Cooking with cast iron

I like cooking with cast iron.  I have a couple of frying pans, a small covered pot and a 2 quart Dutch oven that are cast iron.  I made vegetarian chili in the Dutch oven this past weekend and realized that I needed to re-season the Dutch oven.  That is not difficult, just putting lard or oil on the cast iron utensil, and cooking it in the oven for a while.  Tonight was a really good night to do that:  it is cold outside, and rainy , so even the inside of the house was a little raw.  Warming the kitchen was not a bad thing.

The unexpected benefit of this is that a pool of oil has collected at the bottom of my oven.  When it cooled enough, but had not totally solidified, I was able to clean the oven, even if it was late tonight.  I do not mind.  It is a chore I have often put off, but it needed to be done.  

So, after I took the Dutch oven and cover out of the oven, I used some disposable cloth to sop up the oil on the oven floor.   It did not clean the sides, or top of the oven and I still need to clean the oven thoroughly at some point but this was a good thing to do. 

Horror!

I did something I rarely do these days.  I bought a steak for dinner.  I was cooking the steak in the oven under the broiler, and I was checking the steak.  I have a built in oven, and left the door open as I was checking the steak.

Horror of horrors!  Haiku jumped on the oven door.  I yelled and she got off right away, but ran around the house. I could not tell if she was scared of me, scared from the heat, or hurt.  I grabbed her up, and checked her feet, but could not tell anything. I crated her up and called the Small Animal Emergency Clinic and told them what happened and I was going in.  Haiku cried in the crate all the way over, and they started tending to her as soon as I got there.  The vet said she could not tell about her pads, but gave her a couple of shots: and antibiotic and a steroid.  She mentioned icing down the pods, but thought it would be too traumatic on Haiku, if she did not seem to be in pain. 

I looked at her feet after we got home, and one had some pink spots on the pad.  She is not walking gingerly, she is not crying as if in pain, and there was no singed hair on her feet.  The vet said to keep her quiet the next couple of days, and gave me a copy of her records in case we need to go to our vet. 

I am sick about my carelessness.  I also was not in the mood for steak when I got home.  I was really scared, too.  It is just horrible.   I hope Haiku will be okay.

Cooking With Cast Iron

I actually like cooking with cast iron, and have a cast iron Dutch oven, two frying pans, and a small sauce pot that I cook with.  I used the large cast iron frying pan on 1/6/17 to make seafood spaghetti.  After doing so, I realized that I needed to season the frying pan, once again.  This involved putting some sort of oil or shortening on the utensil, and heating it until the oil or lard sort of soaks in.   Today, I did this. At first, I heated the frying pan on the stove top, which is sometimes effective, but was not today.  So, I put the frying pan in the oven. This was actually not a bad thing, and served two purposes. I seasoned the frying pan, and by heating the oven, took the chill off part of my house.  Which was a good thing, as it has been a cold day. 

Eating Out

For years, and years and years, I rarely ate out.  It was because I was frugal. It was because I could cook at home as good as food I got at restaurants. It was because eating out did not appeal to me.

Some several years ago, I was given a gift card to eat out.  I took a book, ordered my food, and really enjoyed just being able to sit and read while someone waited on me. After that, I started going out about once a month to eat out, taking a book, and just sitting back and relaxing.

I also was going once a month to eat out with the book club folks.  Which I really enjoy: I enjoy the camaraderie, and the opportunity to eat without having to cook or clean up.

Over the last couple of years, I have started eating out more and more. I just like being able to go somewhere, order my food, have someone bring it to me, or being able to pick it up, and just being able to sit somewhere and eat without having to cook or clean up. 

Some 20 plus years ago, I had gotten into the habit of buying food off the deli counter at a local grocery store. But the habit died due to a change in life style. But now, I even prefer to do that than cook.

Maybe I am lazy. Maybe I just do not care to cook. Mostly, I like the variety without having to deal with cooking, cleaning, and leftovers.

A Long Night

I left work a little late tonight, because I went in late this morning, and because there were some things I wanted to do that stretched into the after 5 PM time slot.  No big deal.

I got home and fed the inside cats, but it was raining and there were no outside cats around. I had dinner, played on the computer, and did some business.  Then, I checked outside, and the outside cats were there, looking for dinner. Which I provided.

