Historically, when I have baked either cookies or drop biscuits, I
have had a problem with the underside of the cookie/biscuit getting
too brown.

I'm going to buy 2 new cookie baking sheets. I am going to get
something super simple. No coatings, or insulations, or multi-layer
sheets............just something simple and low-tech.

What material should I try to find? Aluminum, steel, or Pyrex glass?
I know of stores selling cookie sheets made of all the above
materials. I want my new cookie sheets to help me overcome my
"over-browning" problem.

Which of the above materials is least likely to lead to over-browning?

Thank you...... Lee Carkenord

> I know of stores selling cookie sheets made of all the above
> materials. I want my new cookie sheets to help me overcome my
> "over-browning" problem.

IMO, buy any pan you like and just use a second tray, turned upside down
underneath it. So it's got a little platform. That should significantly
reduce the browning of the underside of your cookies.

-Jay

--
Never mind about should you or shouldn't you: the question is - will you or
wont you?
-ashleigh brilliant

at Tue, 28 Oct 2003 20:40:09 GMT in <4346b55e.0310281240.5c3e1816
@posting.google.com>, (Lee Carkenord) wrote :

>Historically, when I have baked either cookies or drop biscuits, I
>have had a problem with the underside of the cookie/biscuit getting
>too brown.
>
>I'm going to buy 2 new cookie baking sheets. I am going to get
>something super simple. No coatings, or insulations, or multi-layer
>sheets............just something simple and low-tech.
>
>What material should I try to find? Aluminum, steel, or Pyrex glass?
> I know of stores selling cookie sheets made of all the above
>materials. I want my new cookie sheets to help me overcome my
>"over-browning" problem.
>
>Which of the above materials is least likely to lead to over-browning?
>
>Thank you...... Lee Carkenord

Low browning implies the sheet itself should have a low heat capacity.
Speaking non-technically, that means (broadly) it gets hot fast when heated
and cools fast when cooled. It's worth noting that, typically, dense
materials have a higher heat capacity than light ones. Your best bet is
aluminum, which does indeed have a low heat capacity, relative to the other
common materials you find for baking. I've never seen a Pyrex cookie sheet.
That sounds very wierd.

If you have problems even with aluminum, then you can also lay a sheet of
parchment on top of the cookie sheet, then set the cookie dough on top of
that. The extra insulation of paper makes a big difference, and it's much
easier to get all the cookies off at the same time, which is useful,
because it only takes seconds, once cookies are ready, for the bottoms to
turn from just perfect to overdone, and by not having to spatula them all
off individually, you save precious time with cookies resting on the still-
hot cookie sheet. It's also worth noting that with parchment, you can get a
perforated cookie sheet (it looks like a grille with round holes) which
means even less heating.
--
Alex Rast

(remove d., .7, not, and .NOSPAM to reply)

"Lee Carkenord" > wrote in message >

> What material should I try to find? Aluminum, steel, or Pyrex glass?
> I know of stores selling cookie sheets made of all the above
> materials. I want my new cookie sheets to help me overcome my
> "over-browning" problem.
>
> Which of the above materials is least likely to lead to over-browning?
>
> Thank you...... Lee Carkenord

I've had an polished aluminum cookie sheet for years and have never had a
problem with it; I'd like to find another just like it (Wearever).
Aluminum hasn't been PC since the scare about its causing Alzheimer's. Dark
pans and non-stick pans have always given me trouble to the point of
exasperation.

Dora

Lee Carkenord wrote:

> Historically, when I have baked either cookies or drop biscuits, I
> have had a problem with the underside of the cookie/biscuit getting
> too brown.
>
> I'm going to buy 2 new cookie baking sheets. I am going to get
> something super simple. No coatings, or insulations, or multi-layer
> sheets............just something simple and low-tech.
>
> What material should I try to find? Aluminum, steel, or Pyrex glass?
> I know of stores selling cookie sheets made of all the above
> materials. I want my new cookie sheets to help me overcome my
> "over-browning" problem.
>
> Which of the above materials is least likely to lead to over-browning?
>

What have you got against multi layered. That's what I switched to when I
had a problem with the bottoms cooking faster than the tops, and I have
had good results ever since.

Lee Carkenord wrote:
> Historically, when I have baked either cookies or drop biscuits, I
> have had a problem with the underside of the cookie/biscuit getting
> too brown.
>
> I'm going to buy 2 new cookie baking sheets. I am going to get
> something super simple. No coatings, or insulations, or multi-layer
> sheets............just something simple and low-tech.
>
> What material should I try to find? Aluminum, steel, or Pyrex glass?
> I know of stores selling cookie sheets made of all the above
> materials. I want my new cookie sheets to help me overcome my
> "over-browning" problem.
>
> Which of the above materials is least likely to lead to over-browning?
>
> Thank you...... Lee Carkenord


goto a restaurant supply store. get something commercial. the prices
are surprisingly reasonable, for my pots and pans, they were cheaper
than retail products, and are made to last 10 times as long. I think
commercial grade baking sheets are a tad more money than retail, but
you won't have to worry about them browning or bending.

for example:
http://www.acemart.com/merchant.mv?S...y_Code=G10-1-1

this place has a lincoln wearever bun pan for only 8.29. I am very
partial to the lincoln wearever line of commercial products. I used
them when I used to work in restaurants, and they lasted for over 2
years on average. Thats probably more like 30 years in an average home.

Hope this helps.

