CorningWare 411

"Grab it" Greats - Tetrazzini

2011-10-16T12:39:00.000-07:00

I don't make Tetrazzini very often, but for some reason, I was seriously jonesin' for it. I suppose it was fortuitous that I had roasted chicken left over from the other night. LOL

Contrary to it's name, Tetrazzini is not Italian. It was invented by chef Ernest Arbogast of the Palace Hotel in San Francisco somewhere between 1908 and 1910. The only "Italian" aspect of this dish, aside from the fact that it includes pasta, is that it was named in honor of Lucia Tetrazzini, an Italian Opera singer who was a long time resident of the hotel.

I find, since this is a baked pasta, that my 14 oz (400ml) Grab-it Au Gratin dishes (P-14-B) make a perfect receptacle.

They are the perfect individual serving size. As an added bonus, they have glass lids for storing. No plastics need apply, thank you. This means that, as a single person, I can make 4 servings and simply store 3 of them in the refrigerator or freezer until I am ready to bake them and chow down. :) Today though I am only making enough for 2, because I only have 6 oz of chicken.

There are several variations on Tetrazzini. Me? I like to include the mushrooms, and I always go for the traditional chicken, though I have seen several recipes on the net that use Turkey. (which does sound intriguing) I steer clear of the long noodles that seem to be the normal sauce vehicle. I think it's kind of silly to use spaghetti or vermicelli in a baked pasta dish, it only makes it harder to serve. Thus, flying in the face of tradition, I lean towards Torchietti, Penne or, my most favorite, Gigli.

What really sets this dish apart from being just another "Mac and Cheese" dish (with chicken & mushrooms) is the inclusion of the Almonds... Then are an absolute must.

Tetrazzini

Serves 2
A little pat of Butter to saute the mushrooms
2.5 oz (73 g) Mushrooms, sliced
1 TB Unsalted Butter
1 TB AP Flour
1 cup (236 ml) Whole Milk
1 TB Shallot, grated
1 tsp Lemon Juice
Kosher Salt
Cracked Black Pepper
1/4 tsp Smoked Paprika
1 cup (6 oz) (170g) cooked Chicken, diced
1 TB Dry Sherry (or Dry Marsala)
6 oz (170g) dry Pasta (though you need to cook it)
2 TB sliced Almonds, divided
3 oz (84 g) Parmigiano-Reggiano, divided
1/2 cup (1 oz) (28 g) Panko, divided

First, you need to saute the Mushrooms in a little bit o' Butter.

You also need to boil your pasta in salted water.... as well as preheat the oven to 400 F (205 C) degrees.

Then, once you have removed the Mushrooms from the pan, go ahead and start your Balsamella (Béchamel) in the same pan by melting the 1 TB Butter....

add Flour and stir to combine... Continue cooking the roux until bubbly.

Add warm milk, whisking constantly to avoid lumps, and bring to a boil...

Continue cooking until thickened.

Rub the Shallot on a fine grater (or zester) and add to the sauce.

Add Lemon Juice as well, stirring until well combined.

Season with Kosher Salt, Black Pepper and Smoked Paprika.

Add 2 oz (56 g) of the Parmigiano-Reggiano and stir until melted and smooth.

Add the Mushrooms, Chicken and Dry Sherry (or dry Marsala), stirring to combine.

Add the cooked Pasta and fold it into the mix.

Divide the mix between 2 Grab-It au Gratin dishes. (P-14-B)

Sprinkle each dish with 1 TB of sliced Almonds

Sprinkle each portion with 1/2 oz (14 g) Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Sprinkle each dish with 1/4 cup (1/2 oz) (14 g) of Panko.

Now if you need to save one... Go ahead and lid it up, then store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, or wrap the whole thing in plastic wrap and store in the freezer for up to 1 week.

If your eating now, like me, bake them for 15 minutes, or until everything heats through and the panko is golden brown.

Remove from the oven and dig in!!!

Ya know, I always forget how much I really like this dish... Chicken & Mushrooms glazed with a Parmigiano-Reggiano fortified Béchamel accented with a light smokiness from the Paprika brightened by the hint of lemon and the sharpness of the shallot... The crispiness of the Panko mixes well with the solid crunch of sweet Almonds... Yeah, YUM!

