31 Fun[ny] Things To Do With A Cast Iron Skillet

Kapani

I recently acquired a cast iron skillet and have been dreamily brainstorming all the fun I get to have with it.

Obviously my first adventure had to be this Spanish tortilla recipe, which turned out awesome. But I also had visions of recreating my grandmother’s slow-cooked spaghetti sauce and being able to make perfect steaks in my BBQ-less apartment.

But I knew there had to be more I could do with such a big, heavy object–so I turned to the coolest people I know for suggestions:

I must admit, my favorite answers didn’t exactly involve food:

But by far the most touching reply I received was a link to a Posterous post from @GregKnottLeMond. I encourage you to click over and read it, it’s short and sweet:

The post describes how the adorable skillet bird above came to be:

For @SummerTomato ‘s Consideration

The creativity was not, of course, restricted to metallic critters and demolition:

These blogs that specialize in cast iron cookware were also recommended:

Cooking In Cast Iron

Black Iron Blog

Derek on Cast Iron

Thanks to everyone who contributed to the collective inspiration! Here is my consolidated list of ideas:

1. Clonk someone (@thescramble)
2. Cure alcoholism (@mcnee)
3. Bicep curls (@JeffACSH)
4. Nut crackin’ (@RtReview)
5. End a romance (@cookerguy)
6. Fry chicken (@cookerguy)
7. Break stuff (@cookerguy)
8. Work on two-handed tennis backhand (@cookerguy)
9. Fight zombies (@benhamill)
10. Frame a picture (@omewan)
11. Plant bonzai trees (@omewan)
12. Stop burglars à la Home Alone (@leslieconn)
13. Burn thermite (@mcnee)
14. Hit John Mayer (@foodiemcbody)
15. Make metal critters (@GregKnottLeMond)
16. Deep dish pizza (@bob_koss)
17. Squeeze paneer (@newtomato)
18. Burgers (@thescramble)
19. Steaks (@thescramble)
20. Corn bread (@lonelygourmet)
21. Spoon bread (?) (@virginiagriffey)
22. Roast meats (@jameswcooper)
23. Crustless pies (@blee27)
24. Pancakes (@bob_koss)
25. Sauté zucchini (@JeffACSH)
26. Pineapple upside-down cake (@HeatherHAL)
27. Hashbrowns (@arielmanx)
28. Seared meat (@arielmanx)
29. Spanish tortilla (@FBloggersUnite)
30. Bibimbap (@annemai)
31. Tarte tartin (@annemai)

What are your favorite things to do with a cast iron skillet?