I always give my bird a generous butter massage before I put it in the oven. Why? Because I think the chicken likes it, and, more important, I like to give it. — Julia Child (1912 – 2004)
I think they would enjoy it as well
Naked Chicken Friday, October 2, 2009
It has been brought to my attention that i forgot to produce pictures of my naked chicken. Gladys spent a good part of the summer desperately trying to be a mama. i tried all sorts of things to remedy that, save get her a baby chick (i wish!) but when she finally came to terms that her sweet eggs would only be used for my cooking adventures, she began to molt.
I left for Greece and all was well, Miss Gladys was eating and strutting around like a chicken should. The day i returned from Greece, my yard and the coop looked like someone had set off chicken bombs. I had downy white and red feathers everywhere! even the dogs and cats were bringing them into the house.
After discovering that when chickens go through a stressful event (i.e. failed mother-hood) they like to shed their feathers and start anew. I liked this idea. i wish i could do that, just shed all my skin and hair and start from scratch. all better.
Unfortunately glady looked like hell. she was angry and naked. she stomped around the yard growling and wouldnt let me near her.
frankly, i cant blame her. She had all of these quills poking through her soft pink skin and they looked painful! she was like a science experiment gone wrong trying to breed a porccupine and a chicken. ick! everytime i looked at her i would get chills and she would growl at me.
I did take a picture for you. these photos were taken after she had started to feather out again. You can see little puffs coming out of the quills. it is fascinating…and really creepy! I can tell you that if your hens do this, it will remedy itself. Gladys looks gorgeous now and her new red feathers are so lovely. she is also much happier and gaining weight again.
A Chicken In Heat Sunday, July 26, 2009
My sweet Gladys has been sitting on her nest for well over a month now. Penelope comes in and lays her egg and Gladys dutifully sits on it. The sweet girl wants to be a mama so much but those eggs just arent going to hatch honey!
I was told i had 3 options
1) give her a fertilized egg to hatch and she will be a mama
2) give her a wooden egg and when she breaks her own heat she will hop off and move on with her life
3) dunk her in a bucket of ice water to force her to break the heat.
yes, i know…i chose option 3…
So this is sweet Gladys on her nest all puffed up to look big and scary (vrey protective of her egg). she has never pecked at me but she really wants me to go away.
So i scooped her out and plopped her into my pool. it was full of cold hose water. She was very unhappy for a minute while i held her down to make she got cold enough to break the heat. and then she wouldnt get out!
She loved it so much i went inside, grabbed my camera, made a phone call and she was still sitting there looking quite content
Finally i popped her out, just in case she got too cold.
then i went inside to change clothes and came back out…where do you imagine Gladys was?
yup….wet puffed up and happy on her damn nest.
So what’s next???
It’s Like a Pinata For Chickens Friday, June 5, 2009
A while ago someone told me to string up a cob of corn for the girls to keep them entertained for hours. I finally got some corn and gave it a shot. At first the girls were terrified of it, but now they clean the cob from top to bottom while they let it ricochet offeach other. Jenni doesnt like that part very much.
Kerouac enjoyed the show too
Mieke; Future Artist Extraordinaire Tuesday, May 26, 2009
Every year for New Years, i am invited to celebrate a Belgian tradition. Each god-child must write a letter to their god-parents and give them their wishes for the new year and their own resolutions for the year to come
We had lots going on this year so we just got around to the New Year celebration. Of course you cant have a celebration without 5 hours of glutinous eating and drinking so we partook in an amazing assortment of treats and wines. the afternoon under the trees in the sun and breeze was really perfect and way different then the snow, ice and cold we should have been enjoying!
So Mieke, my sweet sweet girl, wrote me a letter and presented me with a gift. I think my letter and gifts are more special then anything. Sadly we didnt take any pictures of the day but next time! Mieke wrote her wishes and her resolutions. Mama helped with the intro 
This butterfly is a painting Mieke made and they made it into a tshirt for me. Isnt it beautiful? i want to hang it on my wall
This drawing took her a week to make. each item was made and cute out and pasted into the drawing. The girl has some talent here!
Chicken Documentary Friday, May 22, 2009
This year i was sooooo excited to be part of the Tour de Coup but sadly the people directing the program are slightly left of completely ignorant and dont believe that Portland stretches beyond 5 blocks of the river. That being said, no one would be interested in heading to my beautiful coop way out in the sticks and left me off the list. POO!
After i threw a temper tantrum and was very very sad, i got over it but i am still boy-cotting it! and you should too, until i create my own tour that stretches all over the place and you can be in my tour.
