Potatoes and Eggs

My daughter's preschool has 6 chickens and the eggs are often available for sale.  If you have never had truly fresh eggs before you need to give them a try, there is definitely a difference.  The difference can be seen as soon as the eggs are cracked, the color of fresh eggs is much more vibrant and I think it can actually change slightly based on the diet of the chickens.  The flavor is also much more eggy and rich, again I think the flavor of these eggs change slightly because of the their diet.  Since these chickens are preschool pets they have a very unique diet.  In addition to their regular feed the chickens often get scraps from the children's snacks, which means they eat a lot of fruit and strawberry tops.  These chickens are also very spoiled by the teachers and often receive special snacks, like pasta and cheese and baked salmon, I don't know much about chickens, but I don't think this is part of their normal diet.  

We don't get the eggs very often, but when I do buy some I like to do an egg meal.  Recently I did hash with poached eggs.  This is a flash back to my childhood meal.  My Dad is a good cook, but this is one of his favorite meals and he would often make it as our Friday night dinner.  As a kid I hated it, I wanted pizza night like most of my friends were having, but as in so many other things I now really appreciate this meal.  It is simple, filling, and uses the leftovers and odd bits you have at the end of the week.  After years of complaining and driving my parents crazy I am now loving this simple dish and torturing my kids with it when they would probably rather be eating pizza.  Everything really does come full circle.  

                                      

Potato Hash

4 Large Potatoes, peeled and diced (if you have potatoes leftover use those, just cut into bite-sized pieces)

1 lb Sausage, slice or diced - any kind will work, I like Aidells sausage all the flavors are wonderful (again         you can also use leftover meats)

1 Onion finely diced

1 Red Bell Pepper, diced

1/4 c. Chicken broth

1 Bunch Spinach chopped (optional)

Hot Sauce

Cook potatoes until just tender.  In frying pan cook sausage until brown.  If needed add 1-2 Tbs of olive oil, heat.  Sautee onions until soft and translucent.  Add pepper, cook until soft.  Add cooked potatoes.  Season with salt, pepper, add chicken broth and spinach.  Cook for 5 minutes until heated through and spinach has wilted.  Season with hot sauce as desired.