19 Surprisingly Useful Baking Tools You Probably Don't Own

Baking at home is an accident-prone yet beloved hobby that can sometimes be riddled with mistakes, fear, and uncertainty. When you finally manage to create something beautiful and delicious, you realize just how enjoyable and relaxing it can be. As an at-home baker turned professional pastry chef of eight years, these tools have been essential in every facet of my confectionery journey. I started my baking obsession as everyone does: at home with little more than my family's questionable baking tools. Despite my less-than-stellar equipment, my love for baking blossomed into a career.

I've grown from creating mochi at a local Japanese restaurant in my hometown to owning a commercial bakery, providing pastries and desserts to over 28 restaurants in the Los Angeles area. A few years ago, I packed my bags and left the Golden Gate State to move my career to Europe. I trained at a culinary university in Italy, graduating with a degree in Italian pastry arts. Now, I'm producing pastries, bread, and chocolates for designer fashion brands in Florence, Italy, honing my craft. After many years of trial and error, I've taken everything I've learned over the years and created a list of 19 tools indispensable for elevating any novice baker's technique to a professional mindset.

Apron

An apron not only helps you get in the right mindset to be the best baker possible, but it also prevents your clothing from coming into contact with the food, ensuring safety and sanitation. For those of you who don't know, an apron is a garment worn over your clothes when cooking to keep clean. It's common to see bakers and chefs wear them during service and while working in kitchens.

Not only do aprons keep culinary workers clean, but they also signify a sense of dignity, pride, and hospitality for themselves, their craft, and most importantly, their customers. Forgetting your apron is like not bringing your laptop to the office. It is one of the last tools bakers and chefs touch before entering and leaving their stations. That being said, do as bakers and chefs do — put on an apron, head into the kitchen, and start cooking.

Offset spatula

An offset spatula is a tool every baker has in their apron — it's indispensable for frosting cakes, cupcakes, or any dessert. The spatula is identified by its thin blade angled down from the handle with a rounded tip. The trusty tool comes in many forms. The most notable is the miniature 4.5-inch blade, known for creating eye-catching swirls — especially when frosting cupcakes and cakes. The medium 8-inch blade is mostly used for larger cakes and spreading batter evenly into a pan. Lastly, the largest has a 9-inch or longer blade, used for transporting baked goods and creating smooth designs on massive desserts.

You can get away with having only one offset spatula: the favorite among bakers, is the miniature. Most of these tasks, like frosting cakes and spreading the batter, can be managed by the mighty miniature offset spatula without using too much cabinet space.

Oven thermometer

If you're ever wondering why your cakes don't turn out exactly like the recipe, the problem might not be you — it's your oven. Sometimes, an oven may not be calibrated correctly, meaning your automatic temperature gauge could be giving you false information.

A faulty oven could be set to 350 F but in actuality, it is a few degrees lower or higher. This is a result of various hot spots, which are areas that fluctuate between 10 degrees to 30 degrees off from the rest of the oven. Even the most shiny, brand-new ovens have different hot spots, which is why some bakers place a few oven thermometers on each level to determine an accurate temperature read. Accuracy and precision are paramount in all realms of cooking. That's why an oven thermometer is necessary in every kitchen — whether you're roasting a chicken or baking brownies.

Pastry brushes

A pastry brush, sometimes referred to as a basting brush, is a baking tool used to spread glazes, egg washes, fats, and liquids on pastries and desserts. Pastry brushes have various forms, including silicon, boar bristle, or nylon. Boar bristles with all-natural boar bristles are a baker's preferred choice since they hold liquid better, rather than silicon or nylon brushes that drip quickly and tend to damage the structure of the pastry or dessert.

At most bakeries, you'll typically find a pastry brush resting in a bowl filled with beaten eggs — ready to be utilized for egg washes to brush pastries with before sending them to the oven. This tool is a great investment if you want to start giving your pastries and desserts a bakery-level finish. It's one of the last tools bakers use and the most effective in providing pastries with the ideal golden shine.

High-heat silicon spatula

A high-heat silicon spatula is a necessity in every bakery and home kitchen. This well-designed tool can conquer any high-heat task, from stirring hot custards and jams to mixing simple syrup in a pot. Some heat-resistant silicon can handle temperatures up to 600 F, making it safe to use over the stove-top. This spatula is a life-saver during those chaotic kitchen moments when you accidentally leave your spatula over a pot of boiling water or bubbling stew.

The handiness of a silicon spatula doesn't stop there; it's also helpful when folding egg whites into a batter or scraping the sides of a bowl, ensuring you get every last drop. Next time you're busy in the kitchen making a delicious recipe like classic vanilla pudding or mango sticky rice, be sure to have a high-heat silicon spatula by your side.

