I found my lightly used 11-23 9 sp cassette that I thought I had given away and will put that on this weekend. I'll gain a little high end from 44-12 to 44-11 (which I need) but lose some low end from 22-26 to 22-23 (which I *think* I can afford to lose; I've been "practicing" using only the 23 as my lowest gear in back for the toughest hills on my commute).

If it's still unsatisfactory, I'll start looking for a good used stock-configured crank with larger rings and ebay this one.

Thanks for the advice.