Nik’s Eggs

There are few things more enjoyable in life than farm-fresh eggs, and my years on Bequia have taught me to appreciate and be thankful for them. In years gone by I had to buy eggs imported from England for the Pizzeria, eggs that were certainly tired by the time they arrived in the Caribbean, and trying to separate the whites in order to make lime pies became the bane of my existence. Nowadays eggs are plentiful in the country thanks to farmers on the mainland, but I have never forgotten how difficult it was to get my hands on fresh ones!

When my husband Nik was recently gifted with six laying hens he promptly transformed a dog pen we no longer use into a chicken coop, bought feed from the store, then hunkered down to research his newest project. Curious by nature, Nik wanted to learn all he could in order to enhance the store-bought feed; what supplements could he use that would result in stronger egg shells and more colourful yolks? The hens were providing us with lovely fresh eggs, but the shells were quite thin and the yolks a pale yellow. The quest for alternatives soon began, and we are still “questing”!

The hens needed more calcium to harden the shells, so Nik built an electric grinder with spare parts (yes, the man IS incredibly inventive!) and reduced sun-bleached coral from the beach into tiny pieces. We then went to a beach at Industry and collected shale-like bits of shell, and the coral and shell pieces were then fed to the chickens. Nik also introduced lobster to the mix by pounding and then baking empty shells (eggs shells too) until they’re brittle, which he then puts through an even larger grinder. The hens happily gobble up anything he feeds them, and we happily gobble up the eggs they produce!

Nik also feeds the layers duckweed from our fish ponds each day, and gives them Thai and sweet basil from the aquaponics garden. Further research indicated that moringa leaves would be beneficial, so we hunted down and harvested some branches and seed pods from trees growing here on Bequia. Moringa is supposedly an antioxidant, one of those “super foods”, so perhaps I will add some of the nutritious leaves to our morning smoothies. Nik planted some of the seeds in his garden in order to grow trees of our own, chickens aren’t the only creatures moringa is good for!

The lucky hens get kitchen scraps too – pumpkin peelings, discarded coconut, banana and papaya skins and potato peels; basically, anything I use when cooking that isn’t for human consumption is given to the chickens. They are doted on and quite spoiled throughout the course  of the day, and for good reason!

Has the addition of these supplements to the store-bought chicken feed worked?  The answer is a resounding YES; after one month the shells are much harder, and the yolks have changed in colour from a pale yellow to a light orange. The taste of the eggs has changed as well; the flavour is much richer, quite different from those the hens originally laid, and we are pleased with the results.

Every Sunday Nik and I eat these delicious results for lunch. We sit down to freshly laid eggs, home-made bread and crispy bacon, and we enjoy every bite. I especially love “boiled eggs and soldiers”, eggs boiled for 4 minutes and served with toast cut into strips for dipping. The fried bacon is an extravagance and not very healthy, but everything is better with bacon!

I look forward to Sunday lunch all week long, and it’s because of the eggs. And yes, the bacon too – everything’s better with bacon!