Warm Your Belly, Warm Your Heart!

I would like to welcome our new guest blogger! Becky from Your Modern Family 

has some really great recipes to share!

Warm your Belly, Warm your Heart.....

Are you looking for a recipe to warm you up?  This one is fast, easy and so tasty!  It is one that the whole family will love and you can change it every time that you make it (see details below)...

Chicken Ala King:

Cook 3 cut-up chicken breasts (You can boil them first for 20 minutes & then cut them up).

set these aside

In a skillet over low heat, melt 1/2 a stick of butter (or 1/2 cup).

Add to this... 5 T flour (blending constantly!)
Add a cup of chicken broth

Add a cup of milk (still blending & mixing)

Add some salt, pepper, mushrooms (I use a can), peas and 1 beaten egg yolk. 

   ***TO add the yolk, beat it in a seperate bowl & add some of the milk mixture to that bowl.  When the eggs reach the temperature of the skillet mixture, add it in.  Otherwise it will scramble in your meal (but it still taste the same & you can't really tell!)

Add the chicken to your dish.   Turn the heat off.
Let it cool a few minutes and it will thicken.

Here is where the variety comes in: you can have this over rice, egg-noodles, biscuits or toast.  It is great any way that you make it!  You can also use green beans, sun-dried tomatoes.. anything to add some variety! 

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A great side to this meal is Hash-brown Casserole:

This takes about five minutes to make!

1 Bag frozen Hashbrowns (thawed)

1 Stick Melted Butter

1 Bag (2 cups) cheddar cheese

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 small container of sour cream (around 8 oz).

Mix them all together and spread in a casserole dish.

Bake for one hour at 350. 

You could make this your main dish by adding a meat (ham or chicken). 

Have a great dinner!  Enjoy!

You can email Becky if you have questions. 

Email Becky

Thank you for the great post Becky!

Don't Buy It ~ Make your own! ~ Laundry Soap

As much as I love my laundry detergent, I had to share this one again! Hope you enjoy!


Do you want to save money? Of course! Who doesn't? I have found that one of the most expensive things that I buy at the store every week is laundry detergent. I have seen many recipes to make your own and I finally took the time to give it a try. I want to give you the instructions and answer some questions as well so that you can save your family money too. Its also a really cool project for the kids to help with!




 Not only is it cheaper, but its also very mild on my son's and my Eczema. A lot better for sensitive skin than the Tide I used to get! My son has had less outbreaks of rashes since we started using it. It makes my clothes smell great and so far, its getting out all the stains that my 4 yr old can give me! I was talking to my mom about Fels Naptha when I was making my home made laundry detergent and she said that when she was younger, they would use the bar as a pre-treat for stains. That makes perfect sense on why it gets out stains! Be careful not to use too much! You only have to use 1-2 Tbsp in each load!


See my Incubator in the background? :)


Ingredients:
1 Cup Borax
1 Cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda (NOT BAKING SODA)
1 Cups  grated bar soap (I used Fels Naptha)
Tea Tree Oil (optional)


Finding your ingredients. Half of the ingredients I had never heard of and I had to search for them when I went to buy them. I knew Borax and Tea Tree Oil. I had never heard of Fels Naptha and I had never heard of Washing Soda either.  I was able to find both of the items near the Oxy Clean in the isle. You can substitute the Fels Naptha for a brand called Zote. Normally your store will have one of those two brands. If not, that is ok! You can use any bar soap without too much perfume. Washing soda can be made if you cannot find it. Bake the baking soda on a pan, at 400 degrees (stirring it regularly) until its dried out. Baking soda is really powdery. You will know you have washing soda when it becomes really gritty.



Step One: You have to grate your bar of soap. You can use any method to do this. You can use a cheese grater or with a food processor.

Step Two: This is what I added to this recipe. At this point, I added 10 drops of Tea Tree oil to the grated soap and mixed well. I add the Tea Tree Oil because of its anti-fungal and antiseptic properties. Its really good for psoriasis and eczema, which my family has and it helps with numerous other things as well, such as acne, lice, boils, and dandruff. This step in the recipe is completely up to you.

Step Three: Measure out your Borax and add it to your grated soap. Mix well.

Step Four: Measure your Washing Soda and add it to the mixture. Mix well.

Thats it! You're done and ready to use it to clean your clothes! Its one of the easiest things that I have done in a long time! Store in really any container. Mine is tin with a loose fitting lid. Some of you may want to keep it in an airtight container, so I recommend a mason jar.

Use 1 tbsp for regular washes.
Use 2 tbsp for heavily soiled washes.





