Jenna Atkinson

Glass rolling pins are a vintage collectable item typically from the 18th or 19th century.

Vintage glass rolling pins are shaped with 2 handles on each side. One of the handles has a metal cap or cork on the end of it. This is to fill the glass rolling pin with weight.

In ancient times, bakers used to fill the glass rolling pin with ice or cold water and then use it roll out their dough. However, this causes condensation on the glass rolling pin which transfers the water onto the dough.

How to Use a Glass Rolling Pin to Roll out Dough

1. Clean the rolling pin thoroughly and let it completely dry before using. Vintage items can collect dust, and you don’t want this to be rolled into your dough. Inspect the glass to make sure there aren’t any chips in the glass before using.
2. Fill a glass measuring cup of water. Microwave it for 10-15 seconds until it’s room temperature.
3. Open the glass rolling pin and pour the room temperature water into it.
4. Place the lid on the glass rolling pin.
5. Dry the glass rolling pin with a kitchen towel to remove any excess water that may have dripped on the outside of the pin.
6. Place your dough on a floured flat surface.
7. Flour your dough well. The flour will not stick to the glass rolling pin very well, so put a bit of extra flour on your dough to roll out.
8. Begin gently rolling forward and backwards. You don’t want to use too much force with a glass rolling pin or it has the potential to shatter.
9. Once you’re happy with the thickness of your dough, place the glass rolling pin in your sink so it doesn’t roll away from you.

How to clean a glass rolling pin

To clean a glass rolling pin, remove the cork or metal lid and drain the liquid from the rolling pin into your sink. Gently put soapy water into the rolling pin to clean the inside. Using a cloth with soap and water, gently wipe down the sides of the glass rolling pin to clean any excess dough off of it. Rinse the glass rolling pin with water and set it to dry with the open side down. This will make the water completely drain out of the pin.

Roll your dough into a ball. Place the ball on a flat surface.

Ideally, the dough should be put on a silicone mat. This way, the silicone mat does not need to be floured to be rolled out.

If you’re using your countertop only to roll out your dough, grab a handful of flour and sprinkle the flour in a large area. The flour should cover an area larger than the length of your rolling pin.

Place the dough on top of the floured countertop or on the silicone mat.

Grab a smaller handful of flour cover your rolling pin in flour. Use your hands to run the flour up and down the rolling pin to give it a good coating.

Grab a small handful of flour and sprinkle the flour onto your dough. Your dough will need less flour if it’s a dry dough. If the dough is quite sticky, you’ll need to put a lot of flour on the dough.

Placing flour on your rolling pin and dough will prevent the dough from sticking to the rolling pin.

It’s a pain to remove dough from the rolling pin. If you do end up getting dough on your rolling pin, clean it off with a cloth.

If clumps of dough accumulate on the rolling pin, this will create a pit in the dough when you roll the clump into the dough.

If your rolling has handles, grab the handles and put it in the center of the dough.

Use a bit of pressure to push the dough with the rolling pin to flatten it out a bit.

If you’re wanting to roll out a rectangle, continue rolling in the same direction. This will create a rectangular dough.

If you’re wanting to roll out a circle, roll the dough diagonally and vertically to make the dough into a circle.

Roll the dough from the center to the edges. This will make the center of the dough become more uniform in width as you continue rolling the dough to the required thickeness.

You can roll the dough towards you, and forwards. Try to make the entire dough as even as possible. If you’re wanting a more accurate measurement for your dough, you can try using a rolling pin with thickness rings.

When you’re finished rolling out your dough, you can use it right away, or place it in the fridge if you’re not quite ready to use it yet.

What can you use a rolling pin for

There are many uses for a rolling pin, including:

• rolling out pastry dough
• rolling out cookie dough
• rolling out a butter layer for croissant dough
• rolling out croissants
• rolling out tart dough
• rolling out pizza dough
• rolling out dumplings
• rolling out tortillas
• rolling out pita

Other Uses for rolling pins:

• smash candy, caramel, etc.
• place food items in a resealable bag. Roll the bag until it’s flattened. Place the bag in the freezer to save space. This works well for meat storage or meat tenderizing.

Types of rolling pins

• French wooden rolling pin – pastry dough
• Turkish rolling pin – dumplings, baklava, tortillas
• regular wooden rolling pin with or without handles
• dowel wooden rolling pin
• marble rolling pin – croissant dough
• glass rolling pin
• silicone rolling pin
• textured rolling pin – creates designs on dough
• fondant rolling pin

How to clean a rolling pin

To clean a rolling pin, gently wipe the rolling pin with a wet cloth until it’s clean. Let it air dry.

Do not soak the rolling pin in the sink, as this will cause the wood to warp and will not rolling your dough straight.

How to store a rolling pin

Store a rolling pin in a drawer or cabinet. This will prevent dust buildup on your rolling pin. Store it in an area that is dry so it will remain in good condition for years to come.