Published: December 05, 2007 08:03 am      

Silicone baking utensils — a colorful holiday gift idea

At the recent Halfway-Homemade Cooking School, Extension Homemakers demonstrated some of the newest cooking utensils on the market. There are dozens of new products that make cooking more enjoyable, convenient and safe.

Silicone baking utensils are one colorful new creation you might want to consider giving as a gift this year. They are fun to use, easy to clean and come in a variety of shapes and colors. Silicone pans tolerate temperatures from freezing to a 450 degrees Fahrenheit oven. They are safe for a conventional oven, a microwave oven and the dishwasher.

The brightly colored pans should not be greased before baking. Items cooked in them easily come out with a slight twist of the pan. These pans come in many shapes and sizes, including bundt pans, angel food cake pans, muffin pans and irregular shapes such as a star shape.

You might want to include a tip with the gift. Because these pans wobble when placing them in the oven, use a baking sheet to place them in the oven. Slip the baking sheet out and let the silicone utensil rest directly on the oven rack. Use the baking sheet to help remove it from the oven at the end of the cooking time.

Other kitchen utensils are going silicone as well. You might consider giving a new silicone oven mitt, pastry brush, wisk, spatula or strainer.

Glass cooktop

If you use a glass cooktop range or built-in glass cooktop, be careful when you are doing candy-making and high-sugar content foods this holiday season. Sugary spills left on a glass cooktop will leave pits in the ceramic glass. If you happen to spill syrup or sugar on the cooktop, wipe it up immediately. As soon as the cooktop is cool enough, clean it thoroughly.

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