Making a larger batch of laundry soap:
To make a whole years worth at once, you can use this recipe.
6 cups of Borax
6 cups of Arm and Hammer Washing Soda
6 cups of Fels Naptha or other soap of your preference.
Mix well, store what you arent using in an airtight container to prevent moisture. Only have out what you will use that month. Because you are making so much at once, you dont want it to clump up because humidity has gotten to it.



Some common questions that I want to cover. PLEASE ask if you have questions!

Q: Is it safe for HE washers and frontloaders?
A: Yes. The washing soda and borax is low sudsing. It will do just fine with your washer.

Q: I cant find Fels Naptha at my store. Can I use something else?
A: Yes! I actually encourage it. Experiment with different soaps and smells. You can even use home made soap, like the Castile or Lye soap that The FAM FARM sells on their site! Any kind of bar soap will do. Try to stay away from ones that have too much perfumes to them. Especially if your family has sensitive skin. Examples of good soap for sensitive skin is  Fels Naptha or Ivory or the Fam Farm's Castile Soap.

Q: I have never heard of Washing Soda. Can I use baking soda instead?
A: Yes, you can, but I reccommend using the Washing Soda. The difference between the two is the PH level. Baking Soda has a Ph of (8) which means that it is pretty close to the acid in your stomach, that way its non toxic. The Ph level in Washing Soda however is 11. Its much higher on a Ph scale and is used because its MUCH better than baking soda at neutrolizing acid. That is why its better to use in your detergent. NOTE: Using baking soda may not be safe for HE washing machines.





If you dont want to make it, you can buy yours from The FAM Farm! Go check her out!


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Spotlight On Poultry: Rhode Island Red

I’m so sorry for the delay in getting out a new Spotlight on Poultry. Things have been hectic around here. I do always feel like I am back in high school writing a report when I do the spotlight because I do a lot of research on each breed. I was looking forward to writing about this breed because of how popular it is!

Ruby's Portrait ~ Jane Steele

 Rhode Island Red chickens are one of the most popular breeds of backyard chickens. They are good for both eggs and meat and do well in all climates. They are very friendly and have a good nature, therefore making a good pet for small children and adults alike! RIR’s lay brown eggs and rarely go broody. Their eggs are normally large in size and they can tolerate the cold. They are red in color and sometimes can be a darker “rust” color and also sometimes have white streaks in their feathers. They have red/orange eyes; yellow feet and their beaks are a reddish brown color. Males can get to be 8.5 pounds and females can be 6.5 pounds.

RIRs From The Chicken Fountain

 This breed originated in Massachusetts and Rhode Island , around the 1840’s. The early birds had both single and rose combs. Breeding began in a little town in Rhode Island called Adamsville. The chickens were bred with a Black Breasted Red Malay Rooster. The Rooster is actually on display at the Smithsonian Institution as the “Father of the Breed” RIR’s were accepted into the APA in 1904. As the breed gained popularity, it has now become one of the best known breed of chicken in the world! There are two types of RIR’s. Over time, breeders would try to breed for the qualities that they liked the best. The first type is often called industrial, or production. These birds are lighter in color and lay about 300 eggs per year. The second type are referred to as exhibition, or heritage. They are darker in color, have a larger body, and lay fewer eggs than the industrial strain of RIRs.

Rhonda ~ Alexis Henry

Talking With ~ The Chicken Fountain

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity and the pleasure to have lunch with the owner and inventor of The Chicken Fountain! We just happen to live about 20 minutes away from each other.  Once we figured that out, it was only a matter of time before we just had to get together.  A few days before we met, my 14 yr old daughter Autumn had been the 1,000^th LIKE on Frank’s FB page, therefore winning her a tshirt. My daughter and I showed up for lunch and Frank had brought us a chicken fountain in hopes that we would put it together, use it and review it. Well, we did that. I honestly have no idea how I have lived without this! Let me tell you a little more about Frank and I will explain why his product is amazing.

Frank Cardaropoli lives in Davidson, NC on 6 acres with his wife and kids. His kids are ages 7, 8, 16, and he also has a 23 yr old niece.  Needless to say, with the kids alone, he has his hands full. Then you add in his 14 chickens, 3 dogs, 2 goats, a cat, and a few hermit crabs. He is one busy man! They have lived in this area for 12 yrs and about 3 years ago Frank started making Chicken Fountains. He made them for himself and friends and family started wanting them. A good friend of his pushed him to start producing them and here we are today, with the best way to water your flock that money can buy!

