My first big find!

   

The Find.

     Due to the resurgence in the popularity of cast iron, sometimes it can prove difficult to find those really interesting pieces. For example, standard sized skillets such as a No. 8 were made by the hundreds of thousands. Between companies millions of these pans were made. With a little bit of patience poking around, one might find a piece of history at the local thrift shop. I have found many pieces this way. I will always remember the first time I discovered an uncommon piece 'in the wild' around the summer of 2014.
    I had just started reselling cast iron skillets at the Two Sparrows Consignment Shop located near Discovery Bay, WA. I was on the hunt to find affordable pieces of cast iron for my new and growing list of customers. I started expanding my search outside of the local thrift shops and into some of the local antique shops.
    One such antique shop, Misty Meadows Antiques, is located in what used to be a home in Gig Harbor, WA. I really enjoy this style of antique shop as the items are set out in such a way you might find a home. In other words, fairly easy to locate. So I went in search of the kitchen. Located within were many, many implements one might find in a kitchen from the late 1800's into the mid-20th century. I had looked through many pieces of cast iron. Since I was looking to resell, I had a hard time buying some of the pieces as I felt the prices were too high. I was about to leave when I noticed that the kitchen counter was a typical 'L' shape. I thought that the cabinet below might extend further back so as to not waste the space. I opened the door peaked inside, and was pleased to find the space back were was in fact filled with many pots and pans.
     Piece by piece I unloading dark pocket of a time machine. There seemed to be hundreds of odds and ends in there. Probably only a dozen or so, but why not embellish a little, eh? Eventually I reached back into the shadows of the cabinet and touched a piece of metal that felt different then all the aluminum and stainless steel pans I had been pulling out. My fingers explored the holes and dispersed throughout this new, and unfamiliar shape. I could not identify which end was up, so with a hopeful eagerness that I was not going to break anything I grasped the pan and pulled it out into the light. What I found was so exciting adrenalin started coursing its way through my veins. This piece remains one of my favorite pieces and will remain in my collection for many years to come. In fact, this small gem is prominent displayed in my kitchen.

The Griswold Brownie Cake Pan as found. Often referred to as a Golf Ball Pan.

      As you might imagine, I was quite excited about this find. Despite the fact that there was some surface rust and the seasoning was no longer intact, this gem pan proved to be a remarkable specimen. As I recall I believe they were asking about $35 for the pan. I gladly paid the price, since I was adding this pan to my personal collection. I also picked up the base for a waffle iron while I was there. Eventually I was able to match that piece up to a lonesome waffle iron with no base. That is a rewarding endeavor as to pursue as well.
     I now had the neat piece, but it was not well preserved. I decided that I needed to season the pan, and became determined to season it better than any I had done before. At this point, I had been attempting to season skillets for about 3 months. My first attempts did not go so well. Often a thick layer of oil or shortening was left behind.
     I started to research different techniques of seasoning, and came up with a style of my own that set a strong base layer of seasoning that would stand up to 500F (260C) in the oven. This method melded what I perceived to be the best mixture of different takes on seasoning I found. A hybrid method. Perhaps I will explain that method in a future post. If you do not want to wait, I have published my style of how to season cast iron here.

     Below is the 'after' seasoning picture. The end result is simply a gem like quality. I hope you enjoyed this little bit of a story and thanks again for visiting my blog! Until next time, Cast Iron Jim out!

My favorite piece, the one that started the bug. My No. 9 Brownie Cake Pan by Griswold.

Sometimes things don't go as planned.

     As the title implies, things did not go as planned. As you might recall, about six months ago I was posting a string of entries that highlighted my attempts at cleaning an enameled Le Creuset pan. The poor timing (oops) of that project was interrupted with a move from Washington to Upstate New York. I must go where the Navy sends me.
    The move itself I can declare mostly a success. Yet, facing the same conundrums that many other folks face when moving around, specifically 'Where the heck am I supposed to put (insert the appropriate title of your random item of choice here)!?!'. I recon that might be why I cannot find the Le Creuset pan. I hope that it did not get recycled. I took advantage of the opportunity to deep clean the kitchen and garage with reckless abandon.
    I called up a friend of mine, Brandon, to wander on down to my house to help me take a few loads of junk to the dump. His pickup is much larger than mine. What should have been three loads to the Waste Management transfer station, turned out to be one load to the dump and two loads to his house.
    Like any good homesteader Brandon has an eye for the value and usefulness of stuff. Very nearly everything, well I guess by truck load merely 2/3rds by volume, we pulled out of the garage and house he chose to redirect to his homestead. He tells me he needed the old wire, tools, poles, posts, wood, crab pots, etc... to build a chicken coup. Trying to picture in my minds eye how a crab pot would help with the construction efforts of a hen house, I inquired as to what his wife thought about this and he replied, "Once I get it home it will be too late!" So off to load the truck we went. Perhaps he has the pan and is using it for a chicken feeder. Oh well, at least those peckish hens will get their required iron intake.
    In the mean time I suppose I will continue to unpack the house, continue to downsize my material possessions so that I might have more room to collect more cast iron. I have a few projects I am toying with, such as I hope to put together a electrolysis set up in the garage.
    Well, thanks for reading, and until next time, Cast Iron Jim out!

Cast Iron Jim's Irish Soda Bread

Good Morning Folks!

     Welcome to Cast Iron Jim's Blog on all things Cast Iron. Today I shall provide one of my favorite bread recipes. Irish Soda Bread is a heavy dense bread. Use this bread to soak up stew or gravy.

Cast Iron Jim's Irish Soda Bread

Ingredients

4 Cups All-purpose flour

1 cup Oats (meal)

4 tbs Sugar

1 tsp Baking Soda

1 1/2 tsp Kosher Salt

4 tbs Cold Unsalted Butter cut into 1/2 inch bits

1 3/4 cup Cold Whole Milk

1 egg lightly beaten

Directions

Preheat your oven to 375F. Remember to place your cast iron skillet in the oven to allow it to heat up as well.

Combine ingredients and mix in a bowl.

Place dough on a cutting board which has been dusted with flour. Knead dough in to a round, flat loaf approximately 2 inches thick and 8 inches in diameter. 

Take the pre-heated skillet out of the stove and oil with some coconut oil.

Score an x into the top after placing into the skillet.

Bake for 45 minutes.

   Thanks for visiting, and I hope you return soon! Until next time, Cast Iron Jim Out!