Don't get me wrong. I have nothing against them. Except that I was always running out of them in the middle of a batch of something, and they were expensive, and half the muffin (or cupcake) seemed to stick to the sides of the liner instead of being available for MY insides. And while it can be rather fun to scrape the crumbs off the liner with one's teeth, the procedure lacks dignity.
So I started using parchment paper instead. This is what I like to do:
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| Tear off a strip about 4" wide... |
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| Fold in half repeatedly (lengthwise and widthwise) until you end up with this ~ roughly 2" square |
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| With good sharp scissors, cut around the edges to make a squarish sort of circle, and... |
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| Voilà! 16 little liners. |
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| Just drop them in. (No need to grease the pan.) It's okay if they don't perfectly cover the bottom. Add batter as usual. |
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| I run a thin flat spatula around the sides when finished baking. (Raspberry chocolate chip oatmeal muffins. I could hear you wondering.) |
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| The paper peels right off. These muffins came out with nice crusty sides due to the baking time. (I like them that way.) Cupcakes won't get this crusty. |
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| The extras go into a little snap-top plastic container. |
After a few batches, I have enough extras on hand that I don't need to cut any for a time or two. (When I'm feeling very ambitious and organized, I cut up a supply in advance.)
I did a bit of quick calculating, and here are some numbers if you're interested in a cost comparison:
Parchment Paper: I pay about $3 - $3.50 for a 24-foot roll at the grocery store. An entire roll would yield 1152 standard-size liners. Let's round up the cost and round down the yield: say $3.50 for 1000.
Muffin Cups: On Amazon, Wilton Standard White Baking Cups cost $3.38 for 75.
It may not be as pretty as the liners, but I think the parchment is a much better deal for everyday use.
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