Flour wand

The flour wand, or baker's dusting wand, makes it remarkably easy to evenly dust flour, confectioners sugar, or starches on any surface or baked goods without creating an enormous mess. This convenient tool features a metal utensil with a perforated ball that can hold up to 2 to 3 tablespoons of dry ingredients. Just dip it into any dry ingredient, open the ball, capture, and dust — it's that easy!

Essential for dusting flour over a greased pan or banneton for your sourdough bread, a flour wand works even better for dusting confectioner's sugar over freshly made cakes, cookies, and pies. The flour wand isn't just limited to dusting flour or confectioner's sugar — try using it to sprinkle cocoa or matcha powder to perfect your latte art or to flourish some seasonings and spices over homemade potato chips.

Piping bags

A piping bag, often referred to by professional bakers as a pastry bag, is a cone-shaped bag made from either cloth, paper, or plastic and used to decorate desserts. In bakeries, it's often filled with whipped cream or frosting to decorate cakes and cupcakes. You can add an attachment called a piping tip to get different designs and patterns. That's how bakers can get exquisite embellishments on desserts. Piping bags are so frequently used by cake decorators that they are almost viewed as an extension of their hands when crafting a layered cake.

Piping bags can also be filled with ganaches, custards, and various sauces to pipe into croissants, breads, and other baked goods. A stash of piping bags in your baking cabinet is handy when decorating any dessert, especially when paying attention to detail to obtain the most uniform design.

Immersion blender

Did you accidentally overcook and curdle your custard? With a few pulses from a handy immersion blender, it'll turn into the velvety, smooth custard of your dreams. An immersion blender is a handled blender without an attached bowl or jar. The blender features an electric motor with a metal wand that has sharp, rotating blades. This multipurpose tool can emulsify, whip, puree, crush, and blend anything you desire.

In the baking world, it is common to use an immersion blender to puree custards, puddings, jams, and sauces after cooking. It ensures smooth, glossy finishes and will turn any semi-liquid or liquid into an emulsified product. It's great for desserts, as well as blending together soups, like this classic potato and leek recipe or this Thai-inspired coconut and pumpkin soup.

Rotating cake stand

Looking to leave the sourdough bread trend back in 2020? Snatch up a new hobby by crafting beautifully frosted layered cakes with the assistance of a rotating cake stand. Frosting an entire layered cake by yourself can seem daunting. That's why this type of cake stand has a rotating turntable, allowing you to easily spin the cake around while you smooth out, frost, and pipe on decorations. Compared to a typical cake stand, this one is slightly taller and wider, which helps bakers get closer to the cake and makes the construction process a lot easier.

Along with the offset spatula, a rotating cake stand is one of the most indispensable tools for a professional cake decorator or pastry chef. Owning the cake stand may not make you a pro baker, but it will definitely make frosting and decorating a piece of cake.

Baking mats

If your chocolate chip cookies are always coming out of the oven with burnt bottoms or stuck to the pan, you should invest in a few baking mats. These mats are designed to create nonstick surfaces and conduct heat evenly on sheet trays. Baking mats are typically made of a combination of silicon and fiberglass. You can find them in a lot of different variations. The most common is the whole baking mat, great for baking cookies or anything you want to throw in the oven. Some include pre-portioned circles for macarons, while others have perforated holes that allow air to freely move through, resulting in a crisper product.

Thankfully, these mats are dishwasher safe — great for those messy baking moments or when you're cooking up something sticky. Ditch your cooking spray or parchment paper and buy a pack of baking mats to improve your confectionery repertoire.

Danish dough hook

Another tool you may not own is the Danish dough hook. This unconventional baking tool features a wooden handle with two flat metal-coiled loops. The wide loops in the Danish dough hook are, well, hook-shaped and used to combine flour and water for bread dough. The large loops allow the dough to move freely without sticking to the sides of the bowl or the tool. The coils are extremely helpful when mixing nuts, fruits, and seeds into a dough, and they also work great for stirring porridge, oatmeal, batters, and stews.

Of course, given its name, the baking tool is from Denmark, where it is traditionally called "brodpisker." While it may be unfamiliar, the Danes and other cultures around the world have been using this tool for centuries, making the Danish dough hook a tried-and-tested addition to any novice bread baker's toolkit.

French rolling pin

For newer bakers, it can be a tad bit tricky to roll out pie dough for the first time. It's easy for the dough to tear and melt in your hands — not to mention it's pretty difficult to roll a flat and smooth dough without bumps or cracks. This rolling pin simply consists of a long wood dowel with tapered ends. The difference between a standard and a French rolling pin is that this one's narrowed ends allow you to apply more or less pressure to each side as you roll out your dough, making it easy-breezy to create a smooth and even surface.

Most likely you have a standard rolling pin, either made from wood or plastic, that has two handles on the side, somewhere in your kitchen — if so, it's time to trade it for the easy-to-use French rolling pin.

