November 3, 2007

Parchment Paper or heat resistant Silicone Mat?

For years I have used parchment paper for lining cookie sheets, cake pans and spring form pans. I had thought about getting myself a couple of sil-pat liners for years but to be perfectly honest, the cost was holding me back. Sil-Pat is a brand name and it's made from woven fiber glass with a silicone coating. There are silicone baking mats made by many different companies. The silicone mats that I happen to own are made by Wilton. They're fine to use for cookies but they (the mats) do become stained from the oils and fats (it's the butter) in the cookies. This kind of stain is permanent. I've long wondered about the silicone mats retaining residues and if they would effect other items being baked on them in the future. Well guess what...my beloved Cooks Illustrated did a comparison on parchment paper and silicone mats and guess what- my suspicions were right. Silicone mats do retain residues and it does effect the taste of other items being backed on them. For me...my silicone baking mats are only used for cookies, nothing else. But I know many others who use them for everything from fish fillets to baked sweet potatoes. Parchment paper came out #1 in this product test by Cooks Illustrated magazine.
I recently stocked up on more parchment paper at the commissary. Hey that 75¢ coupon brought the price of a roll down to $1.10 and between you and me, that's a horrifically GOOD price! Especially since a box of parchment paper generally sells in the $5 to $7 price range depending upon where you buy it. And there's always something about the winter holiday season that pushes up the cost...as if people don't bake during any other time of the year, LOL!

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