On 2014-03-03 10:54 PM, Polly Esther wrote:


> I suspect that our oven pre-heats using both the upper and lower
> elements. I haven't actually climbed in and checked. Wouldn't matter
> for somethings. Polly
>

I just tested my (electric oven). I set it for 350 and pressed Start. I
touched the bottom element and it was warm within seconds. Then I
touched the broiler element and it was cool. I touched the bottom
one.... wow... almost burned my finger. Then I touched the top on
again...still cold.

You're right about it not matter for a lot of things. Things like
roasts and potatoes, casseroles etc can heat up along with the oven. It
takes a few minutes for the oven to heat up and there is heat transfer
to the food the whole time. It might make only a minute or two
difference in cooking time. However, when you are baking cookies, cakes
and pies, temperature and time is critical, so always preheat when baking.

That being said, it is quite common for pie recipes to call for a higher
temperature to start and then turning it down for a while. I can't tell
you how many variations I have seen on that one, starting off at 400,
425, or 450, cooking at that temperature for 10, 15 or 20 minutes, then
turning it down to 350 or 375 for 30, 40, 50 minutes.

I suppose the instructions are based on what the recipe creators tried.
I don't know if they experimented to see which one worked best.