Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from the Three Swingin' Chicks (plus one)!

The chicks have presented us with wonderful Christmas presents: eggs, LOTS of eggs. After not laying since March 27th, Roxanne started laying a few weeks ago and now she and other three chicks haven't stopped. I've been getting 3 to 4 eggs a day on a regular basis for the last three weeks. It must be something about the spirit of the season. Or it could be the beautiful snow, the Christmas carols playing on the coop radio, or the warm mash I've been feeding them each morning. Either way we feel lucky to have such generous girls.

I hope you all enjoy your holiday times with friends and family. If you're not too overloaded with cookies, you might try one of our favorites, chewy Almond Drops. Simple cookies of almond paste and egg white, these gems are perfect. Plus they're gluten-free! I've altered the recipe only slightly from the original version posted by King Arthur.

Almond Drops

Print this Recipe

10 oz. almond paste (look for the kind in the can not the tube)

1 cup sugar

2 egg whites, lightly beaten

1/4 plus 1/8 teaspoon almond extract

powdered sugar for sprinkling 

Heat the oven to 325F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Beat the almonod paste and sugar in an electric mixture on medium speed until the mixture resembles fine crumbs. Add the egg whites gradually until a smooth paste is formed. Beat in the almond extract.

Spoon 1 teaspoon amounts onto baking sheet. Sprinkle generously with powdered sugar.

Bake 20 minutes or until pale golden brown. (do not over bake.) Cool completely on a wire rack. Makes about 3 1/2 dozen.

 

Adrift in a Blizzard

Sometimes taking care of chickens is hard. Like today. We're in the middle of a blizzard. This is the view as I stepped out back this afternoon: waist high drifts on the way to the coop.

 

 The snow has been falling since midnight last night. We've already got 18-inches on the ground with more on the way.  

Everything in town has been called off, the airport's closed, buses aren't running and Christmas concerts and plays are canceled. But chickens need care no matter how much snow we get, so out I trudge.  I'll be back out later in the evening to bring them lots of cracked corn and scratch feed. The corn and goodies in the scratch digest slower in their tummies keeping them warm through the night. Kind of like covering them with an extra blanket. With the wind howling and temperatures plummeting to below zero tonight, keeping them warm and protected is crucial.

We plan to warm up our own tummies tonight with my family's special holiday drink: Tom and Jerry's.  My grandfather's neighborhood bar was known for this drink and customers came from miles around to warm themselves up during the cold holiday season. Keep warm everyone and cheers to all!