"Jaclyn" > wrote in message
...
> (I already posted this question to rec.food.baking but figured that I
> should post it here too.)
>
> It's me again - the newbie who's getting married and planning her wedding
> registry. I like to cook and bake, but since I still live with my
> parents, I have only used my mom's equipment, a lot of which is non-stick.
> I'd like to get something uncoated, so it's a little more
> durable/long-lasting, and I don't mind if it takes more elbow grease to
> keep clean.
>
> I keep reading differing opinions (both in books and online) about whether
> aluminum or stainless steel is best for bakeware. Right now I am trying to
> decide between a few different sets of bakewere for
> cakes/cookies/muffins/etc.

I hate to state the obvious, but since you are reading "differing opinions
....." you are going to continue to read differing opinions. There won't be
anything that changes the fact that people have different opinions and that
they will post them. There isn't a bakeware pope who is considered
infallible or another absolute authority on the subject of bakeware. MIT
doesn't have a bakeware department. Take a risk and buy a couple of sheet
pans and make up your own mind. Also, don't go out and buy a set of
bakeware. Get what you need. Build your set over time. I doubt that most
people have a matching set of bakeware. Decide what you are going to make
the most and get appropriate bakeware.

Most people will probably need a half-sheet pan, a couple of 8" or 9" inch
cake pans, a couple of loaf pans, a 9" x 13" in pan, a muffin tin, a tube
pan, and a couple cooling racks. You might add a 9" spring form pan and/or
a bundt pan. Don't go out and buy a bunch of stuff unless you are sure you
will use the pieces. When it comes down to buying the items, you will find
that you won't have a choice of materials for some. They don't make SS
bundt pans or tube pans that I know of. I've never seen a SS springform
pan. That leaves your sheet and cake pans. I have never seen a SS cake pan
at a baking supply store. I doubt that people here who work in commercial
bakeries use stainless steel pans. If you want to spend the cash for a SS
cake pan then it is up to you. You could do worse things with the money.

We all waste money in some way or another and you may be blessed with
abundance, so spending $80 on a cake pan may not make a dent in your bank
balance. That said, SS is a poor heat conductor so you won't be buying
functionality in your SS bakeware, but people buy things for a variety of
reasons. Some people buy status, others buy for health, some buy beauty,
and the rest of us look for function. One philosophy isn't necessarily
better than the next but your purchasing habits become more rational if you
can figure out your motivation.