My Cast Iron


My Collectible Cast Iron

Erie #8 Spider Skillet

I recently stumbled across the Holy Grail of cast iron cookware: an Erie #8 Spider skillet. According to the Wagner & Griswold Society, the Erie spider pan was produced between 1890 and 1891 before it was pulled from production. The spider logo was borrowed from Robert the Bruce, the Scottish king who fought to free Scotland from English rule. Griswold internal company communications were headed with the words “As the little spider brought success to Robert Bruce, so cooking utensils bearing this trademark brings success to all who use them.” 

Wapak Indian Head Cast Iron

I also have been slowly collecting a set of Wapak Indian Head cast iron. Wapak cast iron might be lesser known compared to the Griswold and Wagner brands, but it is just as collectible. The most sought after Wapak cast iron are the pans with the “Indian head" medallion on them, which was produced from 1903-1926. The rarest and most collectible is the #4 skillet--until recently. A #2 Indian head skillet, a one-of-a-kind skillet, not previously known to exist, surfaced on eBay in July of 2020 and sold for more than $10,000!

Erie 4th Series 5 & 9 (Artistic Logo)

For a short time, believed to be in 1907, Griswold produced skillets with "artistic" lettering. Prior to the fourth series, the lettering had basically been of block nature. In addition all of the ERIE pattern numbers were 3-digit numbers, except for the No. 5 in the artistic lettered Fourth Series. For some reason that is not understood, a four-digit number, 3348, was used on a portion of the production instead of the usual 724. Only the rare #5 and the #9 skillets are known to exist.  More detailed pictures.

My Everyday Cast Iron

I originally started out with a basic set of modern Lodge cast iron, which included a 12" skillet, Dutch oven, square griddle and square grill pan.

As I started to cook more and more with cast iron, I opted to upgrade to a set of vintage Griswold. I prefer these over my modern Lodge cookware primarily because of the weight of the Griswold and the smooth, milled surface of the cast iron cooking surface.

For those of you who are collectors, I chose to go predominantly with smooth bottom, large block logo (LBL) Griswold, because I get the same benefits of other, more expensive Griswold, at a cheaper price than the more collectible pans with slant logos and heat rings.

Griswold Skillets 

I have four main skillets I use, depending on what I'm cooking. I have Griswold #4, #6, #8 and #10 smooth bottom, large block logo skillets.

Skillet Lid Set

I have matching Griswold skillet lids. I have #4 (1094), #6 (1096), #8 (1098) and #10 (1100).

Le Creuset Dutch Oven

My Dutch oven is an outlier in my cast iron cookware. Because many of the meals I make in my Dutch oven use acidic ingredients like tomatoes, wine and vinegar, all of which erode hard-earned seasoning, I use a modern Le Creuset 7 ¼" cast iron Dutch oven with an enamel interior.

Griswold #10 Round Handled Griddle

My kids love pancakes and French toast, so I do a lot of cooking on a griddle. I use a Griswold #10 round handled griddle.

Axford Broiler Grill Pan

For the same reasons I use vintage skillets (weight and smoothness), I use a vintage 11” Axford Broiler. Great for grilling steaks and other proteins.

Griswold 877 Loaf Pan

I've also acquired a hard-to-find Griswold #877 loaf pan. I have 3 bread recipes I use a lot (cornbread, lemon bread and banana bread),  and a really good family meat loaf recipe. Doesn't exactly fit in the pot rack, but it's a pretty cool piece of cookware!

Wagner Cast Iron Baking Pan

I just bought this pan. I'm in the process of stripping and re-seasoning it. I have a lot of recipes I'd like to try using this pan. Everything from my family family bread pudding recipe, to baked macaroniand cheese, to Katie's off-the-hook lasagna recipe. Stay tuned!

Griswold #10 Pop Over Pan

I picked this up the same time I found the baking pan. I'm in the process of stripping and re-seasoning it. I'm hoping it makes cookies that are crunchy on the bottom and soft on the inside. Yum. We'll see.  Stay tuned!

Griswold 1108 Cast Iron Cookie Sheet

I recently picked up a Griswold/Wagner dual logo #10 muffin pan. I'm not sure of the benefits of a cast iron muffin pan over other muffin pans, but I got it cheap. I'm in the process of restoring it and will let you know how it goes.

Griswold/Wagner Cornbread Wedge Skillet

In the past, I have used my #10 Griswold skillet to make cornbread. For fun, I recently purchased a Wagner/Griswold 9” cornbread wedge skillet. This works well for cornbread and even for wedge-shaped scones!

BSR “Handy Dan” Cornbread Pan

Everyone needs a corn stick pan! I picked this one up because it's the only one I've seen with a handle, and the price was right. I still bake my corn bread in my wedge pan, but I use this pan for the left over corn bread batter I always seem to have.