Haybox cooking!

This is my haybox cooker.

Without the lid.

Without the pillow on top.

This is my pot, wrapped in a piece
of quilted material I had that was used to
make a baby blanket and one of those
turkey baking bags.

This is the soup I put in the pot about
10:30 am and took out about 6:30.
It was just as hot as when I put it in the
box! Yum Yum! This is Green Chile
Potato Soup.

So, I've rediscovered Haybox cooking. I found it 10-15 years ago and tried it with my brick firewood hole that use to be next to our fireplace. It use to be very popular during WWII. I only did it once and never tried it again. Then about a year ago, our neighbor's mother gave a great enrichment activity on it. They used it on their mission and would have a hot lunch when they went out on the road visiting people. The neat thing about this type of cooking is: You use very little electricity, just enough to bring your food to a boil and simmer for 5-10 minutes. It doesn't heat up the house. It's similar to using the crock pot - only no electricity! You can take it with you - try that with a crock pot! You can use anything you have in the house to make it.
Here are some web sites to look at for more info. You can also google "Haybox Cooking" and get a lot more web sites to look at. www.talkingleaves.org/node/142, www.selfsufficientish.com/hayboxcooker.htm.
Basically, the principle is this, bring your food to a boil and simmer 5-10 minutes, put your pot in a blanket and put it in the prepared haybox which is very well insulated to retain the heat, and leave it to finish cooking! It works great. I did a demo for the spanish branch and made Posse Stew and it came out of the box hot and ready to eat!
Here's the recipe for the Green Chile Potato Soup - very easy to make
7 cups potatoes, peeled and diced, 5 cups water (next time I do it I don't think I'll add as much water) 2 onions, diced, 1/2 c. celery, diced, 1/4 c. butter, 4 tsp. chicken bouillon granules, 1 (15 oz.) can Stokes Green Chile Sauce with Pork (or chicken), 8 oz. sharp white cheddar cheese, shredded (I couldn't find any, so I used about half that size of mild cheddar cheese - it's what I had on hand), salt and pepper to taste. Bring all the ingredients except cheese, to a boil and simmer 10 minutes. Place in Haybox and let cook about 8 hours. Take out and stir in cheese and serve.
So look at it on the net, make your own and use it! It's great!