Brewers Best Witbier

Couple questions...

The Steep to Convert process makes sense, but is difficult with 1 gallon of water for 2 lbs of grain. That little water has wide temperate swings, and since the whole bottom of the pot is covered with the grain bag, hot spots are almost inevitable. It would be way eaiser to keep the temp range between 148-152 with more water. Would this hurt the process?

Is this process considered a partial mash?

I usually strain my wort on the way into the primary. This means I strained out the orange peel and spices. Was this a bad idea? Would it be a good idea to add some fresh orange peel and spice either now, or in a week or so?

Anyone ever try this beer with WPL 400? This is what we used, and hoping it adds some to the final product

Yeah, that's a mini-mash. Yes, you can use more water but you're already at 2 quarts per pound which is pretty thin. But, as you're saying, you have very little thermal mass. Temperature consistency is very important in any mash. If you absolutely can't hold a consistent temperature, then you almost have to go with more water.

I wouldn't want the orange peel and spices in the primary. It's good you strained it out.