Baking Tip: The Easiest Way to Line a Baking Pan with Aluminum Foil
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I feel kind of funny writing a whole post about the easiest way to line a baking pan with aluminum foil.
But I use this baking tip so often that it really does deserve its own space.
And while the technique may seem like common sense, I honestly did not pick up on this until a few years ago.
So, either I am completely clueless (totally possible) or maybe other people don’t know about this either.
Here goes.
More Practical Kitchen Hacks
Step 1: Turn Your Baking Pan Upside Down
That’s right.
Turn your baking pan upside down on your countertop.
Step 2: Cut a Long Sheet of Aluminum Foil
Now, unroll a sheet of aluminum foil that is long enough to cover the whole pan plus about 6 additional inches on either side.
This extra length will serve as handles that you can use to lift your cake or bars out of the pan when they are done baking.
If your pan is wider than the width of the foil you may need two sheets. (width wise, the foil should almost hit the countertop on both sides when pressed down over the sides of the pan)
Step 3: Press The Foil onto the Outside of the Pan
Take the sheet of foil that you just cut and press it onto the outside of the baking pan.
You want the foil to take the shape of the pan.
Then, lift the foil off of the pan and turn it over.
It should retain the shape of the pan.
Step 4: Flip The Baking Pan Over
Now, turn your baking pan right side up.
Step 5: Place the Foil Into the Pan
Finally, place the molded foil shape into the pan.
It should be an exact fit – except for the extra length that we left to use as handles.
Fold this extra length down on the outside of the pan.
Step 6: Follow Recipe Instructions
Treat the foil just like you would your baking pan.
This means if the recipe calls for you to grease the baking pan the baking pan – you absolutely should grease the foil insert so your recipe does not stick.
Why Go Through These Shenanigans?
You may be asking, why go through all of this?
Why not just press the foil directly into the pan?
I find that you get a nice smooth shape to the foil when you press it onto the outside of the baking pan first.
If you press the foil directly into the pan, it tends to get all crinkly – which then makes the outside of your cake or bars very uneven.
That is my baking tip of the day.
Do You Have a Baking Tip to Share?
Tell us in the comments below.
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four to six tonnes of bauxite ore produces only 1 tonne of aluminum
According to Alcoa, the world’s largest producer of aluminium, the best smelters use about 13 kilowatt hours (46.8 megajoules) of electrical energy to produce one kilogram of aluminium; the worldwide average is closer to 15 kWh/kg (54 MJ/kg). . . the total world production of electrical energy was 20261 billion kilowatt hours, meaning that more than 3% of the world’s entire electrical supply went to extraction of aluminium.
The United States mines less than 1 percent of the bauxite it uses annually, virtually all of which is used in the production of non-metallurgical products, such as abrasives, chemicals, and refractories.10 Nearly all bauxite consumed in the United States is imported.
Approximately 0.32(0.34tf) kWh of process energy were required in 2003 to produce the 5.1 kilograms of bauxite needed to produce 1.0 kilogram of aluminum. Approximately 16.7 kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent (CDE) were released for each metric ton of bauxite mined.
Use foil only if necessary for the job.