Where is your CorningWare?
~~

Fowl Weather Fare In CorningWare - Pesto Chicken Pot Pie

2011-10-02T20:05:00.000-07:00

I promised, now that I have 4 French White Ramekins, that I would give out my Pesto Chicken Pot Pie Recipe. Though this can be made in the Grab-it bowls (P-150-B), it seems to work better in the Ramekins (F-16-B). I think this is because the Grab-it Bowls are 550 ml, while the French White Ramekins are 500 ml.

I will admit this recipe will sound a little daunting and it does seem like a lot to take on all at once, however, you can make the filling and the pastry ahead of time and store then in the refrigerator for 24 hours.

This crust is slightly different than the Pâte Brisée I use for sweet pies (Apple, Lemon Meringue and Cherry). For starters, it contains Spelt Flour... I like Spelt in savory applications because it lends a nutty flavor like whole wheat, but without the "sweetness" whole wheat usually imparts. The Second difference is the lack of sugar... I think that one is a given, but there is also more salt (an extra 1/2 tsp) The third and final difference, is the amount of butter has changed. I like more butter with my sweet pies than I do with savory pies, thus this recipe contains 4 TB (2 oz) less.

This is the perfect mean when the weather is foul...

Pesto Chicken Pot Pie

Pesto Chicken Filling:

1.25 lbs Chicken Breasts, Cubed
4 oz Celery, Chopped
4 oz Carrot, Chopped
4 oz Onion, Chopped
Olive Oil
1/2 cup AP Flour
3 1/2 cups Chicken Stock
3 TB Pesto
Kosher Salt
Cracked Black Pepper
3 oz Frozen Peas, Still frozen
Savory Pâte Brisée (see Below)
4 500ml CorningWare French White Ramekins (P-16-B)

Heat oil (about 1 TB) in a large skillet.
Add chicken and brown lightly.

Remove chicken to a bowl.

Add 1-2 TB more Olive oil then add Celery, Carrot and Onion, sauteing the Vegetables until almost tender.

Sprinkle the vegetables with 1/2 cup flour.

Stir until the vegetables are well coated and continue cooking until the flour begins to smell nutty.

Stir in the Chicken Stock and bring to a simmer for about 10 minutes. (Until the gravy begins to thicken)

Add the Chicken and continue simmering for an additional 5 minutes.

Stir in the Pesto, season with Kosher Salt and Cracked Pepper, then remove the skillet from the heat.

Allow to cool while you mix up the Pâte Brisée (Don't worry about the Peas yet)

Savory Pâte Brisée:

6 oz Unsalted butter, VERY cold, and cut into very thin slices
2 cups (8.5 oz) (240g) AP Flour
1 cup (3.5 oz) (100g) Cake Flour
1 tsp Kosher salt
Approximately 1/3 - 1/2 cup (3-4 oz) (100-125ml) very cold water

Whisk the Flours and Salt together very lightly.

Add sliced Unsalted Butter and toss briefly to coat them.

Work the butter through the flour with your finger tips, sort of rubbing the flour into the butter or use a pastry cutter.

Add the ice-cold water starting with 1/3 cup (3 oz) (100ml) and mix very fast with your hand just enough that the dough coheres.

If it does not, add more water 1 TB at a time... You want it to just barely hold together.

Wrap in plastic and chill in the refrigerator for 15 minutes. (Spelt is lower in gluten, so the dough does not need to relax as long as regular Pate Brisee would)

OK, Back to the Filling......

It should be cool now, so go ahead and stir in the frozen peas (this will keep them from getting too mushy when baking)

Back to the Pâte Brisée now.....

Remove the dough from the refrigerator and divide into 4 pieces.

Now the fun part, you are going to divide each piece into 2/3 & 1/3 pieces. The 1/3 piece is for the top and the 2/3 piece is to line the CorningWare Ramekin.

Place all the "top" pieces back into the refrigerator and begin rolling the dough to line the ramekins.
Roll each "bottom" piece into a 10-11 inch circle.

