Baking Sheet vs Cookie Sheet: Your baking success mostly depends on the right bakeware you use. If your bakeware is a poor heat conductor, over-browns certain foods, or gives your food a metallic taste, you should stop using the bakeware and choose one that doesn’t support these issues.
In our opinion, a piece of bakeware cannot provide you with the best results unless you use it for the right baking recipes. For example, a Non Stick Baking Sheet is an excellent option for baking loaves of bread, while a cookie sheet is a perfect choice for making a wide variety of cookies.
What Is the Main Difference Between Baking Sheet and Cookie Sheet?
So, which bakeware should you choose?” As there are several types of bakeware available on the market today, finding the right one among them is challenging. Considering all the features and benefits, baking sheets and cookie sheets are the best baking options you need to consider.
If you’re looking for preferring one, you need to know the differences between cookie sheets and baking sheets. To help you out, we’re now going to compare these two baking options so that you can narrow down your choice according to your requirements.
What is a Baking Sheet?
A baking sheet also called a baking tray or sheet pan is a flat, rectangular metal tray on which a wide variety of foods, such as pastries, bread rolls, and some flat baked items, including cookies, pizzas, and sheet cakes, can be baked in the oven.
Similar to other bakeware, baking sheets are manufactured with different materials, like stainless steel or aluminum.
However, commercial baking sheets can be made of aluminized steel where the baking surface is typically 90% aluminum and 10% silicon.
When it comes to appearance, baking sheets often come with 4- raised edges, also called them rims, to retain food and liquid.
Some of them may have handles to help you move them into and out of the oven. Most importantly, you can use them directly on any flat heat source.
What is a Cookie Sheet?
A cookie sheet is a type of baking sheet, featuring a flat, rectangle shape and at least one rolled edge for easily taking in and out of the oven.
It mainly comes in two main types; one is rimmed usually at one side, and another is rimless, a totally flat surface.
Apart from making cookies, rimmed cookie sheets allow you to make other baked foods. However, non-rimmed cookie sheets are used only for baking cookies.
As they’re rimless, you can effortlessly slide cookies off the sheet to a serving dish.
Both types of cookie sheets are typically made of aluminum. You’ll also find cookie sheets made of steel and ceramic.
Aluminum cookie sheets are highly durable, whereas ceramic ones are breakable. And steel cookie sheets need to be oiled and washed regularly.
Baking Sheet vs. Cookie Sheet: Is a cookie sheet the same as a baking sheet?
Now that you know what baking sheets and cookie sheets are, you can easily find the differences between these pieces of bakeware. Although both sheets can be used interchangeably in a few recipes, here are some crucial factors in which they usually differ.
Construction Material
Both baking and cookie sheets are usually made of aluminum. However, baking sheets can also be made of steel or aluminized steel (especially for commercial purposes). On the other hand, you’ll also find cookie sheets made of steel or ceramic.
Raised Edges
When it comes to edges, baking and cookie sheets are clearly different. Baking sheets come with 1-inch tall, 4- raised edges, while cookie sheets are designed to be flat sheets that don’t have raised edges. Some of them may have only one raised edge to ensure effortless sliding.
Outer Rims
Since baking sheets have 4- raised edges, they have at least shallow outer rims around the sheets. Consequently, they can keep all liquids from sliding off. On the contrary, cookie sheets don’t come with outer rims because they usually don’t have raised edges.
Size & Shape
If you measure the diameter of both baking sheets, you’ll see baking sheets are slightly bigger than cookie sheets in most cases. In the case of shape, there is no difference between the two because they both come with a rectangular shape.
Nonstick Properties
You can find both baking and cookie sheets with a nonstick surface to keep the baking items away from sticking. However, the nonstick surface may get ruined if you overuse the sheets, or they continually absorb excessive temperatures.
Heat Absorption
Whether you’re baking something on a baking sheet or a cookie sheet, if your bakeware has a darker baking surface, it can absorb more heat than others. It can also cause over-browning to your baked items. Therefore, you cannot crisp them again.
Versatility
Not only can a baking sheet bake pastries, bread rolls, and some flat baked items, but it can also roast vegetables and chicken due to the raised edges that keep liquids from spilling. In contrast, cookie sheets can only be used for baking cookies because of their flat surface.
Reactivity
As most baking sheets are made of steel, they’re quite reactive to some highly acidic dishes. In this case, you have to use parchment paper to avoid reactivity. However, cookie sheets are typically made of aluminum, and therefore, they don’t react to acidic ingredients.
Usage of Spatula
Cookie sheets are usually flat, and that’s why you can effortlessly use a spatula to flip and slide the ingredients off the sheets. Baking sheets, on the other hand, have raised edges and rims around them. So, you can hardly use a spatula to serve the baked foods.
Multiple Options
Cookie sheets have multiple options to choose from, like metal cookie sheets, nonstick cookie sheets, insulated cookie sheets, etc. Unlike cookie sheets, baking sheets usually don’t come with many variations. By the way, you may find nonstick baking sheets these days.
Final Words
Although baking and cookie sheets can be used interchangeably, you already know that there are so many differences between baking and cookie sheets. If you want to know which one is the real winner in this debate, we’ll say it mostly depends on your baking requirements.
| Factor | Baking Sheets | Cookie Sheets |
|---|---|---|
| Construction Material | Aluminum, Steel, Aluminized Steel | Steel, Ceramic |
| Raised Edges | Yes, 1-inch tall, 4 raised edges | No |
| Outer Rims | Yes, shallow outer rims | No |
| Size & Shape | Slightly bigger, Rectangular shape | Slightly smaller, Rectangular shape |
| Nonstick Properties | Yes | Yes |
| Heat Absorption | Can absorb more heat due to darker surface | Can absorb less heat |
| Versatility | Can bake, roast due to raised edges | Primarily used for baking cookies |
| Reactivity | Reactive to acidic dishes (use parchment) | Non-reactive to acidic ingredients |
| Usage of Spatula | Not suitable for flipping due to raised edges | Suitable for easy flipping |
| Multiple Options | Limited options | Various options (metal, nonstick, insulated) |
For only baking cookies, you need to prefer a cookie sheet because it provides you with a lot of conveniences to bake a wide variety of cookies. However, if you’re after something else that allows you to bake bread as well as roast vegetables, a baking sheet will be the right option.
Anyway, we recommend you bring both sheets into your kitchen. If the budget is an issue, we would suggest buying a baking sheet instead of a cookie sheet. Whatever the bakeware you choose, make sure it comes with rigid construction and serves your baking purposes best.
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Hello! I’m Paula Deen, a mother who loves to create memories in the kitchen. As a kitchen enthusiast, I love to do experiment with different kitchenware for daily recipes. This is my blog, where I’ll share my experience, knowledge, and reviews on various kitchenware and appliances.