The Sun Oven

After Ariel's great emergency prep post, I can't help but share one of my favorite emergency items: 

The Sun Oven.

I call it an emergency item, but in fact, it's almost a daily convenience around here.

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways:

1. I don't have to turn my kitchen into an oven to cook dinner (my hot, pregnant self assures me that this is #1 right now). This also lowers our AC use.
2. Great in case of emergency. No electricity? No gas? Go sun oven!
3. Simple to use (with clear instructions). Once you have one, don't let it sit in your garage! It's easy as pie. In fact, go ahead and bake one in there.
4. No fossil fuels required, just sunshine. Easy on the environment and the pocketbook.
5. Preheats very quickly.
6. Cooks with an even, moist heat (read: very difficult to burn food therein).
7. Folds nicely. Stores compactly. Not heavy. Easy to clean and maintain.
8. Made in the USA!
9. The company is committed to placing their ovens in developing countries all over the world, reducing deforestation, improving health by providing a clean cooking alternative, and running programs to raise standard of living and reduce poverty.
10. Since I bought mine, they've added a dehydrator rack. Gotta get me one of those.

What have I made with it? Not enough! It's hard to remember exactly, but so far everything's worked, including: bread, rolls, meatloaf, whole chickens, cookies, cake...  You can use it for anything except fried foods (which require hands-on prep). Incidentally, it can be used anytime you have direct sunlight, including winter months. I haven't experimented enough, but I bet you could get a fair amount of heat in there even under an overcast sky. Anyone tried?

I had my eye on the Sun Oven for over a year before my ward did a group buy, making it slightly more affordable. But it is worth every penny. I highly recommend it!