Fit the dough down into the ramekin making sure to leave the over hang.

Once all the ramekins have been lined, fill them with the cooled filling and preheat the oven to 400 F degrees.

Now roll each of the "tops" into a 6 inch round.

Place on top and begin rolling the dough over and in...

(you want the seam inside the ramekin to ensure there is no spillage while baking)

Crimp the edges....

Cut vent holes.

Place on the bottom rack of the preheated oven and back for 35 minutes, or until the tops are nicely browned.

Remove form the oven and place on a rack, allowing to cool for about 15 minutes.

Then, my favorite part, Dig IN!!! YUM!

The perfect meal when it's cold, wet and dreary outside.

Where is your CorningWare?
~~

Cleanliness is Next to Godliness - Cleaning Your Vintage CorningWare

2011-09-29T18:47:00.000-07:00

I think it's time for some useful information in the care and cleaning of vintage CorningWare. Recipes are all fine and good; but once your done eating, it's time to do the dishes. :)

This post was actually spurred by one of my Salvation Army finds. I was lucky enough to stumble upon 4 CorningWare French White 500ml Ramekins. (Item F-16-B) For those of us who still think in Standard Measures, that is about 17 oz. (Seriously, I always have to sit and contemplate what the equivalent standard measure is before I can visualize how much something holds)

This just happens to be the perfect size (as are Grab-It bowls) for making individual Pot Pies. Woo hoo! (Yes, that will be the next post - Pesto Chicken Pot Pie) So, I ran them through the dishwasher, but lo' and behold, there were still "marks" on the bottoms. Which, since they are about 20 years old, is to be expected, but I am a stickler for bright, shiny, uber clean looking CorningWare. SO......

This is how to remove those stubborn grey marks on the bottom of your vintage CorningWare.

This particular type of sponge is your best friend when it comes to cleaning marks off of your pieces. I swear, it's like magic. It's made by O-Cel-O and does wonders for your glass cook top as well as your CorningWare. It seems to be a nylon type fabric with little plastic bumps on it. Very different from your normal scrubber sponge.

Simply dampen with water and add a little liquid dish soap. Then, using the scrubber side, simply apply a slight amount of pressure and scrub. The marks will simply disappear like magic.

Don't worry, it doesn't scratch the CorningWare, and you will be surprised how easily the marks are removed.

Sometimes there are metal marks on the CorningWare... This happens when using metal tools because your PyroCeram cookware is actually tougher than the metal. Thus the metal actually leaves deposits on your pieces. When you have metal marks, I suggest using a glass cook top Cleaner/Polish (along with the O-Cel-O sponge) to keep your CorningWare looking and feeling it's best. This is the particular brand that I use for both. It works beautifully. And remember, clean CorningWare is Godly CorningWare. :)

Now I have sparkling clean CorningWare, gleaming in its snow white perfection. So clean that looks like I just bought it in a Department Store instead of the Salvation Army for $ 3.96. Yep, you read that right. They were .99 cents each. Total bargain.

Now to make Chicken Pot Pie...

Where is your CorningWare
~~

Chili Bourguignon - Buffalo Billy's Moose Drool Chili

2011-09-17T20:11:00.000-07:00

Hello Vintage Corningware fans!

It's that time. Time to showcase the wonder that is Corningware by cooking ON the stove as well as the oven. I decided that I would make my favorite chili via the same method I use for Julie Child's Boeuf Bourguignon. (Thus the title of the post) This is a recap of Buffalo Billy's Droolin Chili recipe from Culinary Alchemy, but utilizing the oven to simmer the chili instead of the stove top. Don't worry, all the meat browning and the cooking of the onions will take place on the stove top. You'll see. It's awesome!

So let us begin.

