St. Edward’s University’s Office of Sustainability has launched Farm to Work on campus, an initiative designed by the Sustainable Food Center here in Austin. Tecolote, out of Manor, Texas, is the new farm that partnered with the university.
Tecolote, the first Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) farm in Texas, started out with just 16 members in 1994. The demand for certified organic vegetables was virtually non-existent back then, but these days Austin restaurants seem to be characterized by where they source their produce from. Almost all 19 restaurants that buy from Tecolote advertise themselves as farm-to-table.
While local food seems to be increasing in popularity exponentially, Tecolote remains a modest family farm just 13 miles outside of downtown Austin. The farm’s emphasis on close relationships within the community is extended to those that choose to participate in the CSA programs.
Kelsey McClure, administrative coordinator for the Office of Admission at St. Ed’s, grew up on a ranch in Blanco, Texas and has always valued fresh food. She has recently become the caretaker for her father who has cancer, and sees making dinner for him with what she receives from Tecolote as her way of supporting both her family and the community.
Via Facebook: Red beets, purple kohlrabi, fennel, Japanese turnips, garlic chives, broccoli, cabbage, Euro salad mix, curly kale, carrots, Daikon radish
In addition to the CSA programs around Austin and delivering produce to many popular Austin restaurants, Tecolote provides recipes using what’s in the baskets on their website. Kohlrabi, a featured veggie in one of the baskets last month, could be used in an easy-to-make slaw at home or be made into Nukazuke, Japanese pickles made by fermenting vegetables in rice bran, alongside other Tecolote produce at Emmer & Rye, a relatively new seasonally inspired restaurant here in Austin.
As Austin continues to grow by 100 people a day, Tecolote will most likely increase in their partnerships with residents and restaurants alike, but it’s doubtful they’ll get caught up in the hype and stop embracing their motto, “Awesome, Not Perfect.”
Tecolote in relation to all the restaurants that source from the farm.
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