The Twelve Days of Christmas: Day 3: Three French Hens

by Tom Bastek
Last updated: 9:00 PM ET, Tue November 18, 2014

Illustration courtesy of Thinkstock

Over the next couple of weeks we are going to explore exactly where you need to go to obtain or achieve everything from the song, "The Twelve Days of Christmas" including two turtle doves and a partridge in a pear tree.

Three French Hens

Obviously, the place to go for a French Hen, being that they not only perfected the cooking of such a bird, but probably invented it, would be France. But whether or not you would like to take a trip overseas, here is a way you can find your foul.

France

Chef Jody Williams was trained in France and Italy and has worked under some of the most brilliant culinary minds such as Thomas Keller. She settled in New York City and opened up her restaurant, Buvette in Greenwich Village. After huge success, she has taken the concept back to Paris. There are many wonderful dishes on her menu and would assume the Coq au Vin would certainly qualify as eating a French Hen. Do it three days in a row or with tow others in tow and voila! Three French Hens.

Fresh from the Farm

If you are looking to keep it a little closer to home, but still want to get that, "I went and got it myself," feeling, you may want to consider doing a class at a farm. Nettles Farm, out on Lummi Island of the Washington State coast, has a bed and breakfast with two accommodations. They offer the opportunity for you to work on the farm, mingle with the animals and even take a butchering course. Locally there is The Willows Inn, where you can eat with the food that you just farmed at Nettles.

Locally Source

Free range animals are all the rage right now, which makes accessibility to them easier than it was even five years ago. Farmer's markets, local grocers and even stand alone butcher shops are popping up all over the country. Eat Wild has a great list of where you can find free range animals and organically grown plants all over the country and the USDA maintains a farmer's market list as well.

Online Classes

If you are a little less the hands-on type but would like to know more about how to become a poultry farmer, Cornell University offers a Poultry Production (BF130) class that teaches basic poultry production from field to plate; breed selection, production systems, flock management practices, and costs; rules and regulation for sale of poultry products as well.

So for the sake of our travel to find our Three Faverolles Chickens, we will say that we are off to France and to finish here is your promised video: