I enjoy cooking, but have always just used a basic metal tray for whatever I
was doing. Now I've just been reading about airbake trays and stones. I
feel really dumb, but I have no idea what they are, or what difference they
would make. Say you were making a cake, or cookies, what other tricky
things are there to cook on besides a basic tray? Are there huge benefits?
I have an electric oven that bakes really unevenly even when I rotate and
swap positions of trays during cooking so I always end up with a few burned
cookies.
I read that you can't burn cookies using an airbake cookie tray - is that
really true?

Please forgive my ignorance, but any enlightenment would be great!!

On Sat, 24 May 2008 16:39:45 +1000, "Linda" > wrote:

>I enjoy cooking, but have always just used a basic metal tray for whatever I
>was doing. Now I've just been reading about airbake trays and stones. I
>feel really dumb, but I have no idea what they are, or what difference they
>would make. Say you were making a cake, or cookies, what other tricky
>things are there to cook on besides a basic tray? Are there huge benefits?
>I have an electric oven that bakes really unevenly even when I rotate and
>swap positions of trays during cooking so I always end up with a few burned
>cookies.
>I read that you can't burn cookies using an airbake cookie tray - is that
>really true?
>
>Please forgive my ignorance, but any enlightenment would be great!!
>
If you're burning your cookies, check your oven thermostat first to
make sure it's not malfunctioning in some way. At the very least, you
may have to recalibrate it. Use a lower temperature or cook them for
less time. I find shorting the time makes the kind of cookies I bake
better. Bake in the middle of the oven. Too close to the bottom,
you'll have browner bottoms, too close to the top and your cookie tops
will brown too quickly.

I'm one of those people who doesn't want the bottom of my cookies dark
brown, so an airbake cookie sheet is good for that. I have couple of
commercial half sheets that I use for literally everything that needs
to go into the oven and use those for cookies too.

As far as a stone. Use it for pizza, bread etc. They are meant to
develop a crusty bottom on your product.


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Thanks SF for your reply

> If you're burning your cookies, check your oven thermostat first to
> make sure it's not malfunctioning in some way. At the very least, you
> may have to recalibrate it.

We've had this oven for about 2 months (we moved house) and the first thing
we did was check the thermostat - which was fine.

Use a lower temperature or cook them for
> less time. I find shorting the time makes the kind of cookies I bake
> better.

Thanks, I will try this, what about cakes, pies, bread? I know the times
given in recipes I follow are different for every oven I've used, don't yet
know all the peculiarities of this one yet.

Bake in the middle of the oven. Too close to the bottom,
> you'll have browner bottoms, too close to the top and your cookie tops
> will brown too quickly.

I do normally try to cook in the centre, it's more of an issue that the
further the cookies on the tray are from the door the more burned they get.
I rotate, but still don't know the oven well enough to time it all properly
and some always get burned.


>
> I'm one of those people who doesn't want the bottom of my cookies dark
> brown, so an airbake cookie sheet is good for that. I have couple of
> commercial half sheets that I use for literally everything that needs
> to go into the oven and use those for cookies too.

I literally have no idea what an airbake sheet is. What do they look like?
How do they work. Would they be available in Australia? Does it stop
burning?

What is a half sheet? (Sorry)


>
> As far as a stone. Use it for pizza, bread etc. They are meant to
> develop a crusty bottom on your product.

Worth the trouble? Do you put the bread right on the stone, or on a tray
which is put on the stone? Does it change the cooking time?

>
>
> --
> See return address to reply by email
> remove the smile first

"Linda" > wrote

> I literally have no idea what an airbake sheet is. What do they look
> like? How do they work. Would they be available in Australia? Does it
> stop burning?

It's a cookie sheet that has 2 layers of metal with air in between.
Wearever makes them, I imagine other companies have a similar
product.

> What is a half sheet? (Sorry)

A metal baking pan with sides, 13X18 inches, or thereabouts.
A full sheet is twice the size at 26 X 18. You know sheet cake,
right? These are sheet cake pan sizes.

