They are expensive. I got MOST of mine for free b/c I was a rep for 3 years. I paid for my first kit. And a FEW of the stones i bought during our 40% off month (April). OR if they were offering a special and we could order them early for 20% off including the special price. Believe me, I'm married to a cheap scot so if I had to pay full price for them I wouldn't own any of them. The BEST way to get them is to have a party, but have it in the month when they're running the 50% off Stoneware month (usually September but not always, check with your rep). You can get them for up to 75% off if you have a good show. I use my Large Round Stone, my Large bar pan and my 9X13 Baker and my Mini bar pan the most....the mini bar pan takes up permanent residence in my toaster oven. The others live in my oven....I would say, though, if you were going to buy ONE stone....get the Large Stoneware bar pan. 2nd would be the large round stone. They seem to be the most versitile. Deena - let me know how cleaning it goes! Krista
It's like a cast iron skillet--you can get it wet and wipe it off, but you need to let it season. They have little scrapers you use to get stuff off......Maybe I should let Krista explain. It's all healthy and fine, so don't worry about that! I need to go clean my pan now! Krista, I'll let you know how it goes!
The little scrapers also clean the cast iron skillets really well! Krista, I had one stone that I really wanted. I went to a party the end of August, and found out about the stones being so cheap in September, so I booked a party. Believe me, if I hadn't had parties before, I'd NEVER have one!!! The rep basically cancelled my party at the last minute, because she didn't think I'd have more than 3 people. She suggested we reschedule, but it was the end of the month and I didn't want to reschedule it in October when I couldn't get my stone so cheap. And when I called to cancell with my friends, I found out there's be about ten there, which is fine for a party! I was SO ANGRY!!! And she now has me on her e-mail list. I've told her twice to remove me, because I would never book a show with such an unprofessional rep! If she sends me an email again, I'm going to complain to her "boss"! So when August comes around, I'm going to call and book me a September party right away!
Well, according to the training I've recieved and again confirmed by a chef friend of the family...and a doctor friend of the family (believe me, I checked this out!!!) SOAP does NOT kill germs (unless of course it is antibacterial soap, which you actually should NOT use on food dishes b/c the antibacterial properties of these foods while great for cleaning your hands is NOT good for your dishes or for you do ingest their residue). And even antibacterial soaps ONLY work on killing bacteria - not virus' so if someone has a cold and you are washing your hands with antibacterial soap in cold water - you're not killing that cold virus at all. Even using purell and the like will do NOTHING for a virus. It is the temperature of the water that kills the germs. As long as it is washed in water higher than 120 degrees F, it will kill most of the common germs that would be present from having food present. ALSO, keep in mind that the food is COOKED. Salmonella is one of the only germ strains that requires heats as high as 160 degrees. That being said, you wouldn't just put raw chicken or meat on there and walk away...you would be cooking it, thus killing the germs and eliminating Salmonella possiblities. I also keep my stones in the oven in an unused shelf (well, t he ones I use most) so IF there is anything present, it is killed as soon as the temperature rises above it's killing point. I usually scrape mine with the pan scraper while running under really hot water (as hot as I can stand on my hands). Then...I hold the stone at the top and turn my faucet to the highest setting (our HWH is set at 160 - we just keep our kids from the water!). And I run them under the water. I had one client who would run her stones thru her dishwasher once a month or so...she just wouldn't use soap. Of course, she had to reseason every time and half the perks of a stone is when it get seasoned like a cast iron pan. Also, the stones will not last as long constantly being subjected to the thermal changes in a dishwasher - crossing the thermal barrier (hot on cold, cold on hot) will crack the stone like glass gets cracked. Anyway....I digress.....
