23. Easter eggs

Those of you who know me or have followed my previous locavore blog (locabusylocavore.blogspot.com) know that I am a huge fan and promoter of seeking out and consuming local products whenever possible. Until recently I’ve been in a sort of “survival mode,” navigating around in unfamiliar territory; though certainly not in a food desert, Stillwater’s offerings are pretty basic:  three Walmarts, a Food Pyramid, a Sprouts Market, and a small seasonal farmers’ market, a couple of tiny Asian markets. Oh, and Aldi. Thank goodness for Aldi. I mean, we still eat well, but I miss that direct connection with the producer of our food.

Spring is here. Everything is blooming, birds are loud and plentiful, lawnmowers are roaring, the pollen count is through the roof, and I’ve had the itch to dig in the dirt. I ordered plants from the Seed Savers’ Exchange to grow in planters at our rental house. I’ve also felt the need to venture out, seeking out opportunities to buy local in my new environment, and the easiest place to start is with eggs. Although until this past week it’s been illegal to have chickens within the city limits, I was certain there would be farms just outside of Stillwater with products for sale. Less than a mile from our house is a small goat farm; a sign out front reads “eggs for sale,” but the couple of times I stopped by, no one was there. I also wondered if they had goat’s milk, but I’ll have to catch them when they’re home to ask. I had to throw away my packets of chèvre culture in the move, but I can easily order more online.

Life has been so busy recently while I’ve met with our builder, filled out applications with the banker, shuffled cars around for repairs on two cars, and shopped for a used car for our newly-minted driver. It was while browsing on Facebook Marketplace for a car that I finally came across local eggs for sale (and I have no idea how their algorithms are working on that one!).

the result of our lengthy car search

On Easter morning the lovely Shannon came to my house and delivered four dozen gorgeous eggs from her chickens for less than I would have paid at the store. I don’t know Shannon at all—except for what I see on her Facebook page—but, judging from her eggs, her chickens are well fed and cared for. And the yolks are a color you will never see in supermarket eggs. Why paint Easter eggs when Mother Nature does such a fabulous job?

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My favorite spring salad:  tomatoes, hard-boiled eggs,
blanched asparagus, lemon vinaigrette

Can you tell which one came from the store?

That color!