Eggcited

Our friends gave us fresh eggs from their chickens this week, and I can’t stop taking pictures of them. They’re gorgeous.  They even have little freckles!
They’re almost too pretty to eat.

I suppose if I had fresh eggs every day I’d be used to the rich brown and pale, pale blue shades.

But since this is my first time having something other than white (Haah!  Such a city girl.  A city girl who’s also never thought to actually buy farm fresh eggs from the store, duh)…well, these beauties were the perfect models for 2pm lighting in my house.


Owen thought they were pretty cool too.
And couldn’t keep his hands off.

I went in the other room to get my camera and came back to find two eggs missing, and Owen crouched on the floor, nesting. “I’m getting ready to lay some eggs.  Look!  Orange and blue!” (he insists they are not brown eggs, but orange)

Either way, they’re beautifully fun.

And just as cute as our little Easter egg from last year.
I can’t believe this was really Clara.  So small and such dark hair.

The only question is…what to make with the pretty fresh eggs?  Probably this or this or maybe this.  Or maybe just a simple scrambled egg to get the full flavor effect. Or maybe I’ll just keep taking pictures of them.
And if your house is like mine with an assortment of the plastic kind laying around…..

Remember not to throw them out when Easter is over !…so you can do this.


Have a eggcellent shakin day.

  1. 1) Laura J.

    We raise our own chickens and just last night dyed their eggs (which are usually brown/beige and sometimes freckled) for the first time. We used a standard grocery store dye kit and the eggs came out beautiful. So much prettier than white eggs dyed. Also, my 2 year old did it herself, so apparently anyone can do it. Although her hands are both blue to the wrist now. I’m hoping that will fade by Easter Sunday.

  2. 2) Elecia

    I highly recommend that you try at least some of the eggs just scrambled or over-easy/medium (or even hard-boiled), if you have only ever had white eggs. They really do taste much better and richer. There’s nothing like them!

    Happy Easter to you and yours!

  3. I agree with Elecia! We use our yard eggs for everything because our chickens are producing a lot since the days got longer. I would scramble them to taste at first, you’ll love the yoke, so flavorful! I’m so doing the plastic egg maracas! thanks!

  4. we’ve kept laying hens for 9 years now, and I still marvel at the eggs. Our flock has become quite a motley crew as well so we get green, and brown and a variation in between the two. I love comparing sizes as well. we have one bird that continually lays a giant egg size. Careful. It’s hard to go back to plain ol bleached eggs after you’ve had fresh.

  5. 5) Anna

    Fry one farm fresh and one factory egg side by side. You will be amazed by the difference! My kids won’t touch factory eggs anymore.

  6. 9) Erin

    I definitely agree that if you have never had farm fresh eggs before then you should really try them as is. The flavor is so much better than regular eggs!

  7. Fresh always beats store bought…yummmmm. Love how Clara looks like brightly colored Easter eggs! So cute : )

  8. Hi, as another backyard hen owner, please make sure you use your eggs quickly! I thought the same thing when I saw you washed them. We leave ours on the counter, unwashed, until just before we use them. Then, make sure to wash them in water warmer than the egg itself. Finally, just to clarify, white eggs aren’t bleached; they’re just laid by a different breed of chicken. Most backyard hens lay brown eggs because they’re from different breeds than the high-production factory layers. Hope that helped clear some things up!

  9. 12) country quilter

    I use the fresh eggs to make french toast. Just take a few eggs mix evaporated milk, cinnamon and stevia and then dip homemade bread into the egg mixture. Fry in coconut oil or butter if you don’t like coconut. Pour homemade syrup over…yummy.
    We like it with no syrup since stevia sweetens it and with some lushish sunny side eggs for a great dinner on a busy day. PS homemade bread that is a little dry is perfect way to use it up for this meal……I fed six kids this way with all our eggs.

  10. 13) Lisa

    Dye some brown eggs for Easter! They’re SO PRETTY. Red, blue, and green come out the best … they’re my favorite. I have to dye some white and some brown every year.

  11. In the UK all of our eggs are brown, sorry Owen; orange. I often feel jealous of your lovely white eggs!

  12. 15) Alyson

    I never knew that eggs in the US tend to be white before reading this! In the UK they are mainly all brown.

  13. wow, i forgot that store bought eggs were white. we have been raising our own layers for years now and i guess i havent bought eggs in years. enjoy them, they sure are yummy:)

  14. We are just beginning to raise our own chickens. I have been getting eggs from a friend for a couple of years. But, we just bought a farm this year and decided to get chickens and give it a go. I do love ‘fresh’ eggs (as compared to store bought). And, since I will have 5 different kinds of chickens, I look forward to all the different eggs!! Thanks for sharing your lovely pictures. Enjoy your eggs!

  15. 18) Danielle H

    We get our eggs from friends or a local farm ever since we found that most of the eggs (even the ones that boast “farm fresh!”) in the grocery store are shipped from CHINA. All that way with such fragile cargo? Somehow it makes sense to someone money-wise. But I’d love to hide some hens in my back yard and get my own eggs!

