December 10, 2007 | Food & drink, Kitchen
I have not purchased new kitchenware in years. In fact, most of what we have now was given to us for our wedding 4 ½ years ago or passed down from other family. That is a lot of meals my pots, pans, bakeware and utensils have been through. I have decided that it is time to replace a good amount of it. I am the cook in the family so I get to choose the new stuff. Since I do a lot of baking and it is what I enjoy the most I decided to start with researching different types of bakeware. What cought my eye is the silicone bakeware that is very popular right now. My first thought is “Can that really be safe?”. It prompted me to do some research…
Silicones are made by combining silicon (from common sand) and oxygen. While these are both naturally occurring substances the combination does not occur in nature. Other synthetics are added to make different types of silicones. This is a completely manmade product but it is said that it will not transfer to foods which is currently a big concern with non-stick coatings. Silicone bakeware is coating free, easily stored and also flexible, claiming to make it easy to remove your baked goods. It also comes in plenty of different, eye catching colors. Here is the catch: It’s potential health effects are unknown. Silicone can have other additives that do not have to be disclosed on labels, therefore consumers never know what exactly the bakeware contains. There is also the potential for melting and fumes since silicone products can melt at temperatures as low as 428 degrees F. Most ovens can be set to 500 degrees F. and many recipes call for a temperature of 450 degrees F. While Silicone is long lasting, non-stick finish free and eliminates the need for parchment paper and aluminum foil, the lack of health information leads me to think that bakers might want to err on the side of caution and opt for some of the proven safe pans including glass, cast iron, stainless steel, aluminum and ceramic (purchasing a branded ceramic is recommended).
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cjoy says:
I’m curious, though…I thought I’d heard that aluminum is not necessarily that safe, contributing to various health issues. Granted, I am not currently doing my own research on the topic, so I may be mistaking it for something else. (I do recall the aluminum products in deodorant are not healthy, and I believe associated with Alzheimers Disease.)
December 10th, 2007 at 10:08 pmDeanna says:
YAY JEANA! Wait, I suddenly need to go find pie. Back in a minute…
Ok - so I’d love to furnish my entire kitchen with way cool looking cast iron cookware from Lodge Manufacturing. Are they going to come one day and tell me it adds too much iron to my diet? Seriously, I’m on their email list, and one of the advertisements ends with “and naturally adds iron to your diet.” Probably good for me…but also mildly unnerving.
December 10th, 2007 at 10:33 pmstacey says:
wow, so good to think about!
welcome-i love coming here so i will see you often!
December 10th, 2007 at 11:13 pmJeana says:
Thanks for the warm welcome.
Deanna - I will see what I can find out. Watch for a future post on iron!
December 11th, 2007 at 7:27 ammudlark says:
Well commented, cjoy. I’m with you on the aluminum. I stay away from it whenever possible. There’s the suspected link to Alzheimers, and that makes me wonder what else it’s doing to our brains. I’d stick with cast iron (assuming Jeana can reassure us that cast iron is safe), glass, stainless, and branded ceramic. I love cooking and baking with stoneware - somehow it just makes me happy!
December 11th, 2007 at 8:40 amJeana says:
Cjoy -
I have heard the controversy on aluminum and I debated with myself about if I should put that in the recommended safe bakeware. The only reason I did include it was because the green guide had it listed as safe. I personally would not use it therefor maybe I will retract that statement. I will see what else I can find out about it but I know my prior searches on aluminum have always come up short of any definitive answers.
December 11th, 2007 at 12:24 pm