Independence Day is this week and what could be more American than an apple crumble? This crumble was baked in the pictured solar oven prototype. The temperature outside was 99F and was a mostly sunny afternoon. While preparing the crumble, I "preheated" the oven by putting it in direct sunlight and adding a block underneath the cooker so that the angled position would capture more sunlight (45 degrees is generally best). To make the apple part I cored and thinly sliced 5 Granny Smith apples, mixed them up with lemon juice, sugar, lemon zest, vanilla, cinnamon and a bit of cornstarch. For the crumble part I mixed up flour, polenta (finely ground cornmeal in this case), more cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar and butter. Using a food processor to mix the crumble ingredients is easiest. After mixing, I placed the crumble on top of the apples and put the dish in the solar cooker for about 2.5 hours. I did have to keep an eye out and move the cooker, when needed, to more direct sunlight. At the very end, once the apples are soft
and the crumble is bubbly, pop it under the broiler for a few minutes
to toast up the topping. The pressure was on since the dish was taken to a party and, though my family had their doubts, it was a great success!
