Shadrach's Ex Battery and Rescued chickens thread.

[Mother of Chaos]

Realizing, everyone has different preferences and different reasons for keeping chickens, I have to say, having a great rooster makes dealing with the cockerels a breeze, but there probably is a limit to the number one can raise. I do adore them. Spud is a great teacher and mostly gentle with them. It has been a real pleasure for all concerned thanks to him.

It has been so peaceful and serene, even the spring frenzy was mild. If one of the girls squawk in protest Spud and/or his second in command, Squeaky, rush over, give a stern look or a gentle chest bump the young lads, who immediately stop and back away from the offended hen. A few times of this and they just gave up being 'naughty' and are now behaving like perfect gentlemen. So idyllic, once you have the perfect rooster. LOL

I define chicken happiness levels by how much time they spend doing normal chickening, our girls never seem to squabble, except when a broody is involved, no illnesses, they spend most of their time foraging, dust bathing and taking peaceful siestas.

I love the idea of having the guys in the flock, but…

Those of us like @BDutch and I who live in urban settings can appreciate the advantages of having roos and cockerels, but if you can’t have them, you can’t have them.

 

[MrsNorthie]

I love the idea of having the guys in the flock, but…

Those of us like @BDutch and I who live in urban settings can appreciate the advantages of having roos and cockerels, but if you can’t have them, you can’t have them.

I could never go back to living in a city, town, or any place where they have too many restrictions, but I won't judge anyone's choices. You both take excellent care of your girls. When I first started my brain was saying, "Oooh fluffy pets that just happen to lay eggs!!" and I was interfering too much, but now that I have gotten to know them as individuals and have started learning about their natural instincts, my life is all about letting them be as natural as possible on 6 acres, until I can buy more land... then it will be all about letting them be as natural as possible on 50 acres. LOL This is just my choice/preference and my luck to have some space to do it.

 

[Perris]

I did have a recipe for the chutney but I can't find it. I don't think it's an "official" pudding. I may have been the inventor.
The chutney needs to be hot and sweet.
After the chutney making it's just a question of cooking the meringues so they're soft inside, cutting them open and stuffing some chutney in them.
I put a dollop of clotted cream on the top.
It will certainly wake the taste buds up.

Obviously this is not a usual pudding but I've made it a few times and after the initial shock most people eat it and comment that it was both unusual and rather nice.

Love this. You'll have to give it a name: Bristol Bomb or some such Seriously, sweet and sour is a common combo for mains, so why not for dessert? We have quite a few chilli chutney/jams and some ready made meringue nests around to experiment with easily.

I remember being taken aback by Betty's fruit cake and cheese combo when I first went to Harrogate, but it really works. For the uninitiated, see here https://www.bettys.co.uk/blog/fruit-cake-and-cheese (which also incidentally promotes another use for your plums: plum cake )