Little Black Lamb

Spent the weekend with Jake, Caren their two roommates and the five dogs. Jake’s been looking for a church for a while and it just so happened they decided on a church to visit while Sonny and I were there. I think with all the churches open now and Easter coming up he got serious about taking his family. Plus Caren found out that a friend had decided to get baptized on Easter Sunday at this particular church and she wanted to check it out so she could lend her support on Easter Sunday.

The four of us loaded up in Caren’s car leaving the roommates behind, found ourselves a seat in the sanctuary and listened to a sermon given by the youth pastor (the senior pastor was out of town) out of his King James Bible, on salt. It was a very good sermon on how the church is and needs to continue to be the salt of the Earth.

As he was preaching, I got to thinking of a little black auction lamb a friend of mine and Caren brought home one day. Our friend carefully bottle fed the little fellow and for a little while all was well but then it wasn’t. His little legs wouldn’t work; he couldn’t get up; he was in obvious pain. She tried everything and nothing worked. This went on for a couple of weeks with our friend doing all kinds of research but still not finding an answer. The little black lamb was dying.

About then Caren was heading into town getting sheep salt for her small flock of sheep and our friend asked her to pick some salt up for her as well so she wouldn’t have to make the trip. Caren did and she got the type of salt she always bought for her own flock. She gave some to our friend for the little black lamb. Our friend added the salt to his diet and that little fellow was up and about in two days as if nothing was ever wrong. Last I heard that little black lamb named Hemmingway was growing and doing just fine. Salt is so important; without it our bodies will not function. It is also a very good preservative when it is used in abundance (to little salt allows for spoilage wasting the salt). Below is a simple way to preserve egg yolks. At Easter we usually get enough eggs with a few left over so I like to preserve some in salt to grate over pasta, morning oatmeal, salads and such after they are cured.

Salted Egg Yolks

One box of Kosher or canning salt (no Iodine)          

Fresh egg yolks

Container large enough to accommodate.

Get the salt and the container large enough to accommodate ready by putting a thick layer of salt (about 3/8 to 1/2 inch) on the bottom of the container then make little depressions with a spoon back in the salt to accommodate the yolks being sure to space the depression so the yolks won’t be touching each other and there is enough room for surrounding salt to dry out the egg yolks (about 1/4 to 3/8 inch apart).

Separate one yolk from its white in whatever method is easiest. (I use my fingers, some folks like to use spoons, there’s even fancy gadgets to help with the process but I always come back to my own fingers; the egg whites can be fried and used in stir fried rice) then lay the yolk in the first depression making sure it STAYS in the depression this way if the yolk breaks it is contained and will still dry out and be useful. Continue separating and putting the yolks in the Container Large Enough to Accommodate until the container has what it needs for one layer (don’t double stack or the top yolk can leak into the bottom yolk interfering with the drying process) or there aren’t any more eggs.

Cover the yolks with enough salt so that the salt is white to look at and the eye can’t decipher yellow in the container. (I used half of one three-pound box of kosher salt for 8 banty eggs; that’s about 5-6 regular sized chicken eggs) Put a lid on the container and store in a cool dry cupboard or counter for 7 to 14 days. Take out of the container, brush off the salt; save the salt for the next round of salted eggs our use for other types of cooking (I use mine to season soups and stews or to salt raw meat). Grate over pasta; salads; morning oatmeal.

Note: I’ve heard salted egg yolk is used in place of parmesan cheese. When I have parmesan cheese, I use it. Same with salted egg yolk, when I have salted egg yolks, I use them. Egg yolks have their own flavor and nutrition profile, so I figure I don’t need to be using them as a substitute for anything.

In 2000 Michele Priddy left the work force to become a stay-at-home mother and wife. Being a one-income family in today’s society meant she had to learn to budget quickly. Food became a priority early because she wanted the children to have the best nutrition, she could offer them even on a budget. She also taught cooking classes on how to stretch the food dollar with simple ingredients at various churches in her community. Michelle has put her kitchen strategies and recipes in booklets, her church newsletter and also in her hometown newspaper, The Goldendale Sentinel. We hope you will enjoy her strategies, stories, and recipes. You can contact the Leavenworth Echo at Reporter@leavenworthecho.com or 509-548-5286 if you have any questions or comments for Michelle.