Buffalo Billy's Moose Drool Chili à la Bourguignon

2 TB Olive Oil
1 lb lean Beef Stew Meat
1 lb Ground Bison (You can use 90/10 ground Beef if you like)
2 Yellow Onions, chopped
optional 1 Green Pepper, chopped
24 oz Moose Drool (or other Nut Brown ale)
28 oz can diced Fire Roasted Tomatoes
4 TB Schmokin Chili Powder
1 TB Cumin Seeds, Ground
1 TB dried Oregano
1 tsp Freshly Ground Ginger
1 tsp Smoked Salt
1/4 tsp ground All-Spice
2 15 oz cans Black Beans, drained (or 15 oz Light and 15 oz Dark Kidney beans, drained AND rinsed)
6 Cloves Garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 TB Louisiana Hot Sauce

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Heat 1 TB of the oil in a big 5 quart CorningWare Pot over medium flame. (A-5-B was the number on the bottom)

When hot, sear the Stew Meat.

Move to a paper towel to drain.

Add the Ground Bison and saute until browned, breaking up the meat as much as possible.

Move the ground bison to the paper towel as well, then wipe out the pot and add a fresh 1 TB of olive oil.

Add the Onions and Green Peppers and sweat until soft.

Add the both meats back in and toss everything together.

Pour in the Moose Drool,

and the Fire Roasted Tomatoes....

as well as the Schmokin Chili Powder, Cumin, Oregano, Ginger, Smoked Salt and All-Spice.

Bring the whole thing to a simmer.

Then cover and move the whole thing into the oven for 1 1/2 hours.

Drain and rinse the Kidney Beans, or just drain the Black beans (whichever you are using)

Remove from the oven and stir in the beans.

Cover and return to the oven for 30 minutes if using black beans and 45-60 minutes for kidney beans.

Thick, rich and delicious Chili.... YUM! I think even Juila would approve. ;)

Enjoy! (in a CorningWare P-43-B petit dish if you like)

Where is your CorningWare?
~~

Cast Iron Gets Cast Aside - Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

2011-09-06T22:35:00.000-07:00

The most incredible thing about Vintage CorningWare is it's ability to withstand temperature changes without shattering.

Thus you can use it on the stove. Which just happens to be just as advantageous in the modern kitchen as it was in your mom's/grandmother's. You see, the modern kitchen may be equipped with one of these......

A "glass" cook top. In this case, a Vitro-Ceram/Pyro-Ceram/Ceramic Glass cook top. (basically it's the same material as Vintage CorningWare was made of) The problem with these cook tops is that the bottom of your pan needs to make 100% contact with the surface. This is a problem for a lot of cast iron as even enameled versions can have a raised ring on the bottom.

This ring prevents the bottom of the pan from touching the stove top. OK, except for the actual ring itself. Thus, cast iron, for the most part, is unusable on these types of stoves. Which is a bummer, cause I LOVE Pineapple Upside-Down Cake.

Historically this particular cake is made in a cast iron skillet. Well, that isn't happening anytime soon, or at least not until I have access to a gas stove again. This is where Vintage CorningWare comes in. Not only does it have a flat bottom, thus making full contact with your glass cook top, but it's properties are very similar to enameled cast iron in many respects. (the flat bottom is how you tell Vintage CorningWare from the current stoneware facsimiles).

It is a little slow to heat up, but once it does, it holds the heat very well. Just like cast iron. The surface is as smooth as, well, glass. This gives it the same "Non-Sticking" qualities as the enamel used on cast iron. And since you can use it on the stove (Vintage CorningWare ONLY) the preparation method for Pineapple Upside-Down cake is exactly the same as it would be in a cast iron skillet.

Now I was all happy about using my Cake pan...(P-321)

But upon closer inspection, I realized that it was going to be a little bit too small (it's only 8 inch) So I had to opt for my 8 inch square utility pan instead. (P-322)

It's true, an 8 inch square (8 cups) holds more batter than an 8 inch round (6 cups). Two cups of batter is a significant difference. (Though this recipe works fine in a conventional 9 inch cake pan)

With that conundrum solved it's time to hit the stove.... Don't worry, the bottom of the pan says it all.

See? For "Range and Microwave". Obviously this pan was made at some point in the 1970's after microwaves hit the market. So grab the butter and let's get this cake a goin'. OH, but before we do. If you are going to use a conventional cake pan (not a cast iron skillet) preheat the oven to 350 F (175 C) and bake 45-50 minutes instead.