I also cooked liver, put it in small freezable containers, and divvied up the chicken I cooked Saturday, freezing it in smaller portions, so it would be available later.  And, left a portion for now, and broth to put out for the outside cats, the next few days.

The New York Yankees played the Baltimore Orioles tonight. The game started a little after 6 PM Central Time.  I decided to fore go the local news broadcast in favor of watching the baseball game, and so I did. 

But this resulted in a strange phenomenon. The game did not last 4 hours, and when it ended, well before 10 PM, it felt like it should already be 10 PM. This time warp was strange, and set me up for a longer feeling night than I would normally anticipate.

This is not bad, just disconcerting.  It makes for a longer night, than I usually anticipate. But, it is okay.

Recipe Lost

I have a cornbread dressing recipe that I have had for more than 30 years.  I can visualize, written on an index card, in the handwriting of the co-worker who gave it to me.  It is a fairly simple recipe.  And, I have used it, sometimes more than once a year. Some years, though, I do other things.

My employer, last year, gave out gift certificates for turkeys, and I did not redeem mine until this month.  So, I am cooking a turkey for Thanksgiving.  And, I am making cornbread dressing.  I was a little unhappy tonight when I could not find the recipe card, but decided it did not matter. I know what I am doing and how to make this dressing.  I know the recipe card is somewhere, I just did not go through every piece of paper I have to look for it. 

My dressing will be fine.

Sake Eating

I have not been able to tell if Sake is eating or not, since Saturday.  The trick of sautéing chicken in butter did not work for very long.  I do not see Sake eat, but her food disappears. A couple of times, I have happened into the kitchen and seen her working on hard, dry food, eschewing the soft, moist food I have put out for her.  But she spooks, and that is that.

Tonight, I cooked a chicken pot pie. Sake was definitely interested, but when I put some gravy and chicken in a dish for her, she decided she did not want it. She acted hungry, checked out the food I put out, but did not eat.

However, tonight was boiled chicken night:  I have been boiling a chicken, cutting it into pieces and freezing the pieces, thawing them to offer to Sake.  Well, this last go round, except for the butter sautéed chicken, she lost interest after a couple of pieces. Since she was not interested,I wonder if the chicken tastes old or dried out to her (it seems fine to me, I eat it, too). Well, she did not eat tonight...

Until I put out some freshly cooked chicken. She ate two big helpings of the chicken.  So, after this time, my next strategy will be to buy chicken in bulk (as I have been), freezing it in pieces, and cooking the pieces separately. If this does not work, I will buy fresh chicken as we go, which will be much more expensive, but if I can get Sake to eat, I will do what I have to do.

Stew Was the Right Choice

Last week, we had 4 days of polar weather.  It was cold, and the cold got to me.  But Saturday was beautiful, just gorgeous.

But, because of the week of cold weather, I decided that stew was good choice for cooking this weekend.  So, I made stew Saturday night.  It was the right choice.  Today we are having a winter storm, first freezing snow and ice, and then snow.   It has been dully grey all day.  And windy. 

Stew was the right meal choice. Yummmm.

Sake Eating

I have not seen Sake eat much this week, but her food has been disappearing.  I cannot tell who is eating it, but she has not acted hungry:  when I feed, she does not run to eat, check the food out, then not eat.  So, I was hoping she was eating.

Today, I bought "poppers,"  cream cheese stuffed jalapeños that are breaded and, in this case, deep fried (you can get them baked instead.) When I warmed them up to eat, Sake exhibited interest, but of course, she does not like fried peppers.  So, I opened a package of Fancy Feast Appetizers Chicken in Broth https://www.fancyfeast.com/?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_content=cat-fancy+feast-computer%7cbing%7cbranded%7cphrase&utm_term=fancy+feast+appetizers&utm_campaign=always+on.  She was not interested.

I thought about it for a while and decided that I could pan fry some chicken for her: I melted some oleo, and did just that. She ate heartily.  This was mid-afternoon.  When I fed the cats in the early evening, I did the same. She ate a little.  But, that does not surprise me, because she ate so well mid-afternoon. A lesson learned in my effort to encourage Sake to eat.  She needs food with flavor, as well as foods that are easy to eat.

Cooking with Cast Iron

I do not remember exactly when I became enamored with cooking with cast iron, but it was the late 1970s or early 1980s.  By the time Lisenby and I were married, I was sold.

