cooking recipes, cooking bakingEven though the cold days of winter are over and we're eating less, we're still enjoying cooking and eating at home. Winter is typically the time of year when we eat a lot of hearty food and switch to salads and sandwiches during the hot summer. However, when shopping online yesterday, I ran across this beautiful frying pan that I thought would be perfect for many a cooking recipes that call for baking but would work on the stove top with slight adjustments. In Phoenix, many people refuse to turn their ovens on during the summer because of the high cost of air conditioning.

When I saw this Chef's Secret® by Maxam® 5-Ply Surgical Stainless Steel Round Griddle online, I thought it would be perfect for stove top cooking. I have some cooking recipes that call for baking but could be adapted to the stovetop with just a few changes. I make a blueberry quick bread that could easily be turned into pancakes, and there's no reason why pineapple upside down cake couldn't be baked in this too, by layering the pineapple slices between the cake's batter instead of putting it on the bottom.

Even if the these cooking recipes don't adapt that well, this griddle will be perfect for frying up a pound of bacon or frying crispy hash browns. We are bacon junkies and now that science has proven that people who eat fatty breakfasts tend to gain less weight than people who skip that meal or eat high carbohydrate foods in the morning, we're going to eat more bacon and eggs with a guilt-free conscience.

This griddle is made from 5 ply stainless steel and has a clear cover. It should last forever. I love cooking with stainless steel. I learned from my cookbooks to make sure the pan is hot enough when I put the food in and it won't stick. Instead, meat caramelizes beautifully and we all love that flavor. Gravies are easy to cook, too, when using stainless steel pans.

I found this at Good Galley at http://goodgalley.com, a great site for ardent kitchen cooks like me. Cooking is my favorite thing to do and my family is the happy beneficiary. I found all kinds of great bakery supplies as well as tools for cooking baking, too. I have a list of cooking recipes that I'll try with this new griddle when I get it and work to alter my cooking recipes so we can enjoy the same delicious food that we bake in the winter to food we can cook in the summer. This is a pan I know we will use extensively year-round and it's large enough to make just about anything we want all year long.