Yes, do remember —carried lunch to school most days -only exception was when they served something really special (to me, anyway) that was well liked. LOL the Salisbury steak was always good...with the whipped taters. And the hot rolls remembered with fondness. Dessert favorites was the lemon chess pie and the bread pudding (made from old cakes, it was believed) it had sauce on top which made it a favorite.
Wax paper is used here to freeze individual portions. Line a baking sheet with the paper, put the hamburger patties, or whatever on the paper and freeze. Easy to remove to place in zip tight freezer bags for whenever needed.
WP has been used on our cast iron for years, and the surface is as smooth as a baby’s bottom. Once cleaned with Kosher salt (Alton’s method) it is back into the oven to heat up once again and when warm, a wad of waxed paper is rubbed inside and out of the pan. Cast iron is sold with a wax finish inside and this seems to be the easiest method to restore it to desired conditions.
I will have to try your method for cast-iron.
Dang, you went to a good school!
All I recall is watered-down spaghetti - but I took lunch most days, made by my Gran - cheese and bologna sandwiches, some potato chips, and an apple.
The school-lunch Hot Dog and Baked Bean days were ok, though, (I think it was a lot better than what the kids get now.) :-)
-JT