Mike

(Lee Carkenord) wrote in message . com>...
> Historically, when I have baked either cookies or drop biscuits, I
> have had a problem with the underside of the cookie/biscuit getting
> too brown.
>
> I'm going to buy 2 new cookie baking sheets. I am going to get
> something super simple. No coatings, or insulations, or multi-layer
> sheets............just something simple and low-tech.
>
> What material should I try to find? Aluminum, steel, or Pyrex glass?
> I know of stores selling cookie sheets made of all the above
> materials. I want my new cookie sheets to help me overcome my
> "over-browning" problem.
>
> Which of the above materials is least likely to lead to over-browning?
>
> Thank you...... Lee Carkenord

I don't know why you won't consider an "Air-Bake" or insulated pan,
because for me, they work a treat for cookies which get too brown on
an ordinary single-layer sheet. I lower the stated temperature just a
whisker, underbake them just a tad, and use parchment paper - leave
them on the cookie sheet on a rack for a few minutes so the centers
get more done, but not hard. I'm talking about chocolate chip
cookies, tiger cookies and the like, which my family likes soft, not
crisp.

Tiger Cookies

Melt 6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips, and put aside to cool.

Sift:

2 C. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Cream until light:

1 C. butter (I use baking oleo for a softer cookie)
1 C. sugar

Add 1 tsp. vanilla, and 2 eggs (one at a time), beating until light
and fluffy. Add sifted dry ingredients and mix until thoroughly
blended.

Crush 3 C. Frosted Flakes to make 1 1/2 cups crushed flakes. Add
these to batter and mix well.

Stir in 8-12 oz. of semisweet chocolate chips (whole).

Drizzle melted chocolate over top of batter in bowl, and mix in
gently, just to make swirls in the batter. The batter should be
streaked-looking, like tiger stripes.

Drop teaspoonsful onto parchment paper or lightly-greased baking
sheet. Bake at 375 for about 9-11 minutes (check to make sure bottoms
don't get too dark - I take them out when they are still a little
puffed in the centers, and let them sit on the pans for a couple
minutes to finish baking). This recipe makes about 5-6 dozen.

What could be better....a cookie with cereal (eat them for breakfast!)

N.

"Nancy Dooley" > wrote in message
om...
> (Lee Carkenord) wrote in message
. com>...
> > Historically, when I have baked either cookies or drop biscuits, I
> > have had a problem with the underside of the cookie/biscuit getting
> > too brown.
> >
> > I'm going to buy 2 new cookie baking sheets. I am going to get
> > something super simple. No coatings, or insulations, or multi-layer
> > sheets............just something simple and low-tech.
> >
> > What material should I try to find? Aluminum, steel, or Pyrex glass?
> > I know of stores selling cookie sheets made of all the above
> > materials. I want my new cookie sheets to help me overcome my
> > "over-browning" problem.
> >
> > Which of the above materials is least likely to lead to over-browning?
> >
> > Thank you...... Lee Carkenord
>
> I don't know why you won't consider an "Air-Bake" or insulated pan,
> because for me, they work a treat for cookies which get too brown on
> an ordinary single-layer sheet. I lower the stated temperature just a
> whisker, underbake them just a tad, and use parchment paper - leave
> them on the cookie sheet on a rack for a few minutes so the centers
> get more done, but not hard. I'm talking about chocolate chip
> cookies, tiger cookies and the like, which my family likes soft, not
> crisp.

Why bother with all of that when you can change the recipe to get soft
cookies?

Nancy,

Thanks for the tiger cookie recipe. I might make them for my son's Tiger
Cub scout meeting next month. My son will love them...his favorite cereal
mixed into chocolate chip cookies, with extra chocolate swirled in? Too
good to be true. Coupla questions, though...

How sweet are these? They sound pretty sweet. Not necessarily a bad
thing, but if they're much sweeter than, say, Tol House cookies, I'll
probably halve the recipe and use them just for the kids.

What is baking oleo? Is it the same as plain old margarine? One of my
son's friends is allergic to butter, so I will need to use margarine.

Chris

"Chris and Bob Neidecker" > wrote in message >...
> Nancy,
>
> Thanks for the tiger cookie recipe. I might make them for my son's Tiger
> Cub scout meeting next month. My son will love them...his favorite cereal
> mixed into chocolate chip cookies, with extra chocolate swirled in? Too
> good to be true. Coupla questions, though...
>
> How sweet are these? They sound pretty sweet. Not necessarily a bad
> thing, but if they're much sweeter than, say, Tol House cookies, I'll
> probably halve the recipe and use them just for the kids.
>
> What is baking oleo? Is it the same as plain old margarine? One of my
> son's friends is allergic to butter, so I will need to use margarine.
>
> Chris

They really don't taste overly sweet to me - actually, not as sweet as
chocolate chip, but just make a batch or half a batch and see.

Baking margarine - I use Blue Bonnet for baking - because there are so
many "light" oleos out there that don't work in baking. ;-) Enjoy.

To answer the comment about changing the recipe so the cookies are
softer: I use oleo which makes the cookie softer than if I use
butter, which I prefer - my boys like them slightly underbaked; and, I
don't know what else to do to make the softer to begin with. I
regularly under-set my oven temperature because my oven runs just a
little hot. 'Kay?

N.

Sounds good, Nancy! I didn't really notice the first time, but your recipe
has a lot less sugar than the toll house recipe, so I won' t worry about
them being overlly sweet.

My son hasn't been as keen as he used to be about helping me bake...maybe
the frosted flakes will lure him.

Chris