Joseph Lodge began making iron cookware in the Appalachian Mountains of South Pittsburg, Tennesse at the end of the 19th century. If you've ever used cast iron while camping (next to your car as it's heavy as can be) then you know that a) it cooks your chili so that the aroma generates rapture akin to a lover's kiss and b) it'll last you a lifetime. It's also surpisingly cheap. Kleenex is to tissue as Chapstick is to lip balm as Lodge is to cast iron.Dick Proenneke went on and on about sourdough biscuits and jam in the morning, so if you've got yourself a Lodge, and I'm sure you do, then make sure you try making them at least once. Nothing, and I mean nothing, tastes better after waking up from your tent than sourdough biscuits. And of course, Lodge has a recipe right on their website for the beauties. If you don't have the time or the motivation to make your own sourdough starter, try using this. The picture above is from Campground Cooking, a book that I've been admiring at home for the past couple of months after seeing some scans on Old Chum's Flickr.