Early American - Corning Ware, not Pyrex

Most of us that collect anything even remotely connected to Corning Glass Works are familiar with some of the Pyrex patterns.  Early American Pyrex Ware, in it's lovely shades of Brown, White and sometimes Gold was a fairly common pattern in it's day. (1962-1971).

There was, however, another Corning product by the same name, though not nearly as common nor well known.  Corning Ware also came in an Early American pattern.

Granted a much simpler pattern, featuring a lone bald eagle in black, and devoid of superfluous accoutrements like weather vanes, cats, coffee grinders, bellows, kerosene lamps and ears of corn.

Very little is known about this pattern, but thankfully some of the original boxes have shown up, so the correct name has been verified.  All the pieces seem to be unmarked, however, the saucepans have P-series handle lugs, so production was prior to 1972.  The fact that there are 2 percolators in this pattern (P-119 and P-116) suggests that date should be lowered from 1972 to 1970, because Corning discontinued the P-119 in lieu of the P-149, which made it's debut in the Renaissance Limited Edition Gift Line from 1970.  Recent developments have also revealed the existence of a P-23-EP (1st generation Electromatic Percolator)... Since these were discontinued in favor of the P-80-EP model in 1966, this firmly places this pattern to a 1962-1966 production window.

There is a variation on this pattern where the eagle has a solid black head.  (As seen on this MW-11 piece)

Whether it was a test pattern or not remains a mystery.

Where is your Corning Ware??
~~

Guacamole on the Half Shell? - My P-Series Shell Oil Avocado Medallion Collection

In late 1970 or early 1971 (it is not known for sure which date is correct) the Shell Oil Company's Credit Card Division began offering a special pattern of Corning Ware to it's card carrying customers.  The "Macrame" pattern, as it has become known, was available in either Avocado Green or Cornflower Blue until 1974.  Thus, the pieces available span the P-series as well as the A-series cut over in 1972.  This brings on a few problems when trying to determine exactly WHAT pieces were made.

Personally, I have a deep seated love for the P-series era of Corning Ware anyway, so I only collect pre-1972 pieces. It helps that the Petite pans, Pie Plate, Roaster and Loaf pan retained their P-series designation, even during the A-series era, post 1972.   Thus, there are technically MORE P-series pieces than there are A-series ones.

Thus far, I have been able to find the following pieces in Green Macrame......

This includes the P-2 1/2-B, the P-9-B, the P-41 Petite Pans, the P-332 Roaster, the P-315 Loaf Pan as well as the P-81 and P-82 Menu-ettes.  Sadly, I know the P-83 out there as well, cause I sold one 3 years ago on Ebay. (I can be SUCH an idiot sometimes!)

As far as the infamous 2 books are concerned... Neither mentions the Menu-ettes at ALL.  The P-309 Pie plate (I know for a fact it exists in blue) isn't mentioned either.

However, Kyle lists a P-1.5/A-1.5, a P-10/A-10 skillet, an A-84 (4 quart), though he states that it's a 5 quart.  Which means he's talking about the P-34.  (Very confusing, I know) He also mentions the P-43 Petite pan, but doesn't mention the P-41s which are in my photo above.  I would have thought it might be a typographical error in the book, but I have seen a photo of a P-43 petite on the corellecorner.com web site.  Randy & Debbie mention the roaster and the loaf pan, along with 2 covered saucepans, but not the sizes, as well as a skillet and a petite pan (instead of both sizes). 

The basic point, is that I don't think anyone knows for sure which pieces were actually made in this pattern.... I don't think they made the large roasters (P-21 & P-76) but you never know...   As I stated, neither of the books mentions the Menu-ette set or the pie plate, so your guess is as good as mine.

As far as the A-series pieces go, I know that production included an A-1 1/2-B as well as an A-8 skillet (I have them for sale on Etsy right now.)

Where is your Corningware??
~~

PacNW Fusion, by Corning - Salmon Fettuccine in Bell Pepper Cream

Here in the Northwest, we pride ourselves on our somewhat distinctive cuisine.  Though maybe not as flamboyant as our neighbor to the south, we have a few special things that are quintessentially Pacific NW in nature.  Hazelnuts & Wild Salmon (not that farm raised Atlantic stuff) usually top the list, followed closely by bramble berries (Marion, Olallie, Tay & Logan berries) and Wild Huckleberries.  Tender Red Skinned Potatoes, Kale, Nettles and a veritable pantheon of wild Mushrooms varieties round out the list. All of these ingredients work well when fused with traditional dishes from all over the world, to give them a new spin.  Suffice it to say, California isn't the "be all, end all" of Fusion Cuisine; we got a few tricks under our somewhat soggy hats in the Great North Wet.

Thus, armed with a host of CorningWare skillets and a 1 1/2 pint Menu-ette, I felt it was time to give good old Fettuccine a Pacific Northwest upgrade.

