I use parchment paper. I would NEVER use wax paper.

Wax paper tends to be unpredictable, unless it is both greased and floured - iffy even then.

In which case, you would be better off using either a homemade pan coating, or parchment paper. Another option would be a product such as Baker's Joy (non-stick spray with flour in it).

Sol

I use parchment There is NEVER any hunks left in the pan when you use parchment :)

Grease the pan, line with parchment or waxed paper as you have available, grease the paper and then dust the pan with flour. No broken cakes, no tears. I own a bakery. :)

Another vote here for parchment over waxed paper. I actually did a "test kitchen" side-by-side of waxed paper vs parchment and even though I greased & floured the waxed paper, while it didn't stick to the pan it stuck to the cake in places. Parchment did not.

I learned how to do this with wax paper long long ago, but parchment paper was not common back then. Worked just fine. If I ever bake a cake again, I'll probably use parchment paper. Ediej, it's always been easy to peel off the wax paper without problem.

I think waxed paper used to be used more because it wasn't always possible for home cooks to get parchment paper. I don't recall it being able to find it here until the 80s.

And how does the wax not wind up melting into your food?

Yes, use parchment. Years ago I used wax paper when parchment wasn't around. I only used it to line cake pans, and not if it would be exposed to direct heat, such as cookie sheets. I never had a problem, but those were parchment-less times. I also had...and still have...cake pans with removable bottoms that made it easy.

For a favorite cake that tends to stick, I grease and flour the pan, add a wax paper round, and then grease and flour it. Works great. I use Better Than Pam. Did Jasdip give us the recipe for that? I love it.

I use both depending on what is available. Waxed paper seems to be a little easier to mould into the shape of the pan. I don’t worry about the health concerns as I only eat cake but once a year or so.

I rarely use paper. If there's a warning that something is particularly sticky, i might. i use shiny aluminum pans, and am careful with greasing and flouring (or other, such as cocoa for chocolate) the way I was taught as a child. I think people aren't always careful to get it complete and even. if you don't have time to do it just so, it makes sense to use paper. I think it makes the bottom of most cakes too wet. The parchment sticks to the cake. Not like stuck to the pan, but clinging from the damp like it's trapping moisture. I don't like it.

I always mean to try making "Better than Pam", but never get around to it, and don't really have a need, since my cakes don't stick.

Have used both, but prefer parchment, unless I'm making rounds for a layer cake.

I've been baking cakes for about 60 years and just grease and flour the cake pan and lately I've used Bakers Joy spray. I have never had a cake stick yet and never used parchment or waxed paper. Now every recipe says to use parchment. I think I will just stick to what I know.

I was raised to line cake pans with waxed paper (greased, but you grease with parchment too) because it works and because parchment was not readily available back in those days. I now use parchment and have for years because it's ubiquitous these days. I still use wax paper to wrap sandwiches and between layers of cookies in containers.

This is an excellent carrot cake recipe (grease the pans).

sift together:

2 C flour

1 tsp. Baking Powder

1 tsp. Baking Soda

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. salt

Combine:

1 1/2 C vegetable oil

2 C sugar

4 eggs

Gradually add dry ingredients to wet.

Add:

2 C grated carrots

Preheat to 350, bake 50-60 minutes 2 -9" greased pans

Icing:

Cream together:

1/2 C softened butter

8 oz Cream Cheese

1 tsp vanilla

1 box powdered sugar

1 C chopped pecans

Not exactly on topic, but Baker’s Joy has been mentioned in several responses. I used to use Baker’s Joy, I’m an infrequent baker. The Baker’s Joy would stop working after a while. I switched over to a similar Williams-Sonoma product, Bak-Klene ZT Nonstick Baking Spray. It is a bit pricey, but the can doesn’t fizzle out half way through!

I have an old recipe of my Mom's from the late 50's, (for cheesecake) and it says to line the cheesecake pan with WAXED paper. I remember as a child my Mom doing that, using waxed paper. But as Mary points out, I also don't remember parchment paper being a common item available in the stores until just recently. Maybe in the larger cities, but both my Mom and I grew up in the boonies. However, when I make the cheesecake, I use well-greased parchment paper, and after my last go around with the recipe, I have decided that a well greased pan is all that is necessary.

I pinkmountain, I agree. One of my springform pans has become somewhat leaky, soi used the waxed paper last time I made cheesecake. Bot, what a pain trying to get the paper off without breaking the cake. I think a new pan might be the answer.

I seal my cheesecake pan on the outside with aluminum foil, so that helps with any leakage issues. Also, I do my graham cracker crust all the way up the sides, so that's why I don't have a problem with the filling oozing into the cracks in the springform pan. The greased parchment paper sort-of held in moisture and made the graham cracker crust a little soggy this last time I did the cheesecake. So I think I can get away with just greasing the pan and also baking the empty crust a bit before adding the filling.

