Kitchen Deals -> Cookware

By law manufacturers must disclose the energy efficiency of their appliances, rated A to G. These are usually displayed prominently in showrooms. The better the rating, the more energy efficient the appliance is - good for both the environment and your pocket.

Convection ovens allow you to bake more foods (cookies, muffins, etc.) at once with even browning, but without the need to shift and rotate pans. A convection oven is the same as a conventional oven except a fan is installed in the back interior of the oven. The fan is used to blow and force the heat to circulate in the oven and around the food, thus eliminating the need to rotate and shift pans. In reality, though, even with the most expensive convection ovens, you will still need to rotate your foods, because there will always exist still hot spots in the cavity, because the cavity is small. Don't compare home convection ovens with most commercial convection ovens used by bakers and small food manufacturers, because their commercial ovens are much larger than home ovens and commercial ovens don't have any hot spots and therefore, there's no need to shift and rotate pans.

When mixing batter for pancakes, muffins or cupcakes, mix the batter in a large liquid measuring cup with a spout. This will make it easier to pour the batter into muffin tins or pancake batter onto a hot griddle.