The Foolproof Way To Nail Impressive Holiday Bakes

The holidays are in full swing now, and it feels like there’s so much to do — buying presents, planning trips, cooking for holiday parties. Multitasking under pressure just doesn’t work for most people, so it can be expected that plans will go awry. I buy my presents at least a month in advance, and the same goes for my travels. It’s when I have to start thinking about cooking and baking for everyone that I start to crumble just a bit.

Between November and January, I probably buy a year’s worth of foil and parchment paper just for the holiday baking I do. I’m basically the designated Christmas baker for my family, and now that I split the holidays with my boyfriend’s family, I obviously have to impress them (all 20+ of them) with baked goods. My friends also happen to expect a very specific holiday cookie from me every year. Saying I’m overwhelmed is an understatement.

It’s so annoying to get home, get ready to bake, and to realize that I’m out of parchment paper (I’m not a fan of cooking sprays or using bare cookie sheets). This past Thanksgiving also opened my eyes to how much parchment paper and foil I’m wasting when I bake. My goal was to find a happy medium between ditching parchment paper and keeping my pans as close to new as possible, and I was more than successful when I found out about the Miracle Mat. It’s reusable, eco-friendly, and has ruler edges to help me properly space out cookie dough.

You can buy it here.

I feel so much better about not wasting parchment paper while still being able to cover my pans. The rulers on the edges of the mat are just an added perk that I didn’t expect to love so much. Trust me when I say I’ll be bragging about this mat to everyone I’m baking for this holiday season.