One of the most fun parts of cooking is when you hear a tip (or come up with one yourself) that makes the cooking easier. Adam at The Amateur Gourmet was dismayed recently when he discovered that he his friend Diana took her cookie sheets with her when she left, and he didn't have any like hers, that were flat and didn't have any sides to them. So he came up with this idea: use the back of the cookie sheet.
He puts parchment paper on the sheet and then uses an ice cream scoop for the cookie dough. He then flattens them a little bit with his wet hand and cooks them a little less than usual, which is something I've always done with my cookies too. He loved the results.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
10-12-2007 @ 4:15PM
FrankTheTank said...
What's the difference (in result) of a flat cookie sheet vs. a rimmed one?
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10-12-2007 @ 4:20PM
Kiwi Carlisle said...
Oh, teach your grandmother how to suck eggs! This suggestion was in an older edition of the Joy of Cooking years ago! I love it when people reinvent the wheel!
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10-12-2007 @ 4:54PM
boss sauce said...
I don't get it either, FtT... if it's just cookies, what's the difference, other than the potential for making a mess if things go over the edge? Does the depth of the cookie sheet inhibit good heat distribution in some way?
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10-12-2007 @ 5:29PM
Crosius said...
If your cookie "sheet" has edges, it's actually a pan.
It's probably a sponge-cake pan, in fact. For making the flat, thin cake that gets rolled into a jam-roll.
The best cookie sheets I've ever used were the double-walled type - no edges and an air-space between the top & bottom. Never scorched the bottom of a cookie.
As for what difference the edges make in cooking - none, really. The flat sheets are much easier to clean afterwards, though, since they don't have any inside corners.
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10-13-2007 @ 4:48AM
Jessica said...
I seem to recall it has something to do with air circulation... But I don't remember exactly what the difference was. I don't think it's anything remarkable.
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10-13-2007 @ 4:10PM
rainey Smith said...
I'm very happy with the results I get on a half sheet pan and I don't have to worry about cookies sliding off.
As I recall America's Test Kitchen recommended half sheet pans too.
I think the Amateur Gourmet is just a little in love with himself and thinks he invented eating.
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10-14-2007 @ 3:16AM
Christy said...
Agreed, Rainey.
I've used an "ice cream scoop" for a while now for cookies. I have three different sizes. They also work perfectly to assure that every cupcake or muffin has the same amount of batter.
Nothing new.
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10-16-2007 @ 9:01PM
jerzeetomato said...
For crying out loud some of us were using the ice cream scoop ages ago. Any decent restaurant supply carries about 10 sizes of them in stainless therefore there must be a reason. I also prefer a half sheet pan to a cookie sheet because the stainless is heavy duty less prone to ruin your baked goods. In order not to over brown or burn your cookies calibrate your oven temp with a (SURVEY SAYS) oven thermometer so you get a perfect temp every time and use (SURVEY SAYS) some parchment paper.
If Adam wants rimless cookie sheets he can go down to the Walmart and buy some. This is all hardly news worthy or earth shattering. There must be something better he can reconstruct. Baking a potato with a blow torch?
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