Bake Two Cookie Trays At The Same Time

Baking By Charmed Updated 27 Dec 2009 , 5:58pm by luv2bake6

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Charmed Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 4:18pm
post #1 of 24

what are some suggestions when baking two cookie trays at the same time? do I switch half way in baking time?

23 replies
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brincess_b Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 4:38pm
post #2 of 24

i do either of these methods:
sometimes, i swap the trays over half way through.
sometimes, i leave them as is, and just let the second tray have longer.
xx

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ladixiechic1 Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 4:40pm
post #3 of 24

I tried that with out success icon_sad.gif But I am just using a standard household oven and the temperature shot up and burned the cookies icon_eek.gif . My thinking is that there was not enough room for circulation in the oven. Hope you have better success icon_biggrin.gif

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metria Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 5:01pm
post #4 of 24

brincess_b, which is your "second tray"? i baked some cookies last night and the top tray didn't seem to bake as fast as the bottom ... i think ... maybe i'm remembering it backwards ...

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indydebi Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 5:35pm
post #5 of 24

When baking, the heat element is on the bottom of the oven (the top heating element is the broiler). So when you have two trays of cookies in the oven, the bottom tray can block the heat from getting to the top tray properly.

What I did, when I was in a home oven, and assuming a 20 minute baking time, I'd put a tray in the oven for 10 minutes. After the 1st ten minutes, I'd put the 2nd tray on the bottom rack. 10 minutes later, remove the top tray and move the bottom tray to the top rack; put another tray on the bottom rack.

I'd bake 10-15 trays a day this way and it worked great.

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metria Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 5:38pm
post #6 of 24

ooooh i see ... thank you so much, i'm going to give that a try

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dynee Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 5:43pm
post #7 of 24

I am from a family of 10 and didn't know there was another way to bake cookies than two trays at once. We usually made drop cookies of some sort. What we always did is load up the first tray and put it on the top rack, then load up the next tray and put the top one on the bottom and the new one on the top and just keep the rotation going.

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luv2bake6 Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 7:44pm
post #8 of 24

What i do is when i have the first tray ready to go, it goes on the top rack. Then i start rolling out dough and cutting to fill up the second tray. When that is ready to go into the oven, i take the top tray, put it on the bottom, and then put the new tray on the top. This works great for me because the trays are going in at different times.

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CookieMeister Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 7:53pm
post #9 of 24

I always bake my cookies on convection. I can put up to 8 cookie sheets (2 to a rack) in my oven at one time and everything comes out great.

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indydebi Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 7:56pm
post #10 of 24
Quote:
Originally Posted by dynee

I am from a family of 10 and didn't know there was another way to bake cookies than two trays at once.


I am the oldest of 6 kids and we did the same thing. I've always told my kids that growing up poor in a large family was the best thing that ever happened to me .... I learned a lot of things that my "more financially secure" friends never had to deal with or learn to work around. thumbs_up.gif

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bonniebakes Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 8:44pm
post #11 of 24

I always rotate the trays (direction and location) a little over 1/2 way through the cooking time.

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Charmed Posted 17 Dec 2009 , 10:16pm
post #12 of 24

Thanks you guys for your help. off to bake some cookies!!

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prterrell Posted 18 Dec 2009 , 4:09am
post #13 of 24

I've always done the 2 trays at once w/ switching half-way, but I like Debi's method better. I'll be using that on the rest of my Christmas cookies this year. Thanks Debi! icon_biggrin.gif

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zoraya Posted 18 Dec 2009 , 4:22am
post #14 of 24

I use 2 different kinds of cookie sheets - the thicker insulated one goes on the bottom rack and the thin, single sheet goes on the top. So the lower one seems to bake slower and both trays get done at the same time. Been doing it this way for years.

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indydebi Posted 18 Dec 2009 , 4:34am
post #15 of 24
Quote:
Originally Posted by prterrell

I've always done the 2 trays at once w/ switching half-way, but I like Debi's method better. I'll be using that on the rest of my Christmas cookies this year. Thanks Debi! icon_biggrin.gif




what I like is that we're baking two sheets at once, but we're only pulling out one at a time, so we have plenty of time to get them to the cooling rack, only need counter space for one baking sheet instead of 2 hot ones, etc., when dealing with only one at a time.

I actually ran the numbers, too. (surprise! icon_surprised.gif ) It decreases the amount of actual oven time when they are swapped out this way instead of just baking 2 at the same time (I mean, instead of putting 2 in and not rotating), just because both sheets get even baking due to the rotating.