Pineapple Upside-Down Cake

1/4 cup (4 TB) Unsalted Butter
1/2 cup (3.5 oz) (100 g) Brown Sugar
4 Pineapple Rings
Maraschino Cherries or Pecans
1/3 cup (5 1/2 TB) Unsalted Butter
3/4 cup (5.25 oz) (150 g) Brown Sugar
1 Large Egg
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
1 1/4 cups (5.5 oz) (155 g) AP Flour
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1/4 tsp Kosher Salt
1/2 cup (4 oz) (118 ml) Pineapple Juice
Water (in case there isn't quite enough Pineapple juice)

Melt the Butter in an 8 inch CorningWare utility dish (8x8x2 inch square) over medium flame. (Yep, on the stove)

Sprinkle 1/2 cup (3.5 oz) (100g) Brown sugar over the melted butter.

Drain the pineapple slices (reserving the juice) and arrange the rings on top of the brown sugar.

Place a Maraschino Cherry or Pecans or both in the center of each Pineapple ring. (you can hold off on the cherries until the cake is unmolded if you like, but the nuts should definitely go in the bottom of the pan)

Set the pan aside and begin preheating the oven to 325 F (165C) degrees.

In the bowl of your mixer, cream 1/3 cup (5 1/2 TB) Unsalted Butter with 3/4 cup (5.25 oz) (150 g) Brown Sugar.

Add the egg and beat until emulsified.

Whisk AP Flour, Baking Powder and salt together in a small bowl.

Add enough water to the Pineapple juice to make 1/2 cup (118 ml) though you may not need to do this.

Begin adding the Flour and Pineapple juice to the creamed Butter mixture alternating. (Juice, Flour, Juice, Flour, Juice)

Spread the batter gently over the Pineapple rings.

Bake for 55 minutes.

Let the cake stand for 5 minutes before unmolding onto a plate.

And as if that is not enough deliciousness,

I like to top it with a small dollop of unsweetened whipped cream.

Oh YEAH!!!!

Oh, so after you have unmolded your beauty....

Just run warm water into the pan....

And Voila! Almost everything is already gone... True, it needs a little soap and a sponge. It IS caramel after all... :) But taking that fact into consideration, the clean up is pretty easy.

Look MA! No Teflon! I LOVE this stuff...

Where is your CorningWare?
~~

Greetings and Salutations!

2011-09-01T19:03:00.000-07:00

It had to happen eventually. With all the accolades I have bestowed upon CorningWare's original Pyro-Ceram formulation, as opposed to the cheap stoneware they pass off now, I figured that it was time to move all of the Pyro-ceram praises to one place. This will allow me the opportunity to "gush" freely about one of my favorite cooking utensils as well as provide any potentially useful information I may have acquired during my Goodwill and Salvation army combings over the years. Granted, I don't know dates of pattern releases or production run counts prior to discontinuation, but I can tell you that I still know more than the current customer service reps at World Kitchen.

Ah, World Kitchen, the company that purchased Corning's consumer products division in 1998 which, incidentally, included Pyrex. Don't you fret, I will be touching on the original Boro-Pyrex in the future because World Kitchen changed it's formula from Borosilicate to cheaper Soda Lime when it moved production to China. (That is another post)

Segue!!!!

What exactly IS real CorningWare?

CorningWare was a happy accident, or rather the product of a malfunction. You see, it was way back in 1953...... (Queue flashback music here)
Mr. S. Donald Stookey of R & D was testing a type of glass plate used in early TV production..... The furnace malfunctioned and the temperature rose from 600C (1112 F) to 900C (1652F). Surprisingly, the glass plate didn't melt into a glowing viscous pool, though it DID turn a funky shade of white. Which doesn't make for satisfactory television viewing. Convinced that the test was a failure, Mr. Stookey attempted to removed the tile of milky white glass from the furnace, but had a butter finger moment and dropped the tile on the floor. To his utter surprise, it did not shatter into a million pieces. On further inspection of this strange material it was discovered that the abnormal conditions within the furnace had crystallized the glass.

