Beautiful little roast game hens, stuffed with fresh herbs from our little garden on the deck, always within easy reach for everything from salads to soups, chicken and fish. Red potatoes, skinned, steamed, and finished in the oven, along with the game hens. This is particularly what my husband loves about these pans, that they go from the big cooktop into the oven and back out again. One of these was handed down from my mother, and the other is a new acquisition, a Lodge pan, that he is seasoning...He waxes rhapsodic about these pans, even going so far as to say he wonders why we spent all that money on the All Clad and the French copper, saying we could easily do without them! Ah, young love, how easily they forget. Once upon a time, the All Clad was king in our kitchen, doing double duty on the cooktop and in the oven, especially prized for how it perfectly seared the filet and cooked it to perfection for his steak au poivre. I hardly think we'll be pitching it all out, though...
The French copper is on the top rack, and the All Clad hangs below. We've had it for years, and I had to remind him how little we paid for it. I remember buying it, and it actually seemed like a lot of money at the time. I was in Marshalls, and spotted box after box of it, all for a fraction of retail. I called him and said, "Should I get it?" and started loading it into two carts. The ten pots you see there were had for a little over $300 at the time.
There is a whole other equation in the little room to the right of the Five Star range, a tiny space that used to be the original service porch. Two NSF chrome racks on big kitchen casters hold the ever growing collection of Le Creuset, which my mother is in great part responsible for, spoiling Alain terribly a few Christmases ago. We keep our eyes peeled at the discount stores for single pieces to add to it from time to time. The Le Creuset, which is cast iron under its lovely enamel skin, is still in favor at this time, even as its humbler cousin gets top honors for now...
3 comments:
omg...I love your post. I too am currently deeply infatuated with my cast iron skillet...though the Le Creuset runs a close second. Looks like you had a yummy dinner !!
wow... All Clad is now about $300 per piece..... good thing you grabbed it at the time...
I envy all your lovely cookware!! My mother once shrieked in horror when my father "rescued" a 24" cast iron pan from the neighbor's trash. It was a lovely shade of orange at the time. He painstakingly seasoned it, and 20 some years later, it is still the best pan they own. But the backstory always makes me laugh!
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