Monday, May 26, 2014

Friday, May 23, 2014

A Photo Tour Of This Past Week


"I used to visit and revisit it a dozen times a day, and stand in deep contemplation over my vegetable progeny with a love that nobody could share or conceive of who had never taken part in the process of creation. It was one of the most bewitching sights in the world to observe a hill of beans thrusting aside the soil, or a rose of early peas just peeping forth sufficiently to trace a line of delicate green."
~Nathaniel Hawthorne, Mosses from an Old Manse


Garden Collage Photos by Tori Beveridge

Who's Been Eating My Currants Photo by Tori Beveridge
Who's Been Eating My Currants?

Last of the Allium Photo by Tori Beveridge
Last of the Allium

Naturalized Iris in Poison Ivy Photo by Tori Beveridge
Naturalized Iris in Poison Ivy

Rogue Iris Photo by Tori Beveridge
Rogue Iris - The only one of it's kind and the first time it's bloomed.  Where did it come from?

Chickens In The Garden Photo by Tori Beveridge
Henny Penny and the girls taking shelter from gnats



Kim Klassen dot Com

Monday, May 19, 2014

The Egg Diaries - May 12th to 18th

The Egg Diaries - A weekly journal documenting my egg use, to help myself and others use all the beautiful eggs, our hens lay for us.  Now, a Blog Hop, so you can join in by sharing the ways in which you use your eggs.  Link up at the bottom of the page.

Hi everyone!
Last week, one of my FB friends, Mona, was surprised at how many eggs we eat.  She was concerned about cholesterol and other things and so she did a little research.

She discovered 


and shared the link and now I'm sharing it with you.  Please read if you were wondering how nutritious eggs really are.  Thanks Mona!



This week I used a recipe that I have shared on this blog before, 'Toasty Tuna Sandwiches'.  The recipe only uses one egg, but the sandwiches are delicious.  The link is below.

The Egg Diaries


Mon May 12th

0 Eggs - Breakfast 
0 Eggs - Lunch
2 Eggs - Dinner:  Rotisserie Chicken (we have our own rotisserie) on a Composed Salad with Homemade Dressing
2 Eggs - Fed to the dogs

4 Eggs Used

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Tues May 13th

5 Eggs - Breakfast:  French Toast, Bacon, Grapefruit
0 Eggs - Lunch
0 Eggs - Dinner

5 Eggs Used

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Wed May 14th

0 Eggs - Breakfast
0 Eggs - Lunch
0 Eggs - Dinner
2 Eggs - Fed to the Dogs

2 Eggs Used

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Thurs May 15th

0 Eggs - Breakfast
1 Egg  - Lunch:  My Toasty Tuna Sandwiches  (Click to be taken to the recipe), Vegetable Sticks
0 Eggs - Dinner

1 Egg Used

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Fri May 16th

3 Eggs - Breakfast:  Fries Eggs, Toast, Oranges
0 Eggs - Lunch
0 Eggs - Dinner

3 Eggs Used

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Sat May 17th

5 Eggs - Breakfast:  Ham and Cheese Omelettes
0 Eggs - Lunch
0 Eggs - Dinner

5 Eggs Used

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Sun May 18th

0 Eggs - Breakfast
4 Eggs - Lunch:  Egg Salad Sandwiches, Vegetable Sticks, Apples
0 Eggs - Dinner
8 Eggs - Scrambled and fed to the chickens

12 Eggs Used

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TOTAL:  32 EGGS USED

We'd love you to join The Egg Diaries and link up below!





Monday, May 12, 2014

The Egg Diaries - May 5th to May 11th

The Egg Diaries - A weekly journal documenting my egg use, to help myself and others use all the beautiful eggs, our hens lay for us.  Now, a Blog Hop, so you can join in by sharing the ways in which you use your eggs.  Link up at the bottom of the page.


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This is going to be a short and menu-less post today.  We've been so busy in the garden and tending the chickens (buffalo gnat season and we manually apply a gnat repellent to them 2 to 3 times a day) and today is no different.  Trying to find time to sit at the computer is difficult these days.


~I do have a delicious recipe for you~

Those of you who are looking for recipes that use large amounts of eggs will be happy this week because I am sharing a great recipe that I used last Wednesday for dinner.  It uses a dozen eggs!  

I love it because you can make it, using just about anything you have in the pantry and refrigerator.  It's wonderful for using up leftovers.  Served with a salad it makes a delicious supper and if there is any left over, it will taste great reheated for breakfast.  It will be different every time you make it, but will taste delicious every time.






12 Egg Casserole

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Butter a 8 x 11 inch or 9 x 9 inch casserole

Layer in your casserole:
any leftovers you have in the fridge (anything goes)

Suggestions:
ground beef, ham, sausage, chicken
broccoli, spinach, corn, tomatoes
onions
mushrooms
celery
potatoes

Add herbs, salsa, sour cream, spaghetti sauce, whatever you think will go with the combination in the pan, or what ever you have little bits of left in jars in the fridge.

Add 2 cups of grated cheese (any kind, any mixture of cheeses)

Beat 12 eggs and pour evenly over the top.

Garnish the top with chopped parsley, pepper and paprika.

Bake for 30 - 35 minutes until it pulls away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted into the center pulls out clean.  (baking times may differ depending on your ingredients)

Enjoy!

