Pastry Mat Test and Giveaway

Today we are honored to be hosting a giveaway with Wusic Tech of their sili baked! Silicone Pastry Mat that they sent your Chocolate Priestess to try out. This is company contact we made through the Tomoson program we are members of.  I used this mat to make a few items I'm going to show you photos of so that I can talk about how well it works.  If you like what I describe then you can enter to have a chance to win one of these yourself from Wusic Tech. Our GIVEAWAY will go until next Friday, June 6, 2014, when I'll announce the winner at Noon eastern time.  The GIVEAWAY is only open to addresses in the USA; sorry international readers! Disclosure: I got this product as part of an advertorial.

My mother had a big pastry mat that she used all the time when I was growing up.  I don't know what happened to it but it wasn't anywhere when I was visiting a few months before her death and then again for final services.  So when I saw this opportunity on Tomoson to host this giveaway and test the product, I applied and we were accepted. I will be comparing this to my mother's mat simply because that is the only pastry mat I had any experiences with but I'll also be comparing this sili baked! mat to just using a countertop or table top.

The sili baked! mat is smaller than my mother's but it covers the same amount of room that I normally use on our table where I previously made any sort of rolled out pastry.  Like my mother's mat this one had conversation charts for measurements but unlike hers it also has two basic recipes -- roll out sugar cookies and pie crust.

The sili baked! mat is rolled up with a thin layer of paper that I kept and reused to keep it safely put away when not needed.  In fact I strongly recommend that you do this as well as keep the plastic sheaf both were in and the box.  It doesn't take up a lot of room and it will protect the item.

I recall my mother's mat needed to be held down for a while on the edges after you unrolled it but not this sili baked! mat. Nope, the sili baked! mat unrolls then stays flat and in place because it is slightly textured on the back side but mostly smooth on the front or at least smooth enough that it doesn't leave marks on the dough you roll out.  You will need a bit of flour to help hold the dough in place and I find that a little flour on the rolling pin is helpful as well.

Unlike just using a table or countertop the cleanup was easy -- I just wiped it down and dried it off, set it aside and very quickly was able to dust off the tiny amount of flour that I'm brush off the mat.  Much faster to set up and clean up than just the top of my kitchen furniture plus I didn't have to worry about hurting the tabletop I normally must use.

I made Frosted Orange Chocolate Sugar Cookies for the first test of the sili baked! mat. Here in this photo you see the cookies after baking.  The sili baked! ma worked really well and I think they turned out fine.  From starting to finishing 77 cookies took about two hours total including making the dough, rolling, using a cookie cutter, baking, cooling, making frosting, and apply it.

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.

You buy the mat through Amazon.com at our link below and help The Chocolate Cult out at the same time if this product would be useful in your kitchen.  Continue below the ad for the GIVEAWAY entry form please.



GIVEAWAY -- one USA reader will win a sili baked! Pastry Mat of your very own.  Please follow the Rafflecopter form to enter and let your friends know so that we get plenty of entries.  FYI -- if you say that you are leaving a comment below, you need to do so because I get a notice with entries and if I don't see a comment associated with said entry points, I can and will delete those entry points thus lowering your chance to win.

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