Last Meal of the Day: Cast Iron skillets- everybody should have one

As I promised you here is a post dedicated to cast iron skillets and my attempt to get everyone to purchase them. It will change your life I tell you.

My first cast iron skillet was/is a Lodge skillet purchased from Marshall's (yup, the discount store).

Until this point I never owned a iron skillet and wasn't how to take care of one I just knew I had to have one. Which is the case with most of my kitchen gadgets I acquire. I brought it home and avoid it for a few days unaware of the amazingness that it was about to bestow on me. One night I manned up and took it out to use for dinner I added a little evoo and set to work cooking dinner. It didn't seem much different at the time but I thought I'd keep trying it since everyone told me they love cooking with it.
A few days past and I noticed a little rust gathering on the pan, I freaked out (being the cleaning nut I am) and said to John I don't know what I'm going to do should I throw it out?

similar to this but not as bad

John being the level headed person he is said "Michele aren't you being a little ridiculous?" Maybe I was but there was rust on my new pan! The shame!
So with a little help from google we figured out how to remove the rust and store the pan properly.
I haven't turned back since it is the only pan/skillet I use anymore.

A few facts and tips on taking care of your cast iron skillet:

People have been using them since the before the invention of the kitchen stove
To season a cast iron pan, heat the pan in a hot oven, remove and carefully coat the cooking surface with a vegetable oil and return the pan to a 350-400 degree oven for one hour. The oil penetrates the micro pores of the cast iron surface, sealing it from air and water, preventing deterioration of the metal and creating a natural nonstick surface
Rinse the pan with hot water immediately after cooking.
If you need to remove burned-on food, scrub with a mild abrasive, like coarse salt, and a nonmetal brush to preserve the nonstick surface; you can also use a few drops of a mild dishwashing soap every once in a while. If the pan gets a sticky coating or develops rust over time, scrub it with steel wool and reseason it.
To prevent rust, dry the skillet thoroughly and lightly coat the cooking surface with cooking oil.

Here are a few things I cooked with mine:

A link to some great recipes:

Healthy cast iron skillet recipes