>> As far as a stone. Use it for pizza, bread etc. They are meant to
>> develop a crusty bottom on your product.
>
> Worth the trouble? Do you put the bread right on the stone, or on a tray
> which is put on the stone?

It goes right on the stone. Can't help you with the cooking time.

nancy

Linda wrote:

> I literally have no idea what an airbake sheet is. What do they look like?
> How do they work. Would they be available in Australia? Does it stop
> burning?
>
> What is a half sheet? (Sorry)
>
>
>> As far as a stone. Use it for pizza, bread etc. They are meant to
>> develop a crusty bottom on your product.
>
> Worth the trouble? Do you put the bread right on the stone, or on a tray
> which is put on the stone? Does it change the cooking time?
>

An airbake sheet is two aluminum sheets attached together with a space
of air between them. I don't know if they're what you need or not?
I like restaurant quality jelly roll pans for my cookie sheets.
A "half sheet" is half the size of a restaurant cookie/jelly roll pan.
More "home sized" I guess? Haven't you ever ordered a sheet cake from a
baker and they ask you "full sheet, half sheet or quarter sheet?" Those
are sizes.


As for the stone you put the item to be baked directly on it. It
provides extra heat to the bottom to give it a nice crust. Doesn't sound
like you need one, eh?

"Nancy Young" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Linda" > wrote
>
>> I literally have no idea what an airbake sheet is. What do they look
>> like? How do they work. Would they be available in Australia? Does it
>> stop burning?
>
> It's a cookie sheet that has 2 layers of metal with air in between.
> Wearever makes them, I imagine other companies have a similar
> product.
>

How does that prevent burning??

>
> An airbake sheet is two aluminum sheets attached together with a space of
> air between them. I don't know if they're what you need or not?
> I like restaurant quality jelly roll pans for my cookie sheets.
> A "half sheet" is half the size of a restaurant cookie/jelly roll pan.
> More "home sized" I guess? Haven't you ever ordered a sheet cake from a
> baker and they ask you "full sheet, half sheet or quarter sheet?" Those
> are sizes.

I think sheet sizes must be an American thing. Probably expert bakers in
Australia have come across it, but I don't think it's a common thing for
your everyday person here.
(And I've never ordered a cake - always made my own, or bought a cheap ready
made one from the supermarket)

>
>
> As for the stone you put the item to be baked directly on it. It provides
> extra heat to the bottom to give it a nice crust. Doesn't sound like you
> need one, eh?

Haha, probably not.

On Sun 25 May 2008 09:46:09p, Linda told us...

>
> "Nancy Young" > wrote in message
> ...
>>
>> "Linda" > wrote
>>
>>> I literally have no idea what an airbake sheet is. What do they look
>>> like? How do they work. Would they be available in Australia? Does it
>>> stop burning?
>>
>> It's a cookie sheet that has 2 layers of metal with air in between.
>> Wearever makes them, I imagine other companies have a similar product.
>>
>
> How does that prevent burning??
>
>

The thin layer of air insulates the top surface and retards overbrowning.
Actually, I get the same results by nesting two baking sheets together, and
I bake all my cookies this way.

--
Wayne Boatwright
-------------------------------------------
Sunday, 05(V)/25(XXV)/08(MMVIII)
-------------------------------------------
Countdown till Memorial Day
2hrs 5mins
-------------------------------------------
How do I know what I think till I see
what I say?
-------------------------------------------

On Sun 25 May 2008 09:52:34p, Linda told us...

>
>>
>> An airbake sheet is two aluminum sheets attached together with a space
>> of air between them. I don't know if they're what you need or not?
>> I like restaurant quality jelly roll pans for my cookie sheets.
>> A "half sheet" is half the size of a restaurant cookie/jelly roll pan.
>> More "home sized" I guess? Haven't you ever ordered a sheet cake from
>> a baker and they ask you "full sheet, half sheet or quarter sheet?"
>> Those are sizes.
>
> I think sheet sizes must be an American thing. Probably expert bakers
> in Australia have come across it, but I don't think it's a common thing
> for your everyday person here.
> (And I've never ordered a cake - always made my own, or bought a cheap
> ready made one from the supermarket)

"Sheet" sizes probably are an American thing. A full sheet pan usually
fits only in a commercial baker's oven. Half-sheet pans will fit in a home
oven.

