Druckman - Stir, sizzle, bake: recipes for your cast-iron skillet

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

When I first asked Caroline Fidanza about the naan she bakes at Saltie, she told me shed stolen the recipe from a cookbook called Flatbreads and Flavors, written by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid. Thats what the history of cooking is, a series of thefts. What elevates each act of stealing to something noncriminal and original are the seemingly small but significant adjustments every person makes along the way. Because of Carolines adaptations, its hard to see the resemblance between those two recipes. Id like to take this opportunity to confess, thank, and note every writer and chef whose recipes, restaurant dish, or advice I drew on for inspiration and know-how:

Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid (duh); Caroline Fidanza (double duh); Lauren Crabbe and Michael McCrory of Andytown Coffee Roasters; Rocky Super Fry Bread Yazzie; chef Devon Gilroy and his sous chef Gemma Kaminkorn; the pastry chefs and bakers who went above and beyond, including Pichet Ong, Melissa Weller, Justin Gellatly, Michelle Rizzolo, Gina DePalma, and Gillian Shaw; mistress of Southern baking Lisa Donovan; Atlanta baking legend and cast-iron skillet hoarder Liz Lorber; Hill-of-the-Hawk Heather Lanier; pastry cook Anna Higham; Memphis chefs Michael Hudman and Andy Ticer of Hog & Hominy (home of the best pie on earth); Liz Quijada of Abrao; pastry chef Katzie Guy-Hamilton; Amanda Hesser and her mom; food science expert and patient explainer Harold McGee; chef Eli Kulp; chef Heidi Trull; craftsman William Werner; shortbread queen Caitlin Freeman; know-it-all Alison Roman; food blogger Molly Yeh and her great aunt-in-law Ethel Ramstead; food blogger Alia Alkasami and her grandmother; food blogger Maya Sozer; chefs Alex Raij and Eder Montero; chef Jody Williams; chef Marc Vetri; chef Brandon Jew; Cathy Butter Mochi Juhn via Lucky Peach magazine; blogger and pastry chef David Lebovitz; The Recipe Machine (a.k.a. Melissa Clark); Martha Stewart; The Food Labs Kenji Lpez-Alt; David Arnold; Martha Rose Shulman; food writer Felicity Cloake; Best Made Companys resident cast-iron resuscitator Nick Zdon; chef Mark Ladner; chef Anne Rosenzweig; Ritz-Cookie Tosi; chef Nancy Silverton; pastry chef Shuna Lydon; jamstress June Taylor; fika enthusiast Kristin D. Murray; pastry chef Phoebe Lawless; chef Asha Gomez; my local dosa guide Nalini Periasamy; NYCs Levain Bakery; Standard Baking Company; supper club superstar Sabrina Ghayour; chef Maria Elia; Emiko Davies; chef Tom Norrington-Davies; and The Cookbook Squad: The Joneses, Maida Heatter, Shirly O. Corriher, Dorie Greenspan (hi, Dorie!), Alice Medrich, Nick Malgieri, Simon Hopkinson, Nancy Harmon Jenkins (and her daughter chef Sara Jenkins), Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi, Paula Wolfert, Virginia Willis, Belinda Ellis, Madhur Jaffrey, Julee Russo (and Sheila Lukins), Bill Smith, Jim Lahey, Ruta Kahate, Sean Brock, Kristen Miglore, and Marciel E. Presilla.

Mom and Dad, thank you for your support, all the cooking and feeding, and the cookbooks in your kitchen. I am so lucky to have you. Love you. Bro, thanks for checking in along the way.

Lily Freedman, I couldnt have done this without you. Sorry about the celery and anchovies.

To the DREAM TEAM: Aubrie Pick, I wish I could take a photograph that could convey how extraordinary you are and what a joy to work with. Just please know how much I appreciate you, your incredible talent and versatility, and every shot you took for this cookbook. Bessma Khlaef and Courtney Munna, that shoot couldnt have happened without you. Maeve Sheridan, youre the best prop stylist Ive ever worked with.

