Fresh Eggs

This is Maude, one of our three Plymouth Barred Rock hens. OK, she's actually still a pullet, but it seems easier to just call her a hen. She has the most pleasant demeanor and I've grown quite fond of her. She is the largest of our three birds, and seems to be developing the fastest. This weekend she advanced her ranking in our household and hearts (bellies?) by being the first to lay a perfectly formed, albeit tiny, egg.





Maude's egg is on the left, on the right is a store-bought egg (laid, presumably, by a much more experienced chicken). Not only is Maude's egg smaller, but it's paler as well. I know she will lay larger eggs over time, but I don't know if the color will deepen.

I spent a day thinking about how to prepare this celebratory egg, wanting not to dilute the flavor in any way, but also appreciating the limitations of one small egg (no omelets this time around). I decided on a dish known to me as a Bird's Nest (aka One-Eyed Egyptian, Egg in Nest, etc.).

Simplicity, runny yolk, fried bread. Perfection.

I was surprised by the the strength of the shell. I handled this egg gingerly when collecting it from the nest, not wanting to crush it prematurely, but it required more than one hardy tap on the side of a bowl before yielding its contents.



Yes. The promised bright orange yolk. An egg as it should be.





Fried up in a pan with a little butter. Sprinkled with Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper. Accompanied by a few cherry tomatoes.





Yes, it was divine. Keep 'em coming, Maude.