It's common in American bakeries to order cakes by the full sheet, half-
sheet, and quarter-sheet sizes.

Most home bakers in the US probably bake a "sheet cake" in a 9" x 13" x 2"
baking pan. Many recipes and virtually all cake mixes from the supermarket
are geared to producing a cake of that size, or alternately, 2 9-inch round
layers.

HTH

>> As for the stone you put the item to be baked directly on it. It
>> provides extra heat to the bottom to give it a nice crust. Doesn't
>> sound like you need one, eh?
>
> Haha, probably not.
>
>



--
Wayne Boatwright
-------------------------------------------
Sunday, 05(V)/25(XXV)/08(MMVIII)
-------------------------------------------
Countdown till Memorial Day
2hrs
-------------------------------------------
Never say anything on the phone that
you wouldn't want your mother to hear
at the trial.
-------------------------------------------

Linda > wrote:

> I think sheet sizes must be an American thing. Probably expert
> bakers in Australia have come across it, but I don't think it's
> a common thing for your everyday person here.

A full sheet is 26 by 18 inches, a half sheet 13 by 18 inches.

Have no idea if these dimensions are used outside of North
America.

Steve

"Wayne Boatwright" > wrote in message
6.120...
> On Sun 25 May 2008 09:46:09p, Linda told us...
>
>>
>> "Nancy Young" > wrote in message
>> ...
>>>
>>> "Linda" > wrote
>>>
>>>> I literally have no idea what an airbake sheet is. What do they look
>>>> like? How do they work. Would they be available in Australia? Does it
>>>> stop burning?
>>>
>>> It's a cookie sheet that has 2 layers of metal with air in between.
>>> Wearever makes them, I imagine other companies have a similar product.
>>>
>>
>> How does that prevent burning??
>>
>>
>
> The thin layer of air insulates the top surface and retards overbrowning.
> Actually, I get the same results by nesting two baking sheets together,
> and
> I bake all my cookies this way.
>
> --
thanks, I'll try that

On Mon, 26 May 2008 22:18:24 +1000, "Linda" > wrote:

>> The thin layer of air insulates the top surface and retards overbrowning.
>> Actually, I get the same results by nesting two baking sheets together,
>> and
>> I bake all my cookies this way.
>>
>> --
>thanks, I'll try that
>
I was unclear about your cookie burning problem. It sounded like the
cookies at the back of your oven baked faster than the cookies at the
front, which means your oven is hotter at the back. So, there's a
physical oven problem! Using insulated sheets or turning them half
way through helps keep your cooking even, but it doesn't fix the basic
problem. This type of thing used to happen commonly with old
fashioned ovens that were not self-cleaning. Modern ovens are much
better insulated, the doors are tighter etc and the interior
temperatures tend to stay even.... unless your heating element is
going out. Again, calling in a professional and explaining the
problem may be your best answer.

All the best,
sf

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On May 26, 12:52*am, "Linda" > wrote:
> > An airbake sheet is two aluminum sheets attached together with a space of
> > air between them. I don't know if they're what you need or not?
> > I like restaurant quality jelly roll pans for my cookie sheets.
> > A "half sheet" is half the size of a restaurant cookie/jelly roll pan.
> > More "home sized" I guess? *Haven't you ever ordered a sheet cake from a
> > baker and they ask you "full sheet, half sheet or quarter sheet?" *Those
> > are sizes.
>
> I think sheet sizes must be an American thing. *Probably expert bakers in
> Australia have come across it, but I don't think it's a common thing for
> your everyday person here.
> (And I've never ordered a cake - always made my own, or bought a cheap ready
> made one from the supermarket)
>

The Anolon Commercial Baking Sheet pictured here on an Australian
site http://www.kitchenwaredirect.com.au/...ng-Sheets-Pans
looks like about what I remember a half-sheet should be though I don't
remember if our bakers used term.

John Kane Kingston ON Canada