Steamy! - The Arcoflam "Nouveau" Steamer Insert

This site is technically about Corning Ware and it's use and care, however, every once in awhile something comes along outside of the sphere of the Corning world that begs to be made known.  Thus is the case with my post on Princess House Nouveau pieces by ARC (Arcoflam).  Tough in truth, they may or may not actually be Corning Ware under a different name.  This still remains unclear.  But the piece that I recently found is most definitely clear and though made by ARC and not Corning, Inc. it has the advantage of functioning with some Corning Ware pieces.  Thus I introduce to you.....

The Acroflam (Nouveau) glass Steamer Insert.

I already have the Microwave Plus steamer (M-225) with the accompanying plastic steamer basket, but in all honesty, I use that as a display piece.  It's not just because I don't cook food in the Nuke-U-Lator...  cause the whole thing is stove top safe as well.  I would never cook my food in plastic.  It sort of defeats the purpose of using Corning Ware in the first place.

Originally designed, I believe, to fit the 2 3/4 saucepan or the 8 inch skillet (neither of which are in my possession, as of yet)  from the Princess House Nouveau line of cookware.  The best part, honestly, is that this steamer assures that your food never touches metal or plastic.  It's made of Boro-Silicate glass, just like the original Pyrex formula.  (World Kitchen now makes tempered Soda lime glass under the Pyrex name)

The lid for these is marked with "France" and "20cm", that is all.  The knob on the lid is plastic, which is kind of a bummer, but it assures that there is something cool to grab a hold of when the steaming is done.

The current models, cause they still make them for the "Pyroflam" sold on the European market, have a arched glass handle....

I like this design a little better, but truthfully... If it's a choice between $4.99 as the Good Will or $55 + shipping off eBay... I'll deal with a plastic handle.

Now you may be asking yourself, "What good is this steamer if you don't have Princess House Nouveau pieces?"   Well let me tell ya....  I have a couple pieces of Nouveau, and I would like to get a couple more, BUT, I have discovered that this steamer fits on several pieces of vintage Corning Ware.  I was more than just a little excited about that.  Let's begin with the French... after all, this piece was made in France, so I think it's only fitting.

It will work on the F-8-B, which is the French White 8 inch Quiche baker.  Sadly, the 8-inch size was released well after the Bisque and Bleu era and wasn't included in the Classic Black line up, so it's only available in the basic French White.

It will also fit on the F-1-B, being the French White 2 1/2 quart Souffle baker.  This piece IS available in Bisque as well as Bleu, however, this size was not included in the Classic Black.

So if you are looking for an excuse to utilize your French White on the stove top, this steamer gives you an excellent opportunity to try it's chops.

The final piece, that I have found to work with the steamer, is the N-2 1/2-B or 2 1/2 quart "Rangetopper".  (these are the pieces with the Aluminum applied to the bottom or embedded within the bottom)

I am not sure if it works with the 2 1/2 quart saucepan from the S-series "Range top" line. (these are shaped exactly like Visions cookware and do not have aluminum bottoms)  I do not own any of these pieces because they were released well after the Wheat pattern was discontinued and I have yet to see one in Cornflower.  I am pretty sure I never will, simply because they were released in the late 80s and I believe Cornflower and Spice of Life had been discontinued.  They are, however, available in Peony, Shadow Iris, Peach Floral & Country Cornflower... at least, those are the ones I have seen.

And there you have it, a lovely cross-pollination of Arcoflam and Corning Ware, working together to create a delicious meal.

I love this stuff.... 

Where is your Corning Ware/Arcoflam??
~~

Update:  4/29/2014 - I dug through a box in the garage and resurrected that Microwave Plus Steamer..   The Princess House Arcoflam Steamer fits perfectly in the M-225.... Almost like they were made for each other. 

I am quite pleased... Needless to say, the M-225 isn't going back into the box in the garage...  though the other parts will remain there in. 

Corningware Microwave Plus a Whole Lot More - M-225 Steamer & Bunt Cake Pan?

I make no bones about not being particularly partial to Microwave cookery.  I use my microwave for 2 things and 2 things only... Warming up my coffee (only once, or it tastes funny) and bringing cold butter to room temperature (there is a trick to it).  Thus, aside from the occasional demonstration of how to make a Grilled Cheese sandwich in a Corningware Microwave Browning Skillet, I hardly ever use the thing.  Because of this distaste for all things from the Nuke-u-lator, I have to laugh at myself for acquiring a myriad Corningware microwave pieces.

