Quick Tip: Use Parchment Paper as Muffin Cup Liners

We think this is an ingenious idea from Martha Stewart! It will be an especially handy trick for those times when we run out of liners in the middle of a batch of muffins. And it looks elegant, too - don't you think?

The instructions say to cut 5-inch squares of parchment and press them into muffin cups (spraying the cups with cooking spray first helps the parchment stick). We think the only trick would be to make sure the folded parchment lies really flat against the side of the cup, or else the batter will end up in the creases and we'll be digging paper out of our muffins!

We love the airy wings framing the little pastry and think these would be very cute at a garden party or fancy brunch. We could also write our guests' names on one of the flaps for a personal touch (after baking, of course). And there's no reason why we couldn't bake cupcakes using the same technique!

Do you like this look?

• Crisp Muffin Wrappers from Martha Stewart

(Images: Martha Stewart)

Comments (10)

I like it but I'm not sure I have the patience to cut out the squares and then get them lined up just right in the muffin cups. Good idea for a last-minute option, though.

posted by gardensimple on September 11th 2009 at 9:33am
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very elegant

posted by mlleErica on September 11th 2009 at 9:42am
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I don't want to bang on anybody, but this idea has been around for a couple of years in Europe. Actually, the sample muffins that are in the photo aren't baked in parchment squares down by hand, but they are made and pressed in Italy. That's why they are so symmetrical and elegant looking. When made by hand the creases don't hold up as well and the muffin sort bakes all around the parchment and its a little messy to take the muffin out.

posted by David_B. on September 11th 2009 at 11:06am
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That's a great idea as a quick fix but what on earth did they do to make sure the tips didn't singe? I have never had parchment come out of the oven that white!

posted by spinstah on September 11th 2009 at 11:17am
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Maybe if you use a glass or something to push the parchment into place before filling? I've also seen muffins baked into a parchment tube. You role the parchment into tubes and fills those. I tried it once, but I got so frustrated trying to get the parchment to stay in place while filling, that i just went back to normal liners.

posted by kittyball on September 11th 2009 at 12:13pm
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I've tried this before but my technique mustn't have been too keen; all of my muffins wound up on the small side and very funky-shaped. That's not to say I won't try it again; I rarely forget the parchment paper at the grocery store, but always forget the muffin liners...

posted by amber77 on September 11th 2009 at 12:54pm
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I can't believe I never thought of this. It's happened to me so many times, great solution!

posted by Elissa-D on September 11th 2009 at 3:24pm
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You can buy the greaseproof tulip baking cups at Amazon. It saves you the trouble. If you are interested, I wrote about it and how to make the tubular muffins on my blog.
http://athome.kimvallee.com/2009/09/tulip-baking-cups/

posted by At Home with kim vallee on September 11th 2009 at 9:07pm
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When I was a child in the 1970s, I remember bakeries in Chinatown doing the same thing for their all cupcakes. So it's definitely not a new idea, but a good idea that's been around for quite some time.

posted by ogirl on September 11th 2009 at 9:08pm
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would these work for individual souffles?

posted by taiyyaba on September 23rd 2009 at 12:06pm
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