8 Baking Hacks To Keep Your Kitchen Clean
I’m sure we’ve all made a mess in the kitchen when we’ve tried to bake something and I’m sure we would all probably bake more if the cleanup wasn’t such a pain. I mean I know I would. Thankfully, there a tons of baking hacks out there that you can use while baking so that cleaning up afterward is fast, easy, and a little less painful.
I’ve decided to provide you with a list of some of those baking hacks so that you aren’t turned off of baking because of the mess the flour, sugar, and oil can tend to make. These little tips will make it so that the joy and comfort that comes from baking some of your favorite treats aren’t ruined by the thought of cleaning up afterward. Here are 8 baking hacks to help keep your kitchen clean and tidy!
1. Use parchment paper to line your baking tins
Spraying or wiping your baking tins with oil can get greasy and messy. Trying to line the tins with flour and butter can also make a mess. Instead of using most of the ingredients that go into the treat your making to prevent sticking, try a baking hack that all the bakers on The Great British Bake Off swear by which is lining your tins with parchment paper. This keeps your desserts from sticking while also leaves tins slightly cleaner. Plus peeling the paper off of cakes is satisfying and leaves the cake smooth for frosting.
2. Have a trash bowl nearby
Yes, having the trash can and recycling bin nearby is helpful, but so is a trash bowl. Having this bowl on your baking station and within arm’s reach makes it easy to clear out eggshells, fruit and vegetable peels, small extract bottles, and flour or sugar that’s gotten stuck to your hands. Simply toss your scraps into the bowl and toss it when you’re finished baking. This also keeps you from having to walk to the trash can each time you need to throw something away.
3. Place a paper plate over your hand mixer and bowl to prevent dusty spills
This baking hack is something I just learned about and it is a lifesaver. You ever start mixing together your dry ingredients with a hand mixer and a dust of flour, sugar, and baking powder jumps out of the bowl? Then you add in the wet ingredients and the mix makes its way all over your apron and tabletops. To prevent that from happening, poke a hole in the middle of a paper plate then stick the mixing prongs through the hole before attaching them to the part of the mixer that you hold. This baking hack will shield anything from leaving your bowl again.
4. If you don’t have a paper plate, try turning the bowl rather than moving your hand mixer
I know that this one seems like it should be a given, but trust me when I say that I know a lot of people who are mixer movers. Instead of moving your mixer to aid with the mixing, leave the hand you hold the mixer with stationary and turn the bowl with your free hand. This baking hack prevents your mixing attachments from hitting the sides of the bowl and shooting ingredients all over the place.
5. Spray cooking spray onto pans in your open dishwasher
If you need to use cooking spray on any of your baking tins or trays, try placing the tray in your open dishwasher before you spray it. You can then spray the try while it rests on the dishwasher rack. This baking hack prevents cooking spray from getting all over your countertops and stovetop and is easy to clean up. The extra spray will just be washed away the next time you run your dishwasher.
6. Use dental floss for perfect slices of cake
Using unflavored dental floss to cut cake makes it easy to get the perfect slices while keeping clean up nice and easy. It also keeps you from having to dirty up a knife. Simply drag the dental floss through the cake to make your slices even then toss the floss in the trash when you’re finished with it. This is probably one of the simplest and easiest baking hacks to do on this list.
7. Place a piece of wax paper under your measuring cup before spooning in flour and sugar
This baking hack ensures that the measuring you do when baking doesn’t make too much of a mess. Most of the time, the treats we make include flour and sugar so this is a way to keep the spills of those dry ingredients to a minimum. Simply place a sheet of wax paper under your measuring cups before you spoon any flour or sugar into them. The wax paper should catch any of the flour or sugar that misses the cup, making it easy to transfer it back to its proper container by folding the paper and pouring it into where it goes. Countertops will remain clean thanks to the wax paper.
8. Use a glass to fill your frosting bag
Have you ever tried to fill a piping bag with frosting just by scooping it in with a spatula and hoping for the best? If you have, you’ve probably discovered that frosting can get all over your hands and often make its way onto countertops and floors creating a big sticky mess. This baking hack has you place your piping bag into a tall glass, nozzle first, and drape the bag over the edges. You can then spoon your frosting into the bag without having to hold it, thus keeping your hands clean. The glass also holds the bag upright so frosting doesn’t fall out and all over the place.