I knew about seasoning cast iron before using it.  If you purchase a piece of unseasoned cast iron, it comes with directions about how to season it.

I did not understand about cleaning cast iron.  I am so grateful to Sue Lisenby, my mother-in-law, for teaching me about that. 

Sometimes, you can just wipe out the cast iron piece, and that will work.  But sometimes, you really do have to clean the cast iron.  Sue taught me to boil water in the cast iron vessel, let it cool, and clean out the piece.  Then, if you need to, you can  reheat the piece and season it with oil or lard.

I have made some mistakes. Sometimes, I put too much oil or lard in the vessel, and then it sits and gets rancid.  I tried cooking with such a vessel before cleaning out the rancid fat, and that was a big mistake.  It does not take much to clean out the rancid fat, clean out the vessel, and put fresh oil or lard or shortening in the vessel.

Sometimes, I wipe vessels out and take the protective layer off, and it looks rusty.  Sometimes, I leave the past cooking grease in the vessel, and just leave it until I need to use the vessel again.

There are many variations on seasoning, re-seasoning, and using cast iron cook ware.   I use various methods depending upon the vessel and the situation.

But, I really like cooking with cast iron.

Cooking Chicken

Sake has indicated an interest in eating yesterday and today, but all the cooked chicken I had left was dark meat. She just does not seem to like it.  She has eaten some soft canned food, so that is good.  Tonight I am cooking another chicken, but it was totally frozen, and not finished cooking after an hour and a half.

I need to plan better.  I can eat the dark meat and plan for having white meat for her.  I really like the new microwave.  The Hamilton Beach microwave I had did not defrost even when I used that setting.  It cooked and dried out the food.  The Emerson microwave I have really does defrost the meat and leaves it moist.  Sake and I are both much happier with this microwave.

I have also started watching for sales on chicken.  For example, Lowe's Supermarkets http://www.lowesmarket.com/ has fryer chickens on sale for $.87 a pound.  I will buy a couple this weekend and freeze them until I need them. 

I Do Not Believe in Coincidences

I do not believe in coincidences.  I read a lot of murder mysteries, and the protagonists are always saying this.

But just because it is a platitude, it does not mean it is not true. Most recently this past year, at work, I happened to be in the chow hall at the same time as a volunteer Chaplain, who had volunteered at the unit for 18 years, and whom I had never met.  She invited me to eat with her and we had a great talk.  It was a blessing to meet her and learn about her work in the regional medical center.

A few weeks ago, a nurse I do not usually sit with joined me for lunch.  Near the end of lunch, she confided that her cousin had recently committed suicide. We talked for some time.  One thing we discussed was that her aunt was not sure about what kind of service, or doing any service.  I confided with her regarding some of my past experiences with suicide. I talked to her about the presumption of regret right before death, and that God would then forgive someone and welcome that person into Heaven. 

Ever the social worker, I found some local resources for her and, since her cousin lived elsewhere, resources where he lived.

Later that week, I checked on the nurse.  The memorial service had been the day before, and she was eager to discuss it with me.  I was honored to listen.  It had helped a great deal in the healing process.

Well, today, I was thinking about grits when Chef Jeff http://www.chefjefflive.com/ came on TV with a recipe for grits. I have frequently seen the Chef Jeff segments on TV, but did not pay much attention to who he was or what his story was.  Until today.  I went looking for his recipe, and learned about his background.  He was a cocaine kingpin, went to federal prison, and grew up, grew responsible and learned a trade in prison:  cooking.

As a social worker in a prison, I am always looking for a good role model for the offenders with whom we work.  An ex-felon who makes good is a plus as a good role model.  Jeff Henderson has a new book: If you Can See it, You Can Be It.   He has two other books: Cooked: My Journey from the Street to the Stove and Chef Jeff Cooks:  In the Kitchen with America's Inspirational New Culinary Star http://www.amazon.com/Cooked-My-Journey-Streets-Stove/dp/0061153915/ref=la_B001JS3E78_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1399842132&sr=1-1.  

Apparently, the last book is more of a cookbook, but I will read the other two for sure.

The point is, if I was not thinking about grits, and Chef Jeff was not presenting a recipe about grits, I would not have learned of his past, and the potential to use him as a role model for my patients.

Cooking Dinner

I have not felt much like cooking recently.  So, I was just eating snacky type meals, take out, or whatever.  I am not sure why, but that was where I was at.

