BLOGS

A Guide to Cleaning Cookie Sheets

At McCaleb, our homes are anything but cookie cutter, but their kitchens are the perfect places for baking up cookies! Especially on a cold Winter Day, a tray of fresh, warm cookies is a true comfort.

If your baking trays and cookie sheets are looking a little worse for wear from all their use, don’t fret! Here’s how to properly bust caked on, baked on, and burnt on food from your cookie sheets.

Know Your Sheet

Before you start scrubbing away, it is important that you determine the material that your cookie sheets are made of. Knowing this will help you choose which of the following cleaning methods will work best with your sheets without causing them damage. Here are the three materials that cookie sheets are made from:

• Aluminized Steel
• Nonstick
• Aluminum

Cleaning Method One: Cream of Tartar

This first method is compatible with any type of cookie sheet. Cream of tartar is readily available in most grocery stores, and it is cheap and easy to use. It can cause a bit of skin dryness and irritation, so you may want to wear gloves while using it.

To use cream of tartar on your cookie sheets, mix a bit of the powder with some hot water. Eyeball it until you get a paste-like consistency. Then, spread the paste over the entirety of the pan. Allow it to rest on the sheet for 8 hours. Afterwards, use a cloth to gently scrub the pan clean while rinsing it under water. Any baking on gunk should just slip away easily.

Cleaning Method Two: Baking Soda

Next up, there is the powerful, multipurpose household staple, baking soda. This ingredient will naturally make your cookie sheets sparkle and deodorize them at the same time. This method of cleaning is also safe to use with any cookie sheet material. Here’s how to clean with it.

Start by bringing water to a boil and then fill the cookie sheet with that water. Mix in a few drops of dish soap to cut through any grease and then also sprinkle a few tablespoons of baking soda over the top of the sheet. Let this mixture sit for about an hour. After the hour is up, rinse the sheet while gently scrubbing any residual debris.

Cleaning Method Three: Hydrogen Peroxide

This last cleaning method involves another household mainstay, hydrogen peroxide. When you mix this ingredient with baking soda, it alkalizes to create a powerful cleaning agent.

Mix up enough baking soda and peroxide until it becomes a paste, similar to the cream of tartar and water. Spread the paste onto the entire surface of the sheet and allow it to sit there for two hours. Again, gently scrub the pan as you rinse it. The only special care you need to take with this method is that you need to dry the pan completely afterwards. If you don’t it runs the risk of developing rust.

And there you have it! Three easy and effective ways to clean your cookie sheets so you can bake more.

By McCaleb Homes 2-23-2023