Feel free to make fun of my current baking pan obsession, but I can’t help myself. Have you seen these old Ovenex baking pans that are imprinted with a starburst pattern? I would have never thought a pan could be beautiful, but these certainly are. I’ve been slowly building up my collection, although I think a few of mine are too dirty to use for food. Does anybody have cleaning tips for removing rust and icky black stuff from baking pans? I tried baking soda and scrubbing really hard with a wire scrubber. That just made my arm tired, and I’m pretty sure the pans were laughing at me. I might just turn them into planters. Who’s laughing now?
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Oh my goodness! Love! I too have a obsession with baking pans and dishes. Great idea to turn them into planters! I’ll be on the lookout now for one for my kitchen windowsill to hold herbs.
Maybe soak in white vinegar, or use a water/baking soda paste? Those are basically my go-to gotta-clean-something-nasty ingredients. Cute pans! Hope you get to use them.
Oh yeah, vinegar might work. Maybe I’ll mix vinegar and baking soda, because that’s always fun! :)
I wouldn’t soak them for long…they can rust. I have a few of these too and think they are so pretty.
I tried using a bread tin to hold mail, but it filled up so quickly I just use itfor baking now. Good luck!
I just found two of the jelly roll pans, 14 and 16 inch sizes. I didn’t know anything about them but LOVED the design. Mine are dark in color now from being well used but I don’t think I would want to try to clean them up. I would rather them look old/used, give them more character. Your pics are so pretty!
Oh and I think I will be using mine as either a pretty tray or I might use them as a magnetic board. Hmmm, I’m seeing my idea turn into a nice blog post. Thanks for the inspiration!
Oh they would make awesome magnet boards! Great idea!
There’s this stuff called “Zud” that I got for hard water spots on my windows (hard water is a major problem in AZ). It’s amazing! It’s my go-to for anything tough now. It even has pictures of pots and pans on it, so it’s safe for that. It’s a powder, like comet, and you make a paste out of it. I got mine at Ace Hardware, but I don’t think those are out east.
Thanks Jenny! We do have Ace Hardware in NC, so I’ll see if I can find Zud.
Have you thought about oven cleaner (use outside!)??? It’s sort of hard core but I figure whatever is baked on those pans is the same type of stuff that gets baked on in an oven.
you can try mineral spirits or soaking in vinegar. Adding baking soda just decreases the effectiveness of either the vinegar or the baking soda, although it’s a popular “green” cleaning tip.
Well, vinegar may start causing oxidation. Believe it or not try oxi clean on a corner of the pan, or fall back to the past… my grandmother used oven cleaner. I would just try that on a small area to see if it would work. Good luck!
My mom always told me to use a brillo pad. I’d try soaking it for a while in hot, hot water, and then using a brillo pad and maybe vinegar?
Anyway, they’re super cute! :]
Thanks for all the cleaning suggestions! I will try them all, and hopefully you’ll see my shiny clean pans in future recipe posts. :)
These are so beautiful! I don’t have any cleaning suggestions (looks like that has been taken care of anyway), but I love the idea of using one or two as planters anyway. We have a similar pan (minus awesome pattern) on our hearth holding pinecones. :)
Just bought a pair of eight inch cake pans in this pattern(for $.10!!) . I stumbled upon this blog looking for company history. Mine were filthy and oven cleaner shined them right up. I think I’ll start collecting for use in my postwar vintage kitchen.
“Bar keepers Friend” is the best and so cheap,. I fixed up my old schwinn with it
i just saw these on pinterest and immediately recognized them… my family has some from my great-grandmother and we still use them. i’ve even used them (the bottoms) to do some printmaking-by-hand! (if you like, you can see one example on my website http://kristineasta.com/ if you click on “works on paper” and scroll down a bit.) anyway, i have always wanted to get my hands on more and now i can thanks to your post with the name! i’ll be keeping an eye out for these. thank you!
I just cleaned 2 Ovenex bread pans that were absolutely black with baked on grease from years of (seasoning haha), they are now sparkling. I used spray on oven cleaner, and a stained scrubber. I did this 2 times, it was the easiest thing that I have ever done. Now I want to buy more Ovenex pans.
Sorry, I meant a stainless steel scrubber.
My family has a wonderful tradition of making peanut brittle, and we always use my grandma’s old ovenex jelly roll pan with the starburst pattern!! Id love to find a replacement pan (as the original has a hole in it), can you tell me where you found your ovenex?
I found mine on ebay!
I have an old rusty bundt pan that I used for seedlings- it’s the perfect container for starting transplants!
I will take any pans that you don’t want I love the dark color. Kinda like cooking on cast iron.
Just bought two loaf pans at a yard sale for $1/both and didn’t know anything @ Ovenex or if safe to bake–so glad I found your site and love these pans!! maybe the beginning of another collection!!! love the site and fellow enthusiasts!!
Wow! Just bought a 14 x 9 Ovenex pan with starburst pattern at a flea market. It was pretty grungy, but I was afraid I’d ruin it with certain cleaning products. Tried the oven cleaner for 10 mins. Then I used a toothbrush and magic eraser. After rinsing, it looks fantastic! Can’t believe the difference! Thanks for the tip! P. S. Recommend doing this outside because of the fumes, and using rubber gloves.
Love this pan!!
I have two of the Ovenex starburst pattern bread pans that I “borrowed” from my parents when I went to college in the early 1970s. My mother baked almost all of our bread for years. I’m sure she had these pans since the ’50s and most likely she got them shortly after WWII. I still bake bread in them regularly.
To clean the rusty areas use aluminum foil folded over several times & rub the rusty areas off. It also shines it a little. Wash the pan & dry it well before you use it for baking. *also works for rusty chrome
Wow, other crazy collectors like me! I love these pans and just bought my first 3 at an estate sale for $10! (a cookie sheet, a 13″ long loaf pan, and a small rectangle cookie-type sheet with curved corners (Ovenex starburst pattern but manufactured & stamped Ekco).
I have a friend who spray painted one of the cookie sheets turquoise and uses it for magnets. It looks great!
I love the natural silver tone and would like to keep some “patina”, but mine are a bit grungy and I’m wondering how much (if any) of the natural patina remains after the various cleaning methods you have all described.
Thanks for any info, and happy collecting!
I have a small loaf pan that I think was my grandmother’s. It’s in fairly good shape and I still use it to bake!
–Liz
Thnaks for all the cleaning ideas..I cried when I thought I had lost Gramma’s pans. Vinegar and hot water has helped.
I have one of the Ovenex Starburst pans. A 10″ tube pan. I was wondering about the age of it as I recall it always being in our house when I was growing up. It might have arrived with my paternal grandmother as she moved in with us when I was around 6 or 7 which would have been 1958 or so. As I type this my husband is greasing & flouring it in preparation of the annual Christmas applesauce cake.