Old Cast Iron

I inherited several lovely old cast iron skillets from my Mom. For those of you who don't know, old cast iron skillets are nice and smooth; new cast iron skillets are rough, or kind of dimpled. I have read articles that swear you can season the new ones to get them just as nonstick as these old ones, but I am hoarding my old ones. I have also read articles that say search estate sales for these old black iron skillets and treasure them.

I had not used mine for awhile, until I discovered that they are grand for roasting food and roasting food is absolutely the best way to develop flavor with little effort. I am fortunate to have a convection roasting feature on my oven and I make use of it all the time. Nothing turns root vegetables into bliss faster. For this dinner I roasted a whole chicken in one skillet side by side with another skillet filled with sweet potatoes and onions. Wonderful winter meal.

I have since seen the idea to scrub sweet potatoes, slice them into chunks and roast them in their jackets. That way you get all the nutrition from the skin. And if you buy the lovely small sweet potatoes from Trader Joe's, all the better for sweetness.