Re: LATE Sunday AM, etc, and a *wanted* "ad"....

Why? Angle of the tip? Tip too sharp? Too slippery? Do you have other needles of the same size that you do like? Maybe you just do not like knitting tiny, tiny stitches : )

If the tip is too slippery ( and many commercial are) texture them with some

Aaron

Too sharp and too slippery. I love knitting tiny, tiny stitches, but those DPNs kill me!

Higs, Kather> Why? Angle of the tip? Tip too sharp? Too slippery? Do you have

First, Katherine, What do you consider to be tiny, tiny stitches? These days I knit mostly in the range of 28 to 48 stitches/ 4 inches. For example the gansey is 7.3 spi on #1s with Fisherman's Wool, the sport weight is knitting at ~9 spi and the cashmere at about 11.7. My eyes are too old to go any finer.

------- Well, I have used very fine emery paper to change the texture and sometimes the shape of the tips of all of my commercial stainless steel knitting needles. The first time, it was very hard to get up the nerve to take sandpaper to those beautifully polished, and Oh! so precious new needles. But, I liked them better after texturing.

In fact, whenever I take up a new style of yarn, I spend some time knitting gauge swatches and running out to the shop to "adjust" the tips of my needles to better suit that yarn. If I think that I am going to really like that yarn (i.e., it was on sale and I bought a lot LOL) I make a new set of needles and just dedicate them to that yarn.

With the steel rod about US$0.25/foot, each set of steel needles is not too expensive -- even cheaper than brass. The brass needles were pretty, quick to make, easy to change the shape of the points, and they knit very smoothly. But now, that I have learned to knit with a knitting sheath, I find the steel DPN can knit just as smoothly and much faster due to the spring action of the steel. (Knit and learn!) Yesterday, I made a hanger for the bird feeder out of a set of brass knitting needles that I made last December. By the time I have made all the steel DPN that I want, I expect to have about 7 or 8 sets of 5 DPN. This will include at least 2 sets of 5 -

One of the great chefs of the world once told me that, "All a chef needs is a fire, a sauté pan, and a knife. Every thing else in the kitchen is just a toy." Maybe I would actually do better knitting if I just settled on one yarn and one set of needles. I guess, if all I had was wassit, (an early commercial yarn) I would only need one set of needles. Socks, underwear, and ganseys, all from the same yarn, and off the same needles.

Aaron

I would add 2 things - a lid and a big spoon. (and something to sharpen the knife with! And for me, instead of a saute pan, I'd have my large cast iron skillet. But apart from these minor differences, this is so true!

Alison

Sauté is a cooking method. You can sauté in a cast iron skillet! When you do, it is a sauté pan! And, you can bake a cake in it - so then it is a cake pan. In particular, pineapple upside down cake seems to do best in a cast iron cake pan : )

Aaron

OK with the iron skillet in the kitchen, I absolutly love (although my wrists are getting to old for it) I would add my trench digger from WWII, I bought in a army surpluse store, for the garden, best tool I ever had, used it for the 50 years I lived in Canada.

Els

I don't think I can define tiny, tiny stitches. LOL Something like 16 to the inch, I suppose. How would a knitting sheath help with those needles?

Higs, Katherine

Q. So how come we are not still using and content with those simple, durable, multipurpose items? A. My DW scrubs my cast iron with soap and abrasive until it sparkles, and then complains when it leaves rust marks in the shelf : ) She likes her cooking pots clean. So, I cook with Teflon, and the CI is packed away for the day when I need it's simple virtues.

Aaron

I have certainly never tried more than a dozen stitches per inch, so I can not say from personal experience that a knitting sheath would help. However, with my big needles, (#1s) the sheath supports and stabilizes the knitting so it is easier to get the tip in the stitch, (I knit tight) and because the spring of the needles does half the work, it goes much faster. So, my guess is that, yes, a knitting sheath would allow you to knit faster. It also frees up the right hand to more precisely control tension. And, my big theme is that knitting with a sheath reduces stress on the hands and wrists, which is good if you are doing a lot of stitches.

