We recently made this for Easter and it has become a big hit!

3 T olive oil
2c white mushrooms
3 leeks, washed cut Julienne (white part only)
1 med onion
1/2 sour cream
1/2 half n half
1/2 shredded Cheddar cheese
( 1 oz) package of Dry Onion Soup mix
1/2 t paprika
1/4 t salt
1/4 t pepper
skinless, boneless chicken breasts ( 1 – 1 1/2 lbs)

Heat a large skillet over med heat, put oil, mushrooms, leeks and onion to pan. Cook 8 minutes stirring.. Remove from heat and add cool slightly. Stir in sour cream, half and half, cheese, soup mix, paprika, salt and pepper. Coat a 13 x 9 glass baking pan dish cooking spray. Arrange Chicken in pan. Pour cooled mushroom mix evenly over chicken. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Preheat oven to 350. Remove plastic wrap and bake uncovered for 1 hour. variation on the recipe call for 3 bacon slices, cooked and crumbed over the top before refrigerating, with 2 T bacon fat replacing oil oil to cook mushroom/onions

Fabian, banty and full size hens

As Gomer Would say….. Let set this up a little… We have  “bittys ” ( AKA Chickens) and I like have little tiny banty type rooster with the big hens…in hopes of non fertile eggs with those huge fat hens. Won\’t go into that too much, but hoping he is too little. But I do have a couple of cochin ( feather footed ) banty hens. Last winter I had seen a post for a free banty rooster… but was told he was a  “Malaysian Serama ” That got too large…But in the normal chicken world he is VERY tiny! Even compared to a bantum. A Serama is a breed consider the  “Worlds Lightest Chicken” More info here:  http://www.seramaclubgb.co.uk/\nhttp://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/CGP/Sri/BRKSri.html\nhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serama\nhttp://www.scnaonline.org/standards_and_judging.php This rooster was what they call  “D ” ( as in battery ) size and too large. They are pretty rare and very pretty! So we got Fabian. And he settled in the farm quite well. One funny thing about this breed, they are so small that their voice sounds like a squeaky toy. Picture the scary Doberman from movie  “Up “, with that squeaky voice. So funny! He is very gentle and will sit on your hand like a parrot…about the same or smaller than one! As you can see he is quite handsome!

It is hard to tell in this picture how small he is… but the black hen is a Full banty and he is about 2/3 her size. He sorta puff his feathers when I was trying to take this picture. This year I have bought about 15 store bought and special order chicks. More posts on that later. And have had to hand raise them in the brooder. I don ‘t make a good chick mom! Ok, now to that black hen. She is about a 1 1/2 yr old and she has spent most of that time trying to hatch a golf ball, ( put in the nesting boxes to encourage laying). She takes a month off and then goes broody again. I even attempted to graph some day old chicks on her.. But she did not got for it. So picture a hen is always almost setting on Dud eggs and one golf ball. Everyday I look and see her on that nest…and I think ( dumb chicken!) Well yesterday was doing my daily check and letting them out to forage. And looked at her with my thought of  “Dumb chicken “, and  “something ” told me to look under her. Why I don\’t know why…this is not something I usually do, as it is known around the house..there is a golf ball and some duds. Well I peeked under her and to my SURPRISE was the cutest little yellow fluffy chick! and another one still wet and trying to stand! How COOL! I went to get the kids and listened to their mumbling/complaining all the way out. But they were happy too! So my little Squeaky Toy is a Daddy!!

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Our first of many watermelons! Who would have thought they can overwhelm a family… luckliy we found some victums….I mean people to take some of them! YUM. We also found out they are great dried. Can you see the tomato sauce freshly done on the counter!’