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Anyone used Baking Strips?

(17 Posts)
Spinnaker Tue 27-May-25 10:48:16

Check them out on Amazon

www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B09VB6PG2N?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_dt_b_product_details&tag=gransnetforum-21

RosieandherMaw Tue 27-May-25 10:25:17

I too always used to use folded newspaper or possibly brown parcel paper back in the day when I baked Christmas cakes as a business.
What exactly are “baking strips” ?

Lovetopaint037 Tue 27-May-25 10:17:52

Delia Smith’s instructions when making a Christmas cake say to wrap,brown paper strip around outside of tin and to place a double layer of greaseproof paper over the top with a hole the side of a 50p in the centre. I have done that for years.

NotSpaghetti Tue 27-May-25 09:46:25

My recipe is a roughly 8 hour bake, Esmay
Used to cook them in the bottom of the Aga.

Esmay Tue 27-May-25 09:17:25

I also put newspaper around a tin if baking a fruitcake .
I've put them in the oven on the lowest temperature before bed .
I once had an emergency and had to leave a fruit cake cooking so I put it on the lowest temperature and asked my neighbour to check it .
We were both really surprised when it came out well and that's when I started cooking them overnight .

ExDancer Tue 27-May-25 09:09:46

We used newspaper around our fruitcake tins, same idea I suppose. I never considered trying it with sponges. Might try it (if I remember).

Esmay Tue 27-May-25 09:04:36

Sorry eddiecat.
I looked baking strips up .
I used to bake a lot and had never heard of them .
No one uses them for the bake sales at church .
My local Lakeland has closed and I would have noticed them if browsing .
I used to make a depression in my cake mix before putting it in the oven if I wanted a flatter cake top .
It wasn't 100%
Maybe baking strips would have been better .

NotSpaghetti Mon 26-May-25 17:31:40

I've never heard of baking strips.

Interesting though!

Spinnaker Mon 26-May-25 17:14:49

eddiecat78

Spinnaker thanks. Do you remember if the strips affected the cooking time?
One of the cakes will be 3 layers so it would be better if they are flat without having to be trimmed

eddiecat78
No, the cooking times remained the same. You could always do three single layers in separate tins, which is what I have done in the past and they've always turned out very good and not needed any trimming.

eddiecat78 Mon 26-May-25 16:50:48

Just to clarify, the Baking Strips I am asking about are special strips with an inner layer which is damp when it goes round the tin. You can buy them readymade or make your own with wet kitchen roll incased in foil

Esmay Mon 26-May-25 16:39:31

I always use baking paper .
I don't like it if my sponges are too brown on the outside .

eddiecat78 Mon 26-May-25 15:57:14

Spinnaker thanks. Do you remember if the strips affected the cooking time?
One of the cakes will be 3 layers so it would be better if they are flat without having to be trimmed

NotSpaghetti Mon 26-May-25 15:38:15

My family uses baking /greaseproof paper and then 2 or 3 layers of brown paper tied on with string for wedding cakes etc. (exactly as butterandjam says). In addition we put a layer of card over the top.

The paper sticks up an inch or so above the cake tin.
No idea why.

My dad (who made the best rich fruit cakes I've ever tasted) showed me how - and I always do it if it's important to be perfect.
He also taught me to shape the mixture in the tin so that it was very slightly concave in the middle of the mixture.

Our recipe is mostly fruit and butter it seems to me though - so very stiff.
It's nearly as dark as a Christmas pudding!

Spinnaker Mon 26-May-25 15:27:59

I've used them when baking sponge cakes and the results were excellent. Fully risen and even topped, the best results I've ever had with sponge cakes. Different altogether than baking fruit cakes - apparently it's all to do with the moisture released during the baking process. I'm sure you won't be disappointed - good luck !

Usedtobeblonde Mon 26-May-25 14:53:30

That is what we did with rich fruit cakes.
Double brown paper tied with string.
Worked a treat.

butterandjam Mon 26-May-25 14:38:41

why not make
your own with greaseproof paper; tie them round the cake tin with string.

eddiecat78 Mon 26-May-25 13:53:15

These are strips that you dampen and wrap around the outside of the cake tin before baking.
They are meant to ensure the cake cooks evenly and remains flat.
I have 2 cakes to make for a special celebration and am tempted to try them but only if they are foolproof!