BAKING PAN: Are you using the right one?

Click photos to enlarge*

Eversince I began baking again last year (November), I wondered all the time why my cookies were burned at the bottom? I thought why they burned when after all~ I used the right temperature to bake them! And then one day I came to realize that my cookie pan was not good enough- meaning, I should have purchased and used the "insulated baking/cookie pan." I didn't know much about this until one morning when I was watching a cable TV show dedicated to baking. The chef said that INSULATED BAKING/COOKIE PAN is needed to make the perfect cookie! The next weekend I got two types to find out which one is better.

Months ago, I bought the best cookie pan I could purchase at the mall- the thick ones, the heavy duty type yet in spite of that, my cookies still were burned at the bottom. Ooh-la-lah!Anyhow, to give you an idea about insulated cookie pans, see~look at the photos below. And once I started using these- I felt delighted! My cookies now are perfect! No burnt portion at the bottom. These I used as well when I baked my two loaves of large white bread days ago. The frameless cookie pan, I used to bake pizza...the pan pizza turned to be really good- crunchy and not burned at the bottom! With my typical pizza pan, my crust got burned spots at the bottom. If you love to bake, you need to get the right apparatus, the right pans for baking. Well then, I hope you are learning something here as I am sharing as much secrets as I can!!! Ciao!


FRONT: Front of the INSULATED BAKING PAN for cookies. This is a bit more costly than your typical insulated cookie pan where the edges are enclosed with a frame. This one makes the cookies to be in perfect shape (doesn't melt down and does not spread wide on the pan) during baking time. I use the ice cream scoop to evenly shape the cookies when arranging them neatly to bake in this pan (Psst! A friend had given me this idea instead of spooning the cookie mix, especially if they feel heavy due to its ingredients like nuts, raisins and oatmeal).

BACK: The back of the insulated pan. This has 4 holes on each corner and the way it has been engineered- they are doubled in layers. Mostly, insulated baking pan have lines like these ones at the back.

FRONT This INSULATED PAN for cookies is made of aluminum but feels heavier in weight. Its edge is framed. The cookies I baked here did spread a bit (like they melted crosswise). Fairly good and ok but the frameless type (see photos above) are better for cookies. This pan is good for French bread or white bread.

BACK: The back of the insulated baking pan- see the lines embossed on it. This pan is also thick. All insulated baking pans have identification mark at the back as such so one is not mislead if it is or it is not insulated. This type of pan sets the difference in my baking. This must cost a fortune in Asia. Ayayay.