Yesterday, I made hot and sour soup.  It is an easy recipe, and one that I really like. I had some chicken broth that needed to be used. So, that was my fall back. Today, I made stir fry.  I had stir fry and hot and sour soup for dinner tonight. It was not a heavy meal, and it was very tasty.  

Cast Iron Cookware

I have several pieces of cast iron cookware. Some I have had since the mid 1980s, but the most recent acquisition occurred well after 2005.   My use of this cookware varies, for various reasons, including how I feel about lifting a heavy frying pan or dutch oven, vs other such items available to me, that are lighter weight and sometimes, easier to deal with. 

But I like to cook in cast iron. 

However, sometimes, after I have used a piece of cast iron cookware, and cleaned it, it needs seasoning.  When cast iron cookware is first purchased, it usually needs to be seasoned. This involves coating it with lard, shortening, or cooking oil, and heating it in an oven.  The more often the cookware gets used, the less often it needs to be seasoned.  Unless you do what I do.

I have a dutch oven, and sometimes, when I cook in it, I use it as a storage container in the refrigerator. So, when I empty it, and clean it, it needs to be seasoned again. My biggest fear is that I will try to season it while it is still cold, and cause it to crack. So far, I have been lucky.

But, I still have to season it. 

My ex-mother-in-law taught me that if food is stuck on cast iron cookware, that filling the cookware with water and boiling it can loosen the stuck on food and clean the piece.  Amazingly, depending upon the state of the piece, it does not always need re-seasoning.  But if it does, it is easy to do after the piece has been cleaned.  

I just like using cast iron cookware.

I Guess You Cannot Boil Raw Frozen Eggs

I purchased a new refrigerator when I purchased my home in 1992.  So, it is 21.5 years old. It is a Westinghouse, and I have been pleased with it.  Until recently.  It has started freezing food in the refrigerator section. I have ice chinks in my morning juice, and other foods freeze, too. It used to be just food stored at the back, but now it is throughout the refrigerator.  I think the compressor is going out, but so far, I have dealt with it.

Well, last night, I was cooking and the recipe called for an egg.  I discovered that most of the eggs, stored on the door, are frozen, and stuck to the egg cup holder. I broke two off before I found one that was not frozen. 

I decided to boil the two frozen eggs, to see what would happen. Well, they did not do well, and the egg itself cooked to the bottom of the pan.  So I am going to experiment today, trying to boil them at a lower heat, so maybe they won't stick. 

Anyway, from my first experiment, I guess you cannot boil raw frozen eggs and have an edible product.

Cooking

Sake has become very finicky with her eating habits.  She likes liver, but only for so many days in a row. She likes ham, but only intermittently. She likes chicken, but again for only so many days in a row.  Taking to heart the advice of a friend, I cook a cut up chicken, and freeze it in parts, so I can offer some to Sake on an intermittent basis.  I cook liver, put out some for her, and when she stops acting interested, revert to chicken.  If I am eating another meat, ham, pork, turkey, or even a fish, and she expresses interest, I put out some for Sake.

This weekend, we finished the last frozen piece of chicken. So, I bought another to cook and freeze. But, it has been a while since I offered liver to Sake, so I bought some liver, also.  I cooked both today.  It is past supper time, and I have not seen Sake, so I am not sure which she would prefer.

I am grateful I have the wherewithal to cook special foods for Sake. I would do the same for Haiku or Taki.  In fact, they do get special foods.  Haiku seems to like human tuna, and treats.  Taki also likes treats. She likes paté style foods: turkey or fish, mostly. But she also likes human tuna, so I put some out for her when I put some out for Haiku.  My grocery bill is mostly consumed by cat food.  I do not mind. I want the cats to eat well. And, cooking for me is boring.

Beef Stew

I decided to make beef stew today.  I frequently cook a large volume item on the weekend, and eat it during the week, although I sometimes get tired of it before I finish it.  If the food freezes well, I might do that.

I still had some food from last week pending, so I had that for dinner tonight, but cooked the beef stew. I did that in part because I have plans for Sunday, and waiting to cook on Sunday may not have been convenient.  And, because beef stew will freeze, if I decide to do that. 

I used lots of herbs and spices in this beef stew, so as it is cooking it makes the house smell really good.

I used a potato for a thickener. There are other options for thickener, but I like potato.  The stew is still simmering. Ummmmmm.