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While living out in the sticks for over 20 years we had our wooden gates destroyed by chainsaw, truck or whatever method a deviant could conceive. So after much though I build a gate that was almost indestructible. The concrete columns are 20" in diameter poured at the same time as the the 6ftx6ftx18" thick footings that were then surrounded with mortared in place rock. If a truck tried to push the columns over their front tires would be on the footing they were trying to remove; a non-starter... The 8" diameter cross arm was steel tube filled with concrete and 3 2oft lengths of 1/2" rebar and the counter weight end was all poured at the same time, as was the adjustable counter balance. There was a hardened steel rod (5yd truck axle) embedded in the turntable end that stuck up into the pivot point maybe 8". The pivot was 2 steel plates that had a machined race for tank turret ball bearings to make it move smoothly. Once it was all built we lifted the cross arm and placed it with a D-5 sized bulldozer since the cross arm weighed a bit more than 5,000 LB. It moved much like a very heavy vault door, if you have ever had the chance to play with one of those. It would be similar to moving a larger KK. No gate problems after that install

This was my first use of my new clay pot and chose this vegetarian stew recipe because I love mushrooms. Last night did a little seasoning of the new pot with onions and garlic. Today it was onto the cook. Unfortunately I needed 3T of tomato paste and there was none to be found in the kitchen. I added 1T Harissa and a little tomato sauce. I should have only added 1/2 T Harissa. Here it is on the KK @ 290F for several hours until the carrots and potatoes were cooked. It is done. Served.

They WERE, we moved because of my deteriorating health and need for better healthcare than a hangnail clinic. A few of the neighbors knew me well enough to know I was an Army combat veteran and liked me, the rest thought there was a crazy person living up there and it was best to not mess around with that person who lived there; possibly a correct assumption. Of all my immediate neighbors I was the only one to get any permits for anything so the neighbors could not complain about what I was doing on this property. This is the compound I built. It was possible to travel east 35 miles, north 90 miles and south 6 miles without hitting another road. 2 miles west was a paved road and a general store.

Not funny Aussie Ora!!! We had our first hard frost yesterday morning.

I've been moaning (and suffering) for some time now because I can't get beef ribs that are worth anything. Well, I finally did. And at $5.99 a pound, it was a bargain. Most of what I can get are stripped of almost all meat or are already pre-packaged and cut into small pieces. Going to a butcher results in eye-watering prices. But I got lucky this time. Done with my take on the coffee cardamom rub,which I usually use on beef.

Congrats if I'm aiming for 250 I bring up Ora to 350 by the time I take out the grates and add my foil as a deflector it pretty much settles around 250 spin top down to quarter turn and udjust the bottom let it settle for half hour the throw in wood and food .this grill is so amazing like I have said before still searching for the pre installed temp control lol Outback kamado Bar and Grill

It's been 24 hours time to build some pies. . Get your proofing station ready. Regardless of dough used in the recipe I use plain all purpose flour for this. A wooden work surface sticks less. A dough scraper helps a lot. 2 floured plastic bowls. . The dough after the 24 hour counter rise. . Using a spatula coax the dough out of the bowl onto the floured counter top. . Sprinkle the top with flour then using the dough scraper divide in two. . Transfer half to the board. . Start with well floured hands. Stretch and fold from the right then stretch and fold from the left. . Give it a 1/4 turn then repeat the above stretch and fold procedure ending with this. . Flip it over into your hands so the bottom is now the top. . Form a proper dough ball by using your fingers to curl the edges over and under the ball. . Place in a floured bowl. Repeat with the other dough half then cover with cling wrap. . This needs to proof for a minimum 1 hour but 2 hours is OK. Now is a good time to fire up the kamado and get it and a pizza stone heat soaked at 600*. Also a good time to get your toppings together. . Setup your building station. Parchment paper tucked under a wooden peel for now. (scared to try launching straight from peel due to high moisture content - LOL) . Put a dough ball onto the work surface and begin to stretch starting from the middle and working out. Very important not to disturb the outer edge. . Flip it over. . Stretch a little more then repeat the flip and stretch. Stretch a little at a time. . Using the dough scraper lift an edge and get your well floured fists up under the middle. . Lift it up and transfer to the parchment paper allowing gravity to do a little stretching. Don't spread your fists or you'll stretch it too much. This lifting/transferring procedure only takes 10-15 seconds. . Now you can do a little more stretching and a final shaping. Once again don't disturb the edge. . A thin layer of sauce and hard cheese (parmesan, Asiago etc....). . Add mozzarella cheese and toppings then cut the parchment paper as close to the edge as possible. For thin, hot, fast pizza I limit it to 2 toppings (not counting cheese). Too many topping and the top doesn't cook correctly. . Two pies ready to go. . Cooked in the Blackstone at 600* for less than 3 minutes. The Blackstone is a much different beast compared to a kamado. In a kamado at 600* I imagine it will take 4-6 minutes. I left the parchment paper in the whole time. If you want to pull the parchment paper make sure the edge is done rising first (about 2 minutes). . One money shot (not sure how many pictures I'm allowed to post at once) . As an added bonus I'll pass on this final yummy step. Save some of that soft delicious crust for afterwards and serve with some honey for dipping. Awesome pizza desert. (got that from Ozark Mountain Pies in Idaho Springs, CO.) . Any questions please feel free to ask. Although this seems like a long complicated procedure it is not. Once you get familiar with it you'll stretch and build a pie in 1-2 minutes. . ............................................. . A few final pictures and thoughts. . . Of all the flour combinations I've tried the one I like the best is 2/3's KA Pizza Blend and 1/3 '00' flour. Better color and taste. . They say after the 24 hour rise you can refrigerate for up to 6 days. I've tried that but it seems to stretch better if used right after the 24 hour counter rise. If you are going to do a few days in the refrigerator allow it to come to room temperature for 4 hours before stretching and folding. . Even if you use a different dough recipe there are a few techniques that could apply to that recipe. . Stretching and folding. Proper ball formation. Board stretching. Air stretching. Final shaping. Leave edge undisturbed. . .......................... . I would say this post is "Pic Heavy" even by my standards but if you've made it this far I guess you know that already - LOL Reef's Bistro