Farm Fresh Eggs

 My neighbor  has about 30-40 chickens and whenever we need eggs I send one of the kids over with money and our egg basket. The other night I walked over with Maddie to get eggs for breakfast. There is something simple and almost peaceful about going and collecting your own eggs.

It was a beautiful night...

The barn..

She also has a huge, beautiful garden

Meet a few of the girls....

The black and white ones are my favorites.

this girl is busy..

Maddie and I collected eggs. I was so impressed at how she moves around that barn, she owns that place. I think she is a wanna be cowgirl like her Momma! She knows exactly what to do in there and isn't the least bit intimidated.

                                                               simple and beautiful...

We took them all to the office and did a tally..

We  collected 34 eggs. I should have brought my big egg basket!!

We left our $4.00 and left with a dozen fresher than fresh eggs!!

I know some of you are gasping that we spend $4.00 a dozen on eggs. Let me tell you, these are no ordinary eggs. The come from the chicken to my kitchen.

 You can see and taste the difference. Fresh organic eggs have a clearer white and a bright orange yolk. The taste is amazing. They are fresh, I know that the chickens have adequate space, clean environment, are feed well and cared for. I would purchase organic eggs at the grocery store for around $3 and they would not be as fresh as these. I buy all my animal products organic. Milk, eggs and meat always, most of my dairy is organic but cost wise I can't do it all. I do make sure my dairy is from cows not treated with the rBST hormone. "They" say it makes no difference, but... I don't want any artificial hormones in my families diet if at all possible.

I'm sure it grosses some people out that my eggs are just left in a basket on my kitchen counter. Let me explain.... 

Eggs stay fresher if you don't wash them at all. When hens lay eggs, there is a natural coating on them called the "bloom" that helps keep out bacteria. When you wash eggs, you drive some bacteria in through the pores of the shell, so you really shouldn't wash them at all. If the nests are clean, your eggs should be clean.  I do wash our eggs right before using. 

Fresh eggs don't even need to be refrigerated if they're going to be used soon. They can be kept at room temperature. Refrigeration will keep them fresher longer, but we eat our eggs rather quickly.

I make the kids eggs most mornings before school and we always have boiled eggs in the refrigerator for my salads, Conner and I eat boiled eggs for snacks or a quick breakfast. I do keep boiled eggs in the refrigerator.

Thanks for visiting the farm with me today! ~Shelby