What does this mean? Normally glass is an amorphous "mix", meaning there is no organization to the molecules, thus light passes through. Once crystallization occurs, the order to the molecules begins to make the glass cloudy. Thus the white color. Another characteristic of normal glass is thermal expansion, meaning it expands when it is warmed and contracts when it is cold. Some forms of glass, such as Boro-Silicate (Pyrex) have much less expansion, meaning that the glass will not shatter or break during temperature changes such as oven baking. One of the advantages to this partial crystallization of glass is that thermal expansion is reduced to almost zero. This is why Pyro-Ceramic glass (Old CorningWare) can be taken directly from the refrigerator and placed on the stove, or moved from the freezer to a hot oven without shattering. Don't try that with the modern stoneware.

This material was so completely awesome that Corning began manufacturing missile nose cones out of it. Suddenly, in 1958 it was realized that this new "space age" material would be a great cooking receptacle.

And so was released the first piece of "CorningWare" from the plant (I think it was the New York plant, but it might have been the West Virginia plant)

Fun fact... Their choice of design was a mistake too. There were several test marketing runs with several designs before full production. A golden/brown wheat pattern was suppose to be the original design.

Accidents happen though, and in the plant's the haste to get the product to market someone messed up and the now "oh so familiar" CornFlower was placed on the entire production run. In the end, it was so popular that the misapplied cornflower eventually became the symbol of CorningWare itself.

Through the next 3 decades 1958-1987 there were many patterns and changes to lids as well as structure- the original run had "fin" handles instead of the round knobs on top. Here is a quick timeline of CorningWare and a snippet of what caused the angst I harbor against World Kitchen's current Pseudo-CorningWare offerings.

1966 - An "Amber-transparent" Pyro-Ceram is developed, but not released in the US for fear of reducing sales of both Pyrex Ovenware and Pyro-Ceram white CorningWare. This product would eventually become "Visions", manufactured in Avon, France in the late 70s.

1966 - My parents received a bunch of the Cornflower printed CorningWare as wedding gifts (some of which I now use today along with pieces my grandmother has handed down to me as well - testament to it's durability and long life)

1972 - The dishes became slightly more straight sided and had larger side handles. But I will get into specific printed patterns at a later date, for there are many. And each one of us kids have amassed different patterns in our collections.

1975 - Merry Mushroom pattern released to coordinate with the "Merry Mushroom" collection sold only at Sears & Roebuck. The dishes were round like the buffet servers, but had lids from Pyrex's "Sculptured Ovenware" line.

1978 - My favorite pattern was introduced.... French White. I know, this is the pattern that World Kitchen is still producing in Stoneware, but it's a sloppy reproduction in an inferior material. The edges are not as crisp and clean as the original Pyro-Ceram version and they are not as gleamingly white, having a slightly off tinge to them. But I digress.

1981 - "Visions" Amber by Corning (Avon, France) is introduced to the American Market due to slumping sales of White Corningware. It becomes so popular that the Martinsburg, WV plant begins production of Visions as well.

1982 - 1984 a French Bisque was introduced which was a beige and brown stippled design painted onto the outside surface.

1987 - The original Cornflower design was retired (until 2009, but that is another post)

1989 - Non-stick surfaces added to Amber Visions in order to boost sales.

1990 - two new and exciting things hit the market, first was the French Black which was a black, not white, version of French White. The first time that CorningWare came in a different color. (All previous "colors" such as the avocado and gold had been painted on.)

But it wasn't just 1 other color... For low and behold, there were 2 "designs" released as well which were beige. Symphony, pictured below, was one of them. Yes, now CorningWare came in not only in solid White with applied designs but in solid Black and solid Beige with applied designs! Not painted like French Bisque had been, but Beige or Black all the way through the piece.

1992 - Cranberry Colored "Visions" is released.

1994 - Corning's consumer division is in trouble.... Pattern after pattern is released in an attempt to boost sales. But CorningWare is a victim of it's own success. Due to it's durability, CorningWare simply doesn't break. It's designed for a lifetime and that is the ultimate problem. It rarely needed replacing, so sales continue to fall...

1996 - Shane, that would be me, buys his first 2 pieces of CorningWare (Though I had grown up with my mom using the CornFlower from her wedding in 1966) For me, it was a French White "set". The 1.5 liter Souffle dish (without a lid) and a 10 inch quiche/tart dish. Love at first bake.

