I'd be skeptical of using such things.  I have a silpat.  And even that decreases the conduction of heat.  I often have to take the bread off the silpat halfway through baking so that the bottoms will cook all the way.

The question for me is simply, why bother?  A plain ol' non-stick bread pan is super-easy to clean, conducts heat very well, and is nice and sturdy.  What is it about a silicone pan that's supposed to make them superior?

I have several little tea loaf pans that I use all the time.  They work wonderfully for small loaves of yeast breads.  I especially love them for those sweeter quick breads because they clean up beautifully.  I always hated cleaning those little metal buggers so much, I had stopped baking those great gift size smaller loaves.

I also use the mini muffin pans a lot.  Same reason, I hated cleaning the metal ones.  I made several dozen mini carrot cakes for a reception and not a one stuck.  They were the perfect carrot cake bite with just a squirt of cream cheese icing swirled on top.

The round cake pans work well, but I tossed the square and rectangular ones.  They will not hold their shape.

The larger bread pans also work fine.  I just like my heavier metal Bake Works bread pans best for larger yeast breads.

Storage is easy.

I set them on a cookie sheet, of course.  Terry

Just my opinion but I Hate the ones that I have. The cakes and cupcakes stick no matter what and they don't retain their shape well. It may be that I don't have a quality set but they were gifts and I thought they would be great. However, after using the old non-stick pans and a stone I take the stance that less and simple is best.

Good Luck!

Eli

I have a silicone loaf pan that I use as a liner in a standard metal loaf tin. It works beautifully. Without ever greasing it, the bread slips out after being baked without any problem.

And I have a silicone sheet that I line cookie tray with for biscuits, buns, etc. It works fantastically.

One thing that I do not recommend though is to use the silicone sheet (or silpat) for any bread that has a lot of butter in it - like cinnamon buns. The silicone takes on the odor of whatever has been baked on it if there is a lot of fat. It took months to get rid of the cinnamon smell from my silpat.

-Elizabeth 

 Thanks for all your replies. I don't have a proper loaf tin at the moment and these silicone bakeware came up in a local store at reasonable prices so I thought I might give it a try. When some of you say that they don't hold their shape, do you mean they warp in high heat?

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Half Rice Half Woman 

Hi Halfrice,

The silicone pans are very flexible, so you'll want to put it on a baking sheet in the oven; it makes the whole thing easier to put in and take out.

 I have silicone muffin "tins", and they are waaay too floppy to put into the oven by themselves.  I do have to say that I love how I can easily pop out my muffins after they've cooled.  I do still use Pam spray, though.  They clean up really easily to boot :).

-Sonya

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"Betterment is a perpetual labor" - A. Gawande, MD

I think that depends on the quality of the silicone.

For me , i do not like to change my old traditions in baking,i did not even give the silicone a chance.

Try in small cup cake mould, if it makes you satisfied , go and buy, and tell me about the brand and the result, good luck!!