Louise, if you're getting a new pan, get a cheesecake pan, rather than a springform. A cheesecake pan looks like a layer cake pan with taller sides, but has a loose bottom like a tart pan. It won't hold a loose batter, but with a solid cheesecake crust, it's ideal.

Thanks pillog! I’ve never heard of that. I’ll check it out.

I used to use waxed paper, now I use parchment. I've never used either for cheesecake, which I bake in a springform pan. As others have mentioned, parchment wasn't readily available or well known decades ago when I started baking, and I greased and floured the waxed paper just like I do parchment.

eld6161, I use this recipe, I like the pineapple in it. I usually bake a 9x13, not layers.

Carrot Cake

2 cups flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

3 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

2 cups shredded carrots

1 cup glaked coconut

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 8 oz can crushed pineapple, drained

Mix dry ingredients, make a well in the center and add sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla. Mix with wooden spoon until smooth and stir in carrots, coconut, walnuts and pineapple.

Grease and flour a 9x13 pan, pour cake batter in and bake at 350f for about 45 minutes. The center will sink a little, it's OK. Allow to cool and frost with: One 8 oz pkg cream cheese, 1/4 cup butter, 1 cup powdered sugar, mixed until smooth.

Annie

I never grease parchment paper. Have I been doing it wrong all these years? It never sticks. Anyway, I wouldn't use wax paper. Carrot cake. Yum :-)

I don't think waxed paper is quite the quality it was when my mother used it. Seems thinner now

I used to use wax paper as a kid/teenager/young adult/Middle Ager - greased the pans - added the wax paper to the bottom then greased and floured the pans. I have now bought King Arthur Flour pre-cut 8” rounds/9” rounds/half sheet pan parchment paper when they offered free shipping. I am sure I now have a lifetime supply. Use the same process as before but use the KA pre-cuts. Cannot tell a difference in results but the pre-cuts are super easy. LOVE carrot cake!!

Rockypointdog, if it doesn't stick you're doing it right. Most parchment has a silicone coating. The all plant based, and sometimes the "all natural"(Depending on their definition) have a latex coating. Old fashioned waxed paper had paraffin wax (though pre-20th C. generally had beeswax). Many current waxed papers have soy wax instead. FWIW, freezer paper used to be coated with wax, but now has plastic. Since both are petrochemical, I'm not sure exactly what the change is. I can't really tell the difference.

Also, FWIW, I love the beeswax impregnated bread cloths from Bee's Wrap (Made with organic cotton, beeswax, organic jojoba oil, and tree resin). There's also a kind of waxed cloth/paper that comes on a roll that they have on Amazon, which I haven't tried. Different company.

But I just use butter and flour/cocoa/spice/coffee to prep my cake pans. Occasionally oil or margarine and flour for non=dairy.

My mother always used waxed paper to line the bottoms of cake pans. I could be wrong, but I have a mental image of her picking at pieces of paper stuck to the bottom of the cake several times, not always.

I have a recipe or two that call for lining the pan. I don’t do it often enough to justify buying precut liners, but those sure do sound better than my often-misshapen liners.

I just got my first shipment of KAF parchment 1/2 sheet size. So much better than what comes off a roll. But if you do use rolled and have trouble making stay unrolled, I learned from watching PBS cooking shows to crumble the paper then smooth it out. That really does work if you can get the wrinkles out!

Those pre-cut rounds from King Arthur sound like great gift for my hubs, the cheesecake maker!

I like parchment better than waxed paper....here's my favorite carrot cake recipe...From JT's Cuisine...cookbook...to give credit where credit is due.

Carrot cake Julie T’s
3 eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup buttermilk
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 tsps cinnamon
1 8 oz can crushed pineapple, drained
2 cups grated carrots
1/2 cup raisins chopped with 1 Tablespoon of flour
Buttermilk glaze
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup butter
1 Tblsp light corn syrup
1 tsp vanilla
Orange Cream Cheese Frosting
1/2 cup softened butter
4 oz softened cream cheese
1 tsp vanilla
3 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp orange juice
1 tsp grated orange rind

Preheat oven to 350

With a mixer Beat eggs, add oil and buttermilk, sugar and vanilla. beat to
combine. Stir together flour, salt, cinnamon and baking soda and stir into batter.
stir in pineapple, carrots and raisins.
Pour into a greased 8 by 13 pan or 2 greased round 9 inch cake pans. Bake 35 to
45 minutes until set in the middle. Remove from the oven and immediatly spread
with the buttermilk glaze. Cool completely and frost with the cream cheese
frosting.

Buttermilk glaze:
In a medium sauce pan ( don't use a small pan) combine all ingredients but
vanilla. Bring to a boil and cook 3 minutes stirring often...it will bubble a
lot. It should be a light caramel color, stir in vanilla and pour over the cake

Cream cheese frosting:
Beat cream cheese and butter until light add vanilla powd. sugar and juice and
rind...beat until smooth and frost the cooled cake.