So it's now pretty much the hottest part of summer here in the Sierra de Grazalema and at this time of year lighting a flame barbecue outside is not only foolhardy it is actually against the law. The sierras are tinder dry and a spark can cause a big uncontrolled fire very easily... So what are we to do when we have some friends around to our country finca for an afternoon vegetarian barbecue, microwave? No, the answer to perfect summer outdoor cooking is a parabolic solar cooker... It's not rocket science. Reflect and concentrate the sun onto the base of a pan and you can cook just like on a regular hob.

Ok, so it is a bit tricky at first because the incredible instant heat that arrives on the bottom of the pan at first caught me by surprise... I was warned not to use anything with teflon or "heatproof" plastic on and I christened my new solar cooker by burning the teflon on one of my best pans... Ah well, it's a learning curve. The trick is to use really thick black bottomed iron pans and a bit of cullinary flexibility.

This system of heating a pan costs absolutely nothing as you don't put any fuel in it and it doesn't burn so it is a completely eco friendly way of cooking. It also has a seriously helpful side to people who are not so fortunate in other parts of the developing world and the advantages include:

• Water and milk can be pasteurised
  
• Lower cost compared to firewood or cooking oil
• Greater safety for children and the cook compared to a fire or stove
• Lower likelihood of starting a fire that could destroy a family's home
• Less time spent cooking compared to tending a fire or stove.

So anyway, back to the vegetarian lunch time recipe....

We grow a lot of organic vegetables in our garden and right now it's the season for dwarf french beans, butternut squash, tomatoes, aubergines, onions and peppers so a vegetable stir fry seemed the perfect recipe to test out the solar cooker.

Here we see the delicious butternut squash sliced thickly and being stir fried with olive oil, salt and pepper. Once the squash started to go a little soft I just added all the other vegetables to the pan along with plenty of fresh herbs such as rosemary, thyme and a bit of lavender..I also suggest that it is good to have a jug of cold water at hand in case any of the ingredients start to catch on the bottom of the pan as the heat spot is very concentrated. The trick to avoid this is to keep everything moving.

All in all not a bad first attempt at solar cooking but I need a bit more practice and also need to make a bigger cooking / frying area to focus the sunlight on as I found the piece that comes with the solar cooking kit is a bit small.

I paid around 85 Euros plus IVA for my cooker and if you want one too, you can buy a solar cooking kit from Eduardo of Generador-Electrico.com ....he can help out with this and many other aspects of alternative energy systems from solar power and water heating to gas powered generators. Have a look at his website and give him a call if you want any advice.

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