"compost nut"??? Please, address us as "compost enthusiasts" if you don't mind. :) As to your query, bale of straw weighs what, 50 pounds give or take? Pretty high in C. Trying to figure out how much manure based on how much you have fed them could be tough, especially if they are eating bugs, seeds etc. I would suspect that it would be nigh onto impossible to get an accurate read. If it were I, I wouldn't sweat it too much. Do you clean the pen or whatever to "harvest" the bedding/manure to put into a pile? If so, add water and experiment. If it doesn't get hot pretty quick, you needed more N. If it really stinks then you needed more C. I think this what Sue was saying upthread as well. As for balance, I would adjust C/N (if I had to) using leaves and UCGs adding an inexpensive source of varied nutrients. In any case, if it becomes too problematic, I would be willing to take it off your hands if you want to ship it up here. Just trying to be helpful. :) For those that can't recognize the "tongue in cheek" humor, I was trying to be funny 'bout the "composting enthusiast" comment. Lloyd

I leave the peel on if I'm making the salad for us here at home. If you simmer the potatoes until they're not quite done, rinse them quickly in cold water (to cool the skins but not the potato)and then allow the residual heat to finish cooking the center of the potato,then let them cool completely before cutting, the skins won't peel off when you cut them. We like the skins. But, many people don't, so if I'm making it for a crowd, I go ahead and skin them after cooking. I always add celery, and have never had a problem with it getting watery. I wonder if it's because I don't add any salt, letting people do that for themselves? However, if that's a problem, and one is out of celery seed, perhaps mincing the celery leaves would be another way to get the flavor without the moisture.

I prefer the bone-in breasts. I think they are more flavorful. One of my favorite ways to prepare them is to grate the peel of a lemon and mix it in a small bowl with a large clove of garlic, 1/2 a small or 1/4 of a large onion, a handful of celery leaves and fresh parsley (all finely chopped). Then I add S & P, some dried or fresh tarragon and marjoram and about a Tbs. of olive oil or softened butter and a couple of squeezes of the lemon juice. I lay the breasts on their sides, pull back the skin and smear the mixture over the meat. Then I pull the skin back down over it and secure the skin to the breast meat with a wooden toothpick. Put in pan, bone side down, and add a little white wine or chicken broth around it and bake at 350 for 45 min to an hour, depending on the size of the breast, until juices run clear when pierced with a fork. The chicken should be nice and moist. You can also cut up some potatoes and put them in the pan with the chicken. I usually use unpeeled redskins and turn them occasionally during the cooking period. Here's another easy one for bone-in breasts: HONEY CURRIED CHICKEN 4 bone-in chicken breasts or 1 cut up chicken 1/4 cup melted butter or margarine 1/4 cup honey 1/2 cup orange juice 2 Tbs. prepared mustard 1/2 tsp. salt 1 tsp. curry powder 2 Tbs. dark rum Place chicken skin side up in shallow baking dish and preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine remaining ingredients, stirring well. Pour sauce over chicken. Bake for one hour, basting occasionally with sauce.

Ugh. No. I would have mentioned it to the waitress. They may have someone new working in the kitchen who did not understand the instructions. That happens sometimes. I work in the restaurant industry. Believe me, one has to give every single detail when training and instructing kitchen staff. Often times the dishes being made are things that they never grew up eating, and even the fruits and veggies used, are things that they may have never ever seen before. Funny: A worker made a batch of strawberry glaze and neglected to pull off the little green leaves from the strawberries. True. I know some people NEVER eat the chicken skin. I actually like it crispy on BBQ chicken but in a salad - No.