Pastry knife

One of the hardest scenarios for bakers to witness is when someone ruins their beautifully crafted dessert by slicing it with a dull or ill-suited knife. To stop this heartbreak, you should invest in a professional pastry knife. Its thin blade and serrated edges enable it to cut through any baked good without crumbling or crushing the product.

Most pastry and restaurant kitchens have a specific set of pastry knives for slicing items like viennoiserie, cakes, and bread. This knife is an absolute must if you're looking to dive into cake decorating since it can effortlessly slice through a cake without breaking the layer. Enough butchering your desserts with an inadequate knife — buy a pastry knife to solve any dessert devastation.

Perforated baking tray

If you want to achieve ultra-crispy baked goods, then a perforated baking tray might pique your interest. A perforated baking tray has tiny holes that allow air to circulate and moisture to escape, resulting in crunchy, crispy, evenly cooked tarts, bread, pizza, or pastries. The increased airflow is also great for bread-making to guarantee you have chewy and crusty bread. To obtain the best results from this baking tool, place a perforated baking mat on top of the tray instead of parchment.

This baking tray is mandatory when baking tart crusts — the holes allow hot air to rapidly penetrate the crust, ensuring a full-cooked bottom that won't break. If you want to get fancier, buy a perforated tart ring to produce a uniform and baked tart like a professional. With this setup, you'll have the key to crispy, crunchy, and golden crusts.

Banneton

You might think an ordinary bowl is a suitable proofing basket for your precious sourdough, but you're wrong. Developed in the boulangeries of France, a banneton — or proofing basket — is made with spruce wood with a cloth-lined interior. Used to hold shaped bread dough while it rises, the banneton's cloth and shape wick away moisture from the dough's surface, helping you achieve a perfect score, sturdy structure, and crispy crust.

It's crucial to leave these proofing baskets upside down after use to ensure no mold grows inside the wood or cloth. One way to tell if a Parisian boulangerie is closed for the day is if you can see a pyramid of drying bannetons. The next time you're wandering the street of Paris, peer into a closed bakery and look for the stack of bannetons waiting to be used again.

Digital thermometer

A digital thermometer is a vital piece of equipment in the world of pastry, chocolatiers, candy-makers, or breadmakers. Minutes matter in every corner of the dessert world, and the thermometer provides an accurate read within seconds. A digital kitchen thermometer is uniquely calibrated to show the temperatures of food while baking or cooking. Typically, it will have a metal probe and a small screen to show the temperature.

The most effective way to get a precise read is by leaving the thermometer inserted into the food for a few seconds, which will let the thermometer fully calibrate and present an accurate temperature. Nowadays, some advanced digital thermometers are oven-safe and can connect to your smartphone. The temperature is usually displayed through an app — the perfect choice for those nervous bakers.

Spice grinder

A spice grinder is superb for several reasons. First, you can grind nuts to add texture to any sweet treat. Furthermore, you can blitz any grain or seed to have an all-purpose flour alternative readily available — which is especially useful for anyone baking gluten-free treats. Spice grinders come in a lot of different shapes and styles. A handheld grinder is best for spices and dried herbs, while an automatic grinder is suitable for nuts and grains when making garnishes or flour alternatives.

It's always best to grind grains for flour yourself since prepackaged flour can expire and lose its flavor over time. Plus, freshly milled flours will improve the taste, color, and aroma of your baked goods. If you crave nutty desserts, you may want to consider grinding your nuts. Pre-grounded nuts, once chopped, instantly lose fat content — resulting in a slight flavor difference compared to freshly ground nuts.

Ramekin

Being able to bake a scrumptious, fluffy souffle is a badge of accomplishment every professional baker must earn. The only way to achieve a successfully risen souffle is by using its vital equipment comrade — the ramekin. A ramekin is a circular bakeware vessel with heavy, straight sides and a fluted rim, typically made from ceramic, porcelain, or glass. You'll be able to find this baking tool in all sizes. Whether small, medium, or large, ramekins were invented to create individual portions of food, but bakers soon realized they held the power to make the perfect souffle. However, these practical and indispensable baking tools shouldn't be limited to just souffles. Ramekins are an aesthetically pleasing way to store salt and pepper beside your stovetop or to use as a vessel for classic creme brulee.

Cookie press

One baking tool that might not be in your kitchen is the unitasker cookie press. This user-friendly device is used for making pressed cookies with an imprinted design or pattern. It has a long aluminum or plastic cylinder that you fill with dough with a plunger at the end. You can switch the plunger perforated disks with different designs for various cookies like spritz, macaroons, butter cookies, or even savory biscuits. Don't fret about baking enough cookies for everyone — the cookie press is extremely helpful when making large batches of cookies for any celebration, holiday season, or simply just to have a stash of cookies. Roll through the holiday baking season like a professional and pick up a cookie press to elevate the stress of any cookie conundrum.

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