My Sun Oven

2011-05-13T14:07:00.000-07:00

Sun Oven Package Deal!

Only $269.99

Package includes:
   1 Sun Oven
   2 Stackable, covered 3 qt. Pots
   1 Set of 2 Loaf Pans
   1 Set of 2 Cookie/Brownie Pans
   1 WAPI (Water Purification Indicator)
   1 Computer CD containing instructions, recipes, video, preparedness tips, and FAQs

(Full Retail Value $303.95)

Living Green Enterprizes
South Jordan, UT
801-413-8914
email: sunovenlady@live.com

Rhubarb Pie

2011-05-13T13:55:00.000-07:00

Mmmm, Nothing quite like fresh Rhubarb pie. Even better cooked in the Sun Oven. I could smell it cooking all over the back yard while working in the garden.

23 degrees outside - Oven Temperature 340 degrees

2010-11-29T11:27:00.000-08:00

Chili is bubbly and hot, yum!

Breakfast in the Sun Oven

2010-11-08T14:39:00.000-08:00

This is taken from the blog at solarcook.net. Excellent idea, I'm going to have to try this.

Sun Cooked Breakfast

Eggs and Zucchini in an Upside-Down Oven (turned to face the sun)

Campers and preparedness minded folks often ask about making breakfast in a Sun Oven. There is a way to adjust a Sun Oven to allow it to heat up with the first light of day. Early in the morning the sun is very low on the horizon and the reflectors block the sun from reaching the chamber. If the leveling tray is removed the Sun Oven can be turned on its back so the side with the adjusting leg is on the ground or table top. In this position the wall behind the thermometer becomes the floor of the oven. A trivet or small rack can be placed behind the thermometer and pots or pans can be placed on the trivet.

Breakfast for Two (Oatmeal & Eggs) in a Upside-Down Sun Oven

(Keep in mind that if the leveling tray is removed, pots and pans should be placed on a trivet, not on the floor of the oven. To cook evenly, there must be air flow all the way around the pot. A trivet will allow air to pass under the pot and ensure an even heat.)

Huervos Rancheros in an Upside-Down Sun Oven

Placing the Sun Oven in this position can also add cooking time at the end of the day. The only drawback of cooking with the Sun Ovens in this position is that you need to stand on your head to read the thermometer!

It's Fair Time Again

2010-08-30T21:18:00.000-07:00

Come see me at the Utah State Fair September 9th thru 13th (the first 5 days of the fair).

Look for the Global Sun Oven booth in the Be Ready Utah event area.

Watch for my Fair Deal Special on the purchase of an oven. See me at the fair or check back here at fair time.

Remember, September is National Preparedness Month!

A Sun Oven is a great item to add to your preparedness items.

Summer Time

2010-07-16T13:40:00.000-07:00

It's July! It's HOT! And it is a great time to be using your Sun Oven. Keep the heat outside by cooking outside and not heating up your kitchen. (And then having to cool it down with your AC.) Saves on your energy bill.

Here is a yummy recipe.

Easy Rhubarb Cake

1 box yellow cake mix
2/3 cup sugar
3 cups chopped rhubarb

Mix up cake mix as directed on the box except use only 1/2 of the oil and add the 2/3 cup of sugar. After mixing, stir in the rhubarb and bake in one 9x13" cake pan or divide it between your two 7x11" cookie pans. You can stack the two 7x11's criss-cross in your Sun Oven. (You may need to leave the bottom one in a few minutes longer than the one on top.) The cake is done when it reaches a golden brown.

It's Spring!! Warmer Days and More Sun

2010-05-11T14:34:00.000-07:00

The weather is warming up and we have had some nice sunny days. Time to get the Sun Ovens outside again.

I had a busy day the other day with little time on my schedule to prepare dinner, but the sun was out so I took advantage of it. I pulled a 2 pound pork roast from the freezer, put it in a pot, smothered it with about a cup of BBQ sauce and put it in my oven outside about 10 a.m. After running errands, I went out to work in the garden around 1 p.m. and could smell the roast cooking. About 3 o'clock I brought it in the house, removed the cooked roast and shredded the very tender meat. Then I returned the meat to the juices in the pot and put it back out in the oven to keep warm until dinner time. We had the tasty pork on hard roll buns with a potato salad. Very easy, very yummy.

Go ahead, amaze yourself with how easy it is to cook with the Sun.

Winter Cooking

2009-12-11T10:24:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was very cold but mostly sunny with mid day high temp at 23 degrees. I set my oven out at 9a.m. when the temperature was only 9 degrees F. My oven reached 300 degrees even in the cold. I cooked a pot of beans for supper. I had presoaked them, then I cheated a little and brought them up to boiling before putting them in the oven. I took off and went shopping for a time and let them just cook. They were cooked by later afternoon, I then added seasonings and let them cook some more (in the house since it was too late in the day for any more sun). *See recipe below. (All ingredients from my food storage.) You can use any dried (or canned, if in a hurry) beans. I used a mixture of 1/2 c. each of Red Kidney, Black, Pink, and Pinto beans. We liked the mixture.

