Silicone vs. Aluminum Baking Pans

Wilton Easy-Flex silicone bake ware

**Disclaimer**  I received no compensation for this product review. The products used were gifted for experimental use.
Product: Easy-Flex  silicone baking cups & Easy-Flex Silicone mini-muffin pan 
Where to buy: www.Wilton.com or where baking products are sold
Suggested Retail Price: $9.99 


It’s no secret that The Critic isn’t a baker however after combing the Wilton Company website for new gadgets, I came across the Easy-Flex silicone baking cups and the Easy-Flex mini-muffin pan. Being an aluminum pan gal myself, I wanted to test these  puppies out and gauge if silicone bake ware was a viable alternative to traditional aluminum baking pans. So, I contacted Wilton regarding my project and a few days later my pans were in the mail!

Staggered Baking Cups: Silicone vs. Paper

The 1st batch of cupcakes

Immediately, what I liked about the silicone bakeware is that it offered a reusable option that required minimum cleaning (just use hot soapy water). They can be placed in the dishwasher, microwave, refrigerator or freezer and they withstand temperatures up to 500 degrees. Also the cups can be used as gelatin and/or pudding molds. Although my bakeware was round, Wilton offers various shapes such as hearts, stars or animals. For storage they are flexible and require less space than my aluminum products.

Into the oven you go

When I received my package I was super-psyched to try them out. I immediately washed my cups and mini-muffin pan in hot soapy water as instructed. I then made a big batch of vanilla cupcake batter (from scratch mind you) and lined an aluminum muffin pan with both the silicone and traditional paper cups; staggering their placement for equal distribution. After I scooped out my gooey batter into the cups (willy-nilly like because I couldn’t find my scooper), I placed the cupcakes into a 350 degree oven for 17 minutes.

The toothpick test

Golden bottoms

Upon removal, I saw that the silicone cups didn’t pass the toothpick test.  The instruction sheet did note that temperature and cook times may vary compared to traditional pans. So, I placed them back in the oven for 5 more minutes.  When I took them out again the bottom of both cupcakes was browner than I had hoped. Also the flavor of the silicone-baked cupcakes was slightly different than the traditional cupcakes. The latter tasted more cupcake-y whereas the silicone cups tasted more like German-engineered efficiency.  

The 2nd batch was much better

On my second batch I only used silicone cups; I increased the time, and filled them up to the ridgeline as suggested.  I also used a cooking spray which made the bottoms a perfect golden brown.  Upon removal, the cupcakes practically leaped out without a trace of debris. Size wise, the cupcakes baked in silicone cups were smaller than the one’s in traditional liners but they were perfectly portioned.

Filling the mini-muffin pan

Clean-up: just soak and rinse or place in dishwasher


As for the mini-muffin pan the cupcakes were petite, fully cooked and a perfect brown color however; they were cumbersome to remove and left lots of debris. I strongly suggest that you use cooking spray-which I neglected to do-for optimal results.  Overall I really like the silicone baking cups for their ease of use, simple clean-up and the reusable option. Further at only $9.99* per set, it beats having to stockpile traditional paper cups!


 Purchase your set of Wilton Easy-Flex silicone cups or mini-muffin pan today!