And, the knitt> > First, Katherine,

Aaron, you really cook in Teflon.....methings that a bit of extra iron is better than all those horrible chemicals from Teflon. Go visit a Teflon making factory. Cast Iron, is washed in hot water and soap and given a wipe with on old cloth with a bit of olive oil so it looks deep black. When I have baked pancase for instance, I just whipe the pan with a cloth and put it away. I have a Dutch oven, a large and small frying pan, and a Dutch waffle iron and many other baking pans. it conduct the heat perfectly and fast. Much better than those frilly Teflon pans. LOL

Els

In article , snipped-for-privacy@telus.net (Els van Dam) wrote: It should have read......Me thinks....Read on I made some corrections...(terrible speller I am) EvD

A fellow across the Bay murdered his mother because she washed the seasoning off of his cast iron pans. I was on his side : )

I have a cast iron pot that came across the Oregon Train in the 1860s by ox drawn wagon, and it is still in perfect condition - but I do not keep it in the kitchen. I do not keep it any where my wife is likely to find it ... and scrub it with harsh chemicals ; )

I know about halogen chemistry, and the toxicology of Teflon cooking implements. I also know something about the chemistry of cast iron, what the chemical nature of the black surface on cast iron is, and the toxicology of cooking in cast iron. Just because cast iron is a traditional material, does not make it any safer than Teflon. Sorry! I know the risks and I do not worry about either the risk from cast iron or the risk from Teflon. Those risks are a thousand times less than the risk from an auto accident. Those risks are a hundred times less than the risk of health problems from the chemical plasticizers that we all now carry in our bodies. And, if you want to really worry; then worry about global warming. It is coming a whole lot faster than any of the computer models predict. Those models assume that ice behaves in a linear fashion, even as it approaches its melting point. However, ice gets very weak as it approaches it melting point. The computer models do not understand ice. Ice sags and flows, and ends up being fresh water in the sea. Fresh water in the North Atlantic can change the global currents for a few years. Europe and England could freeze - fast. Here in California, the rains could fail leaving 20 million people without water, or one really big storm could wash out our levees (a la Katrina) and allow salt water into the water supplies that those 20 million people and the crops that feed North America depend on. Of course, one good earthquake could knock those all those water supplies out in an instant, also! And, the Feds do not think that it is an emergency? With issues like that, I do not need to worry about Teflon or cast iron.

I just looked at the care sheet for our cook wear. Turns out, it has a ceramic lining that feels like Teflon but does not have any halogens in it. We call it Teflon, but its not. I'm sure it has its risks, but it is not bad to cook on, but it sure does not invoke the passion of cast iron. It is OK for some things, but every so often, I have to sneak out my cast iron wok for stir fry.

Aaron

"Els van Dam" wrote in message news:jazzcobra-1306061016320001@192.168.1.100...

Thanks for the explanation, Aaron.

Higs, Kather> I have certainly never tried more than a dozen stitches per inch, so

This sounds like my house. I like my pans to be washed, husband likes his cast iron to be wiped out with a paper towel and whatever else he does with them, if anything. The final straw was when I fixed myself some eggs and they tasted like onions and peppers - and I wasn't in the mood for my eggs to taste like onions and peppers.

I got myself a no stick skillet that nobody else can touch (daughter has a way of "forgetting" how to care for them), and I don't touch any of the cast iron skillets.

Marriage. One big compromise :)

BB

Just because cast iron is a traditional material,

Personally, I cook mostly in ceramic or glass (Corning and Pyrex) and my favorite skillet is stainless steel. All of these go in the dishwasher and usually come out both clean and contented.

Olwyn Mary in New Orleans.

Dear Sweet Aaron,

I am indeed concerned about global warming. I do not worry about using my cast Iron pots, but will not use Teflon, since I find it giving off an unpleasant smell. Since I am now 70, there is little I can do about most of these things so I Pick my battles. Usually only the ones I have some controle ove, such as the use of castiron over Teflon. My cast Iron pots are all pitch black, and have always been that way. The odd time when someone else does the dishes, and does not wipe the pot dry right away, there may be a little bit of rust, but I clean that away with a bit of oil, no sweat. I think that your 18960 Oragon trail pot is a bit unhappy sitting so pristene, far a way from the kitchen. It would love to have some cornbread with black beans to cook, or some nice homemade soup. Poor pot, made to be used.....

Els

Oh Yes indeed, the better you are at compromising the better the marriage....LOL.....No hick-ups every, forget the shouting matches.....LOL

Els

Murder no less, such drama. On the other hand I could Happely wack Otto one with the cast iron frying pan, when he is in one of his tediously, nagging moods....LOL.

My pots are washed, and seasoned and constantly used. all of them, if my wrists and hands would you cooperate, we would be in heaven.

Els

I've used cast iron pans for 40 years and my mother used them for 40 years before me. She always washed her pans and so do I. It won't ruin the seasoning if you wash it gently with a little soap and water. This "wipe only" thing is a yuppie fantasy. I often use a cast iron pan to fry fish and you certainly wouldn't want that taste to linger!

I brought three cast iron pans to Italy when I moved here. My husband had never seen anything like them. One is large and very heavy. Sometimes my husband takes it out to show people.

I recently read a cookware review in the New York Times, and cast iron, plus another brand which was cast iron with some sort of ceramic covering, came out on top for stick-free cooking and easy cleaning. I can't remember the other brand, but it wasn't one of the expensive ones, none of which did very well.