How Parchment Paper Can Make Baking Easier
Learn how Learn how to use parchment paper to make baking easier! From lining cake pans so your cake layers don’t stick, to keeping baking sheets clean and grease-free, and even as a sling to lift bars straight out of the pan for easy slicing— parchment paper is your best friend in the kitchen!
One of the most important things you can have in your kitchen, as I have discovered, is parchment paper. I can’t bake without it and I’ve always got a roll handy.
It really was an epiphany the first time I baked with the help of parchment paper, and I haven’t looked back. If you’ve ever been frustrated with cakes that stuck to the pan, or messed up brownies trying to dig them out of a pan, this post is for you!
Parchment paper products I use
Here are the products I actually own and use regularly! (Note, these are affiliate links)
- Roll of parchment paper to cut and use how you want.
- Parchment paper sheets (12×16-inch) for baking sheet pans and folding into 9×13-inch pans.
- Half-sheet pan parchment paper sheets (9×13-inch) for small-batch baking.
- 8-inch and 9-inch parchment paper rounds for cakes.
Look for parchment paper rolls and sheets at your local grocery store next to the plastic wrap and aluminum foil, for only a few dollars. For more special sizes like cake rounds, etc., you can find them at baking supply stores and online.
How to use parchment paper
For cookies, biscuits and scones
Placing cookie dough, biscuit rounds, etc on a sheet pan lined with a piece of parchment paper ensures your final product won’t stick. No need to use cooking spray and add extra grease, and clean-up is much easier as you can just throw it away when you’re done.
For cakes
The best way to get your cakes to come out perfectly from the pan each time is to use parchment paper. I never skip it! You can use parchment rounds to fit your pan, or trace the outline of the cake pan onto parchment paper and cut it out. Line the bottom of the pan with the parchment paper, and then either grease and flour, or coat with baking spray. Your cake is guaranteed to come out in one piece every singe time!
For brownies, bars and breads
Parchment paper is your secret weapon for getting baked goods out of deeper 4-sided pans! Simply measure out the parchment paper to the width of the longest side, then make sure it’s long enough to line the entire bottom of the pan, the two sides, and have a few inches of overhang on either side.
When you are ready to remove your baked good from the pan, simply use the overhanging parchment as handles to lift it straight out of the pan. For brownies and bars, it’s best to let them cool completely before removing them from the pan, as warm bars are soft and can buckle.
Other uses for parchment paper
- Use parchment paper to line pie crust for par-baking. Crumple the parchment paper first and then un-crumple it and line your pan. This way it will lie flush without any gaps.
- Make liners for cupcakes and muffins out of parchment paper. This is a great hack if you happen to not have any liners on hand!
- Line pans with parchment before freezing items. This works for cookie dough, baked goods, even fresh berries. If you are freezing items on a pan or flash-freezing to store in ziplock bags later, lining the pan with parchment prevents the items from freezing and sticking to the pan.
- Use parchment paper for savory baking and roasting. Parchment paper isn’t only for baking! Lining any baking pan with parchment prevents food from sticking and makes clean-up easier.
How to reduce parchment paper waste
If you are concerned about the waste that comes from using parchment paper, here are a few tips to reduce consumption:
- Re-use parchment paper. You can absolutely use parchment paper more than one time! Parchment paper sheets used for cookies are ideal for multiple uses, but any sheet of parchment paper that is still mostly clean after using it is a candidate for re-use. Simply fold it up for later, just don’t forget you have it!
- Use recycled parchment paper.
- Use a silicone baking mat. It functions the same as a sheet of parchment paper on a baking sheet pan and can be washed and used over and over again.
FAQs
No they are not the same! And they can’t always be used interchangeably as wax paper will burn in the oven. Wax paper is great for recipes that don’t require baking and you’ll see it a lot for candy making and wrapping.
Most brands advertise that they are safe up to 425°F, but I have used it in hotter ovens too. The edges of the paper will brown above 400°F, and temps over 425°F often result in slightly burned edges. Never expose parchment paper to open flames.
Silicone baking mats are a great alternative and so is greased foil. You can grease foil with non-stick baking spray or cooking spray, or purchase greased foil.
This article was originally published April 2014.
Do you need to add baking time when using parchment paper?
Can you cook pizza on parchments without oil? Will crust stick?
Yes you can, and no it will not stick. I bake pizza on parchment all the time!
