What to do with your FRESH eggs

Okay, you found a place to buy real fresh eggs! Not the "fresh" eggs from the supermarket, FRESH eggs from either a farm, or a Farmers Market. Here's some tips on how to handle the eggs and storing them-

1. When an egg is going through the egg laying process many wonderful and curious biological adventures begin. Just like in humans a chicken releases an egg the difference is that a chicken releases an egg about once a day. How's that work?
   1. The chicken releases a yolk from her ovary into the oviduct.
   2. The yolk travels down the oviduct and picks up the albumin, or what is commonly called the egg white.
   3. After acquiring the egg white, the yolk continues its magical journey until it picks up the shell membrane that will hold the egg "insides" in place.
   4. After picking up the membrane the egg picks up the shell (which starts out soft!) which is made up of calcite, a crystalline form of calcium carbonate.
   5. After the shell is added the egg is ready to be laid but not before the bloom, a protective coating, is applied as the egg passes from the chicken.
      
       
2. After collecting eggs you can store them unwashed on the counter, but if you don't plan on eating them for a few days, it's a good idea to store them in the fridge. It's better to store them rounded side down, pointy side up to retain their moisture.
   
    
3. Washing the eggs should be done carefully and only right before you plan to use them, unless they are really soiled. Wash them by gently rubbing them with a damp paper towel. For stubborn spots, gently scrub them with running WARM (NOT COLD) water, using a scotch-brite pad. You should never use any kind of detergent unless specifically made for egg washing like Manna Pros Egg Wipes. After washing the egg, you MUST refrigerate it.
   
    
4. It's NOT unusual to find blood or meat spots in an egg. While it's fairly unappetizing to come across, it's perfectly safe to eat the egg. It just means the chicken had a broken blood vessel while the egg was passing through her reproductive tract. IT DOES NOT MEAN THE EGG WAS FERTILIZED! I had always been told that's what it meant, but I can assure you, that is untrue. I have FEMALE chickens, and not a roo for miles around us, and my first few eggs had blood spots.
   
    
5. Fresh eggs are beautiful to look at. The albumin is glossy, thick, and clear, and the yolk is beautiful deep yellow. As an egg ages, the white becomes thinner and cloudy. The yolk also fades in color as it ages.
   
    

 
Thanks for buying your eggs from Little Lane Farm! We hope these tips will help you understand the difference between "store fresh" and FARM FRESH as well as the way an egg is made!

 

Progress

It's hard to write a blog every day or every week when most of the time you're sitting around waiting for stuff to grow, and chickens and ducks to lay eggs!  I mean what do I write?  "Oh, watered plants, sat and waited"? 

However, progress is continually being made!  Every day my plants get a tiny bit bigger and every day that passes is a day closer to fresh eggs as the chickens and ducks are getting bigger!  

My husband graciously built a run for the chickens that is more solid than my plastic fence held together with zip ties!  

Till next time...

Everything In It's Place

Friday was a hot one, and for me, a bitey one!  I went to Home Depot, got some stakes and some fencing and built a chicken and duck run. 

It wasn't easy but it wasn't all that hard either. I rather enjoyed the sweat and blood, and dirt!  What didn't make me really thrilled was the stupid Mosquitos out there!  They are crazy bad here where I live!  We've had a fairly wet start to spring so far and the ground is pretty saturated. 

Nonetheless, it's a lot nicer to have the chickens and ducks in an area that allows them to find plenty of shade as the weather gets hotter. Plus they aren't spread out in the yard as bad and not pooping on EVERYTHING in sight!  Ya gotta take the good with the bad, right?  

Till next time...

Urban Homesteading

I am so excited to get things started around here. I have three month old chickens, two month old ducks, and as of May 1, plenty of wonderful herbs in the ground!  So far I planted flat parsley, German thyme, basil, sage, rosemary, lavender, chives, mint, chocolate mint, spearmint, and oregano!  In a few short weeks the chickens will be (hopefully) laying, and some great things are taking shape as far as stocking up on crafted items for sale!  (My favorite style is Americana Prim.) 

My husband is a retired Marine and we have lived on both sides of the US as well as in Chicago but nothing compares to "home". Home for me is Pa. Dutch country. If you've never been to central Pennsylvania, you don't know what you are missing!  The Dutch have the most amazing foods, and are exquisite craftsmen!  My home is decorated with a lot of Amish items and I tend to cook what I know- and that's Pa Dutch as well!

I have so many great things planned for my urban homesteading project and I really hope it all comes together as I imagine it!  Thanks for stopping by my blog and reading my updates!  Till next time...