One of the first things I tossed when I found out I was pregnant was our non-stick pans. (As I couldn't figure out how to safely recycle them, I gave them to friends/family who weren't trying to get pregnant and made them promise to only use them at very low level heat.) Non-stick pans are usually coated in Teflon. It is obviously convenient, but the chemicals can become airborne and the fumes have been known to kill birds at high temperatures. Frightening. Also, if you scratch Teflon, which is pretty hard not to do over the years when cleaning or just general wear and tear, the chemicals can get in your food. Safer cookware options are cast iron, enamel, glass and stainless steel.

Aili's dad and I have been using cast iron for years. A seasoned cast iron pan (one that has been used for years and years) is pretty non-stick. Using cast iron is also a way to add iron to your diet (further proof - if you needed it - that cooking surfaces leach directly into your food which in this case is a good thing). It's heavy and cheap. Lodge sells 9 inch skillets for under 10 bucks. We have several sizes.

Still, all of this time we have been coveting Le Creuset's cookware. It's the sort of stuff that makes you want to serve Sunday night stews and savory braised whatevers to your closest friends and family for the rest of your lives. The cooking surface (porcelain-enamel with a cast iron core) is fabulous, it goes from stovetop to oven, and, lets face it, they're adorable. We haven't bitten the bullet (though I do remember one drool-inducing visit to Le Creuset outlet store -- !! - which we happened on during a years-ago weekend in Charleston, South Carolina) because it's so expensive. And lately there are a lot of other (baby related) items we're spending our money on.

Well, a few months ago my mother surprised us with a 7 and a half quart gloriously red French oven. (Ok so it is slightly less lipstick red than I would like it to be but I can't quibble.) We have actually used it less than we thought we might but that's because we have less time to cook these days than we'd like. We've made some delightful (organic!) chicken soup as well as several braised whatevers (including a memorable chicken with orange, olives, rosemary and onions). It cooks as we thought it would. And it is insanely easy to clean. I sound like a 1950's housewife but it's pretty exciting. Best of all is knowing that it's safe for us to cook on and eat off of, pregnant, not pregnant, and especially now that Aili, now 13 months, is pretty much eating what we're eating.

-Lexy