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If you have chickens, use eggs every day.  It's really not that difficult.  For ideas on how to use your eggs see my past Egg Diaries for menu ideas and come back next week for new menus and new recipes. 






We'd love you to join The Egg Diaries and link up below!



Monday, May 5, 2014

The Egg Diaries: April 28th to May 4th

The Egg Diaries - A weekly journal documenting my egg use, to help myself and others use all the beautiful eggs, our hens lay for us.  Now, a Blog Hop, so you can join in by sharing the ways in which you use your eggs.  Link up at the bottom of the page.


Fresh Eggs In Wire Basket Photo by Tori Beveridge
I used all these eggs and more in one week!
If you are new to raising chickens, you might be surprised to find out that eggs, like fruit and vegetables, are a seasonal food.  Hens will usually lay much lighter or not at all, as was the case with the majority of our hens, during the winter months.  To stock up for those winter months, I use many of our eggs by baking and freezing what we can't eat within a few days.  That way when winter comes and we've only collected 3 eggs in a week, we can enjoy those eggs for breakfast and raid the freezer for baked goods.    

This week I made one of my favorite muffin recipes, Carrot Raisin Nut Muffins.  You'll find the recipe at the bottom of the page.


Carrot Raisin Nut Muffins 1 Photo by Tori Beveridge
Carrot Raisin Nut Muffins - Recipe is at bottom of the page
The recipe makes a dozen muffins, so we ate six and the other six went into the freezer to be enjoyed either in the hot summer, when I won't want to turn on the oven, or in the winter when there are few eggs.  

Oh.. and before I forget, over at The Beehive Cottage, there are Emu Eggs!   They are so beautiful.  If you've never seen emu eggs before, you should definitely have a look.


The food items I used eggs in, are in bold type.  They do not link to recipes unless stated.

The Egg Diaries


Mon April 28th

0 Eggs - Breakfast:  Toast with peanut butter and bananas

0 Eggs - Leftover Cheeseburger Casserole

2 Eggs - Dinner:  Spinach Salad with Sourdough Bread

2 Eggs - Fed to the Dogs

4 Eggs Used

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Tues April 29th

5 Eggs - Breakfast:  French Toast and Bacon

0 Eggs - Lunch:  Cheese, Apples, Crackers

0 Eggs - Dinner:  Spaghetti with Homemade Sauce, Salad

5 Eggs Used

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Wed April 30th

3 Eggs - Breakfast:  Carrot Raisin Nut Muffins (recipe below), Bananas, Orange Juice

4 Eggs - Lunch:  Egg Salad Sandwiches, Vegetable Sticks

0 Eggs - Dinner:  Cod Fillets baked with Spinach, Beets

2 Eggs - Fed to the Dogs

9 Eggs Used

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Thurs May 1st

5 Eggs - Breakfast:  Cheese and Ham Omelette, Grapefruit

0 Eggs - Carrot Raisin Nut Muffins, Cheese, Apples

0 Eggs - Dinner:  Spaghetti with Leftover Sauce, Salad

5 Eggs Used

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Fri May 2nd

3 Eggs - Breakfast:  Toasted Bagels with poached eggs, Cranberry Juice

0 Eggs - Lunch:  Tuna,Vegetable Sticks, Crackers

0 Eggs - Dinner:  Beef with Mushrooms and Spinach, Rice

3 Eggs Used

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Sat May 3rd

0 Eggs - Breakfast:  Leftover Dinner from Friday night (yup, for breakfast!  Mr. B's request)

0 Eggs - Lunch:  Popcorn!  Bananas  (Yes, this was a strange day!)

0 Eggs - Dinner:  Pork Chops, Rice, Peas, Carrots

8 Eggs - Scrambled and fed to the chickens

8 Eggs Used

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Sun May 4th

2 Eggs - Breakfast:  Bacon, Cheese and Egg Sandwich on Toasted Bagel

0 Eggs - Lunch:  Homemade Minnestrone Soup

0 Eggs - Dinner:  Homemade Pizza

2 Eggs Used

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Total:  36 Eggs Used

Carrot Raisin Nut Muffins 2 Photo by Tori Beveridge

Carrot Raisin Nut Muffins


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Place cupcake/muffin liners in your pan or lightly grease pan.
Makes 12 muffins
Note:  I use melted butter in place of vegetable oil, which is usually called for in carrot muffin and cake recipes.  If you prefer not to use melted butter you could use the oil or substitute coconut oil.

1 cup sugar
1/4 cup softened butter
1/4 cup molasses
1/2 cup melted butter (let cool so it's not hot)
3 eggs lightly beaten
2 tablespoons buttermilk (or 2 tablespoons milk with a dash of vinegar added to it)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup grated carrots (approx 1 large carrot or 2 medium, grated with large side of grater)
1 to 1 1/2 cup raisins (1 cup is fine but we like more raisins in our's)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

In a large bowl, cream together the sugar and softened butter.  Add the molasses and blend well.
Add the melted butter, eggs, buttermilk and vanilla and mix until smooth.

Place your dry ingredients, the flour, baking soda and salt, in a small bowl and stir.

Add the dry ingredients to the large mixing bowl and stir well.  The mixture will be thick and sticky.

Add the grated carrot, raisins and nuts and stir.

Spoon into your prepared pan.

Bake for 30 minutes or until the top of the muffin springs back when lightly touched or a toothpick stuck in the center of the muffin comes out clean.

Enjoy!



We'd love you to join The Egg Diaries and link up below!