Baking Pans

History

In her book, Vintage Kitchenalia, Emma Kay notes the evolution of the usage “baking pan” into “baking tin”:

“The phrase bread tin, or loaf tin, was not commonly in use until the mid-1800s, although Elizabeth David notes that Eliza Rundell’s 1807 edition of ‘A New System of Domestic Cookery’ is one of the earliest references to be found… The phrase ‘patty pan’ comes from the French word paté, meaning paste, plus pan. Early ones were made from tinned steel and came in a variety of shapes and sizes and were used to make tartlets and small cakes… Once tin had become the popular metal of choice in manufacturing, the word pan began to disappear, to be replaced with tin. It was certainly a word in common use by the 1920s. According to a story that appeared in the Dundee Evening Telegraph of 1921, a little German girl was travelling by train alone in a compartment and having realised the train had gone past her stop, opened the carriage door and held out a large ‘cake tin’ she had been carrying to break her fall as the train pulled away at some twenty miles an hour. She survived, despite serious injuries and shock.

One of the most prolific makers of baking tins during the early twentieth century, including the basic flan, tart, sponge finger and early sandwich varieties, was H.J. Green & Co. Ltd., based in Brighton and established around 1910; it traded until 1948.” — Kay, Emma. Vintage Kitchenalia. Gloucestershire, England: Amberley Publishing. 2017. Google Ebook edition.

Types of baking pans

Baker's Blade

A baker's blade (aka lame) is a sharp cutting implement used to make decorative slashes in bread dough without pressing the dough down and deflating it. The slashes also serve the function of directing steam out of the bread while baking.

Bread Knife

A bread knife is a long knife with a serrated (or "scalloped") cutting edge. What a bread knife will do is enable you to slice bread without squishing it. Its large serrations allow it to grip the crumb and the crust of bread to cut it, without...

Ceramic Knives

Ceramic knives have their blades made from zirconium oxide, which is the second-hardest known material after diamonds. The blades can stay sharp for years without sharpening, and won't rust or stain.

Chef's Knives

A chef's knife is an all-purpose knife for cutting, chopping and mincing. Once you learn how to take advantage of a chef's knife, using one can be faster for some tasks than the time needed for the assembly, use and clean-up of a food processor. Chef's...

Chinese Cleaver

While a Western cleaver is used primarily for meat, a Chinese cleaver is used primarily for vegetables.

Cleaver

A cleaver is a heavy, rigid knife with a large rectangular or square blade. The blade, about 15 cm (6 inches) long, can be made of stainless steel or high-carbon steel. Its weight allows the knife to pick up momentum as you swing, so that in effect...

Food Pushers

A food pusher is a blunt-ended device used to push food, either at the table, or in the kitchen. If you've used a food processor, you've used a food pusher.

Hockmesser

A hockmesser is a Yiddish word for a knife with a single, slightly curved blade, and no side handle. Instead, the handle is on the top; you press down as you chop. In this, it is similar to a single-bladed mezzaluna . It is used in conjunction...

Japanese Knives

Japanese knives are prized for their craftmanship and technical refinement. Some Japanese knife makers have been in business 400 to 700 years.

Mezzaluna

A mezzaluna is a half-moon-shaped blade designed to be rocked from side to side. Some models have one blade, some are double-bladed. They are used for mincing food items, particularly herbs and nuts.

Palette Knives

A palette knife is a wide, flat knife with a rounded tip meant for lifting, spreading, and smoothing, making it more like a spatula in terms of its purpose.

Paring Knife

A paring knife is a knife with a small blade for working with small objects. Its tapered blade ends in a sharp, fine tip. The cutting edge of the blade can be straight or serrated. The handles can be wood or plastic.

Ulu Knife

An ulu knife has a blade about 15 cm (6 inches) long, counting the curve, and about 10 cm (4 inches) tall. The handle is on top of the blade. The design puts the force of your hand directly above the centre of the blade.

Utility Knife

A utility knife, in culinary terms, is a larger version of a paring knife. It is mid-way in size between a paring knife and a chef's knife. The blade can be flat-edged or serrated.