Oodles of Ways to Use Parchment Paper!
Some years ago professional chef/baker, Susan Reid, shared some valuable expertise on the many ways to use parchment paper, with the folks at King Arthur Flour. I’ve used these tips and thought you’d appreciate knowing them as well.
She introduces her subject by saying, “Every culinary superhero needs a trusty sidekick. One that will go anywhere and do anything to make the mission a success no matter the circumstance. Parchment is my trusty sidekick…” There are simply oodles of ways to use parchment paper (besides lining baking sheets and pans).
It’s an incredible BAKING TRANSFER.
Because it’s so durable, you can actually shape dough on it. Next time, shape your pizza dough on it and transfer, parchment and all, to your baking stone. Easy work!
Same goes when making a fancy braided sweet bread. Shape it on parchment, then move it easily to your baking sheet.
And then there’s rolling pie crust. Use a sheet under your pie dough when rolling. Makes transferring rolled dough to the pan so much easier.
Or how about rolling out sugar cookies? Do this on parchment; cut shapes, take away the excess, and transfer the parchment and cookies to your baking sheet without bending or distorting the shapes.
It’s a perfect DRIP CATCHER. Speaking of pies, place your pie on a parchment-lined baking sheet when baking; drips or overflow are contained and easy to clean. And when icing cookies or a cake, place a sheet under your rack and catch the dripping icing (and then reuse!). Parchment paper will catch all those errant sprinkles you’re topping your iced cookies with, by the way.
And it makes for NO-FUSS CLEANUP. For instance, line baking sheets with parchment before pouring brittle or candy out for no-fuss cleanup. Or when oven frying chicken, place it below and atop your chicken pieces. Greases spatters stay put!
Still speaking of easier cleanup, consider placing a piece on your scale when weighing out ingredients.
And when making Panini sandwiches, surround your sandwich with parchment before putting into your panini grill. Yes, the grill marks happen right through the paper. Cleanup is done before you begin!
It’s a handy FROSTING PIPER. Cut into triangles and form into cones for piping chocolate. Pipe royal icing or chocolate designs on parchment, then peel right off when set.
It’s also an excellent FROZEN FOOD SEPARATOR. Cut squares of parchment to layer between chicken breasts or hamburger patties before freezing.
It’s a marvelous food-safe GIFT WRAP. Use to line boxes or wrap treats. And it’s the perfect liner between cookie and bar layers when you’re shipping them. Or use it to wrap loaves of quick bread or sticky candies like caramels.
It’s an efficient SOUFFLE COLLAR. Use a strip of parchment around your soufflé dishes to make a collar that supports the soufflé as it rises.
It’s a NO-FAIL CAKE ROLLER. Line jelly roll pans with parchment; use it to help you roll up the warm cake without tearing it.
And, it’s an efficient CRACKER ROLLER. Roll out cracker dough between two sheets of parchment. Sprinkle the dough with salt or seeds, put the top piece of parchment back on, and roll over lightly to embed them in the dough before baking.
It’s an excellent, disposable NON-STICK SURFACE when buttered. A buttered sheet of parchment is the perfect helper when trying to press sticky marshmallow-coated cereal into a 9" x 13" pan.
It’s the perfect DRAW LINER. Whether it’s your kitchen drawers or those in your refrigerator—when the liner gets icky, just toss it out and cut a new one.
It’s a wonderful make-shift, disposable CUTTING BOARD. When camping, just place a few sheets over a hard surface and cut away. When finished, use it as a fire starter - works great!
Along these same lines, it makes a fine CRAFT MAT. Use to line your work station when painting or decorating.
And speaking of arts and crafts, it’s sturdy enough to use for CUTTING STENCILS with which to decorate.
Finally, here’s a doozy of a use. It’s the perfect way to KEEP YOUR IRON CLEAN! Use on top of fusible interfacing to keep the sole plate of your iron free from residue and other gunk.
She introduces her subject by saying, “Every culinary superhero needs a trusty sidekick. One that will go anywhere and do anything to make the mission a success no matter the circumstance. Parchment is my trusty sidekick…” There are simply oodles of ways to use parchment paper (besides lining baking sheets and pans).
It’s an incredible BAKING TRANSFER.
Because it’s so durable, you can actually shape dough on it. Next time, shape your pizza dough on it and transfer, parchment and all, to your baking stone. Easy work!
Same goes when making a fancy braided sweet bread. Shape it on parchment, then move it easily to your baking sheet.
And then there’s rolling pie crust. Use a sheet under your pie dough when rolling. Makes transferring rolled dough to the pan so much easier.
Or how about rolling out sugar cookies? Do this on parchment; cut shapes, take away the excess, and transfer the parchment and cookies to your baking sheet without bending or distorting the shapes.
It’s a perfect DRIP CATCHER. Speaking of pies, place your pie on a parchment-lined baking sheet when baking; drips or overflow are contained and easy to clean. And when icing cookies or a cake, place a sheet under your rack and catch the dripping icing (and then reuse!). Parchment paper will catch all those errant sprinkles you’re topping your iced cookies with, by the way.
And it makes for NO-FUSS CLEANUP. For instance, line baking sheets with parchment before pouring brittle or candy out for no-fuss cleanup. Or when oven frying chicken, place it below and atop your chicken pieces. Greases spatters stay put!
Still speaking of easier cleanup, consider placing a piece on your scale when weighing out ingredients.
And when making Panini sandwiches, surround your sandwich with parchment before putting into your panini grill. Yes, the grill marks happen right through the paper. Cleanup is done before you begin!
It’s a handy FROSTING PIPER. Cut into triangles and form into cones for piping chocolate. Pipe royal icing or chocolate designs on parchment, then peel right off when set.
It’s also an excellent FROZEN FOOD SEPARATOR. Cut squares of parchment to layer between chicken breasts or hamburger patties before freezing.
It’s a marvelous food-safe GIFT WRAP. Use to line boxes or wrap treats. And it’s the perfect liner between cookie and bar layers when you’re shipping them. Or use it to wrap loaves of quick bread or sticky candies like caramels.
It’s an efficient SOUFFLE COLLAR. Use a strip of parchment around your soufflé dishes to make a collar that supports the soufflé as it rises.
It’s a NO-FAIL CAKE ROLLER. Line jelly roll pans with parchment; use it to help you roll up the warm cake without tearing it.
And, it’s an efficient CRACKER ROLLER. Roll out cracker dough between two sheets of parchment. Sprinkle the dough with salt or seeds, put the top piece of parchment back on, and roll over lightly to embed them in the dough before baking.
It’s an excellent, disposable NON-STICK SURFACE when buttered. A buttered sheet of parchment is the perfect helper when trying to press sticky marshmallow-coated cereal into a 9" x 13" pan.
It’s the perfect DRAW LINER. Whether it’s your kitchen drawers or those in your refrigerator—when the liner gets icky, just toss it out and cut a new one.
It’s a wonderful make-shift, disposable CUTTING BOARD. When camping, just place a few sheets over a hard surface and cut away. When finished, use it as a fire starter - works great!
Along these same lines, it makes a fine CRAFT MAT. Use to line your work station when painting or decorating.
And speaking of arts and crafts, it’s sturdy enough to use for CUTTING STENCILS with which to decorate.
Finally, here’s a doozy of a use. It’s the perfect way to KEEP YOUR IRON CLEAN! Use on top of fusible interfacing to keep the sole plate of your iron free from residue and other gunk.
Sources:
- www.kingarthurflour.com
Alice Osborne
Weekly Newsletter Contributor since 2006
Email the author! alice@dvo.com
