Before we became bird herders, Bryon and I expected hard work and complications, many of which have come to pass. Trudging through nasty weather to complete chores, sickness and death, bad temperaments (rest in peace, Merle). But there was one problem I didn’t fully consider: the mountain of eggs. And that, my friends, leads to other concerns, like potentially needing new pants.
Star & Sparrow does have a few eggs customers. This winter, when the birds slowed down their laying, some weeks we had to scramble to fulfill orders. But when the days started getting longer, the older hens re-upped their game. Soon the second generation began dropping eggs, and first one duck, then two, then three started laying. We even got some gigantic goose eggs recently. Now a peek into the garage fridge reveals the growing stockpile.
A small sampling
Unfortunately, when you don’t interact with that many people and most of your neighbors have their own chickens, it’s difficult to find new customers. We are currently looking into what’s needed to acquire our egg handlers license, which would allow us to sell eggs from other locations. That would open more possibilities like the farmers market, a neighboring produce stand, etc. So now we are researching hand washing stations and how to fill them with warm water on demand.
And in the meantime? Well, we are eating a LOT of eggs. Chili for dinner? Throw a fried egg on top. Burger, pizza, pulled pork, anything that can’t run away… add an egg! Deviled eggs, sandwiches, in salads and ramen, quiche, frittata, shakshouka. Homemade pasta with duck eggs for the first time. And then, the real “problem”— baking. Creme brûlée, flan, custard pie, macarons, meringues. The list goes on and on.
Oh, and the animals get their share, too. It may sound cannibalistic, but feeding eggs to chickens provides them with tons of nutrients. The chicks go absolutely bonkers trying to steal egg bits out of each others’ beaks. A few of the ducks love them, as well. The dogs get a little scrambled egg added to their kibble. And I just read that cats can have eggs, too, so KiKi can join in the fun.
I did reach out to our local food bank but haven’t heard back yet whether they will accept egg donations.
Meanwhile, if you’re local and want eggs from chickens and/or ducks who are on organic feed, please do let us know! We’ve got you covered.