I tied out my new homemade reflector oven this weekend, and it worked great. Made a batch of Pillsbury muffins, they turned out pretty well, the pan I used was about a 9X11 cake pan, should have used 2 mixes instead of 1 mix, they were a little on the thin side but tasted OK, you could tell were the blueberrys were they were bumps. The milk question is can you use water instead of milk? Having some trouble finding add water batters. A huge thanks for everyone who put up pictures of their reflector ovens, I sort of copied the general idea and made mine. The muffins [which were more like bars] took 20 minutes to bake and were done to perfection, portage monkey #2 didn't Pam the pan quiet good enough so it was good we didn't them. FRED

Fred, try using Powdered Milk you won't be able to tell the difference.

Rick

I agree with Rick. Any recipe that requires milk is no big deal. Pre-measure the powdered milk you will need before your trip for each recipe. It works perfect.

By the way, if a recipe calls for buttermilk, you can buy powdered buttermilk and use it the same way.

Terry

Additionally, you dont have to make the milk first. Blend the powdered milk/buttermilk into the dry ingredients and then add water to equal the amount of milk needed. That info is on the back of the box of my powdered buttermilk.

quote florida: "Fred, try using Powdered Milk you won't be able to tell the difference.


Rick"

+1

BUT... we are now working with a milk allergy. I did Jiffy corn bread with water only last week and couldnt tell a taste difference. I also under greased and had to scrape. So Id say if you have a reason to not use powdered milk test it out case by case. Its what we will be doing this summer. Wife pointed out shelf stable almond milk in 8oz containers a couple days ago btw so that is an option for no dairy.

I think for cost, Nido will beat the Packit Gourmet by a large factor. I have to buy some this weekend and will report back what the cost per quart is.

Wal-mart online has NIDO listed 16.88 for 3.52# which is supposed to make ~12q. Or >$1.50/q

Does it taste that much better than regular dried milk? I have that same can I havnt opened yet because I still have 1/3 a box of regular to use. My wife and son dont like the taste of regular dried milk after its reconstituted.

I have seen the threads here and other places where people talk up NIDO as way better.

I tried it on my solo with granola for quick breakfasts and it's much better. It's basically whole milk, not non fat like common dry milk. Some even mix for a 2% like drink. I thought it tasted good just drinking it.

quote billconner: "I tried it on my solo with granola for quick breakfasts and it's much better. It's basically whole milk, not non fat like common dry milk. Some even mix for a 2% like drink. I thought it tasted good just drinking it. "

+1

Just at Walmart

Nido - 12.6 ounce can - makes 3 qts - 3.98 - $1.33/qt

Nido - 56.3 ounce can - makes almost 13 1/2 qts - 13.88 - 1.04/qt

No chicken in foil however.

quote billconner: "...


No chicken in foil however."

Do you know if canned chicken dries well or not? Ive seen a number of threads looking for foil pack chicken also. Seems like dehydrating cans I get from sams club would be pretty easy.

quote goaljohnbill: "

quote billconner: "...



No chicken in foil however."

Do you know if canned chicken dries well or not? Ive seen a number of threads looking for foil pack chicken also. Seems like dehydrating cans I get from sams club would be pretty easy."

Drying canned chicken is a piece of cake...drain the can, break up the pieces on covered or solid/fruit roll-up trays, dry until crispy.

Thanks for all of the info about milk, I have been hesitant to try something new after trying the low fat version...bleech. I'm going to give the nido a try since so many are thrilled with it.

re: nonfat dry milk vs. Nido

Nido is better than nonfat dry milk, I think, but still not very good. I use it in recipes that call for small amounts of milk, but a recipe with a lot will still be gross, I think. Like instant puddings. (OTOH, Cache Lake puddings are very tasty.)

I do use it in a potato salmon chowder recipe and it's good in that, and it's quite a bit of milk. But it's not like it really tastes like milk; it's just better than the nonfat version.

quote nojobro: "re: nonfat dry milk vs. Nido


Nido is better than nonfat dry milk, I think, but still not very good. I use it in recipes that call for small amounts of milk, but a recipe with a lot will still be gross, I think. Like instant puddings. (OTOH, Cache Lake puddings are very tasty.)


I do use it in a potato salmon chowder recipe and it's good in that, and it's quite a bit of milk. But it's not like it really tastes like milk; it's just better than the nonfat version. "

Wow - when I drank the rest of a mixing cup of Nido - I thought it tasted like whole milk. It was September so it was cold from the night. And I drink milk every day. I was looking at making a whipped topping out of it for cobblers and such - fresh wild blueberries in a crumble with whipped topping.

BTW - I'll post below also but found Tyson foil packed chicken at Super Target after I was at Walmart - but no Nido. Lots of interesting items though - was shopping for backpacking trip today.

quote nojobro: "re: nonfat dry milk vs. Nido


Nido is better than nonfat dry milk, I think, but still not very good. I use it in recipes that call for small amounts of milk, but a recipe with a lot will still be gross, I think. Like instant puddings. (OTOH, Cache Lake puddings are very tasty.)

Thanks for that, I appreciate it...I know taste is different for everyone. I agree about the cache lake, their website is almost sold out of everything..

I also have switched from nonfat dry milk to Nido. For oatmeal I mix it dry in with my packet oatmeal, and then add the hot water--makes it very creamy and good! Add a little to your hot chocolate and it is creamier, too. When making mixes, I mix it in with my powdered mixes at home, seal it up in a Ziplock bag and mark on the bag with a Sharpie how much water, egg, butter, etc. needs to be added. If I didn't take fresh eggs, I'd mix the Ova Easy egg powder in at home, too, and then just add more water.

I've never tried mixing any dry milk up and just drinking it. Guess that goes back to when I was a kid and we had the old Carnation Nonfat Dry milk occasionally and I hated it so much! :-(

We used nido this weekend on backpacking trip - 5 scouts and 2 adults - on cold cereal and they thought it was great.