So I sat down when I got home to put together The Chicken Fountain.  I opened the box and pulled it all out. It took me about 10 minutes to put the whole thing together and that included the time it was taking my 14 yr old to figure out how to use the camera on my phone to take photos for the blog. The hardest part of the entire thing was opening the bottle of PVC glue! It was SO SIMPLE to assemble! Everything you need is included in the box.

Once I got the fountain hung up out by my coop, I attached the rubber bands to the nipples to create a drip. This is only used until the chickens realize that there is water there for them, it helps them to learn. Once they have gotten it, you take off the rubber bands and the drip stops. I love that I am not wasting any water with the Chicken Fountain.  I have seen many concerns from others about their chickens learning how to use the fountain. I will be the first to tell you, I don’t have the smartest flock.  I have a Rooster that is a wimp, a hen that is the Alpha in the flock and 2 birds that just don’t  “get it” when it comes to laying eggs IN the box. My chickens learned the Chicken Fountain in less than 4 hours. It only takes ONE to learn it and once the others see one doing it , they have to be nosy. Also, when you place the Chicken Fountain out there, you remove all other source(s) of water and the fountain will be the only option for them.  

I saved my favorite part of The Chicken Fountain for last. Before I had the Chicken Fountain, every 3-4 days I had to go out to the coop, empty the water bucket and clean it. Which meant me touching this slimy gross build up.  Never again will I ever go back to that. The standard Chicken Fountain holds 1.5 gallons of water and fully refreshed the supply within two days and the slime NEVER forms!  It is made from heavy duty PVC pipe and you can add anything you want to, like apple cider vinegar, directly to the unit.

The Chicken Fountain comes in 3 sizes for different sized flocks. There is the MINI for 2 to 6 bids, The STANDARD that is made for flocks of 4-16 birds, and the MEGA which can handle 40+ birds.  Have you ever had a problem with your current water freezing in the winter? Not with the Chicken Fountain. They also make a drop in heater that will keep water flowing to your birds in the coldest of temps! I will be raving about the fountain forever! Check out his site and how to order your Chicken Fountain at www.ChickenFountain.com

Or….

You could also try to win one!!  The contest is HERE

Frank is a great guy and will answer any questions you have. You can contact him many ways, through his website, Facebook page or email him directly at info@chickenfountain.com.

Talking With ~ The Chicken And The Dog

I had a chance to speak with Amanda Maxwell, Author of The Chicken and The Dog! I wanted to tell you all about her and her book that is one of the cutest books I have ever seen. Its based on a true story too!



Amanda grew up in Connecticut and didn't have chickens but she describes her hometown as "Cow Town" so there were a lot of farms around. She ended up going to college in Arizona, where she met her husband. They both decided that the hot and dry weather wasn't for them. I totally get that. I live where its hot and humid! So, Amanda and her husband moved to a little waterfront cottage in Washington. They enjoyed that house with their dog Sean Connery. Sean is a black lab and as I understand it, he is such a great dog! When Amanda and her husband had to move to Olympia, Washington for work they went house hunting. Here begins the story of the Chicken and the Dog!


Sean the Dog and a Chicken

While looking in Olympia for a house, they found the perfect one. The only catch was that the sign in front of the house said "Backyard Chickens" The house that they found, came with two chickens that resided in the greenhouse! Everyone they knew were warning them about Sean and the chickens. Saying to be careful that their dog didnt hurt the chickens. Once they moved in and got accustomed to having chickens and learning about them, they realized that Crimson and Clover were using the window box right outside their back door to lay their eggs! How neat is that? Amanda could open up her back door and reach into the box!

Sean and Crimson and Clover all freaked out about each other for about a week when they moved in. After about a week, the Chickens and the Dog were the best of friends! They lived as a happy family for a few years and the chickens lived in their greenhouse. Amanda and her husband decided they would build the chickens a coop. Once the little coop was built, they heard a noise one night. It was 3am. They went back to sleep.The very next night Amanda thought she heard a chicken out of the coop. She didnt think anything of it until about 5 minutes later when she heard a huge crash! She ran into her bedroom to look out the window to the chicken coop and a
raccoon was staring back at her. They were devastated. Clover had been able to get away, but Crimson, poor thing, all that was left was feathers.



The next day as they headed to work they were both just really bummed out. The chickens that had become part of their family had been attacked and they lost one. Amanda's husband texted her that day and said " I want to write a children's book about the chickens" That was the beginning of The Chicken and The Dog. The thing they had to figure out was how were they gonna make it child friendly when one of the chickens had died. I cant give it away, you will have to read the book to find out!!

