An eggy question ....

[Monika]

Sorry, this is not a gardening query but relates to fresh hens' eggs: our neighbour who keeps hens has just given us a dozen fresh hens' eggs. As it's just the two of us and I had also just bought some eggs, we now have a surplus: is there any way I can preserve the eggs? Unfortunately, I am not a baker, so don't need them for baking, but could I freeze them, for instance, and then scramble them? Or hardboil some and then thaw them out to eat in salads?

[Westi]

Pickled eggs? I would think Friatta's would freeze, learn to like baking? I know whites can be frozen & then thawed for meringues - Delia or it might be Nigella actually used to do that. Not forgetting dried eggs that used to be served up as scrabbled eggs a few decades ago, but how you would do that would need some research & you can buy batter mix that doesn't need refrigeration, but for home could probably be made & frozen as you can buy frozen toad in the hole.

[Stephen]

Sadly Monika I have no idea. Aside from baking I don't use eggs at all.

[Elmigo]

I would definitely make some pancakes! What about adding flour and spices and baking italian bread, or any type of bread? Maybe make some devilled eggs, they are amazing. Or dumplings... No, I got the answer! Scrambled eggs with lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, sweet pepper, micro greens and bacon on a slice of self baked bread! The joy of eating your own home made bread...

[Geoff]

I would have thought the fresh ones would keep for at least two weeks if you can get through them in that time.

[Primrose]

Maybe you have a trial run with hard boiling a couple.Monika, freezing them in their shells for a couple of days and then trying them. I can't think of any reason why they wouldn't freeze in this way.

Otherwise it's probably an eggy menu couple of weeks for you, maybe with cheesy quiches, cheesy scrambled eggs or omelettes or similar.

Ironic isn it that when I was a child in wartime there would probably have been battles in the street fought for such an egg surplus when the ration was one egg per person per week...or was it per month? I can,t remember now.

Fresh eggs seem to keep perfectly oK in my larder for a fortnight. Whether storing them in the fridge would prolong their life I don't know.

[alan refail]

Frozen boiled eggs are likely to be inedible - tough and rubbery. Fresh eggs cannot be frozen in their shells, but only cracked and frozen in a container. What they would be like when defrosted I have no idea, and I don't intend to try it to find out!

[Monika]

Thank you for all your thoughts, tips or otherwise. Yes, I think I've cracked it (pun intended): we will keep them as long as possible and I will also make a big asparagus flan, that should take three or four of them!