Cheap thrills...

 I needed a good saute pan. I had purchased one awhile back that I thought was nice.  But it very gradually warped and no longer heated well on my cooktop.  So, I was stuck using small stainless steel pans until I found something new.  I wanted something that browned well, heated evenly, and didn't stick.   I wanted cast iron.   But of course everything I've ever read says to not use cast iron on a glass cooktop.  And when it comes to $1200 appliances like my double-oven range, I tend to live by the rules...   (After all, George Bush is not going to buy me another one anytime soon...) I began researching pans...  It had to be large.  It had to heat evenly.  It had to brown well. A good enameled cast iron pan would have been over $100 (in the size I wanted). A good non-stick searing pan would have been $250.  No, I'm not kidding.  I could have a KitchenAid mixer or one pan.  Like that's gonna happen! I stood in the kitchen aisle at Target and picked up a monster cast iron pan.  The bottom was nice and smooth.   $18.99 I thought about how nicely cast iron pans brown.  I thought about how they flavor the food.  In the summer, I use cast iron pans all the time on the grill, and I love it. I had exchanged comments with my nephew's wife on Facebook, and she said that she used cast iron on her cooktop all the time. I decided to live dangerously. I bought the pan.  And tonight I cooked with it. It worked beautifully... 

  Now I'm thinking of all of the wonderful things I can cook as I season my new pan. It's an heirloom in progress.  :-)