FAIL! Silicone Baking Liners

We picked up a set of these silicone baking liners a while back and finally had a chance to put them to use over the holidays. We whipped up a big batch of red velvet cupcakes (more on THOSE tomorrow!) and eagerly awaited our rewards. The cupcakes were excellent, but the liners? Not so much. Have you used these before?

On the plus side, the sturdy little cups were very easy to fill. Paper liners tend to flop over, get jostled, or otherwise make filling them a pain. These stayed put and the cupcakes baked beautifully with a nice little dome. The packaging even says the silicone liners can be used without a muffin tin!

The trouble came when we actually tried to eat the cupcakes. Instead of peeling away easily like paper liners, the silicone stayed stiff and rather unyielding. We’d get one side free and then it would snap back before we could actually get the cupcake out.

This meant digging into the little cupcake with our fingers, trying to work our way underneath. This was incredibly messy, mangled the cupcake, and left a lot of cake still stuck to the bottom of the liners.

The best technique seemed to be rolling back the sides and pushing up the bottom like a push-pop. But since this required two hands, the cupcake easily toppled from our grasp and fell on the counter. Oh no! (Maybe this would have been a better strategy pre-frosting!)

Next time we’ll try spritzing the liners with a little nonstick spray. The instructions didn’t say to do this, but maybe it will help dislodge the cupcake more easily. These liners also might work better with a sturdy muffin instead of a delicate cupcake. In any case, it looks like we’re not alone in being frustrated!

Have you ever used these silicone liners for cupcakes or muffins? What’s your experience?

Related: Bake-and-Give Pans from King Arthur Flour

(Images: Emma Christensen)