Parchment paper

[Tiger]

I just came home from the market with all the ingrediants for choc. chip meringue cookies (day 7). But I forgot the parchment paper. Can I use wax paper? Can I skip it all together and just bake them on my pizza stone? Has anyone used a replacement for parchment paper with good results?

[mightyh]

I LOVE parchment paper and don't substitute for it. It ensures even cooking and doesn't let stuff burn.

[junietoo]

Tiger: You can't bake on waxed paper. The waxed coating will melt. And, baking them directly on the baking stone will likely stick. I haven't read the recipe, but can't you just use a non-stick baking sheet?

[BethR]

This would involve an extra trip to a kitchen store but another option is a silicone baking mat. The one brand name I can think of is Sil-pat. It will last for something like 1000 uses. I don't have one but have friends that love theirs -- nothing sticks to it. They're a little pricy I guess, but if you use a lot of parchment, it could be cost-effective.
Beth

[Tiger]

Ok, thanks everybody. Back to the store I go!!

[Marcie]

My (late) grandmother made shortbread that she baked on brown paper (e.g. grocery sack cut to size). Would that be a substitute for parchment? I recall the brown paper absorbing some of the butter from the shortbread, but it never burned and the shortbread never tasted "papery."

[sneezles]

Marcie
Since most brown paper bags are now made from recycled paper, it probably wouldn't be healthy to bake or cook in any fashion with them.

[sk8grl]

One more alternative that works in a pinch--you can use the inside lining bag from a cereal box. Just cut it open so it lays flat, add some cooking spray, and lay it on the baking sheet. Just make sure it's the clear plastic kind, not the foil kind (I've only used plastic so I can't tell you if foil works). I always keep a few extra bags tucked away in my drawer for "cooking emergencies."

I'm sure your meringue cookies are long baked by now, but hopefully this can help you at a future date!

Libby

[kendra]

The chewy coconut macaroons also called for parchment paper. (This cooking section is supposedly for beginners and they call for parchment paper? I know I would have been scared off if I were just learning to cook.) Anyway, I didn't have any so I just sprayed the cookie sheet with cooking spray and they came right off. Don't know if that will work for the meringue cookies though. Let us know how they turn out!