1998 - The consumer division is up for sale and subsequently purchased by World Kitchen.... The final demise of Pyro-Ceramic cookware.

2000 - World Kitchen releases a "French White" stoneware product produced in China.

2006 - In a panic, Shane, that would be me again, runs to the store to purchase a 4 quart CorningWare dish to make a humungous casserole for some function which I cannot remember right now. Upon opening the box, Shane is completely dumfounded by the fact that it appears to be Stoneware instead of "CorningWare". To make sure that insanity has not settled upon him, he checks his Souffle dish and Tart dish and several of the older Cornflower dishes that his mom passed on to him (cause they are still going strong after 40 years) and finds that they are completely smooth on the bottom, aside from the glass pour ripples. Annoyed... Shane calls World kitchen to ask where he can purchase Pyro-Ceramic French White Corningware. Customer Service politely calls him a liar, stating that CorningWare never produced French White (from 1978 - 1998) and it has only been produced in Stoneware since World Kitchen purchased the Corning Consumer Division. (Which brings me to the angst I hold towards the company)

2006 - Present - Shane has, and still does, obsessively comb through countless St. Vincent DePauls, Salvation Armys, GoodWills and antique stores as well as peruse eBay, hunting down Original CorningWare pieces pre-1998 for both myself as well as friends and family members. (This how collections start, right?)

2009 - To my surprise, World Kitchen has re-released the CornFlower version of Pyro-Ceramic CorningWare under the name of "Stove Top" which is funny, cause the original stuff (before they tampered with it) was always able to be used on the stove, in the microwave, in the oven as well as storage in the refrigerator and freezer. Evidently enough people have been screaming for it. I have no idea if this is a limited release or not, but it is available on their web site in both Retro Cornflower, European Herbs, White Swirl, Sakura (cherry blossom), Simple Lines (black line swoops), Shadow Iris and and Just White. AWESOME!!!!! Though alas, still no return of the original French White. :(

But I have much less angst towards them for calling me a liar. :) LOL

As far as pattern preferences are concerned.... I, technically, am a French White guy, but I have several (OK, many) pieces of CornFlower and a couple pieces of Wheat... From Casseroles to Sauce pots with clip on handles.....

to Roasting pans and Serving platters with the occasional Pie plate, Bread pan or even Cake pan thrown in for good measure.

Then there are the Grab-it bowls (Chili Bowls while I was growing up) with your choice of plastic or glass lid...

Grab-it Snack plates and the Side Kicks and the Grab-it au gratin dishes and the tea kettles and the Drip-o-lator and blah blah blah.... Suddenly I have a TON of the stuff... More pieces than I can possible use... So now I call it a collection.

My Mother loves the Shadow Iris (Also available in Corelle plates - which she has as well)

My Little Brother and his Wife are into the Floral Bouquet and what I believe is called Crazy Daisy, but don't quote me on that one......

Though my grandmother originally had mostly Cornflower, she is now into the Grab-its and Side-kicks.

My friend Joseph (who many know as Espresso Joe) likes the Golden Wheat and the Black Trifoil.... but is especially fond of the French Black (which is REALLY hard to find due to the fact that it was only made for 4 years)

3 generations of CorningWare users... Sounds crazy, but we all love it and are ecstatic that World Kitchen has brought it back, even if only for a limited time.

Look forward to interesting pieces as well as some great recipes utilizing CorningWare for it's intended purpose... On the Stove top as well as in the oven.

Incidentally, I use my big 5 quart Pot to make Boeuf Bourguignon, since I do not have an enameled Cast Iron pot big enough. Works like a charm... In fact, it's very similar to cooking in cast iron... Slow to heat, but once hot, it holds the heat well. From the stove top where I brown the beef, and right into the oven for 2 1/2 hours...

I am also interested in any CorningWare stories any readers may have. I personally have dropped many pieces onto my Kitchen floor, which is tiled... Not a single piece has broken (Except for the stoneware one I bought on accident)...

Where is Your CorningWare?
~~