Winter holidays are approaching and I feel the baking urge swelling up inside me. I do a BIG cookie thing every December, baking dozens and dozens of something like 10 different types of cookies. I’m planning to do a whole post on that soon. But I was in Williams-Sonoma yesterday for the first time in forever and it gave me the idea to write up my favorite baking tools. My handy husband taught me that you have to have the right tools for the job and he’s so right. Your baking will be better and you’ll enjoy it more if you’ve got what you need to do it well. Here are the tools I love. No affiliate links or influencer-type pay-for-play. Just my experience of what works for me.
Containers — I know there are prettier, more decorative ingredient containers but I love the ProKeepers. They are functional and tight-sealing, with convenience spouts and helper doo-dads. They keep everyihtng nicely organized and are properly sized for common packaged-ingredient volumes. Find a set on sale!
Spatula — The Ateco is the One Cookie Spatula to Rule Them All. Thin, flexible, durable, lightweight, not slippery. It’s so good my husband stole my first one for getting his 3D prints off the print bed.
Pans — I know, I know, they aren’t cheap but I swear by the Goldtouch pans from Williams-Sonoma and the Nordic Ware cast aluminum gold Bundts. Cakes bake evenly and just slide out like magic. Ask for them for gifts! For regular round cake pans, I dig Fat Daddio for even baking and release. Frosted by Bernice Baran changed how I think about cake baking for more than one reason but not least because the recipes are mostly 6″ pans and that’s a size my family can finish. So I got 6″ pans!
Measuring Spoons — For me, there’s only one: Spring Chef. Heavy duty, actually fits into a spice jar, lasts forever. Mine look as good as they did when I bought them six years ago.
Parchment Paper — Splurge and buy the cookie sheet size pre-cuts. They’ll change your life. No more wrestling with the curly stuff.
Google Forms — What, everyone doesn’t survey their extended family for cookie preferences? My family thought it was fun, lol.
Gram’s cookie sheets — OK, you can’t buy these online but trawl your local thrift and secondhand stores for old school aluminum cookie sheets. I inherited some fabulous ones (one clearly hand-hammered) from my Gram who was an amazing (but not fancy!) cook and baker. Bargain, they’ll last forever (because they probably already have), and they will bake up great because they don’t make ’em like they used to.
What are you waiting for? Get baking!