Hoo-ahh!!

[new chambers guy]

Well, it's up and running! Got my manual from Stove Guy on Wednesday, installed it Thursday night and calibrated it Friday night (no social life with three kids and a day job!). Right now I'm putting some cinnamon rolls in for breakfast!

I used a digital remote-read thermometer to calibrate the thermostat and found that the thermometer stopped at 392 degrees - so much for the 400 degree test in the manual. But at 300 degrees, it held within +/- 3 degrees over 45 minutes. The geek in me wants to graph that out over 1 minute increments and then set up another table showing heat loss over time with the "gas turned OFF!", but that's just me...

Anyway, it looks great in our kitchen and I'm looking forward to trying out the Apple Dumpling recipe I got from Tura. Gotta hit the orchard for my apples though. Side note - does anyone know a good combination of apple varities for cider? I've got this cast iron cider press see, and need some suggestions......

Wow, even the timer's accurate over twenty minutes! "Breakfast is ready!"<marquee>Now we're cookin' with GAS!</marquee>

[annnt]

Hi New Guy;
I don't know a lot about cider myself, but I asked an arborist friend of mine. He said most apples make really good cider. The exception being the sweeter apples like red delicious. But, right now all the fall apples like Macintosh, Jonathan, etc would be really tasty and in any sort of combination. He also said you should only used culled apples - the kind with many bruises, that have been half eaten by birds, and have worms (he said he thinks it's even against the law here in Colorado to throw perfect apples into a cider press). He said, in fact, the more worms in the apples the tastier and tarter the cider (and just think of the protein!). Maybe you could start your own brand of cider with a worm in the bottom of the bottle.
Bottoms up!
Ann
ps hope at least the first part of this is helpful

[new chambers guy]

Well, I don't know about extra worms, but I can go with the windfall theory. I found a couple of books at my library that should help.

Tura, I will be trying the apple dumpling recipe tonight (and the next few nights probably) trying to adapt it for a thermowell without a thermobaker. I did a test using the regular pot and I think I have the timing pretty well worked out. I'll keep you posted.