Mike Whitehead, the smartest thing I did was buy a Finex skillet for myself, because it prompted me to track you down. Thank you for your wealth of cast-iron knowledge and your friendship.

Angelin Borsics, thank you for showing me that the cookbook experience doesnt have to be hellish, that it can be fun and wonderfully collaborative. Stephanie Huntwork, you really listened and took all of my requests, stacks of books, and random scraps of information into account; then you turned it all into something so much better than I could have imagined. Doris Cooper, thanks for tea at Cognac and everything else thats followed. Aaron Wehner, thank you for your omniscience, and for the opportunity. And to the behind-the-scenes crew at PotterJoyce Wong, Heather Williamson, Natasha Martin, Lauren Velasquez, Sonia Persad, and Alexandria Martinezthanks for doing all that heavy lifting. Laura Nolan, we finally got it right! Thank you for keeping the faith and not letting me throw in the kitchen towel.

Beth Kracklauer, if you hadnt given that stovetop cast-iron story the green light, I would not have typed any of the words on this or the preceding pages.

To my fellow food writers and editors I call friend, thank you, so much, for your support, advice, and championing. To my non-food-world-specific friends: all the love, respect, and gratitude.

Pawstein, kisses.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

CHARLOTTE DRUCKMAN is a journalist and food writer whose work has appeared in various publications, including the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Cherry Bombe, and Bon Apptit. Shes the proud cofounder of Food52s Piglet Tournament of Cookbooks, and is also the author of Skirt Steak and coauthor of Cooking Without Borders with Anita Lo. She lives in New York.

THE SKILLET PANTRY

One of the most rewarding aspects of writing this book was that it gave me an excuse to play around with different kinds of flours, sugars, and fats. Theyve become integral to my baking and are now staples in my kitchen. I hope youre equally won over by them. Here are my favorite brands and sources.

FLOUR

Anson Mills | ansonmills.com

Buckwheat flour, cornmeal (coarse and fine), rye flour

Blue Star Brand, Koda Farms | kodafarms.com

Mochiko (sweet rice) flour

Bobs Red Mill | bobsredmill.com

Barley flour, coconut flour, corn flour, garbanzo bean (chickpea) flour, graham (whole-wheat pastry) flour, green pea flour, kamut flour, quinoa flour, semolina flour, sorghum flour, tapioca flour

Buon Italia | buonitalia.com

Double zero (00) flour

Dowd & Rogers | dowdandrogers.com

Chestnut flour

Kalustyans | kalustyans.com

Semolina (coarse)

King Arthur | kingarthurflour.com

All-purpose bleached and unbleached flour, bread flour

SWEETENERS

Blis | blisgourmet.com

Grade B maple syrup

Dutch Gold | dutchgoldhoney.com

Buckwheat honey and orange blossom honey (if not locally sourced)

The Date Lady | ilovedatelady.com

Date syrup

Bobs Red Mill

Coconut sugar

Kalustyans

Pomegranate molasses

FATS

Artisana Organics | artisanaorganics.com

Coconut butter, coconut oil

DArtagnan | dartagnan.com

Duck fat

Heirloom Provisions | heirloomprovisions.com

Lard (regular or leafif not from your local butcher)

Purity Farms | purityfarms.com

Ghee

SPICES, SEASONINGS & OTHER STAPLES

Jacobsen Salt Co. | jacobsensalt.com

Flake sea salt

Kalustyans

Curry powder, garam masala

La Bote | laboiteny.com

Zaatar

Nielsen-Massey | nielsenmassey.com

Almond extract, coffee extract

See Smell Taste | seesmelltaste.com

Aleppo pepper, ras el hanout, saffron, Sichuan peppercorns, shichimi togarashi, vanilla bean

Sonoma Syrup | sonomasyrup.com