Friday, August 28, 2015

Guineas and Bald Chicks

We've been busy with projects around the farm lately.  In July we picked up a couple of guineas locally.  We still don't know if they are male, female, or a variety of each.  Supposedly you can tell from their squawks once they mature.
In addition to the guineas, our apples are in season.  I've blogged before about them.  They have funny black spots on them.  But they taste like a Granny Smith, only smaller.  I canned a batch for pie filling.
I was disappointed by the Pinterest recipe I chose, so if you have a good recipe for canning apple pie filling, let me know.  Otherwise, I think I'll make apple sauce or apple butter next time around.

We also ordered a batch of 15 chicks in July.  We got a variety of heavy breed chicks.  Three of them have bald necks.  I thought, at first, that something was wrong with them.
Well thank goodness for Google!  Turns out they are a historic breed called Naked Necks.  They make great foragers, layers, and meat birds.  I like that they are proficient foragers.  Sounds like what they don't have in cuteness, they make up for in personality.

I have been picking butternut squash from the garden.  I cut my first one into little cubes and sautéed it in butter with onions, until browned like hash browns.  It was fantastic.  We all devoured it.

Lastly, I also have some news about rabbits!  But I'm saving that for a separate post.  Readers, what's been keeping you busy lately?

23 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi there Lisa!!!

I think those little bald neck chicks are so adorable... *chuckle*..!

Oh and apple butter? I have never heard of it! Is it just butter with apples and what do you use it for?

Small Kucing said...

Despite the odd looking skin, am sure the apples taste great. Not like those we get here. All with shinny skin. Full of wax

The Cranky said...

You're always so busy Lisa! I'm keeping busy with cooking, baking, garden, and cleaning and organising the house.

Harry Flashman said...

Guinea Hens used to be everywhere here years ago, but you almost never see them now. I don't know why.

Sunnybrook Farm said...

I haven't seen chickens like that, predators might think they are buzzards and leave them alone. We have butternut but haven't picked any yet but it is time to let them harden in the sun and store them inside. I have been canning tomato sauces and finally salsa yesterday and may be done canning until the roosters in November or if some fruit becomes available. Back to working on other projects now.

Cat said...

The very best apple pie filling is actually applesauce that has been either cooked fresh or home canned. Add cinnamon, nutmeg and maybe a little allspice, if you want. Add sugar if you want it sweeter. Rub the bottom of the pie crust with flour, put in the applesauce, dot with a little bit of real butter. Put on the top crust and punch some holes to let the steam out. Bake as usual. This makes the best apple pie you ever had. My Grandma Eads always used her home canned applesauce in her pies and they were the best I ever had. She also made fried apple pies out of her applesauce and biscuit dough. She fried them in an iron skillet in butter. So excellent!

Out on the prairie said...

I freeze apples packed in lemonade. I imagine you could can them also.

Sally said...

You're always so busy; don't know how you do it!

I had to take a double look at that naked neck chicken, new one on me also. Glad you googled. LOL

We haven't had apple butter in many years. Mom used to make it, and we always liked it.

xoxo

TexWisGirl said...

hope all your young birds make it!

Unknown said...

The naked neck chickens are unusual to say the least. We like butternut squash too, but didnt plant any this year. We have 3 apple trees that produce the same looking apples. We havent tried to can or freeze. Enjoy your weekend.

Aodhnait said...

You are always up to something interesting. Love your blog posts!

Michelle said...

My butternut squash is also about ready. I love it! We have had many chicks before, but never the naked necks. You will have to keep us posted about them.

Lin said...

WOW! You have cool stuff going on by you! I will have to live vicariously through you--we are boring...just work and home. :(

Tweedles -- that's me said...

We never heard of naked necked chickens,, but several years ago I had a naked chicken neck... But eventually all my furs grew in,
love
tweedles

Linda said...

That's a strange little chicken!

mail4rosey said...

My second oldest bought my youngest a turtle. He's been keeping us on our toes, trying to learn how to care for him properly. He's a cutie too!

Unknown said...

Preparing for Grad School...

An Apel a Day said...

Those chicks do look funky, but I like them. They are cute!

I haven't canned a whole lot. I told my husband that we need to grow more next year, to can more.

Maggid said...

Butternut Squash??? YUM!!!

I would have been concerned by those bald babies . . . thanks for teaching me.

Eat To Live said...

When I was growing up.... We only had a couple kinds of chickens. Now, I see all sorts of breeds.

Annette said...

I want your ENERGY. I think your naked neck chickens are cute. It looks like you've been very busy with the farm. I'm sure your boys must have loved collecting apples for you. We plan to go apple picking sometime soon. I LOVE apple butter and apple pie!

Unknown said...

You so much going on! You are like a whirlwind!

Rose said...

Those babies are cute...even the naked ckicks in their own way. I had never heard of them. Those are not Granny Smiths...they don't ripen till the end of the season. I used to work at an apple orchard...even though it was small, at the time I worked there we had 27 varieties of apples. But there are so many I have never seen or heard of and some I have heard of but have never seen...and I would love to see them. We did not have anything like this that got ripe this early. But down home, there was an apple tree on this old farm that was ready earlier than this...mom called it early June Harvest Apple, but I don't know if that was its real name. But its apples were not near that big.

And that is Sooty Blotch on the apples...