Love using parchment but an important SAFETY warning: as the box states “not to be used in ovens lit by a halogen lightbulb”. I left the oven light on while baking the last sheet of a few cookies and 4 minutes into the bake time, the parchment had erupted into flame and the cookies were briquettes. It was such a hot fire it had burned itself out in that time and luckily I was in the kitchen to notice the smoke, so no damage other than very frayed nerves. I didn’t even realize it was a halogen bulb before this. The manufacturer believed the bulb heated the oven over the 420 degree max rating. TY for letting me add this warning.
Thanks for the information, Susan!
Hi Annalise,
If the manufacture specifically makes parchment for baking, then they apply the silicone coating onto it. This way it is 100% non-stick and can withstand any temperature of the oven.
However, you can sometimes find in stores parchment at a lower price which may say that it can be used for baking purposes also but without the silicone coating. This product can be burned and should be used at limited temperatures only.
Regular parchment without any coating is designed for wrapping of food stuff with high fat (grease) content in the first place.
Parchment paper itself does not have 100% non-stick properties for baking needs. For this purpose parchment needs silicone coating. This coating can be applied to one side or to both sides of parchment. Thus you need to be careful when using parchment for baking and check which side (if not both) has the silicone coating. This is the side which is 100% non-stick.
Hi Sergey! I have never ever had issues with parchment paper sticking to anything while baking, but maybe the kind I buy is silicone coated. I’ll have to look at the label. Thanks for the info!
Annalise — THANK YOU! I have been tasked with baking brownies for a family (huge) reunion. Someone told me about parchment paper… so I found your blog page, read it, bought some and baked away. This stuff is BRILLIANT! Thanks again!
Parchment paper problem. I just made a batch of rolls that I have made many times before. I bake them on parchment paper. The first times I made them was in Florida baked in an electric stove. We came home, Wisconsin, and I made another batch and baked in a gas stove. They stuck like they were super glued to the paper. The recipe is a no knead type and the dough is on the sticky side but the same recipe. Does parchment paper have a wrong side and does it go “bad”? Can’t figure this out! Thx
Hi Karen! Parchment paper should never stick to anything when you’re baking with it. Hmmm. Are you sure you weren’t using wax paper?
Which side do you put dough on? Shinny or dull?
Both sides of my parchment paper look the same.
Shinney.
Parchment paper is such a great tool for baking. I buy it at Costco (wholesale) and it’s such a large roll that it lasts me all year and is such a great bargain that way.
I love your recipes! And thanks for all the great baking tips 🙂
AMEN! We can’t live without it at our house. I also love how they really help your baked goods cook evenly. (We’ve done tests in our house.)
I like to buy mine from King Arthur Flour. Every few months they go on sale and have free shipping. I get the sizes for all my baking sheets and cake pans. 🙂 I’ll also keep a roll (like you have pictured) for other projects.
Lovely photos. (As usual. 🙂 )
I didn’t think parchment paper was worth the expense until I tried it! I use parchment for baking, but also for pizza, vegetables, fish… I used the cheaper grocery rolls, too, but I splurged on King Arthur parchment sheets, and to me, they are worth the extra cost. They don’t roll, and they can be reused, so this package will last me a long time. You can also buy round parchment which would eliminate cutting circles and wasting the square edges, and might be worth the cost if you bake a lot of cakes.
It’s so funny, now that I am reading this post, because everything finally comes together 🙂
Long story short: I am from Germany but currently living in Canada – I was talking to my boyfriend’s mother about “baking paper” which you can get everywhere in Germany – I think it is pretty much standard and I don’t know anyone who bakes without it.
My boyfriend’s mother told me that I should get wax paper as an equivalent and when I first wanted to use it I knew that there was something wrong 🙂
So thanks for clearing this up for me!
Best wishes,
Vivienne
Annalise,
I use parchment paper all the time. It’s a life saver. Sometimes I reuse it too, if it doesn’t get too messy and I’m making a lot of cookies.
Annamaria
Agreed. Sometimes I’ll reuse it, too. 🙂
I reuse it too???
I prefer to cut my own parchment paper. Its cheaper. Take note parchment paper is also known as baking paper or sheet in some countries.
I love the precut parchment from the kitchen store, I can’t lie. It never rolls up and it’s always the right size. Makes my life easier, I don’t know how anyone bakes without parchment!