30 Bags in 30 Days: Day 9 & 10: Kitchen Cupboards, Drawers & Shelves

Ok, I'm inching my way along with this 30 Bags in 30 Days Project. But I'm proud of myself that I'm keeping at it. My latest attempt involved me, spontaneously attacking the kitchen. Well, it came by accident. Mr. WhiMSy love opened a cupboard & things started flying out. So, I figured since it was already started for me, I might as well finish the rest of the cupboards & drawers & shelves.

I got rid of one big bag of garbage (old stained linens, a glass lid to a pot that's been forever missing, tupperware in the form of plastic ham, & plastic macaroni salad containers, etc.) & another big bag of donation stuff!

So far...15 bags purged, in 10 days!

In all my decluttering & purging, I uncovered 2 cast iron pans. They are small pans. One is a mini skillet (made in China & not as heavy as the other pan)—about 6 1/2" across x 1 1/4" deep. The other is a tiny pot—4" across x 2 3/4" deep. I'm not kitchen-savvy. I try. And, sadly, I've got a few appliances in my cupboards I've never even used. (Wedding prezzies!)  Maybe I'll reveal those later.

But first, help a girl out.

These pans are not in the best shape. Well, the Chinese one looks awesome. But I know I can clean the rusty one properly. I'm pretty sure I've googled that before. But then what? What do I do with them? We aren't campers, but we do grill. And we have a flat glass stovetop--so I know it can't be used there. Any advice? Do you have a favorite 'cast iron recipe'? Is there even such a thing as a 'cast iron recipe'? I think I may have used one of these pans ONCE in the past 10 years. But I'd really like to try to use them properly & give it a go before I decide to give it up.

I can't wait to hear your comments!
UPDATE: OK, so I keep hearing that glass stovetops + cast iron pans = "A-OK". I guess my naivety on the whole subject of cast iron cooking had me fooled! Can't wait to try my pans! And thanks for the cast iron encouragement!

♥