@shawn_mitch For a lot of things, I’d agree, wholeheartedly. I even did my18 lb. turkey on my grill last Thanksgiving (first time trying that, and it everybody liked it!)
But I don’t know if I’d want to try baking cheesecake or pastries in my trusty Weber any time soon…
When I have to use my oven during peak summer heat, I have developed a “procedure” that seems to help in heating up the house less.
I take three sheet pans, and stand them up in a “C” shape on the stovetop, with their top edges leaning against the microwave/kitchen exhaust hood, and their edges held together with a couple of Neodymium magnets. This procedure makes the rear two stovetop burners practically unusable, but more importantly also “boxes in” the oven’s hot air exhaust, which is located at the center of the back edge of the cooktop.
With the sheet pans in place and the exhaust fan on high speed, the hot oven exhaust air is pretty effectively vented to the outside.
But you still have to open & close the oven door repeatedly to tend to the food that’s in the oven, and that’s when all the heat really escapes into the house!
(So you got to try to minimize oven door openings, and be quick!)
@ELJAY@shawn_mitch You must be from the South! That is what we call Redneck Ingenuity. Just take what you have on hand and figure a way to make it work.
I considered building a solar oven in the garden for a while, and never got round to it. We live in Cali and don’t have AC, but just had a whole house fan installed. It turns out that’s enough for me not to think about a solar oven for a while now.
@chienfou
I’ve even got a Wolfgang Puck pressure oven to make it faster. Pressure cooking + smaller oven means much less heat required to cook your food. Instant pot gets a lot of summer use as well. Grilling also helps for lots of foods, but not everything
because there is no a/c in my kitchen, in summer i honestly would rather a recipe where i can just throw something in the oven and leave the room to go sit in the a/c, rather than stand in the kitchen at the stove or counter working up a sweat regardless of the oven being on. i will prep sides early in the day before i take a long cold shower.
last night we had a french toast bake with fresh fruit. slow cooked “bbq” pork is also on the menu for this heatwave. sure there will also be nights we just have salads, sandwiches, or get takeout.
@Kyeh hey! hope you’re having a nice weekend and staying cool.
this is the french toast bake - i’ve already made it twice. both times i left out the poppy seeds & almond extract because i don’t have any in the house and it was still wonderful. first time we had it with just a load of fresh strawberries, last night i made a quick raspberry sauce or compote i guess you could say, and nectarines. https://www.homesicktexan.com/2021/05/lemon-poppyseed-french-toast-casserole.html
What’s the big deal? My 60-year-old in-the-wall Caloric doesn’t heat up the kitchen enough to notice; if yours does, well, clearly it’s Not As Good As Mine. (Hint: These old gas ovens need a flue, and it carries off the extra heat pretty well.)
My in wall oven doesn’t heat up my house to any appreciable extent. Cooking on the stove definitely does
If you can’t stand the heat, stay out of the kitchen!
@stolicat Unless the rest of the house is on fire…
Is this like walking the fridge in the winter?
This is what grills are for
@shawn_mitch For a lot of things, I’d agree, wholeheartedly. I even did my18 lb. turkey on my grill last Thanksgiving (first time trying that, and it everybody liked it!)
But I don’t know if I’d want to try baking cheesecake or pastries in my trusty Weber any time soon…
When I have to use my oven during peak summer heat, I have developed a “procedure” that seems to help in heating up the house less.
I take three sheet pans, and stand them up in a “C” shape on the stovetop, with their top edges leaning against the microwave/kitchen exhaust hood, and their edges held together with a couple of Neodymium magnets. This procedure makes the rear two stovetop burners practically unusable, but more importantly also “boxes in” the oven’s hot air exhaust, which is located at the center of the back edge of the cooktop.
With the sheet pans in place and the exhaust fan on high speed, the hot oven exhaust air is pretty effectively vented to the outside.
But you still have to open & close the oven door repeatedly to tend to the food that’s in the oven, and that’s when all the heat really escapes into the house!
(So you got to try to minimize oven door openings, and be quick!)
.
@ELJAY @shawn_mitch You must be from the South! That is what we call Redneck Ingenuity. Just take what you have on hand and figure a way to make it work.
@dyounghbic @ELJAY @shawn_mitch I dunno, Neodymium has a lot of syllables.
I considered building a solar oven in the garden for a while, and never got round to it. We live in Cali and don’t have AC, but just had a whole house fan installed. It turns out that’s enough for me not to think about a solar oven for a while now.
@tartanknickers A solar oven would be pretty neat, though!
Toaster convection oven to the rescue
@chienfou
I’ve even got a Wolfgang Puck pressure oven to make it faster. Pressure cooking + smaller oven means much less heat required to cook your food. Instant pot gets a lot of summer use as well. Grilling also helps for lots of foods, but not everything
Summer is for cooking outside. In Texas, the sidewalk becomes the stove top and the shed is the oven.
It’s like the astronaut that flew to the sun
… Just do it at night! 
because there is no a/c in my kitchen, in summer i honestly would rather a recipe where i can just throw something in the oven and leave the room to go sit in the a/c, rather than stand in the kitchen at the stove or counter working up a sweat regardless of the oven being on. i will prep sides early in the day before i take a long cold shower.
last night we had a french toast bake with fresh fruit. slow cooked “bbq” pork is also on the menu for this heatwave. sure there will also be nights we just have salads, sandwiches, or get takeout.
@jerk_nugget I always love hearing about what you’re cooking - it sounds so good!
@Kyeh hey!
hope you’re having a nice weekend and staying cool.
this is the french toast bake - i’ve already made it twice. both times i left out the poppy seeds & almond extract because i don’t have any in the house and it was still wonderful. first time we had it with just a load of fresh strawberries, last night i made a quick raspberry sauce or compote i guess you could say, and nectarines.
https://www.homesicktexan.com/2021/05/lemon-poppyseed-french-toast-casserole.html
@jerk_nugget Yummm! Thanks! I have some bread that’s gotten a little dry so this would be perfect, I think.
@Kyeh heck yeah! thirsty bread makes for great fronch toast.
“air fryer” and grills ftw!
What’s the big deal? Are you too afraid of firing the help if they complain about the heat?
What’s the big deal? My 60-year-old in-the-wall Caloric doesn’t heat up the kitchen enough to notice; if yours does, well, clearly it’s Not As Good As Mine. (Hint: These old gas ovens need a flue, and it carries off the extra heat pretty well.)
I’m not gonna do serious baking on 90 degree days but I’ll use the oven to make dinner if I need it. We have ac. Although o try not to.