To make up for it, my friend GW asked if i would be interested in being in a documentary…at my house, with my coop…in 2 days. um. YES PLEASE! A couple out of Salem is putting together a dvd kit for communities to help change their livestock laws and allow families to own 3 chickens.
So today at lunch i raced home to meet the documentary producers and sign my waiver. GW was the main interviewee but i got to show them where the egg nest is and hold a chicken. Jennie talked the whole time i held her.
the charming part was that hte ladies all bunched together to stay on film as mr big lounged at their feet and timmy walked in and out of the shot. My little brood is famous and so cute on camera. As soon as i get a copy of the dvd i will let you know
the little things Wednesday, May 13, 2009
This week i feel like Spring has finally arrived. I am home with a cold and a bit foggy but when i go outside, new things are blooming and new birds are hatching outside my window. It is hard not to be smiling about it all, even between kleenex stops and hot tea.
yesterday i heard a very loud bird shriek from what i thought was an open window. Right outside the living room, a pair of tiny round birds has made its nest in the neighbors eaves. they pop in and out all the time to feed their quickly growing faimly so i wasnt surprised to hear them cheaping. Until i caught Kudra batting something around the living room floor with a sparkle in her eye. I shooed her out the door (she is still mad at me) and caught the tiny bird in a pair of underpants i had just folded in the laundry pile. She lay in my hand gazing up at me trembling with fear and i hoped relief. I took her out to the back yard and had a horrid flashback to my shrew rescue as the chickens all raced over to see what i had brough them. I decided to bring my little bird to the front yard and she sat in my hand, calm and quiet, hopped to the nearest branch and flew up to the branch above my head. Sweet little bird. she still have tufts of down from her chick-hood.
boxes, beds and sunshine Saturday, April 18, 2009
today is Saturday and i have been busy since sun-up.
I started my day with the farmer’s market. the traffic down to the market was awful and i was in a hurry so i was kind of grumpy when i got there. But when i turned the corner and walked into the market i had to stop for a second! it is the perfect place. The smells and sounds and happy people buying happy produce was just total sensory overload. As i mentioned earlier i was in a hurry so i only got a quick run-around and had to flee to the lumber yard but i will be back next week!!
next stop was the lumber yard where i met my 2 garden box builders Leland and Lamont, and we( read they) loaded up our wood and headed home. In very short order i had 2 beautiful garden boxes and now need to get some dirt! Arent they beautiful?! i was ready to help but in reality i was much more helpful staying out of their way. it gave me the perfect excuse to clean up the chicken coop and start weeding. i have a lonnnggggg ways to go!
My green house is looking great andmy starts are almost ready to replant. The boxes are going to be used for things that like more sunshine like tomatoes, basil, zuchini and i maybe cucumbers
last night just before the sun set i found my critters living in symbiosis. nothing makes me smile more, honestly and i am pretty sure Kudra was just trying to catch the last rays of afternoon sunshine and NOT waiting to catch dinner.
of course as soon as i took this picture i went back into the house to find this…HA!
Bon Appetite! Monday, April 6, 2009
May 2nd I am hosting my French Dinner for my cooking girls. I am SO EXCITED! i have hired a French Chef to come cook with me. Because of time constraints, i get to make the first course myself. Pate! Last week i went to Powells to finally purchase my Julia Child Mastering the Art of French Cooking and found the pair of them! They are so beautiful. wish me luck.
Becuase i cant wait any longer, here is my menu! stay tuned.
Pate - Pâté de Campagne
Velvet carrot soup with ginger, cardamom or cumin – Soupe aux carrottes avec crème cumin
Rabbit with mustard sauce - Lapin à la moutarde
Lemon pasta with favas and peas – Pâtes au citron avec petites pois et haricots de fava.
Cheese course – Fromage
Profiteroles with lavender honey ice cream – Profiteroles avec glace aux lavande et miel
New Buds and The First Garden Saturday, March 21, 2009
i am still feeling tired but i had to get the peas and beans into the ground today. I am already 3 days behind! i also caught a few shots of the garden.
My Daphne is in full bloom. I plucked a few blossoms and put htem next to my bed. I think their intoxicating scent finds its way into my dreams that way. It is also the first thing i smell when i wake up in the morning.mmmmm.
My first seeds have popped up! So far i have beets, fennel and melons!
OH i almost forgot! a few months ago i signed a petition to convince the new president to take their rediculously large useless lawn and turn it into something worthwhile, a kitchen garden! well ground was broken on the garden on the first day of spring. I am so excited about this. I think that no matter what you think about who is in the white house, it just makes sense to lead by example and this is simplicity at its finest. I hope the garden grows big and bountiful and inspires people to start their own kitchen gardens. I think that with everything going on in the world right now, this was a nice fresh air sigh.
