TIL my oven runs way hotter than it should

My chocolate chip cookies kept burning on the bottom every single time I baked them. I followed the recipe to the letter and set the timer right. A baking buddy told me to test my oven with a standalone thermometer. Sure enough, the dial said 350 but it was actually hitting 375 inside. I adjusted the temperature down and my last batch came out perfectly chewy and golden. It feels like a tiny victory but it makes such a big difference. No more guesswork or wasted batches just from one simple check.

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3 Comments

leoshah7mo ago

Yeah, I had the same fight with some gingerbread men. The legs would be almost black while the heads were still pale. My cheap fix was to put an empty baking sheet on the rack below the one I was using. It blocks some of that direct bottom heat. Not as good as fixing the temp, but it saved a batch in a pinch when I was in a hurry.

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iris_adams7mo ago

Heard some ovens just have hot spots at the bottom.

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brown.simon6mo ago

That empty sheet trick is a solid short term fix. I ended up getting a pizza stone and leaving it on the bottom rack of my oven full time. It helps even out the heat so much, stops those scorching hot spots from directly hitting your pan. It also makes the oven hold its temperature better when you open the door. Basically turns a cheap oven into a slightly less cheap one.

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