Cornbread ( 1830's) Kitchen / Campfire Recipe

• 3 c.  stone ground corn meal
• 1 1/2    c.  white flour
• 1 T. sugar
• 2 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t.  salt
• 2 1/2 T. molasses  or  21/2  T. honey  or 11/4  T. of each 
• 4 eggs
• 3 c.  buttermilk
• 3 T. lard
• 3  T. veg. oil

While preheating 12 inch cast iron dutch oven to 375 degree (use oven thermometer inside Dutch Oven , remove thermometer before adding batter to oven)
Combine dry ingredients.  Add molasses, oil and buttermilk to beaten eggs.  Add to dry ingredients and mix to combine.
Melt (pig fat) lard in preheated Dutch Oven, add ingredients to dutch oven.  Cover and bake for 30 minutes or until inserted knife comes out clean.

Dutch Oven Cobbler Kitchen / Campfire Recipe

• 1 box of yellow cake mix
• 1 cold stick butter cut into cubes
• 2 cans pie filling
• 1 1/4 c. chopped or finely diced walnuts

While heating 12 inch cast iron dutch oven to 375 degrees (use oven thermometer inside dutch oven/oven ) Remove from oven before adding ingredients’  Lightly grease dutch oven with cooking spray

Cut cold butter into cake mix and add nuts (optional) and hand blend (cut) the butter into the cake mix until the butter is in small pieces.

Add fruit to bottom of dutch oven.  Spread dry cake mix with cut in butter over top of fruit.
Bake in covered dutch oven for 30 minutes.

Traditional Buckwheat (no knead)

• 3/4  cup buckwheat flour (3  1/2 oz)
• 1  cup unbleached all-purpose flour (5 oz)
• 2  cups whole wheat flour (9 oz)
• 2  1/4 t. granulated yeast
• 1  1/2 t. coarse salt
• 1/8  cup vital wheat gluten (2 T or .6 oz)
• 1  3/4 cups lukewarm water

Using glass bowl or cup, dissolve yeast in lukewarm water.  Put buckwheat flour, wheat flour, all-purpose flour and gluten into large plastic mixing bowl, incorporate salt into flour.  Using  a wooden mixing spoon, add water with yeast to flour mixture, making sure everything is uniformly moist.  Dough should be wet and loose enough to conform to shape of container.  Cover with a loose fitting lid.  Allow mixture to rise for approximately 2 hours, depending on room temp and initial water temp.  Longer rising time will not harm the result. 
You can use a portion of the dough anytime after this period.  However, flavor will be best after at least 24 hours of refrigeration.  Any dough not initially used can be refrigerated in same bowl with loose lid for up to 10 days.
To bake a loaf of bread, sprinkle flour on work surface, divide with your hands, a grapefruit size portion of dough, dusting a bit of the flour on the outside of the portion of the dough, not really mixing any of the flour into the dough.  Most of the dusting flour will fall off.  Gently stretch the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, shaping the dough into a ball.  No kneading required.  The entire process should take no more than 30 to 60 seconds.  Place on parchment paper, cut to size of dutch oven.  Cover loaf with towel and let rise for 40 mins.
 Before placing in heated oven, dust with flour and make 3 slashes, 1/4 inch deep, across the top, using a serrated knife.  (if refrigerated dough is used, allow more resting time before baking).
The method of baking to be addressed here is to use a cast iron dutch oven (10 or 12 inch size).  One of 3 methods can be used for baking.  At home in your kitchen oven; or outside using either charcoal or wood coals.
While dough is rising, preheat dutch oven to approximately 500 degrees.  Use a trivet in bottom of oven, and preheat with lid on.  When temp is reached, carefully place dough (with parchment paper on bottom) in oven and replace lid.  Use insulated glove while doing this.
Bake for 35 minutes at 450 degree.  When using indoor oven, remove lid for last 5 minutes.  Carefully remove loaf from oven and place on cooling rack.  Slice at will.

Stan has been using this recipe for 28 years.... 

Honey Wheat (no knead) Dutch Oven

• 1  1/3  cups lukewarm water (approximately 100 degrees)
• 2  1/4 t.  granulated yeast
• 2  1/4 t.  coarse salt (.6 oz)
• 1  1/2  cups whole wheat flour (6.75 oz)
• 1  1/2  cups  all-purpose white flour (7.5 oz)
• 1/8  cup of vital wheat gluten ( 2T or .6 oz)
• 1/4  cup honey (2.8 oz)
• 1/4  cup lard (melted and cooled) (1.6 oz)

Using glass bowl or cup, dissolve yeast in lukewarm water.  Put wheat flour,  all- purpose flour and gluten into large plastic mixing bowl, incorporate salt into flour.  Using a wooden mixing spoon, add water with yeast, honey and melted and cooled lard to flour mixture, making sure everything is uniformly moist.  Dough should be wet and loose enough to conform to shape of container.  Cover with a loose fitting lid.  Allow mixture to rise for approximately 1  1/2  to  2 hours, depending on room temp. and initial water temp.  Longer rising time (even overnite) will not harm the result.
You can use a portion of the dough any time after this period.  Divide in half for 2 loaves. Recipe can be doubled for 4 loaves.  Any dough not initially used can be refrigerated in same bowl with loose lid for up to 14 days.
To bake a loaf of bread, sprinkle flour on work surface, divide with your hands a grapefruit size portion of dough, dusting a bit of the flour on the outside of the portion of the dough, not really mixing any of the flour into the dough.  Most of the dusting flour will fall off.  Gently stretch the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, shaping the dough into a ball.  Then stretching in gently to elongate it and taper the ends.   No kneading required.  The entire process should take no more than 20 to 40 seconds.   Place on parchment paper, cut to size of dutch oven.  Cover loaf with towel and let rise for 40 mins.
Before placing in heated oven, dust with flour and make 3 slashes, 1/4 inch deep, across the top, using a serrated knife.  ( If refrigerated dough is used, allow more resting time before baking).
The method of baking to be addressed here is to use a cast iron dutch oven (10 or 12 inch size).  One of  3 methods can be used for baking.  At home in your kitchen oven; or outside using either charcoal or wood coals.
While dough is rising, preheat dutch oven to approximately 500 degrees.  Use a trivet in bottom of oven, and preheat with lid on.  When temp is reached, carefully place dough (with parchment paper on bottom) in oven and replace lid.  Use insulated glove while doing this.
Bake for 35 min. at 450 degree.  When using indoor oven, remove lid for last 5 mins.  Carefully remove loaf  from oven and place on cooling rack.  Slice at will.

