Cast iron cooking is hard to beat. Over the years I've enjoyed some good meals eating out of a dutch oven. Once upon a time. Before Red Lobster started selling their famous garlic-cheddar biscuits as a box mix in grocery stores. I got the hankering bad enough to try flattering their recipe through imitation.
While not quite as good they were good enough to clear that pan in one sitting. Of course I've been known to pack away too many of the real thing in my hollow leg as a special treat once in a while. Hey, when they say all things in moderation, ya think that includes gluttony? LOL
Another hankering that sometimes needs feeding is pizza. I'm especially fond of deep dish style. There's nothing like sinking your teeth into thick, chewy crust.
And let's not forget about dessert. Dutch ovens aren't just for cobblers. They can make some pretty good cakes too.
Once I hit the road full time I discovered certain times and/or places that a dutch oven was just not a practical option. Those situations motivated some creativity with a cast iron skillet on the stove.
Johnny cake wasn't difficult. Basically just cornbread cooked directly in the skillet. The trick was starting with a hot skillet and snuffing out the burner shortly after dumping in the batter since it starts searing immediately. Waiting until it starts bubbling through is too late. There's so much heat still in the pan that it burned the edges and dried out the middle. I'm not proud enough of those early mistakes to save or share pix. Your welcome.
I quickly learned that residual heat cooking in a hot skillet worked great not just for cornbread but all sorts of cakes, brownies, muffin mixes. Those little Jiffy box mixes may not contain the world's healthiest ingredients. But living in a small camper without pantry space I decided to forgo scratch recipes and the associated larder requirements. It's not like Jiffy mixes are a regular staple of my diet either. Moreover, the portion size of those little box mixes proved very pragmatic. At least I substitute (no sugar) applesauce for oil. That's gotta count for something.
The next level was trying to "bake" on the stove top. Meaning convection not conduction heat transfer from flame to food.
My two secret weapons were a pie cooling rack and glass lid to monitor progress without compromising a good head of steam. Those two tricks produced nice, golden brown biscuits.
I know. Refrigerator dough is a cheat. One of my cousins calls them whomp biscuits. Because ya whomp it on the counter edge to split the tube open. Again, not the same quality as scratch ingredients. But whomp tubes make up for it in versatility. Fancy bread sticks tonight? Just change the shape a bit.
Because of the confined space, I suppose, retained moisture gave them more of a bagel consistency. So once for a pot luck contribution I changed the shape a bit more, dusted them with garlic salt, and voila! Bagel bites.
For that experiment I initially used foil to catch over-sprinkles of garlic salt. I was trying to keep the skillet relatively clean, since I was using the burner full throttle for maximum heat. But the browning that resulted was serendipitous. Sometimes things just have a way of working out.
That was my state of the art for a few years. But I had another idea. I wanted a vertical extension for the skillet. Basically, cylindrical edges to raise the lid a couple inches. Just enough to squeeze in a cake pan. Early this summer I stumbled upon the solution. A cheesecake pan sans bottom.
It's not quite the prefect size. The lid's a little sloppy. Close enough though. It worked with a little care and attention. And let's be honest. Who can resist Ghirardelli double chocolate brownies?
Which, by the way, paired nicely with Malbec. Hey, just 'cuz ya live in a camper doesn't mean ya can't eat well! The only problem is...
...there seems to be a hole in the pan.
