Difference in Eggs

The color of the yolk is an indication of the presence of nutrients. The pastured egg on the left is a dark orange color. The organic store egg in the center is slightly less orange. The supermarket egg on the right is paler and might even be white were orange foods and dyes not given to the chickens. By the way, chickens producing organic eggs are mostly raised in barns, not on pasture. Conditions are certainly better than those for the typical battery egg. However, the USDA has determined that the chicken is a vegetarian, and they can be given no animal foods. Chickens are in fact, omnivores, and their eggs will be much healthier if they are getting animal foods. The pastured egg and the organic egg both have two parts to the white, a viscous part around the yolk and then a thinner part around the edges. This is a sign of freshness.

What's for Dinner - Baked Chicken

 

Baked Chicken

INGREDIENTS

CHICKEN
PACKET DRY ITALIAN SEASONING
1/2 CUP BROWN SUGAR


DIRECTIONS

MIX THE ITALIAN SEASONING PACKET AND THE BROWN SUGAR
COAT CHICKEN ON ALL SIDES
LINE PAN IN FOIL BECAUSE THE DRESSING/SUGAR WILL CARAMELIZE
BAKE AT 350 DEGREES UNTIL IT'S GOLDEN BROWN.

What's for Dinner - Baked Chicken Fajitas with Homemade Tortillas

Baked Chicken Fajitas

Ingredients

1 pound Member's Mark® Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts, cut into thin strips
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes and green chilies, drained
1 medium onion, cut into thin strips
1 medium green pepper, cut into thin strips
1 medium sweet red pepper, cut into thin strips
2 tablespoons canola oil
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon salt
12 flour tortillas (6 inches), warmed

Directions

In a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish coated with cooking spray, combine the chicken, tomatoes, onion and peppers. Combine the oil, chili powder, cumin and salt. Drizzle over chicken mixture; toss to coat.
Bake, uncovered, at 400° for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is no longer pink and vegetables are tender. Spoon onto tortillas; fold in sides. Yield: 6 servings.

Homemade Tortillas 

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup water
3 tablespoons olive oil

Directions

In a large bowl, combine flour and salt. Stir in water and oil. Turn onto a floured surface; knead 10-12 times, adding a little flour or water if needed to achieve a smooth dough. Let rest for 10 minutes.
Divide dough into eight portions. On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion into a 7-in. circle.
In a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray, cook tortillas over medium heat for 1 minute on each side or until lightly browned. Keep warm. Yield: 8 tortillas.

What's For Dinner - Chicken Wild Rice Soup

Chicken Wild Rice 

Prep: 10 min. Cook: 40 min. Yield: 14 Servings

Ingredients
2 quarts chicken broth
1/2 pound fresh mushrooms, chopped
1 cup finely chopped celery
1 cup shredded carrots
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules
1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 cup butter, cubed
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1/2 cup dry white wine or additional chicken broth
3 cups cooked wild rice
2 cups cubed cooked chicken
Directions
In a large saucepan, combine the first nine ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
In Dutch oven, melt butter; stir in flour until smooth. Gradually whisk in broth mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Whisk in soup and wine. Add rice and chicken; heat through. Yield: 14 servings (3-1/2 quarts).
Nutritional Facts
1 serving (1 cup) equals 154 calories, 6 g fat (3 g saturated fat), 27 mg cholesterol, 807 mg sodium, 14 g carbohydrate, 2 g fiber, 10 g protein.

Originally published as Chicken Wild Rice Soup in Taste of Home's Holiday & Celebrations Cookbook Annual 2001, p75

Start a 1 Acre Self-Sufficient Homestead

We wanted to share this great information from Mother Earth News on how to start a 1 Acre Homestead. There are some great ideas here. 

We have the land for sale. All it needs is you! Contact us Today!

Your 1-acre homestead can be divided into land for raising livestock and a garden for raising fruits, vegetables, plus some grain and forage crops. 

Everyone will have a different approach to keeping a self-sufficient homestead, and it’s unlikely that any two 1-acre farms will follow the same plan or methods or agree completely on how to homestead. Some people like cows; other people are afraid of them. Some people like goats; other people cannot keep them out of the garden. Some people will not slaughter animals and have to sell their surplus stock off to people who will kill them; others will not sell surplus stock off at all because they know that the animals will be killed; and still others will slaughter their own animals to provide their family with healthy meat.

Read more: http://www.motherearthnews.com/modern-homesteading/self-sufficient-homestead-zm0z11zkon.aspx#ixzz2Or9G0TxS

Build a High-Protein Dispenser for FREE Chicken Food!

Found a nice little article that will help all those who have chickens, through the winter and the rest of the year saving you money by feeding natural, and high-protein, and FREE feed to your chickens with a little material found 'round the homestead or farm with a dollar or two thrown in for some minor materials.

The article I gleaned this info from is out of the "Countryside & Small Stock Journal" Vol 96 No. 6 November/December 2012, Page 61, by Jeff Hoard.

Basically the articles author explains how to create a maggot dispenser for your chickens using some simple materials:

• Flat plywood- to put under dispenser to catch & feed chickens on a clean surface.
• 5 gal. bucket with lid, bottom cut out but leave a 1" lip around it to hold a round piece of grate or heavy wire mesh.
• Grate or Heavy Wire Mesh
• Charge (dead animals, meat scraps, or raw fatty meat products. Don't use anything sick or dying.)
• PVC Coupler
• Long piece of ABS pipe
• Auto Heater Vent Hose
• Skirting-for little bird & wind barrier
• Tools for cutting & Drilling

 The author goes on to explain how he put the dispenser together and how it works:

     "I mentioned ours being a deluxe model and I'll explain. The hanger/vent was made out of scrap pipe. At the top I inserted a long piece of ABS pipe. The horizontal hanger is another short pipe that is welded over a hole that I cut in the main vertical pipe. A little below that are two more short pieces of pipe in a v-shape that stick out on each side of the hanging bucket. These serve as bumpers. On the lid of the bucket, I inserted an appropriate sized PVC coupler and a piece of auto heater vent hose, which attaches from there up to the hanging pipe.  This is how the odor is vented up and out at the top of the long ABS pipe. Like the vent system, the "skirt" that was installed on the bucket is certainly not a necessity but does perform some added functions. first, it keeps smaller birds from hanging off the bottom trying to eat their fill. Second, the skirt serves as a wind catch. Third, as the chickens go for the maggots they hit the skirt to hopefully dislodge a few more. Fourth, it helps keep the charge from drying out (very important). I did drill one small hole in the center at the top of the bucket's lid to allow for moisture to be added onto the charge if needed. " (page 63)

The author continues with some tips, "Install the dispenser 20 ft away from the chicken house,  in the shade, this will help draw the flies away from the flock and the flies are immediately drawn to the charge. They then lay their larvae on the charge and the larvae then turn into maggots, hundreds at a time and as they grow larger they get heavier and eventually fall through the grate and onto the plywood below to be gobbled up by a waiting chicken. It usually takes about 5 days for the maggots to start dropping and as long as the charge is refreshed," there is a constant supply of high-protein feed for your chickens and it's free! Chickens can keep laying with this feed and greens for quite some time, without the need for corn scratch!

I scanned the image directly from the magazine in order to show you all what they've created and about how it'll look when finished. It's in pdf form so you will need Adobe PDF viewer to see the file>> PDF