15 Days of Elgin Christmas- Day 4

Thursday, December 6

Egg shells are determined by the breed of hen and have no impact on nutrition. Egg yolk colour is defined by the what the chicken eats.

Everyone has a favourite food. Some of us have several. One of mine, without a doubt, is the Day #4 locally featured food item: the mighty egg. White, brown blue, scrambled, deviled, or poached, I would rather give up wine than give up eggs (I can't believe I said that). Not only are eggs delicious and nutritious, they are also a kitchen marvel. Eggs can be used as: a leavener to lighten cakes & cookies, create structure in meringues, help bind and emulsify mixtures and enrich & thicken custards.

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Eggnog Tarts

As a festive treat, I've taken the basic principles of eggnog and turned it into a tart. Eggnog tarts are made with brandy, nutmeg and vanilla pastry cream then topped with real whipped cream. A flaky, butter tart shell holds all the eggnog filling but a spiced graham crust would work well, too. The lemon yellow colour in the filling comes from the farm-fresh egg yolks. Brushing the pastry shells with egg before baking ensures a golden coloured crust and helps prevent the pastry from becoming soft.

Order your tarts from Elgin Harvest!
12 Eggnog Tartlets (two-bite size) $10
12 Eggnog Tarts (3-inch) $15

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Here Are Some Egg Facts:

Know your eggs.

• Eggs may vary from white to brown, depending upon the breed of the hen. There is no difference in nutritive value between a brown shelled and a white shelled egg. Shell colour does not affect flavour or cooking performance of the egg.

• Eggs are usually good if refrigerated for one to two weeks after purchase. The "sell by" date is 30 days after the pack date on the carton. They are good however 4 -5 weeks beyond the pack date.
  
•  To tell if an egg is fresh, place it in a bowl of water. Fresh eggs will sink to the bottom and lie on the side. As the egg ages, the air cell in the large end becomes larger. As it does, the egg becomes more buoyant. An older egg will stand up in the bowl of water and a really old egg bobs along the top.
  
• A cloudy white is a sign of freshness. The cloudiness comes from the high carbon dioxide content of a freshly laid egg. Thick white is a sign of freshness. If there is a lot of jelly-like white, the egg is fresh. As it ages the white thins out.

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Link to Egg Farmers of Ontario, Programs and Procedures 2012
Note: the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) requires that all eggs used in a restaurant come from a government inspected grading station. For personal use, visit a local farm and support your local community. Just like buying produce from vegetable farmers, ask questions about how the eggs are produced and chickens handled. Know where your food is coming from.

At this point in Canada, there are no legal definitions to what "free-range" or "free-run" means. If this matters to you, ask your egg supplier what their farm defines it as.

Farm Gate Sales- Farm Gate Sales An egg sale transaction that takes place right at the farm - where the eggs are produced on the producer’s own farm, are clean and not leaking and are sold or offered for sale only on the farm premises to consumers for their own consumption.

Where to get eggs:

HOPE Eco Farm
52013 Glencolin Line
Aylmer, ON
(519)765-1031 ext #1

Briwood Farm Market
1030 Talbot St.
St. Thomas, ON
*eggs from Oxford County

Aylmer Sales Barn
51 Murray St.
Aylmer, ON
open Tues. 8-4