Baking Tools We Love

Every kitchen needs a few basic baking tools. None of these are fancy or single-use only. You don’t need a special ‘scone pan’ to bake scones, for example–a good cookie sheet works perfectly. Parchment paper, a sharp knife or dough cutter, and a good pastry blender (to cut in butter) are tools I find myself reaching for day after day–and not always because I am baking scones. Here are some of my ‘must have’ baking tools with links where you can find them.

• A Pastry Blender is an absolute if you are going to make biscuits, scones, or pie crust. This is the tool that allows you to cut frozen butter or shortening into flour. We love this type with an easy-on-the-hands handle and stainless steel blades (as opposed to wires). We found models we like at Bed Bath and Beyond, as well as Amazon.
• Biscuit Cutters come in a variety of sizes, depths, and shapes–along with handles or no handles. We are pretty picky about these. They MUST be sharp so when you cut straight down into the dough they don’t ‘seal’ the edges. If the edges seal, that prevents the biscuit or scone from rising properly. They should also be tall enough that you can pat your dough to a thickness of 1″ and have a cutter that is taller than your dough. Handles are nice–as is the option of different sizes. This 4-piece set won our vote for a nice quality set of biscuit cutters.
• A sharp chef’s knife or dough cutter is a necessity if you are making wedge shaped scones, rather than cutting them into rounds. To make the wedges, pat the dough into a circle, and then cut into wedges (as if you are cutting a pie or pizza). My favorite cutter is this long chef’s knife which I sharpen right before cutting. If you prefer not to use your good knives, a dough cutter will also do the trick, and will also scrape your counter clean.
• A Pastry Cloth is falls into the “really nice to have” rather than the “absolutely MUST have” for many of us. I had never used one until I was gifted one by the owner of Oklahoma Pastry Cloth. MaryBeth still hand sews all her pastry cloths. She also includes a non-stick mat so that the cloth stays put on your counter top when you are working. Perfect for rolling out doughs and crusts, it keeps the mess flour and sticky dough off your countertops.
• A good set of cookie sheets is really all you need to bake scones or biscuits (or cookies!). These rimmed half sheet pans are a great size and will let you bake at least a dozen scones, biscuits or cookies at a time.
• Parchment paper is your best friend when you bake. If you sprinkle your scones with cinnamon sugar, it helps ensure that you won’t be scrubbing caramelized sugar off the pan. I like the white because it helps me know if my oven is running too hot. If it comes out of the oven tanned–your oven temperature is too high. These sheets are the perfect size for those half sheet baking pans (above)–so no cutting required!!! We found them both at GFS and Amazon.