The colder temperature, along with the boiling liquid in the pot, created quite a bit of condensation on the oven glass. To cure that, I just ventilated it a bit by placing a Popsicle stick between the glass and the rubber gasket. This probably takes a little bit of the heat out of the oven, but not nearly as much as the fog on the window blocking the sun out.

Simply Delicious Beans
5 c. soaked, cooked beans, drained. (About 2 c. dried)
2-3 c. water
2 T. dried onion
1 1/2 t. beef bullion
1/4 t. salt
1/4 t. ground cumin
1/8 t. pepper
Pinch of ground ginger
Pinch of garlic powder

Combine all ingredients; bring to a boil. Simmer, covered 20-30 minutes. Serves 4-5
Variation 1: Add carrots or any other vegetable. If dehydrated, add additional water to rehydrate.
Variation 2: Add 1 t. honey and 1 c. salsa. Serve over rice.
*Recipe from the book "Emergency Food in a Nutshell"

Note: Soak beans (3 c. water to 1 c. beans) over night. Drain, add fresh water for cooking. OR: Bring water and beans to boil. Boil 2 min. then turn off. Soak for 2 hours. Cook in fresh water. Discarding soaking and cooking water helps to reduce the gas digesting beans causes. Eating them with rice makes a complete protein and helps with the gas also.

SUN OVEN Cooking Indoors

2009-12-04T19:22:00.000-08:00

Some folks have asked whether you can use the SUN OVEN indoors or not. Well, here is your answer! Yes, it does work. Not as well as outside, but it works.

I have a South facing picture window in my living room. This time of year we get lots of sun coming through the window, so I decided to try it out. I set up one oven outside and one oven inside to compare. My front window has 2 panes of glass, plus a storm window with 2 panes of glass, some of which I believe is low-E.

The results? Even though the outside temperature was cold (around 40 degrees), the outside oven heated up faster and hotter than the one inside. I got about 300 degrees outside compared to 250-270 degrees inside. Not bad indoors, still hot enough for a slow cook. I put some cookies in and they cooked fine. It took them longer (almost twice as long) at the lower temperature.

Another good option: My garage also faces South. When I open up the garage door, I get about 6-8 feet of sunshine on the garage floor. I moved the car and set the oven up in the garage. This works well to protect the oven if the wind is blowing some outside.

Try your oven out for winter cooking. I'm finding things take a little longer because; (1) the sun is furthur away in the winter (make sure you adjust the leg all the way up to tilt the oven as the sun is also lower on the horizon), (2) there seems to be more haze in the atmosphere especially if we are experiencing an inversion.

Also the day is much shorter so plan carefully to get your food cooked before you lose the sun.

At the Fair

2009-09-13T20:50:00.000-07:00

Fourth day of the fair. Had some clouds all day which eliminated any cooking. A little rain later in the day. Traffic was slower today.

Good Time at the Fair

2009-09-12T07:46:00.000-07:00

Having a great time at the fair! The Sun Oven population continues to grow. I've met lots of wonderful people from inside and outside the great state of Utah. Hi to you all. Thanks for visiting my booth and welcome to my blog. Keep cooking, the sun's energy is free and totally green. Gotta go for another great fair day.

Meet Me At The Fair

2009-08-27T20:45:00.001-07:00

I will be at the Utah State Fair Sept. 10th to the 14th with The Homeland Security's "Be Ready Utah" group. September is national preparedness month. Come check it out. (The fair runs through the 20th, so make sure you come early or you will miss us.)

Cooking, Cooking, Cooking

2009-08-27T20:02:00.000-07:00

The beginning of June I challenged myself to use my Sun Oven and cook something every day we had sufficient sun. Since then we have only had three days where the weather was cloudy or rainy with not enough sun to cook. Some days started out cloudy and wet, but cleared enough to bring out the oven. Some days I was only able to cook a little, some days more. I've cooked everything from Turkey Dinner to cookies; baked potatoes and hard-cooked eggs for potato salad, rhubarb pie, batches of zucchini bread, casseroles, and warming up the leftovers. I even bottled apricots and tomatoes then sun dried some zucchini, kiwi, pineapple, tomatoes, and mushrooms.

Part of my goal was to not use my house oven at all during the summer. I have only had to turn it on once when I was baking pizza outside and we lost the sun. My pizza was only half baked and could not finish, so I had to bring it inside to finish it up. My kitchen has stayed cool this summer which has saved on our cooling bill. That's a good thing.

History

2009-07-08T13:47:00.000-07:00

About three years ago I started investigating using the sun for outdoor cooking, mostly as an emergency source. I made my first solar oven using a Styrofoam cooler and aluminum foil. I placed a black cookie pan in the bottom and covered it with a piece of glass. It worked. I was able to bake potatoes and cook a roast in slow time.

I knew my primitive little cooker could be greatly improved upon, as it had some definite limitations. As I continued to gather information, I came across the Global Sun Oven. I was intrigued and eventually bought one. And I am glad I did! This little wonder has proven to be all it claims to be. I have had a blast cooking all kinds of things. Now it's to the point where if on a sunny day I don't have my oven out and cooking something, I feel like I am wasting the sun energy. That's the conservationist side of me.