2010 Dutch Oven Cook Off

The third annual dutch oven cook off was once again a time of laughter, good natured competition and great food!

This year, eight guys brought their dutch ovens to our place, threw on some coals and made our mouths water.

Most of us are familiar with the dutch ovens that are used in our kitchen oven. The ovens these men were using are heavy cast iron pots with three legs and a rimmed lid. These are the pots that traveled with the pioneers and cowboys. With a little practice, any food baked in the oven can be prepared in the outdoors in a dutch oven.

This year, we enjoyed pizza,

stuffed chicken breasts,

crusty cheese bread, and more.

But the voted  favorite  was the Vaun's Chocolate Babka.

This bread tasted as good as it looked. Vaun made the dough totally from scratch following the recipe in Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day. Impressive!

Can't wait for next year! You can also see pics from last year's dutch oven cook off.

I've been asked where you can purchase your own dutch oven. Many sporting goods stores sell them such as Cabelas and Gander Mountain. Look for an oven that is pretreated, has three iron legs and a rimmed lid for holding coals. If at all possible, purchase one at a store because the shipping can get rather expensive! Lodge is a good name, may be higher priced then some other brands, but Amazon gives free shipping. Beware of very cheap cast iron cookware as the iron may be pitted and rough and will be very hard to season well.