> I don't personally know anyone else that has a convection oven, and am
> wondering..... Does your range require as much of a reduction in baking
> time as the manufacturer claimed in the instruction manual? I only reduce
> my time a little bit, but then I don't like pale anemic bread.
I have two convection ovens: one in my Viking range and the other in a
KitchenAid wall oven unit. I love them both.
After baking with convection for awhile I stopped using the instruction
manual! I used it as a sort of guideline at first, but found that I don't
really reduce the amount of baking time that much -- sometimes not at all.
I bake items until they look and/or test done -- forget the time on the
clock! Bake them until they are satisfactory to *you*. I've learned that
baking by instructions in the manuals often turns out products that aren't
to my liking, but that's just me. Do whatever works best for you and your
own preferences.
>Also, I
> find that some thin muffin and cake batters produce rather
> "windblown-looking" results due to the air movement. I do find, however,
> that baking IS more even with the convection on. (Especially for cookies
> baked on commercial half-sheet pans lined with Exopat mats!) Comments?
When I'm baking "tender" items such as muffins or cakes I do not always
use convection. I find that such items tend to turn out pretty well
either way, and I almost lean toward not using convection for these such
fine, tender baked goods. I prefer convection for roasting, baked breads
that need a nice crust, cookies, and so on. On the other hand, when I use
convection for cakes and such I've not had what you describe as the
"windblown" look. Can you be more specific?
As for baking cookies, I cannot live without my non-stick Airbake pans! I
love those things, and they make fabulous cookies for me! I have two of
the non-stick Airbakes and four of the regular aluminum Airbake pans. I
most often use the non-stick ones, but for butter cookies and items that
require ungreased baking sheets I use the aluminum ones. These are my
favorite baking sheets out of all the other sheets I've acquired or
inherited! I've read some posts from others that these sheets don't work
out well for them, but they work great for me and I absolutely love them.
Hope this helps,
Joan
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Email: joanm@bigfoot.com