They initially contacted Jill Carter to do artwork for the book because Amanda's husband had worked with her and knew she was a wonderful artist. She agreed to the the artwork. In my opinion, I am really glad that Jill agreed to draw the characters because they are perfect!

Amanda and her husband originally had made the book for Christmas presents for friends and family but the story needed to be shared. Its a wonderful story and I now read it to my son, Ian, who is 4 yrs old, every night before bed. He asks me every night if we can read the story with the red chickens.


Andre, Amanda and their son.

Amanda loves getting together with other chicken people and talking. Whether it be on the phone, in email, or in person. Who wouldn't like talking to chicken people! We are awesome! She and her husband replaced Crimson and also have added
another chicken to their flock. She is a silver laced Wyandotte and they named her Ms. Money-penny. Amanda is working on a second book too! I personally cant wait to get a copy of it. I expect that this book will go places.

Contact The Chicken and The Dog
The Chicken and The Dog On Facebook

Buy The Book:
TheChickenandTheDog.com

Gearing Up For Fall With Simmer Pots!

Simmer pots are the best thing to use during the fall and winter!  I use them every year and everyone loves them. I wanted to share my recipes with you so you can have your house smell yummy too!!

 

Orange  Cinnamon (My Favorite One)

What you need:

A pot

Orange peels

Cinnamon , I use powdered but you can use sticks

Cloves (or ground cloves)

Nutmeg

Vanilla extract

1 bay leaf

Peel your oranges into pieces. Place your oranges in your pot.

The thing with the spices, I never measure because I don’t need to. A dash of cloves, a few dashes of cinnamon, just add a little of each. I always add a bit more cinnamon because I LOVE cinnamon.

Cover with water and place on LOW on the stove. Make sure to keep an eye on it every now and then to make sure it always has water! I have ruined a pan because I didn’t keep water in it.

The great thing about simmer pots is that you can use the same one for about a week, if you find you aren’t smelling as much cinnamon, add a dash more the next day. After a week of simmering it everyday, I pour it out and start new with all new ingredients. That is it. They are cheap and easy to make and your house will smell great! Right now my house still smells bad because of the rotten egg I broke, but the first thing I did was go over and turn up the simmer pot!

 

Here are a few other combinations that you can try. I have used all of them and they all smell wonderful!! These recipes are ones my mom taught me to make and never really had a name. I decided to give them a name.

Apple Cinnamon:

Apple Juice (or you can also use apple peel or apple slices)

Cloves

Cinnamon

Citrus Cinnamon:

The peel from one orange

The peel from one lemon

1 bay leaf

Cinnamon

Cloves

Lavender Spice

Dried Lavender

1 lemon peel

Nutmeg

Cloves

1 cinnamon stick

This last one isn’t a simmer  pot but still smells WONDEFUL.

Put 2 tbs of vanilla extract in a coffee mug, place in the oven at 300 degrees for ONE hour. You house will smell like you are baking something! Without the work of actually baking!! Win/Win right?

Play around with scents that you like, if there is something in one of my recipes you don’t care for, then don’t add it! Simmer pots are also great for expired things. You can use juices that are a day or two past their date, and spices that have set on your shelf for a few years! Don’t throw them out! Put them in the simmer pot!

If you have any other recipes I would love to hear about them! Comment below so I can try them too!

**Another great idea is to use the recipes in a crock pot! You can let it go all night and it will add moisture to the air! Thank you Deleith Campos for sharing that tip!

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On another note, I wanted to make everyone aware that we are holding a HUGE contest in a few days! There is still time to submit your item for the contest! If you would like to be included , please email me : jessica@talkingchickenscratch.com

Raising Mealworms for Your Chickens

When I first told my husband I wanted to raise bugs in my kitchen so that my chickens had treats, he thought I was nuts. By this time I had jumped in head first into the world of chickens. I had a chicken purse, a tshirt and I was growing stuff for my chickens to eat. Which was very weird because I had all but given up on growing anything because everytime I tried to grow something, I killed it. But for my chickens, I tried again and got a whole garden of things grown just for them. So as you can imagine, I told my husband i needed some things to start growing worms and he of course was blown away. Once I got my "worm farm" started though, he didn't think I was so crazy.

First I want to say this. I have done A LOT of research and reading. I am going to share with you what works for me. It is not the only way to do this. There are many other ways. This way is just the best way that I have found to do this.

Ok, so starting your worm farm is so easy to do. Its also pretty cheap. The things you need to set up:

- a 28 quart clear tote

-a 56 quart clear tote

(note that the smaller one needs to nest inside the bigger one, see photo)

-an exacto knife

-a hot glue gun

- a piece off window screen big enough to cover the bottom of one tote

- a screw gun and a drill bit

First, take the smaller of the two totes, turn it upside down and cut out the bottom, leaving about an inch lip to glue the window screen onto.  I found that the easiest way to cut it out is to not use much pressure and go over and over it with the knife. It will get weaker and pop right out. 