Even though I have prided myself in the fact that I actually use my collection, instead of letting it set around and collect dust on a shelf somewhere; after all, Corningware that doesn't fulfill its stove top destiny dies a little on the inside, those Microwave specialty pieces will be doing just that.  They will sit and watch the world go by, because I will never actually use them.

The reason I collect these pieces is purely for scholarly purposes.  They are part of the history of Corningware and, possibly even more importantly, the history of how Americans cooked.  They were a catalyst in the slow demise of Corningware from being a Stove Top saucepan to an Oven/Microwave casserole dish...  (sigh)  Sad, but true, I think.

Microwave cookery was ALL the rage once the prices dropped enough for almost every household to afford one in the 70s... By the 80s, when everything had to meet with the Yuppie's instant gratification style, it only increased the desire for Microwavable cooking vessels for quick nuke-u-lated meals. The P-series and A-series pans were perfectly capable of making the switch already, but people weren't getting it.

As a result, Corningware produced a plethora of "Microwave" cookware that, for the most part, was still perfectly serviceable on the stove or in the oven but Corning Consumer Products steered the packaging to emphasis it's ease of use in the Microwave.  Thus the "Microwave PLUS" line was born.  These are usually denoted by M-series pieces, though sometimes MR & MW series, depending on when they were made.

This is one of my favorite pieces from that Era.  It's the M-225 Microwave Plus Steamer.  Evidently, the plus part is that it's also a Bundt Cake pan...  Yeah, weird.  Luckily, the base can be used on the stove top and the plastic steamer basket is safe up to 400 degrees.  Then again, I refuse to cook in plastic, so I will probably never use it... But it is a neat little item of interest so I decided to add it to my growing collection of strange and interesting things Corning came up with over the years.

Introducing...  The M-225 Microwave Steamer & Bundt Pan?

The concept was neat; I just wish they had made the steamer part out of Pyrex Glass or Pyroceram instead, of that really hard and somewhat brittle "microwave" plastic material that they used to make Microwave Bacon Grills. 

I have no idea when this was produced, nor how long it was on the market....  My guess is that it was in the mid to late 80's.

It has the same lid as the P-270 from the Grab-It line (the one I made Rhubarb Crumble in a while back)

It even has the plastic storage lid, in case you have too many steamed veggies left over.  The nice part about that, is that it will also fit my P-270-B. 

The weirdest part is the cone.  My immediate assumption is that this is for baking Bundt cake.  Though I could be wrong.  I do not have any instructional materials with this piece.

I bake, A LOT, and I have made Bundt cakes many times before...  I am not really sure how well this will work as a Bundt pan.  (if that is even what the cone is for)  While a Bundt pan has a cone in the center, it is a hollow cone that allows heat to come up through the cone to bake center of the cake. This has a solid bottom and the cone just kind of sits in the middle.

I have a feeling that the cake would not get done around the cone because there is no heat rising through the cone.  But I may be willing to give it a try and see if it works. Stranger things have happened. Then again, I won't eat the cake, cause the cone is made of the same plastic material as the steamer insert.... Maybe if I wrap it in foil or something.  Hmmmmmmmm.......

So here is a list of all the parts to the Microwave Plus Steamer/Bundt Pan

M-225-B - 2 1/4 quart Bottom Dish - Stove top, Oven, Broiler & Microwave safe.

P-270-C - The same lid that was originally used on the P-270 (1 1/4 quart)

M-225-PC - Plastic Cover for storage which also fits the P-270-B

M-225-R - Hard Plastic Steamer Basket - Microwave and Stove Top safe (when used with the M-225-B).  Made of the same type of hard plastic as the old Microwave Bacon racks.  No doubt this type of plastic has been shown to cause cancer in the last decade or so.

M-225-RC - Hard plastic Cone for baking Bundt cake (evidently)  Made of the same plastic as the Steamer Basket

Cone fits over the "bumps" in the bottom of the M-225-B which keep the cone from slipping around when pouring the batter and baking the cake.

All the plastic pieces (aside from the storage lid) are supposedly safe to 400F degrees in the oven.  And the plastic basket can be used to steam vegetables on the stove as well as in the microwave, just be sure that it doesn't touch the stove element directly.

And there you have it... One of the weirdest pieces I have collected over the years.

Where is your Corningware??
~~