Silpat or Partchment Paper

Greetings Everyone,

Hope that everyone is having a wonderful day (it is dreary and rainy here.)

 I have a question....I just bought a Chicago Metallic Professional Quality Jelly Roll/Cookie Sheet....I baked 5 dozen Oatmeal Chocolate Chip cookies on it yesterday and loved it (no more airbake for me and OMG a cookie sheet that doesn't warp!)

 My question is.....I have always used Partchment Paper on my cookie sheets when baking cookies (just because that is what my grandma taught me) I keep hearing about Silpat and wondering if I would be happy if I purchased it.  Would I get the same quality of cookies as I do with the partchment paper?  Is the cookies easier to get off the Silpat ...because I hate taking cookies off the partchment paper that stuff just never wants to stay in one spot. Now that I am throwing out my Airbake and getting good cookie sheets I figure it is time to figure out which is better. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

*Smiles* 

  

I have 3 silcone baking mats one is a silpat.  They are all great!  I do still cook my ungreased cookies on a plain sheet pan, or my air bake.  But if the recipe calles for parchment I use my mats.  Storage was a problem until I got my new oven with a storage drawer so I can leave the mats in the pan in the drawer.  I have a brownie recipe that takes parchment and it is the only one I use parchment for.  This last week I made a yummy cheese bread that was going to leak and it was perfect on the baking mats, the recipe called for parchment.  I started with one mat  comparing the baking.  good luck

I heard rave reviews about the Silpat and also asked on the board as well.  I just got them and tried them out yesterday.  THEY ARE WONDERFUL!!!!!!!  My cookies were so easy to take off the sheet and they baked very nicely. 

 

I am sold on them.

 

Karen

As I was cooking yesterday I just kept thinking if the Silpat was easier to take the cookies off the sheet if it didn't change the cookies it would be worth it.  I had read reviews that Silpat makes the cookies not spread out much but I think Partchment Paper does that as well to a point so that isn't a big deal for me.  I love partchment paper with making cookies (I never bake a cookie without it even if it doesn't call for it.) but, they are such a pain to get off the partchment paper I have figured out the technique over the years using 2 spatulas holding the partchment paper down with one and taking the cookies off with the other (and then you basically need your hand to somehow hold the cookie sheet as well. In the end I feel like I am doing a balancing act to just take cookies off the cookie sheet.  The last couple batches I get lazy and just pick the partchment paper up and take it off and let them cool on it..putting a new sheet on for the next batch. Looks like I need to start shopping around.

 
 

 

I love my Silpats.  I sometimes use parchment paper for pans the Silpat doesn't fit, but mostly Reynolds Release foil works better than parchment.  Nothing ever sticks to it.  I have a 9x13 silpat, one that is half-sheet size and 1 that covers most of the counter.  I flour the big one a little and roll out cookies and bread, just run water over it in the sink to clean all that gummy flour stuff.  I find that the cookies come out just as nice on Silpats as anything.  When they spread, it is usually because of the metal type in the cookie sheet or the oven heat.  One caution: don't cut on Silpats.  They are made of fiberglass. I store half-sheet size that I use the most between 2 cookie sheets. cj

SILPAT  SILPAT SILPAT!!!  worth every penny of it...

parchment paper for me. and for the folks at CooksIllustrated.com testing lab. while silpat works, parchment paper can be cut to any size or shape. silpat can't. (or shouldn't)

 I've used both, and I prefer parchment paper.  The silpat tended to get discolored and stained, and never came clean no matter what I tried on it.  It still works great, but aesthetically, it is vile to look at!  I have several silicone pans that work like a charm and do not discolor.  I don't know why the silpat does, so all things considered, I'd still use parchment.   The nice thing about silpat is that it rolls up and is easy to store, and once you buy it, you don't need to keep buying it, like you do with parchment paper!