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OZARKS COMMONS

What’s a girl to do with an abundance of eggs?

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I confess, I’m new to this chicken tending business. I was kind of thrust into it last fall when a rooster ran out toward my truck late one Friday night, and a couple of kind, young strangers cornered the plucky fella and put him in my arms.
We got him a few lady friends that weekend, one of which turned out to be a young rooster, but that’s a story for another day and another page. But long story short, our flock has now grown to 11 beautiful birds.
And as anyone who raises backyard chickens knows, they all have their own distinct personalities.
The wayward rooster, whom we have dubbed the Judge, loudly crows his opinions heard by neighbors for at least five blocks around. Madonna sings to me in exchange for routine cuddles. The Sisters Macbeth, who I can’t tell apart for the life of me, are inseparable and demand to be hand-fed chickweed.
And then there’s Lizzie. Our little white hen who seems to go broody every other week.
She’s an egg hoarder.
Another confession: I don’t check for eggs every single day. As far as I knew, only Lizzie and one other gal we call Blondie were laying. Most of the other hens are all young yet and I wasn’t expecting a whole lot of laying from them. I might have been wrong.
A little over a week ago, we mucked out their pen and gave their living quarters a good cleaning. I noticed Lizzie had built up quite a nest of 11 eggs. I was surprised — didn’t think she was laying that prolifically, and it had only been a few days since the last time I had checked. I figured some of the others must have started laying and she was stealing them.
We haven’t been planning to raise chicks just yet, still being newbies, but I decided to let her keep them and see what happened.
Well, two days later, we had a good storm that blew a tree down on a neighbor’s shed and clearly ruffled some feathers in our own backyard, because Lizzie decided she was done with that nest. She made a new nest and started sitting on eggs there, leaving her previous 11 untouched.
So, late last week, ahead of the incoming rain, we decided to add some reinforcements to their housing just in case any of it would be tempestuous. And I figured, while I’m in there, I’d just check the eggs to see if any of them were viable.
I candled all of the first 11, knowing full well what I’d find, and being completely right. Into the carton they went. Then I checked the six in Lizzie’s newest nest. Nope, nothing viable. To the carton.
Then I noticed, out of the corner of my eye, another egg peeking out of the bedding.
Huh. OK.
I grabbed and felt another next to it. And another.
Lizzie was not just stealing eggs, she was burying them. Everywhere. And when I say everywhere, I mean it. The nesting box is really just an extra large dog kennel — when you become overnight chicken farmers, you improvise — and the entire thing was just bedding hiding eggs.
I came out with 2 1/2 dozen eggs and a very important lesson learned.
Fortunately, expert guidance tells me that unwashed eggs can keep a couple of weeks unrefrigerated, and there are a few ways to check to see if they’ve gone bad, which I have learned from years of eating fresh eggs. They passed my tests.
The first one is pretty quick and simple and can be done right out in the yard, so the eggs can go in the compost if need be: Shake the egg. If you hear swishing, it’s a goner. Toss it. Now, being hard-of-hearing, I can’t hear swishing but I know what a watery yolk feels like when it’s shaken. Just the feeling of it makes my stomach turn. But if you shake an egg and it sounds like nothing, or feels like nothing, it’s good to keep.
Then there’s the old kitchen standby, the water test. Fill a bowl with enough water to cover an egg, plus a little extra, and put the whole egg in. If it floats, pitch it. If it sinks, it’s fine. If it lays down on its side, bonus — it’s extra fresh.
While they all sank, the eggs didn’t all lay on their sides, so I knew my time was limited. I’d have to use these eggs quick. I thought about pickling them, but I’m not quite ready for that level of commitment yet. Surely by this summer, I will be.
But I did find a few ways to use them, and not all for breakfast. For dinner last night, we ate fried rice, and I mixed an egg in while it cooked. Easy enough. I also like to add a fresh egg to a piping hot bowl of homemade ramen — if the soup is good and hot, the egg will cook right in.
Sunday morning, I made an improvised breakfast that turned out to be pretty tasty. And there’s always the old summer picnic fallback, egg salad. I will share recipes for both here.
And in the meantime, rest assured, I’m watching Lizzie a lot more closely, and checking for eggs every day now. I’m not making that mistake again!

OZARKS-STYLE SHEPHERD’S PIE EGG BAKE
1 dozen eggs
about 2 cups mashed potatoes or uncooked hash browns
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup deer summer sausage, chopped

1/2 cup onions, chopped (I used bulb and green onions in combination)
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 cup your favorite greens (I used spinach)
1/4 cup cheese, your choice.
Oil or cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and liberally grease a 12-cup muffin tin, or line with cupcake liners.
Sauté the onions on medium heat for about 5 minutes, until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and sausage, stirring, and cook until heated through. Add the greens and cook just until they’re wilted.
While the vegetables are cooking, season the potatoes with salt and pepper and line the bottoms of the muffin tin cups with the potatoes, about 1/4-1/2 inch deep.
When sausage and veggies are done cooking, spoon them over the potatoes. Sprinkle with about 1 teaspoon of cheese over each serving. Break an egg over each.
Bake in oven for about 12-15 minutes, watching carefully to make sure the eggs don’t burn.
Let them rest for a minute, then loosen edges with a knife or small spatula. When dishing up, be sure to support the bottom of each serving.
My family enjoys this with a health splash of hot sauce.

I’m gonna be honest, I’ve never written down the recipe to this, but it’s often requested at potluck gatherings, so I’m going to give it my best try. Just note that this recipe is strictly a guideline, and I always adjust seasonings several times before I hit the “sweet spot” where I know it’s just right, and I never use actual measurements.

MOMMA’S RAGIN’ CAJUN EGG SALAD

1 dozen eggs
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
about 1/4 cup of mayonnaise, give or take, depending how creamy you like it
1 stalk celery finely chopped
3-4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup garden fresh peas, if you like them
A couple of very healthy shakes of Tony Chachere’s Original Creole seasoning (2 tablespoons, roughly)
A splash of Louisiana or Tabasco hot sauce.
2 1/2 teaspoons of gumbo file powder* (optional)
Salt and pepper to taste (optional).

Hard boil the eggs using your favorite method. I use the Instant Pot for mine, with a cup of water, on manual setting for 5 minutes. Natural release for five minutes, then turn the pressure release valve to vent. Immediately put the eggs in ice water to stop the cooking.
Shell the eggs carefully, then mash them up in a bowl.
Add the remaining ingredients, mix well, and adjust components to your taste.
*Regarding file powder, it is a powder made from the leaves of a sassafras tree, one of Missouri’s native trees (learn more here: nature.mdc.mo.gov/discover-nature/field-guide/sassafras). It can sometimes be hard to find in local grocery stores, though Walmart does have it listed on its website.



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