Cooking On DeVoe: little pleasures

My Mom and Mor always used a cast iron pan to cook everything, I can always remember them being on the stove. I don't remember anyone else ever having them in their kitchen. I can remember thinking that they were so old fashioned. I did not always like what came out of them, namely liver....yuck I hate liver, I really hate liver, but we had to eat it cause that is what Mommy said. I can't forget the caterpillars with the Kitchen cut green beans. I don't remember what the dish was exactly but it looked like caterpillars (I skeeve them) and I don't like fat green beans, so it was a double yuck.

Those cast iron pans also brought my favorites: Danish Pancakes and sauteed onions.... Not together. My Mom and Mor make the most delicious sauteed onions....phew the most delicious.
We called the "black onions" because they were slighty, mostly over sauteed and crunchy and fabulous. The stuff that makes your stomach growl just thinking of them, oh oh oh. After they were overcooked to perfection then drained, spread on brown paper bags, then finally put into brown bags and shaken. You have to get all the grease off of them so they can be crunchy. Heaven plain and simple, just heaven.

Now that I am older and slightly past grown but by no stretch wiser, I don't think that cast iron is outdated, I marvel at how it helps develop flavors and the flexibility of it's use. I do tend to borrow Andrew's 15" perfectly seasoned Lodge skillet more often than I use my Staub 11" skillet. I especially love it for large quantities.

This is my nod to the my Mom and Mor (you have to use fat), wonderfully over sauteed onions.....low and slow to somewhat burnt heaven.