At 9:30 the night before last, I counted heads before closing the chicken coop door for the night. I came up with eleven... one short, but it was quite dark inside the coop so I just figured two chickens were huddled to appear as one. The group had always hung close together so it would be unusual for one to be out on its own. I proceeded to latch the coop door and secure the door to the fence that surrounds the coop then returned to the house to get ready for bed. The next morning when Dick went to open the coop, he noticed feathers scattered about outside the fence not far from the entrance door… definitely not a good sign. Upon counting chickens when he opened the door, one was missing. Apparently I had locked Phoebe out! I was devastated. Last night, I went out at 9:15 with a flashlight so that I could count heads and know without a doubt that all chickens were safely tucked inside. I got halfway to the coop and spied… as well as smelled… a skunk in the middle of the yard rooting up the sod. It was far enough away, and he was busy enough not to notice me, that I decided to proceed toward the coop. Just as I reached the path leading through the woods to the coop, another skunk came strolling down the path toward me. I hightailed it back to the house and breathlessly gasped to Dick, “Grab your gun! We have skunks in the yard that are after our chickens!” Dick has a superior aim. He hit the skunk in the middle of the yard with one shot and he was on the trail of the other one. This second one proved to be a bit more of a challenge, but that one met its fate as well. Despite bullet holes in the metal siding of our pole building and a flat tire on our pickup where a bullet had richocheted and gone through the tire’s sidewall requiring the purchase of a replacement tire, our chickens are safer for the time being. Did I say Dick has a superior aim?
For lunch today, I had planned to roast a chicken that I had purchased through my buying club from a farm in southern Minnesota. It’s just too soon after Phoebe’s demise to consume poultry, so I made a pot of lentil soup instead.
Lentil Vegetable Soup
2 cups dried lentils (any color), picked over and rinsed (The most common lentils are red-orange or brown.)
1 large onion, chopped
6 stalks celery, chopped
3 carrots, diced
1 can (1 lb) stewed tomatoes
1 T mixed herbs (I used ½ tsp marjoram, ½ tsp thyme, and ½ tsp leaf oregano. It is really a wonderful flavor combo. Try basil, too. You might want to experiment by increasing each amount a bit for an even more pronounced flavor.)
1 tsp garlic powder or 2-3 cloves garlic, diced
ground pepper to taste
4 cups chicken broth or (or veggie broth) plus 4 cups water (If you cut all quantities in half for a smaller pot of soup, use 4 cups broth and eliminate the water.)
You can add in whatever vegetables you have in your fridge or garden. Chopped zucchini and fresh or frozen spinach are a nice addition.
Place all ingredients except carrots, zucchini and spinach in a soup pot. Simmer for 1 to 1 1/2 hours until lentils are tender. Carrots take 20-30 minutes to cook so add them during the final cooking time. You can add zucchini at the same time as carrots unless you want them to have a touch of firmness then wait until about the final 15 minutes. Spinach is added during the final few minutes just to wilt it. Season with additional pepper and seasoning salt to taste. Serve with a hunk of homemade whole wheat flax bread for dunking. (I'll share that recipe tomorrow. It's a new favorite of mine.) To make a complete meat-free protein, I served brown rice pudding with this soup.
Nutritional Information - Lentils are packed with nutrients, fiber, complex carbohydrates, and folic acid. Lentils are a low calorie, low fat and cholesterol free food as well as being inexpensive. Folic acid is one very important nutrient found in lentils. The U.S. Health Service recommends that all women of childbearing age consume 400 mcg of folic acid per day. Most women do not meet this guideline. One cup of cooked lentils provides 90% of the recommended daily allowance (RDA). Lentils provide more folic acid than any other unfortified food.
Lentils are also an important source of iron, especially for women, whose iron needs are greater. Eating lentils with foods rich in Vitamin C, such as tomatoes, green peppers, broccoli, and citrus fruits or juices, helps the body absorb iron more efficiently.
Lentils are also protein rich. They lack only one protein, methionine. Adding grains, eggs, nuts, seeds, meat, dairy products, or eggs will provide a complete protein.
Soluble fiber is also found in lentils. Soluble fiber acts as a scrub brush, cleaning the digestive system. This type of fiber also decreases serum glucose and cholesterol and decreases insulin requirements for people with diabetes.
