Megan Keno - Cast Iron Gourmet

Some smarty-pants marriage therapist said that people speak five love languages and that half the battle of a successful marriage is communicating with those you love in a way they can understand. My cooking is my love language. It is how I show my love to those around me. Cooking is definitely a trait that has been passed down to me through my family. Lucky for me. Unlucky for my pant size.

By nature I have always been a baker, but I realized early on that the key to ensuring Ben, my then boyfriend and now husband, would stick around was to make sure there was food he could eat on a daily basis. Unfortunately, it cant all be cookies and cream puffs. Ive spent the last six years trying to balance my love of sugar and carbs with trying to cook vegetables and other foods that grow from the ground. Trust me, it wasnt always sunshine and good steaks. At the beginning, I couldnt even make macaroni from a box without it still being crunchy. The horror.

But taking the time to learn, grow and venture out of my cooking bubble gave me a new confidence that I hope you will find in yourself as well.

This book balances two sides of my cooking philosophyall the tools and expensive pans in the world wont make you a great cook, but mastering the basics will. Simple, comforting dishes are best because you can elevate them with a few quick changes that give them a whole new flavor or purpose. Elevated can be anything you want it to beelegant, fancy or just dimensional in a way it wasnt before. Youll find down-home classics like , which is just as comforting as it is elegant. All made in one pan.

Cast iron is known the world over for its high-quality cooking properties, and you can spend as much or as little as your bank account will allow. But focus on finding sturdy, reputable cast iron opposed to budget brands. Inexpensive generic cast iron wont get you the results or have the resiliency that its more reputable counterparts will. Cast iron is an investment, so make it count.

Find the tools that make your job easier so you can hone your craft and be a success.

My goal is to break down the barriers of cast-iron cooking, remove it from grandma status and cement it in our everyday lives again. Beyond bringing it back into fashion, and risk it being a trendy tool that will fade, I hope this book can build your confidence, demystify cast iron and help you become a more versatile cook with fewer dishes to do at the end of the day.

Thank you for entrusting me with your time. This book is my biggest culinary labor of love to date, and I hope you will find it helpful and inspiring in your new cast-iron journey. Most important of all, I hope that you will spread love by sharing good food with those you care about.

Our love languages are the same. I can tell.