baking

Add some consistency to your cookies

As rewarding as it is to make a pie crust from scratch, it's not an easy task. The first challenge is achieving the flaky texture pie crust is best known for, and in shooting for this flaky goal, many cooks sacrifice uniformity in thickness. Sure, the texture will end up nice, but having the texture in addition to a nice even thickness adds both to the visual presentation of the pie and the consistency in the texture across every piece.

If you haven't mastered this art freehand, don't fret: this Adjustable Rolling Pin available at the MoMA … Read more

Pizzelles without a press

Pizzelles are one of my favorite cookies: they're wafer-thin and have wafflelike patterns baked into them. The patterns can get quite elaborate, with particularly fancy patterns used for cookies meant for entertaining. But pizzelles are nearly impossible to make without a maker like the VillaWare Prego Pizzelle Baker. The cookies are so thin that the only way to get the crisp texture and delicate patterns is to drop dough straight onto the baker's hot surfaces and lock the top and bottom plates together. As little as 30 seconds later, you'll have a hot pizzelle. The baker makes … Read more

A cutter for unique cookies

When I was a kid, I had a book of animals: each page was cut into thirds so that I could put an elephant's head on a tiger's body with a giraffe's feet. The same concept was used to create the Twist and Press Cookie Cutters, from Williams-Sonoma. The cookie cutters have four sides, divided into three sections that you can mix and match. Currently, the cookie cutters are available in two different versions: a fashion cookie cutter and a robot cookie cutter. The fashion cutter creates different outfits for models by allowing you to change hairstyles, … Read more

Where top chef meets trivia night

When I was a kid, I used to read volume after volume of the Guinness Book of World Records. In my later years, this quest for knowledge of the world and the people in it developed into a love of science and experimentation, Trivial Pursuit, and Ripley's Believe It or Not. If, like me, you grew up loving random bits of trivial knowledge, you'd be just the type who'd love this Equal Measure measuring cup.

Not only does the cup provide you with the measuring accuracy needed for premium baking and cooking, it teaches you a few … Read more

Bake cookies on the countertop

Rather than firing up the oven when you want a batch of fresh-baked cookies, the Nostalgia Bakery Express offers cookie-baking capabilities in a countertop appliance. It offers baking temperatures between 375 degrees and 400 degrees Fahrenheit--as long as your cookie recipe calls for a temperature inside that range, you can have cookies ready to eat in just minutes. You place your cookie dough on a nonstick cast aluminum tray that sits inside the Nostalgia Bakery Express. About a half dozen cookies will fit on the tray, assuming that they're 2 inches in diameter.

The Nostalgia Bakery Express comes with … Read more

Two pans in one

There is an amazing variety of cake pans available these days, but who has room in their cabinets for all those different options? With the Bundt Fancy Springform Pan with Two Bottoms from Nordic Ware, that question is a little less of an issue. The pan uses a typical springform ring but allows you to easily switch between a flat bottom with a waffle pattern--ideal for cheesecakes, layer cakes, tarts and more--and a fluted tube bottom--which works well for Bundt cakes. The ring is 9 inches, and will work with any recipe that is meant for a 9-inch pan. The … Read more

Bake a topsy-turvy cake

I've seen some amazing tiered cakes that have been made intentionally a bit topsy-turvy; Uneven tiers with odd angles adds a fun feel to cake designs. But it's surprisingly difficult to create a topsy-turvy tiered cake. There's a high risk that an off-balance cake will collapse. But Wilton's Topsy Turvy Pan has made getting that look a lot easier. Rather than trying to build a tiered cake, the pan produces a solid sheet cake with the appearance of a tiered cake at funny angles. You may not get the full effect of a whimsical leaning cake, … Read more

A baking liner that won't stick

With many cake recipes, you have to lay down a piece of parchment paper to keep the cake from sticking to the pan--and there's no use trying to swap out nonstick spray. If you're planning to bake cakes, you're going to go through some parchment paper. The Round Baking Liner can take the place of all those sheets, however. It's a 9-inch-round silicone baking mat that will fit in similarly sized cake pans--or on baking sheets or in other pans. With a little looking, you can also find 8-inch liners as well as those meant for … Read more

Pac-Man oven mitt channels inner child

When I was a child, I loved playing video games. Before my parents invested in a gaming system, I would go to great lengths to secure a spot on my friends' couches, playing Nintendo classics for hours on end. I never went to arcades, so I got all of my gaming in at home.

In high school and college, I finally discovered the arcade classics, and my all-time favorite was Pac-Man. It was easy enough for me to master, and just complicated enough to be challenging and interesting. I'd visit arcades with friends and plunk quarter after quarter into … Read more