Monday, February 4, 2008

new addition to the farm and the pigs last day



A shot of our place form my neighbors place.. : )



I knew eventually we'd get a cat.. I'm not a big cat person but cat's are nice in there way. We have lots of rodents that I'd love for a cat to introduce him self to. I didn't go out looking for a cat as I figured If I waited long enough a cat would come to us.. and he/she has this cat has been around for a few weeks but had started venturing in closer. so We decided to give it some crunchies and ask it to stay and live at our place and take care of the critters.. so I think we have a cat now.. no name yet but I'm sure that will come... : ) welcome to Big Table "Blackie" (name for now) I'm not sure how the "principessa" feels about the new cat but I think she may know she's pretty much the queen around here... and the cat is not a house cat so her dominion is safe.



So I wanted to see how our eggs stood up to the competition .. I bought the top of the line $4.50 per dozen "free-range" organic omega 3 eggs and affirmed what I knew... free range in a big production I don't think will ever be able to match a set up with true rotational grazing and grass fed birds.. note not only the color of the yoke but the way the whites on our egg (on the right) stay together in a firm "pile" and the flavor well it's defiantly better... so there you have it if I can find a way to test the omega 3's in my eggs I'm sure I will : ) want to know morehere's is a great article..

http://www.motherearthnews.com/eggs.aspx



(a quote from the Mother Earth article...)

Most of the eggs currently sold in supermarkets are nutritionally inferior to eggs produced by hens raised on pasture. That’s the conclusion we have reached following completion of the 2007 Mother Earth News egg testing project. Our testing has found that, compared to official U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) nutrient data for commercial eggs, eggs from hens raised on pasture may contain:

• 1/3 less cholesterol
• 1/4 less saturated fat
• 2/3 more vitamin A
• 2 times more omega-3 fatty acids
• 3 times more vitamin E
• 7 times more beta carotene




The Pigs rolled off in this truck on Saturday.

I can't tell you how pleased I was and am with how well it went. It really made me feel super good about having the slaughter here at the farm. Both pigs had VERY clean fast kills neither of them saw it coming at all - and it was while eating eggs in their stall. I hope I go like that but I think I'd like to be eating chocolate... : ) anyway the mobile slaughter guy was super good and
efficient about the rest of the process post kill as well. The pigs where halved here and went off to Frontier meats on Saturday.



Brian made Boudin noir fresh from the slaughter (if you don't know what this is you may not want to)

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Cat is Gorgeous! Clementine is soooo regal. Boudin noir is delicious beyond belief. Thanks for sharing, Clare!

ferenge mama said...

You are SOOO right about the eggs - nothing touches the flavor of your eggs. They are delish. Wish you could ship 'em. :-)

And I'm happy to hear the pigs met their end in the best possible way.

Can't believe you have a cat! I think you should call the cat Boudin Noir. :-)

M said...

The difference in the eggs is amazing. There's a teeny little farm around the corner from us, and whenever they have extra eggs to sell, I hustle over there - because I know full well what a difference it makes! Also, when I was growing up we kept ducks and geese, and I remember their eggs being the most amazing, decadent things. My mom would hard boil them and we would all roll our eyes with pleasure over the richness!

You gotta have a cat on the farm! Congratulations! He looks like a good one!

And we should all be so lucky as to go in the midst of eating a nice meal!

Joseph said...

YUM!

WOW seeing those eggs side by side made me want to have breakfast for dinner. That blood sausage looks amazing too; where ever did you find him? Brian has more talents in his little finger than most will ever have!

Anonymous said...

Hi Sweetheart! The first & last time I had blood sausage was in Espana in 1976! I still remember what the inredible taste sensation. I love how the 2 of you are up and open for anything new, how you study and work at it, and make if your own! Keep going! Cute cat! "Spook" works for me, but I don't know if he'll ever match the FRF "Spook" - he fit his name! A mouser is definitely important on a farm! Congrats, but no more cat chow okay? make him earn his keep lovie. I can only imagine how much tastier your wonderful pigs will be because you both saw to it that they went as peacefully and happily as possible! Great way to go I'll tell ya! Nice going Clare & Brian! I shall say a prayer that God will send the person that only HE knows will become Chief's new "beastest" friend. I feel for you how hard this must be! XOX Bee