Salmon Fettuccine with Bell Pepper Cream

2 Yellow or Orange Bell Peppers
4 oz Hazelnuts
1 cup Heavy Cream
4 TB unsalted Butter
1 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano
Zest of 2 Lemons
1 1/2 TB fresh Lemon Thyme (regular Thyme isn't as zippy as Lemon Thyme)
White Pepper
1/4 cup Water
1/4 cup Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc
8 oz King Salmon (Coho will work too)
1/2 tsp dried Dill Weed
16 oz Fettuccine
1 tsp fresh Tarragon, chopped

Corning Ware 7 inch Skillet (P-7-B)
CorningWare 9 inch Skillet (P-9-B) with lid (P-9-C)
Corningware 10 inch Skillet (P-10-B) with lid (P-10-C)
Corning Ware 2 1/2 cup Menu-ette pan (P-82-B)
a pot large enough to boil water to cook the pasta (I did not have my 5 quart Rangetopper 'N-5-B' pot yet, so I used my huge stainless steel pot... and I am ashamed)   LOL

Start the Broiler..... and place the Yellow Bell Peppers in your P-10-B skillet.

When the broiler is hot, place the P-10-B skillet 6 inches away from the element and roast the peppers.

Turn them every 5 minutes, until they are blackened all over.

Remove the P-10-B skillet from underneath the broiler and place the lid (P-10-C) over the dish and let sit for 10 minutes. (The residual steam from the peppers will loosen the skin)

Turn the broiler off, and set the oven temperature to 350F degrees and toss the Hazelnuts into the P-7-B skillet. (4 oz is just enough to cover the bottom of the skillet)

When the oven is up to temperature (which should not take that long after the broiler has been on) place the P-7-B skillet containing the Hazelnuts on the middle rack of the oven and toast for about 8-10 minutes,

shaking the pan occasionally, until they are toasty brown.

Pour the Hazelnuts from the pan into a towel and rub.

This will remove some, though not all, of the bitter chaff from the Hazelnuts...  Chop them, and set them aside to cool.

The Bell Peppers should be cool enough for peeling at this point, so remove them from the P-10-B skillet and peel the blackened skin from the peppers with a sharp knife.

Pop out the stems, along with the seeds (they should pop out fairly easily)

Mince the Roasted Bell Peppers and set aside.

Place the P-82-B Menu-ette Saucepan over medium-low flame and add the Heavy Cream and the Butter.

When the Butter has melted, add the Parmigiano-Reggiano and stir.

Add the Lemon Zest and stir again.

Once the Parmigiano-Reggiano has melted, add the minced Bell Pepper and stir again to combine.

Reduce the flame to Low, season with Lemon Thyme and White Pepper.

In the P-9-B skillet pour the Water and the White Wine, then place the skillet over medium flame.

Add the Salmon Fillet and sprinkle with dried Dill Weed.

Cover with the P-9-C lid and let the salmon poach for 6-7 minutes.

Remove the P-9-B skillet from the flame and move the Salmon from the skillet to a board to cool. (hopefully the skin will remain in the skillet)

Wash the P-9-B skillet.

Place a large pot of salted water over high flame and bring to a boil.

Drop the Fettuccine into the boiling water and cook for about 11-14 minutes (follow the instructions on the package)

While the Pasta is cooking, flake the salmon up with a fork.

Place the Salmon back in the clean P-9-B skillet and place over Medium-Low flame.

Pour the warm Bell Pepper Cream sauce from the P-82-B into the P-9-B and stir gently to combine.

Give it a shot (3 TB) of white wine and stir until everything is heated through, then reduce the flame to low and keep warm.

When the pasta is al dente, drain and place in a large bowl.

Pour the Salmon/Bell Pepper Cream sauce over the pasta.

Add the toasted & chopped Hazelnuts and toss everything together.

Sprinkle with freshly chopped Tarragon leaves and serve.

Heaven on a plate!

Where is your CorningWare??
~~

I Got Some Mad Skill...ets - My P-Series Cornflower Collection (Part 2)

Well, last night's dinner was responsible for this collection post.  It was a tour de force in skillet usage. Thus, I decided since I had half of my skillets out on the stove or in the oven already, it would be fitting to make "Skillets" Part 2 of my P-series Cornflower Collection.  And quite the Skillet Stockpile it is...  

Top - P-7-B with P-7-C lid (7 inch) sitting in a P-9-B with P-9-C lid (9 inch) sitting on the P-10-B with P-10-C lid (10 inch) sitting on the P-16-B with P-12-C lid (11 inch). 

I do have 5 other skillets in Cornflower, but they are technically not part of the P-Series.  One is an A-series Electromatic Skillet pan (A-22) so I will save that one when I cover the Electromatic Skillets;  2 are Rangetoppers which are N-Series so those will have to wait.  The other two, however, I will go ahead add.... because there really don't have any place else to be.

My 1st and 2nd Generation 10 inch skillets with the Pyroceram lids. (they are really 9 7/8 inches, so the P-10-C lids will not fit them, conversely their Pyroceram lids don't fit on the P-10-B either)

The top one is the 1st Generation (1958/59) with the embossed information on the bottom in the center stating "Corning Pyroceram  Made in the U.S.A". 

The one on the bottom is the 2nd Generation (1959/60) with the fuzzy blue print on the bottom stating '10 IN" Corning Ware Pyroceram Made in the U.S.A'.

Neither of these pieces have model numbers, since model numbers didn't exist yet, (the B-38 on the 1st Gen piece is a mold number, not a model number).  Even though these pieces are model number-less, the P-series detachable handles fit on their lugs, so for all intensive purposes, these are P-series as well.

Where is your Corning Ware??
~~