Fresh Eggs Daily® with Lisa Steele

There are lots of reasons why chickens don't lay eggs. What you're feeding them could be one reason, but it's not the only one. And not for the reason you think. If you raise your own chickens and haven't heard the latest chicken feed conspiracy theories swirling around social media (and tiktok specifically) about flocks of perfectly healthy chickens suddenly not laying eggs, you're likely living under a rock. 

The avian flu can't be completely blamed for high egg prices at the supermarket. There are other factors coming into play. While it's true that eggs are really expensive  these days and the avian flu, otherwise known as bird flu, is sweeping the country again (still?), it can't be solely blamed for the current  record-breaking prices for store bought eggs . 

Whether you want to be sure you're choosing the freshest eggs, the most local eggs, or just want to understand the words and numbers on an egg carton, here's how to "crack the codes". The tops of egg cartons read like veritable billboards these days. Shouting things like "Free-Range",  "Vegetarian", "Hormone-free" and "Farm Fresh". Unfortunately most of these terms are misleading at best and meaningless at worst. 

The versatile strata is a great recipe that helps you use up holiday leftovers. The cousin to bread pudding, a strata is more eggy, less custardy, and usually savory instead of sweet. It’s a great recipe to have in your repertoire, although it’s not so much a recipe as a method to use up leftovers - especially after the holidays. Save the ends of your loaves of bread of all kinds (slightly stale is fine too!), uneaten dinner rolls, leftover vegetables, and meat. Pretty much anything that's in the fridge after a big holiday meal. Even stuffing and cranberry sauce can go into a strata. In addition, you’ll need lots of eggs, milk or cream, and some cheese (I love using a combination of all the odds and ends and bits of random types of cheese I find in the fridge). I call this my Holiday Strata because it's a great dish to throw together after a holiday when you find yourself with some creamed spinach, and a bit of turkey, maybe some broccoli or even mashed potatoes - not really en

Adding cayenne pepper to your chickens' diet in the winter has some pretty spectacular benefits.   Like most birds both poultry and waterfowl, chickens do have a decent sense of taste , but with a few limitations.  While they have taste receptors for "bitter", "salty" and "sour" like we do, they lack the receptors for "sweet" and "spicy". Same goes for ducks.

A lazy Sunday afternoon in Maine in the fall calls for a crisp, sparkling, cider-based cocktail while we enjoy the football game. This one I'm calling the Mimosa Bourbon Cider Shrub. If you've never had the cocktail version of a "shrub", you're in for a treat!  A shrub is technically a "drinking vinegar". It's basically a syrupy liquid created by mixing vinegar, usually apple cider vinegar, with fruit juices and sugar.  Sort of like a vinegar simple syrup. 

When your chickens are molting in the fall, they'll appreciate these protein-packed treats! Every fall like clockwork, your chickens will start to drop their feathers.  The timing of the annual molt is tied to days getting shorter. That lack of daylight signals to chickens ( and ducks ) that it's time to grow in nice new feathers to help them stay warm through the winter.

Pound cake got its name because the cake was originally made with a pound each of butter, sugar, eggs and flour. Have you ever stopped to wonder why a pound cake is called a pound cake?  Hint: it's not because the cake weighs a pound.  In fact, a traditional pound cake would actually weigh more than four pounds! And it's not called "pound cake" because it will make you put on extra pounds. Although that is likely true. 

Mischievous raccoons, with their brown, shiny, alert eyes, cute black masks and unbelievably human-like hands, are arguably one of the cutest wildlife critters out there, but they are also sneaky, vicious chicken killers. Don't let their cute faces fool you. Raccoons are strong and smart - and they want to eat your chickens. They'll eat chicken feed, scratch grains, eggs and baby chicks if given the opportunity. 

Two rather peculiar ingredients gave Queen Elizabeth's royal scrambled eggs an unexpected and uniquely bright flavor. Shortly after the death of Queen Elizabeth, an Australian nutritionist came forward with the recipe for the late Queen's favorite way to enjoy her scrambled eggs for breakfast. Apparently, her Majesty liked to  include a secret ingredient (or two!) in her eggs.  At least according to the nutritionist, who apparently been given the recipe by the Queen's private chef.

Foamy egg whites on top of this cocktail plus a splash of maple syrup add texture and a surprising twist to the classic sour recipe. Whiskey sours made with store-bought mix were my drink of choice for a while in college. Then I became an adult and graduated to the homemade version, which is SOOOO much better.  I go traditional and dry-shake an egg white for the top of the cocktail - technically making it a Boston sour in a nod to my home state.