A Few of My Favorite (Kitchen!) Things: Reusable Parchment
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Hey there, friends!
We’re in the kitchen today! We are in the kitchen every day, actually, but we’re talking about indispensable kitchen tools. I wrote a post just a few weeks (cough, or so) ago, and introduced a new series: My Favorite (Kitchen) Things, at about the same time that I started a Lenten de-cluttering challenge. Then I promptly dropped the first series, although I did chug along happily with the de-cluttering one, for awhile, anyway, until I stopped that one, too. *sigh*
Some bloggers probably shouldn’t start series, right? I’m writing a post right now–incidentally–about habits of successful bloggers, and one of those habits is “Intentionality.” Successful bloggers, I write, have a plan. They are intentional in their blogging. Starting a blog series would fit under this category, of course, especially if one actually carried through with it. Ahem.
It may seem so, but I don’t have a short attention span, seriously. That first series has been tucked away in the back of my brain ever since, and I devote a tiny bit of mental energy to it every time I work in my kitchen. AND every time a friend or an acquaintance asks me how I bake so much bread in one day, I think about this series that I abandoned like an unwanted puppy. NOT that I would ever abandon a puppy, unwanted or not.
So, enough banter, already, not to mention thoughts of puppies. Let’s get back to the series, and back to writing about kitchen tools. Having good tools makes me happy. A couple of years ago, my sister Mollie introduced me to reusable parchment paper, and honestly, it’s such a simple thing, but it’s one of those tools that I honestly wouldn’t want to be without today. I started out with one sheet of this wonderful stuff, and I have bought more, a piece or two at a time, until now I have 6 pieces, in various stages of use.
Reusable parchment paper can eliminate the need for the rolls of parchment paper that you buy, and that don’t come cheap, by the way. It may seem pricey to buy at first ($6.00 or $7.00 a sheet) but if you use parchment, the sheets will actually save you quite a bit of cash. You can use it in whatever way you would ordinarily use the paper parchment sheets, and after you use it, you just wash it in the sink, with warm soapy water, and hang it up to drip-dry. The stuff lasts forever. I have a few sheets that I’ve been using several times a week for three or four years, probably. But for the unfortunate fact that somebody cut bread on top of one (they are not impervious to being damaged by sharp knives), my older ones are still just as good as my newer ones.
I use my reusable parchment sheets mostly when I bake artisan bread. The traditional technique for baking 5-minute artisan bread is this: you put a loaf on a pizza peel which has been dusted with cornmeal, and then when it’s ready to bake, you slide it off the pizza peel onto the hot baking stone in your oven. Since I bake four loaves at a time, this doesn’t work for me. What does work is to put a sheet of parchment paper on a cookie sheet, dust it with corn meal, and place my loaves on there. When they have risen, I slide all four–parchment paper and all–into the oven, onto the hot stones. It works great!
I also have learned that clean-up after making my granola is much easier if I use these reusable parchment sheets. I line a jellyroll pan with the sheet, spray it with olive oil spray, and put the granola on top. After I’ve baked it and the granola has cooled, it’s very simple to pick up the sheet of parchment–granola and all–and crumble it into a large bowl, for bagging.
Also sometimes I have something that I’m afraid will ooze out in the oven while baking–caramel monkey bread, or a juicy fruit pie–and I’ll slide a cookie sheet below it, with a parchment sheet on top. The parchment sheet is always easier to clean than a cookie sheet, in my experience.
So–there you have it! I love the stuff. If you do any baking at all, you’ll probably love it, too. You can buy the sheets in a big kitchen store, or you can order them online. I’ve gotten mine from amazon.com, and now and then one of the vendors on there will have a sale–buy two, get one free, and that’s nice, too!
Here are my well-used parchment sheets: the oldest are in the back, and the newest are in the front. They darken with age. And that’s a loaf of broiled flaxseed bread.
I know that you are very clever, Gentle Reader, and that you can come up with lots more ways to use these handy sheets. One other thing I’ve used them for, is to keep flats of seeds that I’ve sown moist while I am waiting for them to germinate. Here’s what I do: I sow the seeds, moisten them, and then lay the parchment sheets on top. The flats don’t dry out, and I just lift the corners every day or two, and when the seeds germinate, I remove them.
Here it is! I love this stuff. I might just treat myself to another sheet or two, before Christmas cookie-making commences! 🙂 (Click here to get yourself a sheet or two!)