Call the company and report her....the main numbers on the website. If you still have your receipt you have her rep number. That was the thing with me...I NEVER cancelled a show - even if it just ended up being me and the host - at least she got a cooking lesson, ya know! Of course, that is probably why I didn't succeed in the business...I'm not the kind of person to pester a person, etc. The job required A LOT of pestering of a person. I would call once or twice after booking the show, but not like 4 times like you're supposed to. I loved the show part of it b/c I love showing people how easy it can be to cook well and healthy. I HATED the sales aspect of it! Anyway...report her. And find another rep. BELIEVE ME not all reps are like that. I'm sorry you had that experience. I hate when people misrepresent a company for the search of the almight $$$$. One of the shows I did, we only had 3 people in attendence aside from the host....BUT one of her people was a seriously wealthy person who thought nothing of ordering $500 worth of stuff...AND booking a show, where she ended up inviting 3 or 4 of her wealthy friends and I had a show sales total of like $2000 or something like that. HAd I cancelled, I would have totally missed that opportunity. Again...sorry that happened to you!
I just LOVE my round stone. I got it free with my party quite a few years ago. It has crossed my mind recently to may become a PC rep for extra moolah!!
I've had enough shows in the past, so I KNOW this is NOT typical of most reps. I've yet to find the "perfect" rep, but all the other ones were good. This one....well, I DID consider reporting her, but decided not to. I figure if she continues like this, she won't be a rep long! The thing that REALLY irritated me was the page she sent out saying, "You booked this show. It is VERY IMPORTANT that you follow through, because if you cancel on me, I don't work or get paid for that day. It made me wonder, you know? But if I get another e-mail from her, I WILL report her!!! So does the hot heat of the dishwasher wash off the seasoning? I think I'd consider putting it in if I accidently got soap on it, but that's it.
okay so you are saying taht all the meat residue and all that is not harmful to us? because I know when I dont use soap on my pans they are slimy, grease from the meats or even the non fat sprays we use to keep food from sticking leacves them slimy if I dont use soap, even with extreme heat.. then whatever is in he air or inmy case the cubbards dust etc gets tuck on the pans, .. its grose ! you are telling me you use your pans even with that yuck??? btw I dont use cast iron pans because they leave a metalic taste to foods , I just re read my post and it sounds snotty, I am not meaning to sound that way, ehe, just curious and shocked hehe, I like to use coperbottom stainless steel pans myself any sugestions on cleaning these without soap? I am allergic to the stuff in antibacterial soaps so use it sparingly anyway but to cut grease what else is there?
You have those scrapers, they're simple, but effective. It doesn't stay slimy at all, the oil just seasons the pans.
HMM.. OKAY, WELl I wont write it off just yet... I am getting two things from them already just cause my friend had aparty and I could not go, her aunt is the lady who does the sales so I had to order SOMEthing, hehe, but it lokos neat, I want to try the rubberylooking cookware, anyone used that before?
Teacher Mom - I recommend this for STONEWARE and CAST IRON ONLY. All other pans are non porous surfaces and do not have the oils soak into them creating a seasoning. Soap IS GOOD for cutting grease and cleaning away general dirt...but it's not necessary for killing germs was my point. For my cast iron (I only have 2 pans a 7 qt dutch oven and a square grill pan) I use hot hot hot water and a round plastic scrubby sponge (it's made out of recycled grocery bags somehow, and it's really neat!). This scrubs away dirt really well without scratching the seasoning....I use them on my non-stick pans too. Which also, technically you are not supposed to use soap or put them in the dishwasher either. HOWEVER, I do wash these! I cannot stand when they get sticky from grease. Again, nonporous surface that doesn't soak it up. Does that help? On the dishwasher thing...I've done once with my large stone b/c someone actually washed it with soap - un knowingly. I did have to reseason it. It was still brown - but it was a flat brown, not a shiny brown....I just rubbed olive oil on it lightly and baked it for a while...then dried with paper towels....it's been fine ever since. Actually it's black and shiny now - I don't think you could pay me enough $$$$ to put it thru a dishwasher now! LOL!!!
Yes, the cupcakes we made in our rubberylooking heart form popped out perfectly. And the forms washed up looking like new, which our metal ones never did, even with a lot of scrubbing. Plain ole' salt and vinegar will shine a copper-bottomed pan that's not marred clear through the copper. Try it. You'll be amazed!
I know salt and vinegar for copper. When I was a kid, Dad used them to clean up pennies. I was showing Phillip that trick just the other day!
OH , ya! re copperbottoms I forgot the vinegar and salt! I was thinking Vinegar for cleaning but was forgetting the salt, it helps to be the scrubbing ingredient. Thanks
