pizza board meeting or have a baby shower to plan. Finally, we’re scheming some new BYOB Specialty Cocktails! Stay tuned for details. We’re getting thirsty already…

Even if you’re not looking for a caterer, check out our Fall Sample Menus and feel free to share!

Farmers Cookie and Renee started working the land in 2008 – cultivating the soil and building a beautiful modern farm house (featuring standing seam metal walls and an awesomely large Big Ass Fan). Now in their first planting year, they just harvested bright summer & winter squash and some of the best (and yellowest) heirloom watermelon we’ve ever had. According to Renee, “they taste like real watermelon, like the melons from my childhood with the good spittin’ seeds,” and she’s right – we tasted the melon AND tested those seeds for good spittin’ distance.

In addition to delicious produce and beautiful flowers, RRR has laying hens, Boer goats, heritage Red Waddle/Big Black pigs, and Muscovy Ducks.  All of the livestock is fed on Coyote Creek Organic Feed and from foraging the land.

You can meet Renee and learn more about RRR Farm every Sunday at HOPE Farmers Market… and look for their ingredients on our menus this summer and fall!

As part of the menu for the upcoming Homesweet Cocktails & Homegrown Tomatoes event at Springdale Farm, we’re excited to feature a new offering: farm-inspired cocktails!  As this is our first attempt at mixology, we teamed up our friends over at Nom Nom PR and headed over to Springdale for an evening of R&D with a bottle of Tito’s, a juicer, and a whole bunch of farm veggies.  (There was obviously a lot of arm twisting involved in convincing everyone to participate)

The results?  2 delicious cocktails that should help keep us all cool at the party!  It’s supposed to be over 100 degrees this week, so we’ll need it.  If you haven’t bought your ticket to the event yet, perhaps these drink descriptions will convince you to JOIN US!

Cocktail descriptions by Nom Nom PR…

“The Heirloom Maria”
The “Heirloom Maria” is a wonderful “farm to bar” cocktail featuring Tito’s vodka, Springdale Farm heirloom tomatoes & pepper-infused simple syrup, and a splash of SOURCE green tomato pickle juice topped off with a bracing fizz of Topo Chico.  Sit back and enjoy this tasty, slightly spicy treat! The fresh local produce plays as important a role as the liquor in creating a drink that may very well be described as a cocktail salad (or vice versa)!  The “Heirloom Maria” is like a Bloody Mary cranked down to a low, elegant whisper.

ingredients
Tito’s vodka
Heirloom tomato juice
Pepper-infused simple syrup
Green tomato pickle juice
Salt
Topo Chico
Pepper garnish

“El Cukito” (pronounced: L Cuke-ito)
Blending Tito’s vodka with the refreshing juice of Springdale Farm cucumbers muddled with a basil-infused simple syrup and brightened up with fresh basil leaves, “El Cukito” (the little cucumber) is an icy cocktail with just enough kick to keep you on your toes without knocking you out.  The light flavor of cucumber feels instantly summer-like while the basil and lemon bring a little energy to the drink. With temperatures rising into the 90s and above, everyone is looking for a way to cool off.  “El Cukito” is here to save the day!

ingredients
Tito’s vodka
Cucumber juice
Basil-infused simple syrup
Lemon
Salt
Topo Chico
Basil garnish

Photos from our recent Pies & Pigs benefit at Springdale Farm!

The Austin food community really went all out for this one – Three Little Pigs, Salt & Time, Bola Pizza, Pâté Letelier, HOPE Farmers Market vendors and many other local food artisans supplied the food (using pigs & produce donated from local farmers).  Local “Celebrity Chefs” made beautiful pies for auction, Austin breweries kept the beer flowing, Whiskey Shivers and the Greyhounds kept the crowd entertained, there was even a pie eating contest… the list goes on and on!

The best part?  Not only was it a good party… but it was for a great cause.  We raised OVER $21,000 for our dear friend Colleen Sommers of Pie Fixes Everything.  She was recently diagnosed with breast cancer, and the funds will allow her to step back from the demanding pie business for a few months and focus on getting well.

Through this event, we realized just how lucky we are to have such a strong and supportive local food community. It’s amazing what we can accomplish when we all get together to celebrate and share some delicious food.  As Todd Rungy (the MC for our pie eating contest) would say — Keep Eating for America… and for Colleen!

Beautiful photos by Lisa Munoz.

Scottie, the SOURCE Pickle Master, tweaked our kohlrabi recipe (see older post).  Then we cut ‘em all up, added some onion, garlic & spices, and filled dozens of jars with a BEAUTIFUL summer pickle mix!

Come try some THIS SUNDAY at the HOPE Farmers Market Sample Station!

Homesweet Homegrown is a DIY food book that empowers people everywhere to grow (and preserve) their own organic, non-gmo food, wherever they live.  $15 tickets include a signed copy of the book!

Buy Your Ticket HERE!

Book website: Homesweet Homegrown
Author Robyn Jasko is also the founder of Grow Indie.com