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brincess_b Posted 18 Dec 2009 , 9:10am
post #16 of 24

my top shelf bakes faster. different ovens do different things, so if you want to get technical, get an oven thermometer, and check the different areas of your oven.
xx

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didavista Posted 18 Dec 2009 , 10:33am
post #17 of 24

My hot spot in my oven is the top left corner. So I when I switch the trays from top to bottom half way through I also give the a half turn too.

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CookiesInColor Posted 18 Dec 2009 , 8:11pm
post #18 of 24

IndyDebi - that is sheer brilliance! Even though I bake in a very high end convection home oven, I still have to rotate my trays... I love your idea and will try it next time. Thanks!

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CookieMakinMomma Posted 18 Dec 2009 , 8:22pm
post #19 of 24
Quote:
Originally Posted by indydebi

Quote:
Originally Posted by dynee

I am from a family of 10 and didn't know there was another way to bake cookies than two trays at once.

I am the oldest of 6 kids and we did the same thing. I've always told my kids that growing up poor in a large family was the best thing that ever happened to me .... I learned a lot of things that my "more financially secure" friends never had to deal with or learn to work around. thumbs_up.gif



Ha! Oldest of seven here, and I couldn't agree more! We are a very Italian family, especially in the kitchen, and have never eaten "American" sized portions (read: healthy sized icon_lol.gif ) It took the better part of my first year of marriage before I learned how to cook for two (or anything less than 6, for that matter). I mean, really, who cooks less than a pound of pasta at a time! I also second the "poor in a large family" part. It's amazing the ingenuity that can come from having jack squat! icon_wink.gif

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indydebi Posted 18 Dec 2009 , 8:29pm
post #20 of 24
Quote:
Originally Posted by CookieMakinMomma

It took the better part of my first year of marriage before I learned how to cook for two (or anything less than 6, for that matter).


Same here! When I first got married, I made TWO boxes of Kraft Mac-n-Cheese for the two of us! I had no idea how to deal with or cook leftovers because we never had leftovers when I was growing up! I was totally confused about all of the "eating turkey for DAYS after Thanksgiving" stories because our turkey was cleaned to the dried-in-the-desert bone at dinner. I never had a leftover turkey sandwich until after I was married! icon_lol.gif

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CookieMakinMomma Posted 19 Dec 2009 , 12:07am
post #21 of 24
Quote:
Originally Posted by indydebi

Quote:
Originally Posted by CookieMakinMomma

It took the better part of my first year of marriage before I learned how to cook for two (or anything less than 6, for that matter).

Same here! When I first got married, I made TWO boxes of Kraft Mac-n-Cheese for the two of us! I had no idea how to deal with or cook leftovers because we never had leftovers when I was growing up! I was totally confused about all of the "eating turkey for DAYS after Thanksgiving" stories because our turkey was cleaned to the dried-in-the-desert bone at dinner. I never had a leftover turkey sandwich until after I was married! icon_lol.gif



We did have leftovers at our house (proves how much my mom would (over)cook for an average dinner!) and I was notorious for cleaning out the fridge. To this day I have a hard time figuring out what to eat for lunch without leftovers in the fridge! I hate cold cut sandwiches! As for thanksgiving turkey, well, my mom had a tendency to give us a "dry as the desert" bird FOR the meal instead of AFTER it! Plus with 8,000 side dishes it wasn't hard to pass up a dry turkey. Now, with my sister graduated from culinary school and my own recently-acquired food "street smarts" we finally have a bird worth eating! icon_biggrin.gif

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peg818 Posted 19 Dec 2009 , 2:10pm
post #22 of 24

well, i never heard of not filling the oven up until the internet. I was always taught that if you are going to turn it on, you fill it as much as possible.

Rotate the cookies you should be fine unless there is something wrong with your oven.

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sugarspice Posted 27 Dec 2009 , 4:31am
post #23 of 24

I am the youngest of 13 icon_smile.gif I agree, the thought of less than a full oven does not exist in my mind. I follow the same procedure that Debi does-no problems! Our "cookie jar" was an empty metal tin that cherries came in (20#)!!
When I worked as a cook-the bottoms of the ovens were lined with foil for ease of clean-up. Found out from a repair man that this is NOT the thing to do as it will throw off the thermostat in the oven!

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luv2bake6 Posted 27 Dec 2009 , 5:58pm
post #24 of 24

oooh, thanks for that advice. I often put foil on the bottom to catch spills and stuff (i don't usually do that when baking cookies though).

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