Artisan Dutch Oven White Bread (no knead) Kitchen or Campfire

• 1  1/2 cups lukewarm water (approx. 100 degrees)
• 2  1/4 t. granulated yeast
• 2  1/4 t. coarse salt (.6 oz)
• 3  1/4 cups all-purpose white flour (16.3 oz)

Using glass bowl or cup, dissolve yeast in lukewarm water.   Put flour in large  bowl, incorporate salt into flour.  Using a wooden spoon, add water with yeast to flour, making sure everything is uniformly moist.  Dough should be wet and loose enough to conform to shape of container.Cover with a loose fitting lid.  Allow mixture to rise for approximately 2 hours, depending on room temp. and initial water temp.  longer rising time (up to 5 hrs.) will not harm the result.  You can use a portion of the dough any time after this period.  Divide in half for 2 loaves.  Recipe can be doubled for 4 loaves.  Any dough not initially used can be refrigerated in same bowl with loose lid for up to 14 days.

To bake a loaf of bread, sprinkle flour on work surface, divide with your hands a grapefruit size portion of dough,dusting a bit of the flour on the outside of the portion of the dough, not really mixing any of the flour into the dough.  Most of the dusting flour will fall off.   Gently stretch the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, shaping the dough into a ball.  No kneading required. 
The entire process should take no more than 30 to 60 seconds.  Place on parchment paper, cut to size of dutch oven.  Cover loaf with towel and let rise for 40 mins.
Before placing in heated oven , dust with flour and make 3 slashes  1/4 inch deep across the top, using a serrated knife.  (If refrigerated dough is used, allow more resting time before baking.)
The method of baking to be addressed here is to use a cast iron dutch oven (10 or 12 inch size).  One of 3 methods can be used for baking.   At home in your kitchen oven;  or  outside using either charcoal or woods coals.  While dough is rising, preheat dutch oven to approximately 500 degrees. Use a trivet in bottom of oven, and preheat with lid on.
When temp is reached, carefully place dough,(with parchment paper on bottom) in oven and replace lid.   Use  insulated glove  while doing this.  Bake for 35 mins. at 450 degree.  When using indoor oven remove lid for last 5 mins.  Carefully remove loaf from oven and place on cooling rack.  Slice at will.

Stan has been making this bread for 28 years and this is a time tested recipe. 

Seasoning Your Cast Iron, The How To Facts

Like anything else, there is different ways to accomplish the same goal. Although what I am about to explain to you is the correct way, it might not be the same way you know. Also we are not going to tear this whole process apart, we are going to keep this process as simple as it was done a few hundred years ago. Like they say, if it isn't broke why fix it?

In order to clear the slate for a good conversation, let us get straight into factory seasoning. Any good quality cast iron will arrive pre-seasoned. It is ready to use out of the box, a light rinse and your ready to start using it. Over time a non-stick surface will form, which brings us to the golden rule, never, ever wash your cast iron with soap, dishwasher or scrub it with steel wool... I strip all my new (even to me second hand) cast iron down using Kosher coarse salt and a lemon cut in half. With a little elbow grease, you'll be done in no time. If you desire to keep the factory seasoning, that is fine too.

Let's get to the small affordable list of things you're gonna need prior to seasoning your cast iron. A disposable aluminum pan large enough to set your cast iron into while it is seasoning and a tub of lard. Yes, pig fat... You can use a veggie based white spreadable stuff, but stores still carry just plain old lard, which is the best thing to season with.

Pre-heat your ovn to 350 degrees, okay let me stop here and pass along a note. Some will say you have to pre-heat the cast iron prior to seasoning. That isn't true, the concept in theory is there, but I have been working with metal all my life and we are not annealing, we are seasoning. Annealing is a whole different blog post... The whole open pore concept isn't necessary for seasoning. 

Get out your Lard, open it, and just stick your hand in and grab a big ole glob of it and start to smear it on your cast iron, all over, don't miss a single spot...  Go ahead and to the lid to the Dutch Oven as well, smear it all over it too... Place on your disposable pan, place into the oven for one hour.

By this time you're wondering if it will stink, yes a little. Anytime that it gets too much, if it does, just open a window or door to vent. After an hour has passed it is time to remove the cast iron and let it cool to room temperature and repeat at least one more time, two more times is best at this point, but one more will work.

Over time, using your cast iron, and washing it only with hot water and a brush, a non-stick surface will form. Never use metal utensils unless you have to, just use a little care when using them.

From time to time you may need to season your cast iron again. I once knew a woman by the name of Nancey, she had a cast iron skillet that hadn't been washed with soap for 60 years. Her skillet made some of the best fried trout I ever ate, better than my own and Mom's.

If your looking for a great deal on a starter set of cast iron, here is a great deal!!!!