We've all been there. We're baking a fresh fruit pie or bubbly casserole, and we open the oven door to see that some of the filling has oozed over the edge of the pan - and right onto the oven floor. There's a simple solution to this: use a spill pan! And we actually have another good reason for using one.

Not only will a spill pan under your baking dish catch those stray drips and dribbles, but it will also make it easier to move awkward pans in and out of the oven. Not all of our baking dishes have handles, and trying to grab them with thick oven mitts can sometimes be troublesome. It's much easier to pick up and balance a whole tray instead!

We usually use a free cookie sheet lined with aluminum foil or parchment for our spill tray. The foil or parchment makes clean-up much easier! If you have one, lining the cookie sheet with a silpat is even better because it will keep the baking dish from slipping.

Now the only trick is actually remembering to use a spill pan. Very often, we seem to remember only after the pie drippings have become a burnt mess at the bottom of our oven!

Related: Survey: How do you Clean Your Oven?

(Image: Emma Christensen for the Kitchn)