    We’re having andouille sausage and green pepper omelets this week for dinner one night. I also love to put eggs in quiche with whatever bits of leftover veggie dishes we have on hand plus bacon or sausage, or in crepes. Crepes with goat cheese and carmelized onions, mmmm! Then dessert crepes with Nutella!

  16. ha! I love that you know the lighting in your house by the time of day, that’s great.

  17. 20) Joy

    Well funny to have a lively little egg discussion here today! First of all, I loved your bright colored Easter eggs from last year….thought that was the cutest thing ever when you had Clara in all the different colors! I remember showing her to my husband last year and he loved her too! Also, yes, the brown home grown eggs are the best. We have a dear friend who keeps us supplied, in fact just brought some over today. So much better than white Walmart eggs! We’ll never eat store eggs again (hopefully). I have been wanting a few of my own chickens but the hubs says no way. We live in the perfect spot for them and I enjoy the warbly sound they make as they roam around the yard. I guess I have some sweet talking to do! Happy Easter everyone and on a little more serious note….remember, it’s not about the egg!

  18. Too funny! When our son was little about 5 or 6 (he was a city kid too) we came to Utah, USA to visit my In-laws. Inlaws had chickens and a cow. When gramma and our son went to gather eggs; she asked him why he wasn’t picking up the brown eggs? He said, “Gramma, they aren’t ripe yet!”. He is now 35 and still gets teased about that one!
    Just wait, the cute picture you have of your son sitting to hatch the egg… priceless! Great for some blackmail when it comes to him dating too! LoL…

  19. I love the pictures of the farm eggs! SO yummy. They’re the best.

  20. I’d love some chickens at home but they are high maintenance in that you can’t take off on vacation without a chicken-sitter to feed them while you’re gone. Kinda like the dogs. We have beef cows and they can look after themselves while we take off for a trip.

    I live just south of you near San Antonio. Ever heard of a cascarone? (cas-ca-roe-nee)You can buy them down here by the dozens and you might even be able to find them in your HEB. But if you’re going to make scrambled eggs, you open just the tip of the shell without breaking the rest ofthe egg. Pour the egg out and let the shell dry for a few days. Dip the dried shells in bowls of dye, then fill them with confetti (this is DEF a backyard fun activity), and use brightly colored tissue paper with a bit of glue stick to cover the hole. Let dry. Then sneak up on some unsuspecting victim and smash it over their head! You can have the kids draw on the eggs with crayons before opening them for designs all over the eggs too. I think you can buy bags of confetti at Party City.
    Here’s some pics from google http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&site=imghp&tbm=isch&source=hp&biw=1408&bih=797&q=cascarone&oq=cascarone&gs_l=img.3..0j0i24l3j0i10i24j0i24l2j0i10i24l2j0i24.1217.3156.0.3531.9.9.0.0.0.0.84.701.9.9.0…0.0…1ac.1.7.img.ODB3JuXcnts

  21. 24) Ariana

    Try Alton Brown’s recipe for homemade frozen vanilla custard. My aunt has chickens and sometimes gives us eggs. The yolks are SO ORANGE. haha It makes the ice cream so pretty.

  22. 25) mirela

    For over two months I read your blog. Your ideas are great and always bring my admiration. Today, your admiration of eggs really sparked my big sincere smile 🙂 I’m Polish. Here, all the eggs are brown! Only at Easter, you can buy some white. But even then, not always! On Easter usually dye them in different shades of brown, cooking eggs in onion skins. Then have beautiful shades of gold and bronze. Try it, for sure you will like this. I apologize for my language mistakes … I do not speak or write English very well ..
    Happy Easter to all !!

  23. 26) Kristie

    My oldest went through a spurt where she would only eat brown eggs. No white eggs at all. It was so funny to listen to her.

  24. 27) Cristi

    I’m one of those farm girls that never knew eggs from the store were white until I lived in the city. Isn’t life funny that way!

  25. 28) Georgi

    This looks like a group of our eggs…we also have backyard chickens. They are really great pets for our 3 daughters and the eggs do taste much better than white store bought. I agree with the commenter above about using them quickly. If eggs are washed they loose a protective coating that keeps bacteria from entering through the shell. You might have to make a frittata tonight:)

  26. We have backyard chickens too, and I promise there is rarely a day goes by that I don’t collect at least one egg that makes me stop and look at it again and again because it’s so pretty/cool looking.

  27. Love your pictures. We’re lucky to have fresh eggs most days. Guess it makes up for the day(s) the chickens are loud. HA.

  28. 32) Deanna

    I love the idea of fresh eggs, but haven’t been able to eat one after my 7 year old refused to because fresh eggs are “too close to the chicken’s butt cheeks.” I have to agree and sadly admit to preferring a little processing, bleaching, and aging with my eggs.

  29. I’m catching up on your blog this morning! Love this post! We keep chickens, and I have to say, we never get tired of the different shades of eggs. The kids will carry them in and we will ooh and aah over the tinted greens and browns. Always fun and different!

  30. This year’s eggs are not nearly as cute as last year’s egg!

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