Home Cooking In the Kitchen Get your skillet skills on: the cast iron kitchen workhorse

Get your skillet skills on: the cast iron kitchen workhorse

There is one thing all of us can agree on when it comes to doing work in the kitchen: Nobody likes to wash the pots and pans, especially after a good meal.

Did you know that there is no elbow grease involved when it comes to a cast iron pan? Only love, a good rinse and maybe a rub of good old cooking oil.

in the kitchenCooking with cast iron can have its many, many benefits. The benefits outweigh the non-benefits. Actually I can’t think of any non-benefits so let’s just say this thing is a kitchen bonus.

Cast iron allows you to use less oil in your cooking, eliminating extra fat from your meal. Having a well-seasoned skillet is key here.

Another benefit is there are no chemicals in this ‘non-stick’ pan as opposed to a Teflon non-stick pan, which is coated in Teflon. Eliminating added unnecessary chemicals from our meal is important. I’m not telling you to go throw away every coated pan in your house but think about what’s coating that thing just to keep your food from sticking.

2014_1115_kitchen_skillet_cake1Now what if I told you a cast iron skillet can add a very necessary and wanted nutrient to our diet. Iron. Yes iron can transfer from your skillet into the food you are cooking, straight from the pan into your dinner. The way to get the most iron into your meal is by cooking a very acidic dish such as tomato sauce directly in your skillet. The acid pulls the iron from the skillet and it goes straight into your meal. I know this might seem weird, gaining iron from a pan but I’ll cook in an iron skillet to get some needed minerals any day.

Then of course there is the heavy duty I-can-go-anywhere-and-cook-anything added benefit. A cast iron skillet can hold heat evenly and can go straight from the stove to the oven. (That’s my favorite part.) Oh, and feel like cooking over an open fire? Just grab your cast iron skillet.

You can cook anything from breakfast to dessert in your cast iron skillet. Don’t own one? Don’t be afraid to buy a used one, the older the better. Keep harsh chemicals away from your new kitchen tool and only use mild soap and hot water to get anything funky out of there. Keep your cast iron well oiled and stored in a cool dry place to keep the rust away. I find that right on the stove is a good place to store it, especially since you’ll be using it more than all the other pots and pans.

Remember how I mentioned my favorite part— from stove top to the oven? I made a pear skillet cake this past week and had to share, not only does this simple cake look super fancy, it’s great to serve to guests or bring to your host at the next holiday party. Start showing off your skillet skills with this simple dessert.


2014_1115_kitchen_skillet_cake6Pear Skillet Cake

Serves 8-10

Ingredients:
4 medium sized Bosch pears (firm but ready to eat) peeled, halved, core and stem removed
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs , at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup whole milk, at room temperature

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cut each halved pear into thirds. In a large cast iron skillet melt 1 stick of butter on medium low heat. Stir in the brown sugar. Cook, stirring occasionally until the mixture starts to bubble. About 4 minutes. Place the pear slices, stem end towards the middle, in a circle around the pan. Fill in the center with a few. Remove pan from heat.
• In a bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ground cinnamon and ground ginger. In a mixer combine the last stick of butter and the sugar. Beat until fluffy. Add the eggs and vanilla. Beat until well combined.
• Add one third of the flour mixture and mix in the mixer alternating with the milk until all of the flour mixture and milk are well incorporated.
• Dollop the batter on top of the pears in the pan. Leaving a 1/2 inch border from the edge of the skillet, spread the batter out. If the batter does not cover the pears completely that’s ok.
• Bake in the oven for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
• Cool on a cooling rack for 20 minutes. Run a butter knife around the edge of the pan. Flip over onto a serving platter. Serve while warm with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

 
baig kayleighKayleigh Van Vliet Baig was born and raised in Riverhead, where she lives with her husband Tahir.

Kayleigh has been in the culinary industry for the last 12 years, working in kitchens on the East End. She also is a personal chef.

Look for In the Kitchen with Kayleigh every Saturday on SoutholdLOCAL.com.
Got questions? Recipes? Ideas? [contact-form-7 id=”27493″ title=”Write to Kayleigh”]

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Kayleigh Van Vliet Baig
Kayleigh is a sous chef at the Meadow Club in Southampton. A Riverhead native, she is married and the mother of a daughter born in December 2016. Email Kayleigh