The Important Tip You Need For Grilling Dessert In Cast Iron

Summertime means more backyard barbecues and grilling out with family and friends. It's the season that has us ready to bring on the hamburgers, hot dogs, steaks, corn on the cob and all foods that taste better when they are cooked on the grill. Per the Hearth, Patio & Barbecue Association, 70% of Americans own a grill or a smoker, and while holidays like the fourth of July and Memorial Day tend to be when we fire up these appliances, there are plenty of us who don't mind lighting up the charcoal or gas grill on Super Bowl Sunday or even Christmas.   

While there are plenty of grilling hacks we wished we had known sooner, tips and tricks for making dessert on this outdoor appliance are probably the ones we appreciate the most. This includes knowing how to cook with a cast iron pan on the grill. Per the Spruce Eats, using cast iron pots and pans on the grill can help your foods cook more evenly and quickly as cast iron soaks up the heat and readily retains it. The cooking site goes on to explain that because a cast iron skillet can be moved from direct heat to indirect heat, they are ideal for making a number of foods on the grill. But if you are going to make a dessert on the grill in a cast iron pan, you need to know this tip.  

There are plenty of desserts that you can make in your cast iron skillets on the grill. If you need inspiration, just check-out Wide Open Eats which features everything from an apple pie to a cobbler to brownies to a good old-fashioned s'mores dip to a peach crostata. But regardless of what dessert you are going to make in your cast iron skillet, according to Food & Wine, you are going to have to make friends with butter. The food site explains that butter plays a pivotal role in ensuring your desserts don't stick to the pan and that they achieve what they describe as a "fried texture." They go on to share you do not want to be conservative with the amount of butter you use either, revealing a 9-inch cast iron skillet will need 3 tablespoons of butter to properly coat the bottom of the pan as well as the sides.

Why so much of this fat? Cookbook author Valerie Gordon told the publication, "Because you are absorbing smoky woody fire char notes inside a grill, that encasement of crunch becomes like a subtle bark. It really lends a characteristic to grilled dessert that is very unique." Of course, if you have a dairy intolerance or just can't come to terms with using better, they suggest using coconut butter. Per Detoxinista, coconut butter adds a little fiber to whatever you are making, but it also has a "gritty" texture.