Now. A little business. When I started this series, I made a promise that when my vomitingchicken.com Facebook fan page got up to 3000 “likes” that I’d have a giveaway of my favorite kitchen things. I’m still planning to do that, and I’ve sailed past 2,000 and am eyeing that number now! I know it’s silly, but I’d really love to see 3000 friends on that fanpage. Soooo . . . Have you liked my page yet? I share lots of fun stuff on there that never makes it onto my blog, and I have some pretty interesting conversations with my Gentle Readers, so you probably don’t want to miss out! PLUS we do frequent Q’n’As and we puzzle over the world’s problems occasionally, even. Here’s where you go to join the fun!
22 thoughts on “A Few of My Favorite (Kitchen!) Things: Reusable Parchment”
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Well cool beans! I had no idea there was such a product. Definitely going to be looking for that. I just absolutely LOVE kitchen gadgets. One of my favorite places to ransack was the Sur La Table bargain corner at the Westlake Village, CA location. Alas, I live in PA in no close proximity (of which I am aware) to a
Sur La Table store. There is a little kitchen store, however, in the next town over that I’ve been anxious to visit…now I have an excellent incentive to do so and we’re on “stay-cation” next week too! Yippee!
btw: I have other websites, just never know which one to list on blogs 🙂
Thanks Diane! It really is an amazing thing. And if such an inexpensive, long-lasting item can make kitchen clean-up quicker and making artisan breads easier then–get some, say I!!
It’s an excellent product and very useful for lots of different baking activities. I’ve been practising my tuillles and Parmesan crisps etc.
On the subject of series and features? As you know our entire blog is based around this “magazine style” of blogging we plan our series’ way in advance and there are always new ideas in the pipeline. Fortunately our other 2 websites do not follow the LOCF model.
It really does drive traffic and also increases online subs. We love delivering our offering in this style but then I guess as an ex magazine publisher old habits die hard. Good luck 🙂
I admire your blog very much, Anita-Clare. It’s one of my favorites, and your professionalism (including following through on the series) surely is one reason why.
It’s actually great to re-use things, i always re-use parchments while blind baking!
These parchment sheets will last for years, Tina, so you can use them over and over!
Well you hit it on the head when you talked about bloggers starting a series and then not taking them to where they should go. That’s me. I have three that I want to keep up to date but somehow life keeps getting in the way. At the moment I have a daughter and her husband and child plus another son, that are all living in my house and requiring bits and pieces of my time. My wife and I are also working with the church for the summer, so where do I find the time. It is hard enough to write an article, almost impossible to use the kitchen to create the item I’m writing about so that I can take pictures (and enjoy the meal) Woe is me.
And you hit it on the head (or maybe I should say, you hit the mark) when you said that using the right equipment for the job makes it so much easier and enjoyable. Soon I plan to have the oven fixed and I can get back to baking so I will need some parchment paper and I will use your “connection” when I order it. That’s right after I replace the heater in the basement and get the electric wires between the bathrooms changes (Scheduled for this week) I want a piece of that bread, I enjoy ground flex in my meals daily.
Chef,
Your life sounds a bit like mine . . . busybusy but a good busy, right?
it’s a good busy
Absolutely, Chef!
I use lots of normal baking parchment but I hadn’t heard about this product so thanks for sharing. I will look out for it in the UK, for sure
Ana,
I just bought a couple of new sheets. I find new uses for it all the time!
We find ourselves using parchment paper for a number of things, but mostly when baking.
As a side note, check your first image. You hotlinked to another site and they’re serving up a “hotlinking is bad” substitute image that is showing up on your page.
Scott, Thank you so much. I didn’t realize that was a hot link, but I’ll get in there and fix it! Thanks again!
I have long called myself the “Queen of Kitchen Gadgets” and parchment paper was not actually considered a gadget, after all, it comes on a roll like foil or plastic wrap.
Thank you for elevating it to the status of gadget! Now I have a new gadget to add to my collection!
You are welcome! You’ll love it!
Ahh we have some of this!
We often cut it into rings which are the shape of the plate on our AGA. It’s perfect for cooking eggs and frying pancakes on as a non-stick surface! 😀
Brilliant, Sophie!
All this time and I have never heard of reusable parchment sheet before. How have I missed this? Cooking stores are my most favorite (and most dangerous to the wallet) stores, but I never noticed this wonderful product. I thought silpat sheets were great, but these are even better.
Cynthia: I had silpat sheets for a short time, but an fiery incident that my sister had (her silpat caught on fire and nearly caught her kitchen on fire!) convinced me to toss mine out! I much prefer the parchment!
Hi!
Does this stuff fold up well? Can it be used for cooking fish in a papillote? Or is it stiffer like wax wraps?
Thanks,
Alex
Alex, it folds up fairly easily. Try a sheet! I use it for everything.