Eggopotamus

We were goofing off the last time we ate this, which is how we came up with the name Eggopotamus. Actually it was me that called it this. It's a spin off tortilla de patata.

Eggopotamus

3 medium potatoes
1 medium onion, chopped
8 eggs
2 T butter
1/2 t each garlic powder & onion powder
Salt & pepper to taste

Peel your potatoes, then grate them onto a plate lined with paper towels. Spread them into an even layer & press more paper towels on top of them. This gets them as dry as possible for frying. While your potatoes are drying between paper towels, crack your eggs into a bowl & whisk with spices.

In a well-seasoned cast iron skillet, melt your butter. Add onions in a layer & spread your shredded potatoes atop the onions. Sprinkle with salt & pepper. Fry on medium heat until browned on the bottom. Lay a plate on top & carefully, but quickly, flip the potatoes & onions onto the plate. Slide back into the pan. Fry until browned. Add eggs, fry until they are done on the bottom, then flip again onto a plate. Slide into pan & cook until done through. You may also put them under a low broiler rather than doing the flip if you prefer.

Cut into wedges & serve.

Rabbit in the Crock Pot

In the comments section, I was asked for a rabbit recipe. This is a favourite in our household. It was originally used on an older doe, and I went with the crockpot method, as I knew she'd be a bit tougher. We left her whole & cut her up after she'd simmered all day.

Rabbit in the Crock Pot

• 2 rabbits, whole or cut into serving pieces
• salt and pepper
• 1 large can crushed tomatoes (30-32oz)
  
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon rosemary
• 1 cup dry white wine

Salt and pepper the rabbit to taste. Place the rabbit in the crock pot. Mix the rest of the ingredients together and pour over rabbit stirring to coat. Cover and cook on low for 6- 8 hours. Serve and Enjoy!

Butchering Day

Today I've butchered 2 of my 5 month old rabbits. As I mentioned in my last post, I'm far behind on so many projects. These rabbits should have been done 2 months ago. I have 2 more rabbits to butcher today, then I'm caught up (for now) on rabbits. My other batch will be ready for butcher in about 4 weeks or so.

I learned how to do rabbits a few months ago when a friend of ours came to show me. It took awhile since he was explaining everything & I was learning & asking questions. The first rabbit I did this morning took over an hour. My 2nd took just 36 minutes. I'm hoping they go quicker & quicker as I get more accustomed to doing this.

It's not all fun & games!!!

This is a tally so far. We're not done yet, but I wanted to get this logged.

This year's additions:

• 7 baby bunnies (1st litter)
• 5 baby bunnies (2nd litter)
• 10 more baby bunnies (3rd litter)
• 21 White Plymouth rocks for meat
• 2 barred rocks
• 2 easter eggers
• 2 Rhode Island reds
• 2 silkie bantams
• 3 turkey poults
• 1 rouen duckling
• 5 chicks hatched by Floppy
• 5 chicks hatched by Goldrush
• LOTS of seedlings

This year's losses:

• 1 adult doe rabbit obtained August 09 (she refused to breed)
• 7 baby bunnies (1st litter; 1st time mom, and she killed them)
• 5 baby bunnies at birth, 1 several weeks later (2nd litter)
• 1 silkie bantam (pecked to death)
• 3 turkey poults (mycotoxicosis)
• 1 rouen duckling (didn't take to eating or drinking in the first 24h)
• LOTS of seedlings

This year's miracles:

• We had TWINS hatch in Goldrush's batch. TWIN CHICKS!!! This is a Very Rare Thing!!!
• Hubba got an assistant manager
• Hubba allowed me to bring a new kitten onto the home
  

This year's obstacles:

• A death in the family
• A family member that cracked some vertebrae in his neck & spine
• A family member that cut off his thumb
• A family member that escaped murder in a home invasion
• A sewage flood in our home
• The ENTIRE five of us coming down with the stomach flu within 38 hours of each other
• Hubba lost his assistant manager

This year's WAY behind projects:

• New rabbit hutches
• Weeding the garden
• The garden
• Butchering animals
• Schooling
• Painting
• Fixing the chicken coop & run

This year's accomplishments:

• New flooring downstairs
• Front porch restained
• I have ended my daycare business
• I have a part time job that will net more take home pay in about 1/5 of the time
• I have another part time job as a greeting card rep that I do about once a month for one store & quarterly for another
• I stayed out of the mental institution just one more year

A Miracle on 1/10th!

Do the math:

We had FIVE eggs left. There's still an egg in the nest.

We have FIVE babies

WE HAD TWINS!!!! That's almost unheard of- twins hatching out alive!!

A brief snippet from a 4-H site says:

"1. Can two chicks hatch from one egg?


Yes. It is a rare occurrence. When two chicks hatch from the same egg, the egg usually has two yolks. Usually, one embryo out competes the other and only one chick survives to hatch. Many time both embryos die before hatch."

Never in.my.life did I think I'd be blessed enough to see this!!!

More pics!!!

If I don't throw treats into the run before entering the coop, this happens (yes, that is a view from the door to the coop barely open):


Remember the babies born in March?? These are the 3 girls. One looks JUST like her Daddy, only her spots are a little lighter.


And these are the 9-day old new babies. Their eyes are ALREADY OPEN!!!


Here is a MUCH better pic of that gorgeous cockerel. His tail feathers are finally coming back in. When Momma & babies were reintroduced to the flock, a couple of them would wander off. She'd bark at them, but would stay with the majority of the chicks unless she HAD to leave the larger group. So little mistah got all his bum feathers pecked of, LOL. I also love the colouring of the other one in the pic. Guess what? That's a cockerel as well.....


Here are 2 more of the broody's babies. The black is shaping up to be a girl, and I think the little tan & cream one is as well. The tan & cream has beautiful colouring & pattern, too. She seems to be getting some black (little) spots on her now as well.

8 weeks 1 day

Our baby chickies (from the broody hen) are 8 weeks, 1 day old today. They are cornish hen size, like what you see in the grocery store. I plan on keeping them a bit longer. We have 2 cockerels, for sure.

Here he is in the middle (from top to bottom)

And here he is in all of his beautiful cockerel glory.

Oh HOW I wish I could keep him. He is BEAUTIFUL!!! I'll get a better pic of him on the real camera soon. This was taken with my cell and he wouldn't stay still.