You may remember going to grandma’s house during the holidays. The air was filled with the aroma of homemade diner rolls, pies and cookies. She may have worn an apron and it always had a light dusting of flour that told you all you needed to know – you were in store for something delicious.

The 21st Century

We read the labels on the package and drop a brick hard entrée in the microwave/convection oven and hope for the best. It’s not exactly awful, but we long for the taste of grandma’s house and wish we had the skills to make something comparably delicious.

Reviving a Tradition

Why do you think people scramble to farmer’s markets? They are looking for that home baked taste and the fresh ingredients. They’re looking for food that doesn’t automatically have a posted expiration date and an ingredient list that sounds English. They long for something familiar, yet not easily attained.

In order to revive a tradition you will need to restore the equipment needed to assemble and bake the foods your family loves. You can get the recipes from your mom or grandma, but chances are pretty good they don’t want to part with their bakeware. So, what do you need to really prepare for baking?

Bakeware 101

We now take a trip through the gadgets and pans that will put your family recipes to work. We won’t cover any novelty products – these are just the basic items you will need.

Mixer – nothing fancy required here. A simple electric mixer with variable speeds to allow you to lightly blend or whip the needed ingredients.

Bowls – you’ll need several of these. Various sizes are a good idea. Various types may also prove useful. Glass, ceramic and even plastic may be useful depending on your need.

Utensils – all the usual suspects. Oven mitt, rubber spatula, measuring cups and spoons. You can use the timer on your oven or microwave. If you need a separate timer you can buy an inexpensive egg timer or digital cooking timer to manage certain steps in the baking process.

Flat pans – this is the kind you would use for thick dough baking. Think of this in terms of rolls and cookies. This type of pan might also double to warm up other nearly ready to eat items in your home.

Deeper pans – these would include cake, loaf, and pie pans along with muffin tins. These can be either metal or glass and generally have sides taller than one and a half inches.

Cooling rack – this is a much needed item for the cool down phase of baking. It allows virtually all the surface area of the baked item to cool equally.

The Silicon Invasion

Every pan type and most of the tools listed above come in a food grade silicon that withstand heat, provide quick cleanup and are non-stick. A new generation of cooks are helping more sage bakers in their family to see the benefits of silicon pans and baking tools.

These newer pans may help encourage a new generation to consider the benefits of returning to the kitchen for something other than a microwavable meal.