Cast Iron Cooking

Homemade Cast Iron Meatballs (how to make them Italian-style)

April 3, 2020 by Sylvia Rose 5 Comments

Making homemade meatballs is a simple thing to do and so much more flavorful than buying frozen ones! Dust off your cast iron skillet and learn how to make your own italian meatballs from scratch.

cast iron skillet full of homemade meatballs

MAKING CAST IRON SKILLET MEATBALLS

First off, you don’t need a cast-iron skillet to make these homemade meatballs.

If you’re finishing off the meatballs in the oven, however, I do recommend using an oven-safe pan.

The reason I recommend cast iron? Because I’m a hardcore fan and think cast-iron cookware is the bee’s knees.

It’s easy to work with cast iron, it lasts forever, and it’s toxin-free.

RELATED: How to Cook with Cast Iron

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Pan-Fried Chicken Caesar Salad (the BEST caesar salad ever)

March 20, 2020 by Sylvia Rose 9 Comments

This chicken caesar salad is going to make all other caesar salads pale in comparison once you take your first bite. Flavourful panko-crusted chicken, crisp romaine lettuce, garlicky homemade dressing and the easiest croutons you will ever make. You won’t want to go back!

PAN-FRIED CHICKEN CAESAR SALAD: A GAME CHANGER

Congratulations, you have just struck Caesar salad gold!

I have no idea how many chicken caesar salads I have eaten in my life, but this pan-fried chicken version is to-die-for.

I must warn you: there are a lot of steps involved.

You’ll have to clarify butter, make your own caesar dressing, and fry up some croutons.

I’m telling you…it’s WORTH the extra work.

I hope you love it as much as I do!

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Sesame Naan Bread: A Cast Iron Skillet Recipe

January 10, 2020 by Sylvia Rose 2 Comments

It’s time to pull out the cast iron skillet and learn how to whip up a batch of this sesame naan bread. It’s the perfect accompaniment for those winter soups and curries!

CAST IRON SKILLET SESAME NAAN BREAD

If you’ve never had naan before, it’s kind of like pita bread that’s found in many Eastern cuisines.

When I think of naan, Indian is the first cuisine that comes to mind, but it’s one of many.

Traditionally, naan is baked in a tandoor oven, but since I don’t have one of those in my kitchen, I always turn to my trusty cast-iron skillet whenever I’m making a batch. This is also the case when I make flour tortillas and breakfast biscuits, so naan bread is a natural fit.

If you’re new to the world of cast iron cooking, you might want to read up on how to use cast-iron cookware, but if you know your way around cast iron, please, continue. Of course.

It’s also possible to use whatever pan you wish, but I hope you give cast iron a shot!

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Eggnog French Toast with Bourbon Maple Syrup (in a cast-iron skillet)

December 20, 2019 by Sylvia Rose Leave a Comment

This eggnog French toast recipe is drizzled with boozy bourbon maple syrup. When the Christmas holidays roll around, breakfast calls for an extra sparkle and this one will put you in a right jolly mood!

The word for french toast in French is “pain perdu” which, translated, means lost bread.

This classic breakfast used to be a means to use up stale bread.

Waste not, want not and such. It’s one of my frugal kitchen rules, not letting stale bread go to waste.

Nevertheless, a truly exceptional french toast recipe begins with the bread.

Unless you have bread that’s past its prime, I recommend a loaf that’s either homemade or from your local bakery.

My favourite picks are a fruit and nut bread, cinnamon raisin, brioche, or a good loaf of sourdough.

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Pork and Shrimp Burgers with a Spicy Asian Slaw

November 8, 2019 by Sylvia Rose 2 Comments

Cast-iron skillet pork and shrimp burgers bursting with rich Asian-inspired flavours.

COOKING WITH CAST IRON

Pork and shrimp burgers are one of those recipes that grills up beautifully on a barbecue, but when it’s raining or freezing outside, firing up the barbie quickly loses its appeal.

As for non-stick pans, well, there are all kinds of problems with those, which you can read about in my article on cast iron cooking.

The reason I love cooking up burgers in a cast iron skillet is that cast iron conducts heat really well and once seared, I can pop the pan in the oven and forget about it for twenty minutes while I do something else.

Have you tried cooking with cast iron yet? I swear, once you make the switch, there’s no going back. The toughest part is learning how to cook in cast iron and how to care for it.

PORK AND SHRIMP BURGERS RECIPE VIDEO

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The Best Brussels Sprouts Skillet (with bacon and parmesan)

October 17, 2019 by Sylvia Rose 14 Comments

These pan fried and roasted brussels sprouts are cheesy, smoky and crispy. They also look great being pulled from the oven in a cast iron skillet. It’s the kind of side dish you want on your holiday table!

ROASTED BRUSSELS SPROUTS: YOU EITHER LOVE THEM OR HATE THEM

Bacon parmesan brussels sprouts are a terrific side for roasted meats due to the strong flavour that people either love or hate. If you would have asked me when I was a kid whether or not I wanted a scoop of brussels sprouts on my plate, I would have shook my head to decline.

The thing is, when brussels sprouts are overcooked, they leave a bitter taste in your mouth and an unpleasant memory if you’re tasting them for the first time.

Brussels sprouts should be green, not gray, and they should be a vegetable everyone reaches for, including children.

Vegetarians aside, who would turn down a dish with bacon and parmesan? The Panko bread crumbs also make them crispy, giving them an intriguing crunch factor.

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