Hard-boiling farm-fresh eggs?

Farm-fresh eggs do not peel well! Peeling is easier if eggs are not hard-boiled until they are 1-2 weeks old. As the egg ages, air slowly penetrates the shell, helping to separate it from the membranes inside.
Some websites suggest modifying the traditional hard-boiling procedure to make fresh eggs easier to peel. I've had pretty good success with the modified method, but haven't yet done the sciencey side-by-side comparison that this situation cries out for. If you try the modified method let me know how it goes!

Traditional:
1. Put the eggs in a single layer in a pan. Add enough cold water to cover the eggs by 1 full inch.
2. Bring the water to a boil over high heat. When the water reaches a boil, immediately remove the pan from the heat. Cover the pan.
3. Let the eggs sit in the hot water for 16-18 minutes. (this gentle cooking yields tender, not rubbery, eggs.)
4. Cool the eggs under cold running water, or in prepared ice water.
Modified for very fresh eggs:
After the eggs have been sitting in the hot water for 16-18 minutes, remove them to very cold ice water as above and SAVE the hot water; don't dump it out. (tip: use a slotted spoon to remove the eggs from the hot water.)
5. While the eggs cool, bring the hot water back to a boil. Then put a few eggs at a time back in for 10 seconds.
6. Take the eggs back out of the boiling water and cool them again in ice water.
Final step for both procedures: refrigerate the eggs for up to 1 week, or crack them all over, peel, & serve immediately.

sources:
Incredible Egg
Ehow
Catherines for lamb (?)

Infotainment: Shelf life

Q & A ON SHELF LIFE

Q: What is the shelf life of a farm-fresh egg?
A: According to the American Egg Board (www.aeb.org), raw eggs can be kept refrigerated for 4 to 5 weeks without much loss of quality. Those weeks start when the egg is created, though—so for grocery store eggs, aim for 3 weeks in your refrigerator. With the farm-fresh eggs in this carton, you get your full 4 to 5 weeks.

Q: What is the shelf life of a hard-boiled egg?
A: Properly refrigerated, hard-boiled eggs keep for 1 week.

Q: Why is the shelf life of a hard-boiled egg less than a raw egg??
A: Hard-boiling an egg removes the bloom from its shell. (Remember the protective bloom?) Therefore, on a microscopic level, the shell is now 'drafty.' Bacteria, off-flavors, and weird refrigerator odors can drift in. So 1 week it is.

Infotainment: Part ONE

Each week I include an informative and entertaining insert with the eggs from my little flock. The first insert, "About Our Eggs" is essential; it's about egg safety. There is a difference between handling grocery store eggs and farm-fresh eggs. What is this difference? Read on...

About Our Eggs
EGG SAFETY!
We don't wash our eggs, and you shouldn't either until just before you are ready to use the egg.
* Why DON'T we wash the eggs?? Are we lazy?
When a chicken lays an egg, there is a microscopically thin membrane that covers the egg's shell. This membrane is called "the bloom". The bloom is the egg's way of protecting itself against germs and harmful bacteria. It blocks the egg's pores, sealing it off from outside contamination and slowing down the aging process. Washing off the egg also washes off the protective bloom.
* Why SHOULD you wash an egg?? Isn't it organic?
There is pretty much only one exit from a chicken. It's called a 'vent.' Eggs go out the vent, and so does...everything else. (Now you know why eggs need a protective bloom.) So it's good to give the egg a wash off before you use it.
*I've never heard of this.
Grocery store eggs are washed when they are produced, then coated with mineral oil to re-seal the shell--like a man-made bloom. So you don't have to wash those eggs, because somebody already did.

As always, keep eggs refrigerated. Cook eggs, and food containing eggs, thoroughly.