Every year, I dread Christmas because I will inevitable receive a present from my beloved husband that I’m going to have to return. Last year, I was afraid to open the present and when I did, I thought “Here we go again.” This year, I tried to have no expectations whatsoever, which is very hard, but guess what. He scored!
First he gave me a most beautiful card and then a second envelope. I thought it might be a gift card, but it turned out to be a gift certificate to my favorite nail spa for a manicure and pedicure. Excellent idea, darling. Then he said, “Hold on, I have to go get something.” He came back with a small box. I was curious what it could be and when he gave it to me, I knew it had to be cast iron. It was heavy and on my wish list. But the box was small so it couldn’t be the dutch oven I asked for. What could it be?
I opened the box and found that it was a beautiful, Food Network brand, red enamel, 2 qt. dutch oven. It even came with the wooden spoon!
It wasn’t the size I hoped for, but I had to forget that because my man finally got it right! I just hugged on him. And if that wasn’t enough, he excused himself to get something else. When he came back, he had an even bigger box and he said it was my bonus gift. I was smiling from ear to ear. In the box was a matching 5 qt. dutch oven. My Esteban did it! I was so thrilled.
In the end, Esteban wasn’t happy with the finish on the pots and we couldn't find any product reviews or ratings so we returned them. We then went on a wild goose chase looking for replacement pots. We picked up the Chefmate pots from Target, but they were clearanced and banged up quite a bit and when we got them home, the lids didn’t fit properly. Return #2! I looked at the Lodge pieces, but the lid didn’t fit as securely as I thought it would. Then I found out the Walmart in Haines City carried the Tramontina dutch oven, which was rated as best buy by Cooks Illustrated, and therefore sold out in most Walmart stores and out of stock online. So we went there and happily I found the 6.5 quart dutch oven. 
Unfortunately, there are no matching pieces available so Esteban wanted us to continue looking, but after all we had been through, I was holding on to my Tramontina. It only comes in this green color, but the finish is really beautiful and the color gradiates. It reminds me of avocados.
We spent several hours online searching for a matching piece and when that wasn’t possible, we searched for a complimentary piece. No luck. We were running out of affordable options and this being a piece I'll have for a lifetime, well I didn’t want to mess around and get something that I would regret. You know what they say. Buy cheap, buy twice! So then we found a Le Crueset outlet store and decide to go take a look around. Side note: the Tramontina is like the Corolla, but Le Crueset is the Rolls Royce. Huge investment for us so I’m not really getting my hopes up. But I’m open to going and taking a look.
After looking at the pieces and seeing their quality, we decide to make the investment. This was not an easy decision and since I never considered this option, I was not prepared to choose a color. After a couple of hours, I picked two small pieces in the red color. 
But I started to second guess. I felt rushed, the kids were carrying on and Esteban was hungry and I was trying to stall, but before you knew it the cashier was ringing us up. While we were getting a bite to eat, I quickly did an online search to verify the prices and they were not only cheaper than what was available online, but they were an extra 25% off. So that part was good, but I was back to the color. Red and blue seemed to be readily available by most brands. And I wanted something different. I was really liking the Dijon Yellow, 
so after lunch we went back but the Dijon was only available in second quality (which I didn’t mind one bit), but not in the sizes or styles I was looking for. I ended settling on the Orange Flame color. Beautiful. I picked the 3 1/2 quart braiser,
and the 3 1/2 quart oval dutch oven!
I start to look at the enameling and I start to see little flaws and imperfections. Now, I must say that each piece is hand made and it’s not unusual to find such flaws in the finish. They do not alter the quality of the pot. They are merely cosmetic flaws. But I am so damn picky that I’m there for what seems like an eternity. In the end, I’m thinking the red ones had better finishes but how could I possibly walk out of the store at this point with the same exact pots after being there for an hour, in the color I wasn't excited about to begin with? Esteban will kill me.
So I bought the orange ones, but I didn’t feel happy. I felt awful. I never felt so bad buying something I wanted so much. Esteban didn’t’ understand, but I’ve NEVER bought real pots before. I have 3 calderos (aluminum pots) in small, medium and large 
and a couple of those cheap frying pans you have to throw away every 3 or 4 years. That’s it! I never registered for pots and pans and I never bought a good set for myself. And I sure as hell never made such an investment before in my life so I was extremely stressed out. How ironic that it was El Dia De Los Reyes, or Three Kings Day.
Later that night, I told him I would go back by myself and return the pots. Getting such a fabulous gift should never feel that bad, right? But after some sleep and some thought, he said “You work so hard all year long and you deserve them. And the color you picked is really beautiful. I want you to keep them and I can’t for you to make me something in them.” So, I’m keeping them.
But I still want to go back and double check the finishes. For that price, they should be near perfect, just like me! LOL (That was a joke.) And I'm not getting rid of my Tramontina either. ha!
