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Enter the AirBake pan. It took quite a bit of experimentation with baking temp to get optimum results (setting the oven 25 degrees higher than specified in the recipe works best for me), but ultimately the results were fantastic. The really great thing about these pans is the way they distribute heat evenly -- even if your oven has hot and cold zones. And no more black bottoms!
My first edition AirBake pans finally started showing wear after nearly 20 years. Thinking that the technology might have improved over the years,especially in the sticking department. I bought a pair of Bakers Secret non-stick, guaranteed not to burn, insulated cookie sheets. Despite the relatively high price, the new pans are no better than my old mom hand-me-downs. They totally charred the first batch of cookies I used them for -- and even changes in cooking temp didn't give me good results (cookies near the edges were overdone; underdone near the center). So I'm delighted to find the AirBakes here on Amazon so I can replenish my inventory -- the store where I bought the Baker's Secret sheets won't take them back, so I'll donate them to the next church jumble sale!
Meanwhile, I continue to love cookie baking on my AirBakes (this time of year, I produce well over 3,000 cookies for gifts, so they get a workout). Yes, some cookies do stick to the pan -- I've solved that problem by using Matfer Exopats (much easier to use than parchment). Doesn't in any way effect the quality of the results, but makes them slip off the sheet with the greatest of ease -- even meringues!
The AirBake pan's even heat distribution can be approximated by putting an empty (old, cheap) cookie sheet on the bottom rack (lowest position) in your oven as a combination drip-catcher and heat-distributor to "shield" your regular cookie sheet (which you'll put, as usual, on the center rack). If you have an unreliable oven, you may find that this is enough to even out the heat distribution without having to resort to the AirBake pans, and you'll have a leg up on cleaning the oven if anything spills.
While I generally dislike nonstick surfaces, I find that my AirBake pan is particularly bad at releasing sugar cookies, and I recommend that you put down a layer of parchment paper if you're baking anything more delicate than oatmeal cookies on this sheet.
Because of this and the fact that it cooks slower than anything else in my kitchen, my AirBake pan is the last of the cookie sheets that I will reach for on a busy day: it's certainly better than nothing -- and I definitely think it is better than a cheap dark tin from the dime store -- but it is not my favorite.
However, while I prefer my standard commercial aluminum jelly roll pans, if you're not a very experienced baker, if you're teaching a new baker, or if you are likely to be interrupted at a critical moment by the phone ringing, the dog barking, the children screaming, and your head pounding -- then you might appreciate the grace period this pan's slightly slower cooking style allows you.
*Note: Making your own pre-frozen chocolate chip cookie dough is is easy and cheap; you don't have to buy it at the grocery store:
Mix up your usual chocolate chip cookies (the recipe on the package of chocolate chips works fine), and scoop the dough into little balls as if you were going to put them in the oven, but put them in the freezer (on a tray or plate) instead until frozen solid.
In the food service industry, this is called "individually quick freezing," because you get individual frozen lumps of future cookies. After they're frozen, dump them in a bag or other container, label it, and hide them from the kids.
When you want cookies later, take out the number of lumps that you want to bake, thaw them out in the refrigerator or even on the counter, and bake as usual -- if you waited until they were thawed out, which I don't generally do.
Instead, I them rock hard on to my AirBake pan, put the pan in the (cold) oven, turn on the oven to 325, and bake for about 20 minutes until done. (Check regularly; the timing depends on how big your cookies are.) This doesn't always work as well with a normal cookie sheet, as they bottoms sometimes cook before the tops have finished melting, although I sometimes use regular pans anyway.
No fuss, no muss, no dishpan hands: you've saved the time involved in mixing up the cookies again, you have excellent portion control (You only want two cookies? Only bake two. You don't have to bake "one batch" instead), and the only dishes that have to be washed are the cookie sheet and the utensil for getting the cookies off the pan.
I was also surprised that this one can go in the dishwasher!
