h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I did say that no food gets wasted. But my parents are at the stage of their lives where food is their last pleasure. Also, living where snowfall is a probability means they keep stocked up.


And as for silicone baking trays, don't bother buying them in future, they really are not very good. I bought a lovely shaped one, just like a huge sunflower, and imagined it would be wonderful covered in yellow water icing with little sugar balls making the centre. When I turned it out, after a huge struggle, it was completely unrecognisable as a flower. Or even cake.

It tasted okay, but I had to use a lot of butter icing to stick bits of it together.



I'm a journal behind, due to the time it has taken me to get this weeks front page sorted out. Prepare for a double blast! or take cover, whichever is your preferred option.

*hides behind Lil's ready for double blast*

I bought a ghost shaped one for Halloween, Lanza.

They didn't work either.

The cake cases are ok, because you don't need to turn them out, but they're a buggar to clean.

I do all my baking in a toaster oven, so everything has to be the right size and shape to fit into it. I have seven or eight stainless steel baking pans for that. I don't need silicon products.

No-one *needs* silicon products. Grease whatever you use well with butter and never clean with washing-up liquid (only hot or even boiling water) and Bob is whatever gender she chooses to be

Bobs a transvestite... I thought everyone knew that

oh... yes... butter is good; not the best, as much as I have to aadmit for some things; it can give uneven release, for things like bread coming out of a large tin; I never use silicon stuff, just metalware, tins, etc., some are non-stick, as its almost impossible to buy certian things taht arn't non-stick; My adonised carbon steel big* bread tin (cost a damn fortuen, but probalby will outlive me), always clears' nicely, I use olive oil, or sunflower in that, which I've found gives the more even release than butter (I imagine groundnut oil would work well too)... ; I useually for this, use a spray-oil, of sunflower or olive; as its easy to get a nice even coating on the inside of the tin; ensuring the corners etc are well covered too

In proper* bakerys, or at least the one my mate used to run,m the secret to release, and suchlike was, accorindg to him; the build up of carbon deposits on the steel; basically, don't wash the tins/trays, and the burn on bits, ultimately give a surface that rleeases (I tried this with some of my bageutte trays, but had to give up in the end, as I found it didn't work, and I cleaned them, and then they worked butter, err I mean better)

To be contrary, I love my silicon. Perhaps I'm just too lazy to prepare the metal ones well enough, but I rarely have a problem with sticking. One tip though is that you are supposed to wait until the cake has cooled before you take it out of silicon, which is the opposite of metal.

I've never actually used it, so I don't know for certain (I mean, it could be better, sorry, butter, than the metal stuff I@m using).

The only silicon thing I had a serious look at, was a silicon Baguette tray... I just couldn't see how it'd work?!; Far too flexible; it'd be hard to stand up, whilst the baguettes finished rising in it, and virtually impossible to then lift into the oven, without distorting the baguette's shape (I had a good play with it in the shop) Though I have heard that the silicon mats, one can put on a flat metal tray, can be good, I coudl probably see the purpose of that, although, having said which, the two very big oven trays (12 or 9 rolls each, depending on roll-size), and the two smaller trays (6 to 9 rolls each tray, depending on size), always clear fine, with no need to butter/oil the trays (they're non-stick), the two larger ones were just from a supermarket, the two smaller ones, from a sadly briefly lived little kitchen ware shop, we had near me (I'd have bought more of those trays, ahd they been still opperating the next time I was there...)

hey! that may be the entire problem solved Vip. Thank you for the tip. I cannot imagine there would be such a market for all this silicone bakeware if it was a total loss. However cute the pastel colours look in the shops.

I'll give the sunflower shaped case another go, and if I am still unlucky it can be yours.

I hope it works! If it's a fiddly shape you may still want to grease it, although I know that's not really the point.

I always grease the bottom of the pans to prevent sticking. I clean with hot water and dishwashing liquid, and maybe some brillo [steel wool]. Stainless steel seems to last almost forever.

Irish traditional sodabread is baked on a flat metal plate, but we always bake it in a silicone loaf "tin". At the start it was wonderful, as the bread would pop out of the container without any problems. But as time goes on, it loses its non-stick qualities, and each time it's a bit harder to get the loaf out. Maybe it is time to buy some new ones.

Sacrilege! 2legs, I'm shocked! You of all should know that the only thing that works properly is butter!

I've tried olive oil (which is much to my liking in other circumstances) and other oils, but nothing works better than butter.

As long as you let nothing else than butter, dough and hot water touch your tins you won't have no problems whatsoever with bread sticking or the like. Okay, maybe the first time. Maybe even the first two times. But after that you're in the clear - literally!

Just wondering, Vip. Does the silicon stuff need 'wearing in' as it were?

Should I grease and flour when trying the ghosts (or any fiddly mould)? It's like a small muffin tray, I'd really like to see ghosts, not odd shaped bits of muffin

Sorry Magwitch, that tip was the only think I know about silicone! You may well be right, and certainly a spray of oil wouldn't harm.

I'll just have to give it go then, Vip. ANy excuse to make cake

I'll try it later on and report back then

Mags - you've been up bloody early today? And who would have thought so much needs to be researched into cake baking.

We definitely need cake here too. I'll make some cupcake ones too. Here are some I made earlier. A87790008

R and I have different apporaches to shopping too - I do a similar list to your mothers - I keep a notepad on the fridge and jot down anything that's running low. He prefers to go and browse, and pick up anything that's on special offer.