Minding the Hen House
This weekend, my husband and I are watching two neighbors’ homes while they are out of town—one family is on vacation in Disney World and the other is in northern Indiana at the wedding of their oldest son. When we lived in the city, watching someone’s home generally involved taking in the daily mail, watering a few houseplants and feeding a cat or two. But here the task is much more interesting and complex. We have one dog boarding with us for three days and three dogs to feed and water down the road; plus, we have to take care of a bunch of rabbits, a couple of cats and a kitten, three hogs that are being groomed for the county fair and a flock of chickens. Not counting playing with the dog who is boarding with us (Greta, a vivacious 3 year old Weimaraner, is my dog Rufus’ play buddy and I adore her), my favorite activity is minding the hen house.
My neighbor Jane Mohler raises Arucana chickens. She has over 30 big fluffy hens who lay colored eggs of pastel green, sky blue, cappuccino brown, golden caramel, and creamy pink. It looks like the Easter Bunny visits the hen house every morning.
While most chickens are raised in somewhat close quarters, even in USDA approved commercial conditions, Jane’s chickens happily travel over several acres in their spacious fenced off grassy, tree bordered pasture. They feast daily on vegetables and bread (and an occasional popcorn snack) along with their feed. In the evening they retire to a spacious, scrupulously clean hen house. With their resort-like living conditions and healthy diet, these happy ladies produce the most incredible eggs with clear firm whites and bright sunny yellow yolks that stand up like ping pong balls.
If you ever get a chance to baby sit some chickens, let me give you a tip. Do not, I repeat, do not, wear sandals into the pasture, especially if you have a brightly colored polish on. The chickens will storm your toes thinking they are some delicious new snack. This is the voice of experience speaking here. Other than that, it’s pretty tame. Honestly, it’s a joyful activity. I can see where Jane has developed a deep affection for her flock. The first time you place your hand under a hen and feel the warmth of a newly laid egg is a wonderful experience. And, outside of the unfortunate sandal episode, they are pretty sweet creatures.
As you might have guessed, we eat quite a few eggs. Although they are high in cholesterol (213 grams per egg—all in the yolk) with six grams of protein and 80 calories per large egg (60 in the yolk and 20 in the white), they’re a nutritious choice for any meal. The egg white is said to be the perfect protein. Within the past few years, the panic over the high cholesterol content of egg yolks has appeared to subside. According to the American Egg Board (www.aeb.org) studies have now shown that many people on a low-fat diet can, with their physician’s approval, eat one or two eggs a day without measurable changes in their blood cholesterol levels.
U.S. egg operations produce close to 100 billion eggs annually with three-fourths of them used for human consumption and the remainder for the hatching market. The top five egg-producing states are Iowa, Ohio, Pennsylvania, California and, my home state, Indiana. This weekend, I gathered up 41 eggs. A far cry from 100 billion, but it was quite a bounty for me.
I decided to make scrambled eggs for supper on Sunday night. Nothing fancy, just farm fresh eggs, less than 24 hours old, scrambled in a bit of butter and sprinkled with a pinch of salt and pepper. I started to chop some French Tarragon from my herb garden for a bit of garnish and decided against it. Why mess with perfection?
Made with butter, eggs, whole or 2% milk, salt and freshly ground black pepper
Serves/Makes: 2
- 4 large fresh eggs, room temperature
- 1 tablespoon whole or 2% milk
- 1 dash salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Crack the eggs into a medium size bowl.
Add the milk, salt and pepper and whisk for about 60 seconds.
Heat the butter, over medium heat, in an 8 or 10 inch non-stick skillet.
Add the egg mixture just when the butter begins to sizzle.
As the eggs begin to set, gently and slowly draw a wooden spatula or spoon though the center of the egg mixture and around the sides and bottom of the pan to form large, soft curds.
Continue to cook the eggs in this manner until the eggs are thickened and no visible liquid egg remains. Do not vigorously stir the eggs during this process.
Remove the pan from the heat and place the eggs on a serving platter.
Serve immediately.
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1 comments
An excellent article about keeping chickens. I live on 2 acres and for a time had chickens. We raised them from little chicks and they became part of our family. The eggs were wonderful and we enjoyed watching Rocky our rooster protect his 13 girls. Unfortnatly the racoons came and in 1 night wiped out our flock. The recipe for scrambled eggs is a keeper. Thanks. J Lade
Comment posted by Johnny
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