apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I'm not in this part of AT very often, but I'd like to ask a little question of the "room", so to speak.

I love my apartment, and I'm thinking of hosting some friends for Thanksgiving. Since I'm not much of a cook, a friend is coming over to bake the turkey.

Well, although I've lived in my apartment for 3 years, I had never baked anything in my oven, so for all I knew, it might have even worked! So, I got someone to show me how to light it, and only TODAY did I actually try bake anything in it. I got some of those cinnamon rolls that you just crack open the spirally cardboard and bake. Well, that worked out just fine.

HOWEVER... it said to put the oven at 375 degrees, and my oven HAS NO calibration on the knob! It's just a blank knob! So, I set a little time for the 20 minutes, but I kept checking, because I wasn't sure if my wild guess was accurate or what. Well, since they turned out fine, I guess it was OK.

By the way, I turned the little oven knob counter-clockwise to what WOULD be (if it were a clock) 7 o'clock.

But seriously... does anyone else have an old Royal Rose gas stove like mine, and do you have any little rules of thumb about temperatures and what "o'clock" you could suggest them be?

Click on my name to see what my stove looks like if you want to try to help me figure this out. I really would like to make this happen, because I think my apartment looks like the layout was meant to entertain.

Curtis, welcome over to the Kitchen! Your apartment looks so beautiful. Your party will go great. Tell us more about your plans.

Calibrating your oven before you roast your turkey sounds like a smart idea. Oven temps vary widely. You might want to buy an oven thermometer for $5 - 10 to check out how your oven's actual temp compares to what the dial's showing.

While we're talking temperature, you also might want to get a thermometer to keep an eye on the temp of your turkey, unless your friend has one.

I love the design on the walls of your kitchen!

I'm so glad you've begun to use your oven!! Hang out here and use it some more... I love that vintage design too, and I cannot believe that you had the patience to paint it by hand! Amazing.

I concur on the oven thermometer. Definitely get one. My oven is not a gas oven, and it does have markings on the dial, but it's old and the markings are wildly inconsistent with reality. Buying an oven thermometer literally saved my baking.

I would check several different temps with a thermometer and then mark them on the dial in permanent ink.

Chris -

There are NO NUMBERS on my dial! That's what my problem is, but the thermometer idea might at least kind of help for me to CREATE the idea of calibration, I guess.

Thanks faith & Chris for the advice and for the compliments. I'll try to find a thermometer.

Curtis--
An oven thermometer is definitely a must, but also go for a meat thermometer while you're at it. Just one more way to check that everything is done just right, especially if guests are involved.

Hi Curtis! welcome, & enjoy your Thanksgiving feast, it'll be great! Love your stove; I hope you sort out the temperature situation soon (although you seem to be winging it well!)
If you want, hang out with us here and ask food prep. questions for your upcoming meal, or other meals, now that you're figuring out the stove.
I'm wondering: what will you be making or setting up for side dishes, please share! Or will everyone bring a dish?

if it were not for the notes that you had written for each of your pictures i would have mistaken the absolutely fabulous design on the wall to be a wall paper.

You deserve a PRIZE. A special AT prize. Your apartment has the look of something very exquisite where all of our starts to look like something from a catalogue cover like.

the king commands , "all hail the painter in curtis."
the subjects bow.

curtis,

faith has the right idea about marking the knob. with poultry, it's as much a food safety issue as it is a matter of taste.

I wouldn't even bother marking the knob, since the oven may run hotter on some days. At least, mine seems to. Like Faith, I have an old gas stove that does have numbers, but it always seemed to be running hotter. I bought an inexpensive oven thermometer and sure enough it tends to be about 20 degrees hotter than the temp. on the knob. Not always, though - particularly at lower temperatures it is closer to the knob temp. Any good harware store should have an inexpensive oven thermometer; one of those + a meat thermometer is all you need.

Curtis - you have a small stove. Make sure that the turkey (and roasting pan) will FIT inside the stove.

One year when I had a small stove (abroad), I went to the butcher and got 3-turkey legs to roast instead of a whole bird.

Dutch oven question: Can my Le Creuset go in the oven?

I was about to pop in a pot roast yesterday when the sight of the plastic handle stopped me dead in my tracks. The little leaflet that came with it (yes, I save this sort of thing) seemed to say that SOME pots have thermoplastic handles that can handle oven heat, but no word on whether mine does....

MoM,
I put my Le Creuset dutch oven with the plastic handle in the oven all the time.

Curtis!
Like they said, get an oven thermometer. Hardware stores sell them, cheap. Then set your oven at whatever-o'clock and see if the temperature stays the same over the course of an hour.
I too have an ancient gas stove that is too pretty to get rid of; mine is completely without a thermostat. I have to turn it down and/or open the oven to get it from turning into an inferno. The devil is in my oven!

ooo and JenPDX is sooo right about checking the size of the roasting pan beforehand. Good luck!

o, and rent Pieces of April to see your stove in use on Thanksgiving...Patricia Clarkson gives a great performance.

I use a big pot with rubber/plastic handles on the sides and lid, and when I put it in the oven I cover the rubber parts with tinfoil, just in case.

i just bought some lovely beets and it's the first time i've gotten them with leaves on. anyone got any ideas for what to do with the greens? they look like they could substitute for kale or chard...

I won't be making much of any of it, since my friend will basically be doing all of it, but I'll make sure I get a thermometer, and thanks to all for your input.

And guido, renting Pieces of April is something that I think I really CAN do! I love Patricia Clarkson!

Oh my lord, Curtis. If you can paint that wall, you can certainly figure out how to calibrate your stove (I vote to get approximations and mark them on the knob, but always double-check with the oven thermometer, you never know).

Congratulations on Thanksgiving! I'm sure it will be a success, and if not, I'm sure you will have fun and there will be many lessons learned. That's the beauty of cooking. Lessons learned.

Liz, just cut up the beets and the greens to fit the pot and boil until tender. Easy and delicious. chop it up together or use the purple cooking liquid for a borscht, with the beets, greens, stock (from a box) cabbage, carrots, celery, some vinegar to taste and sour cream. Curtis, good luck with cooking in your gorgeous kitchen. Pieces of April is a great movie.