Cousances Doufeu

I received a great email from Steve B. in Europe indicating that he purchased a Cousances Doufeu for $18 USD at a yard sale and asked me for more information. You may remember that I posted about my Le Creuset Doufeu previously and talked about the theory behind it.

The reader describes his find as an oval piece, 32cm in length in a matte black finish, and marked with the size 16. As you may know, Le Creuset sizes are based on the diameter of a piece in centimetres. For instance a 26cm round oval is a #26 pot, but this does not apply here.

The other unique element of this pot is that the lid seems to act as a moat with a canal around the perimeter rather than a bowl in the more common, perhaps later, doufeus. On the underside of the lid there are raised lines radiating out from the centre to allow for the basting to occur from the lid.

Does anyone out there have ideas as to the age of this piece and why the doufeu design was changed to the current saucer-shaped lids? All I know is that it would be from before the 1950s as it is tagged as a Cousances piece.

Special thanks to Steve B. and best wishes on your plan for boeuf bourguignon!

Linking up to Vintage Thingie Thursday!

Le Creuset or Cousances Au Gratin Casserole

Amongst the many vintage items that I love to find, I covet Le Creuset pieces the most. They last a lifetime (or more), look great, and inspire me to try new recipes in the kitchen. I recently won an ebay auction for a Flame coloured vintage Au Gratin casserole dish.

I purchased this casserole dish for $10 before shipping charges, which I thought was a great deal. The larger version of this enamelled cast iron piece currently sells for $140 on Amazon.

Here comes the but... The underside of the pan is marked with the measurement across the pan in centimetres, with the number 20 in a diamond. It also reads "Made in France". It does not, however, have any markings indicating that it is a Le Creuset piece.

The seller, rightfully so, made no references to the brand, identifying only the markings that are visible. The piece came from an estate sale where the seller also bought a Descoware pan. Of the companies that produced enamelled cast iron in the flame colour, I believe there was only Descoware, Cousances, and Le Creuset. Descoware pieces however, are marked "Made in Belgium".

I have read some forums which discuss identification of fake Le Creuset pieces. Some have phoned their customer service line, where Le Creuset has confirmed three specific items always noted on the underside of their pieces:  1) Number representing the size in cm, 2) Made in France, and 3) Le Creuset.

I believe what I have here is a vintage Cousances Au Gratin piece. Cousances items simply had stickers indicating their brand on unmarked pots. In the 1950s when Le Creuset purchased Cousances, I can imagine some transition period where pieces used Cousances molds without having the new Le Creuset brand name stamped onto them.  The other indicator for me is the size tag within the diamond shape, which you see in many of the midcentury Le Creuset-marked pieces.

Either way, I'm happy with the great condition of the pan and the $10 cost. I'm quite sure I'll come up with some new recipes for roast potatoes or my tried and true garlic prawns with havarti cheese...

Linking to Apron Thrift Girl's Thrift Share Monday!

Le Creuset History: Cousances

In my search for vintage Le Creuset, I occasionally come across either unmarked pieces or those that bear the markings "Cousances Made in France".  In the 1950s, Le Creuset purchased their competitor Cousances' brand and factory, inheriting the classic flame colour scheme and molds for their cast iron cookware.

I was really excited one day when I found a local craigslist ad for Cousances cookware - I believe it was a #18 and #16 saucepot plus a skillet. You can see by the seller's photos that the small pot is "brand new" and never used despite being over 60 years old! The high resolution version of this photo shows that the sticker says "Cousances fonte émailée" (enamelled cast iron) and reads "Anno 1553" above a shield logo.

The knobs on the lids also read Cousances, which would probably help to date it and differentiate it from this piece I happily found in the past, which I suspect may be a bit older.

Alas, I hesitated and it went to another home. I really didn't need the skillet, and the list price was $85 for the set of three, which led me to pause and think. Since I love Le Creuset cookware so much, it would have been nice to have a cute little set in this timeless colour, with all the history I seem to enjoy learning about!