Once you have the hole cut, get your glue gun ready and glue the window screen to the bottom. Try making it as tight as you can so that the screen wont sag.  Let it dry at least an hour so that the hot glue isnt sticky.

Next, get one of the lids. You want to drill holes in it for air. I put about 15 holes in mine, you can gauge about how many you need. They dont need much air but you need some air to circulate in the boxes. I also hot glued a small piece of window screen on the inside of each hole to help prevent moths from entering the setup.

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Setting up your worms and what you need -

- a jar of plain oats (not the instant kind)

- layer pellets, yes the ones for chickens

- a basket strainer

- a potato, carrot or celery stick.

-  blender or food proccessor

Start with your layer pellets, you need to grind them up in your blender/food processor. I actually use a knockoff of the Magic Bullet, I bought it for $17 at walmart. Add the layer pellets in and grind them up. Get a big bowl and sift the ground layer pellets into the bowl to get any big pieces out. Make sure the bowl you use can be put in the microwave.  Do this until you have a full bowl.

 This next part is VERY important. Are you listening? Place the bowl in the microwave and heat it up for 30-45 seconds. This will kill anything that may be living in the feed. I didnt do this the first time I set up my mealworm farm and I ended up with grain mites. They bite and they are very tiny! So make sure you do this!!!

Keep grinding them up until you have about 2.5 inches in the bottom of the big tote, the one you didnt cut. Once you have them ground, heated and put in your tote, add 2 cups of the oats to the tote and mix well. Now you are done with the bottom set up!! Congrats!! Set the smaller tote inside the bigger tote. Now you have created a sort of sifting system.  In the top tote, add 2 cups of oatmeal.

Now, for the fun part. Worms!!! There are many places you can get your initial worms from. I will put some links at the end of this post for you to check out.  I started my farm with 500 worms. I bought mine from the pet store at $3.50 per 100 of them. I could have gotten them cheaper (and more of them) if I had ordered them online, but I have a problem with instant gratification. Make sure that you start with MEALWORMS. Don't get confused and buy superworms.  If I had to do it again, I would have gotten about 3,000 mealworms to get started.

Once you get your worms, place them in the bottom tote with the oatmeal and layer mash. You need to take your vegetable and cut it up into 2-3 pieces. Place it in the tote with the worms. Humidity is important and the veggie helps with that. The worms will eat the veggie along with the bedding they are in. Don't let the veggie ever get moldy, so replace it every couple of days.

 

Keeping your worms-

The first part of your mealworm farm is the most time you will spend with your farm the whole time you have it. The life cycle of the mealworm is very simple:

 

Your worms will turn into these little alien things. They are called pupa. They dont move much and they dont eat. I went a little crazy with checking on my worms. I would do it multiple times a day because I was so excited to see the change happen. So when you go through your bottom tote ( you can do it every other day ) You put the pupa that you find into the top tote. They will turn into beetles. Each femal beetle can lay up to 500 eggs in her short lifetime. That is A LOT of worms. Its hard to wait on the worms to turn and the pupa to turn and its a HUGE deal when you get your first beetle. Make sure that the top tote has a veggie in it for the beetles.

The mealworm beetles are actually called darkling beetles. And they are named well. The beetles love dark. They love having places to hide, so make sure that you have some toilet paper rolls or some cut egg cartons. Give them places to get under.

 

Im sure that you are wondering why you have a top tote that has window screen on it. When the beetles lay their eggs, sometimes they can be a little bit canabalistic. The window screen allows the eggs to fall through to the bottom to join the worms. Therefore, beetles cant eat them.

That is about all you need to know about a mealworm farm! Its one big cycle. The worms turn to pupa, then to beetles, they lay eggs that fall to the bottom and turn into worms. Simple!

Things to do with your farm......

Name each worm. My kids did, well they tried.

Feed them to your chickens, they will follow you everywhere for a worm. Its quite funny actually.

Freeze them! Click here to get instructions on how to freeze them for your chickens.

Thats all I can think of really. There isnt much you can do with worms, hahaha! They will save you a bunch of money and give you some really cool entertainment watching the life cycle. I hope everyone  sends me pictures when they start their own! I want you to show off your worms!

Resources to buy worms online -

Uncle Jim's Worm Farm

Fluker Farms

Worm Man's Worm Farm