Does anyone have any baking accident stories they would like to share?


A little over 2 months ago I was working as an artisan bread baker and due to an accident involving faulty equipment, I suffered 2nd degree burns on over 10% of my body. I have since quit that job & am currently looking for a new one. Do these kind of things happen to anyone else or am I just terribly unlucky? lol

The worst thing that has ever happened to me is when I was spinning sugar for my croquembouche. There were drops of melted hot sugar on the counter and I touched it. It burned my finger so bad, I didn't enjoy my vacation (Also because none of my clothes fit me).

My Home Ec. teacher in school wore a wig and heavy make up. This was apparantly due to a gas oven exploding in her face many years previously.

Personally, I almost lost an eye when I tried to open the condensed milk can I'd been boiling for 2 hours when it was still too hot. The molten caramel shot out and just missed my eye. I had a nasty burn across the bridge of my nose for a couple of weeks and still have a bit of a scar!

wow now you just made me want to be more careful

Tubbs, I thought I was the only one who did that I was lucky mine didn't hit me in the eye but just on the neck and all over my white ceiling. That was fun cleaning it. Did your caramel explode all over too and shoot to the ceiling?

I've cut the tip of my middle finger and thumb off. The thumb was just connective tissue and it grew back. The finger had to be sewn back on since it was 3/4 of the way cut off. I was told it would probably turn black and fall off, but it didn't. Lesson learned. Don't turn your head when someone calls your name and for sure don't follow through with your chop when you loose proper finger placement.
The worst part was this happened in culinary school. Doh!

I caught my hair on fire.

It was when I first got started doing wedding cakes. Probably about my 2nd year. It was early 1980 and I looked HOT with the Farrah Fawcett hair!!!

They had candles around the cake. I leaned in to start to cut the cake and heard this funny noise, wondered "Hmmmm...what's that sound?" and realized it was my hair crinkling in flame!

It was put out in seconds with little damage. I had a hair appt the next day anyway so THAT worked out!

But ever since that day, when I start cutting the cake, ALL candles around the cake are extinguished. No negotiation.

Wow thanks for sharing your stories. My mother told me many years ago that on the cans of condensed milk, they used to have the recipe for boiling it in the can. She called the company a couple years ago and asked how long to boil it for because she couldn't remember and they strongly discouraged her from doing it due to safety reasons. Now I see why. Wow.

I have also been burned on my hands while making a croquembouche. I think pretty much everyone in my class burnt their fingers at some point or another while we were doing them. My partner in class had a bad blister that eventually turned black. eck! There are a lot of occupational hazards in this industry. lol I really wish people would quit using the saying "It's a piece of cake!" when they're talking about something easy, because it's not!

I still can't get past my fear of the blow torch. No creme brulee making in my near future. lol

I still do the caramel thing when making banoffee pie, I'm just a lot more careful when opening the can! No, it didn't explode everywhere, just a beautifully directed shot right towards my right eye!

BTW - if they're not giving out instructions any more...put can in boiling water for two hours, keeping an eye on the water level. Allow to cool for about half an hour and open with a cloth over the top, just in case!

Indy - I also set fire to my hair once, but it was in physics class and with a bunsen burner. Fortunately I have thick hair, so I just trimmed off the singed parts and carried on! There is a very particular smell to burning hair, and not a very nice one...!

aliciag829--I have to ask, what piece was the faulty equipment to do that much damage to you?
Are you almost all healed up?

I can't even begin to imagine 10% of your body being covered in 2nd degree burns. I feel so bad for you. My goodness, how horrid.

I only have a minor baking injury story...I was making chocolate chip cookies and I was really too tired to be awake. I knocked a bowl off the counter, tried to catch it with my leg and the bowl broke and cut me pretty deep. I had to have 4 staples and a tetanus shot. We use styrofoam or plastic dishes now. I was upset about the scar on my leg...but since then I've had to have surgery on the other leg and I have a huge scar from that.

Did you get legal representation for your injury? Since it was due to faulty equipment it seems like you should, even if worker's comp covered the medical bills.

Well my story is more about the clean up after baking nut it is so crazy that no one believes me. I had washed all of my utensils and measuring spoons in the dishwasher silverware container. It is hard to explain but some of the spoons had fallen through the holes in the bottom of the container so I just but it on the edge of the counter since they were sticking out of the bottom. I had the drawer open and one of my kids ran by slamming the drawer catching the spoons that were sticking out and causing the entire container to fly in the air. Of course there was a steak knife in with the spoons and it came down and stabbed my hand and going almost all of the way through. Luckily the knife fell out and when I looked down I just saw blood and flipped out. It was very painfull and by the time I got to the emergency room my whole hand had swollen to twice it's size. I couldn't move my pinky and they thougt I had severed a tendon. After a couple of days the swelling went down I was able to move everything but I still have a scar and some nerve damage. I know that no one at the hospital beleived my story but all of my family did. Lets just say this isn't my first flook accident.

Aliciag... I hope your job hunt is going well! Your accident sounds horrible

Suprisingly, I don't think I have any real good stories to add. Although, this could kinda fit I guess....

You know those silicone muffin pans? Well, I don't know why, but I burn myself EVERYTIME I use them. I always forget to use potholders when taking them out! It's like something in my brain doesn't connect that this thing has been in a 325 degree oven for 20 minutes, this will be hot!! I'm such a ding dong. It just doesn't look like it will be hot to me, I guess. Lol

Didn't happen to me, but a little girl. She was holding a handheld mixer, properly using it. Had her hair in a ponytail and a cover over the bowl with an opening on top, where the beaters go in. She leaned closer to see what was happening and her fringe got caught between the beaters and now has no more hair on the top of her head. She was extremely lucky, that she wasn't scalped. Happened 10 days ago, her granny emailed me from Germany and asked me to bake, decorate and deliver a cake. Did that last Friday and the mother showed us how much hair was lost, a whole Ziplock bag full, still get goosebumps thinking about it. So tie all hair back AND use a hairband for the fringe, if you have one

I got horrible second degree burns from my ankle down to the tips of my toes with scalding hot mashed potatoes. I was able to put on a shoe 4 1/2 months later. It was the worst pain of my life, and I pushed out an 11# baby, so I know pain.

******Don't read this if you don't have a strong stomach:******


Sorry for the delayed reply. One of the wheels of a 6 foot tall oven rack (old, rickety, and shotty to begin with) got caught in a crack in the floor and all the hot pans (straight out of the oven) came down on me. It all happened so fast. All I remember was screaming and looking down and seeing flesh hanging off my arms.

Workmans comp did cover all my bills and I'm working on the other part...

My body hurts just reading that. I'm glad your bills were covered and that you are healing. I hope you heal up super quick and with very little scaring.

This story is minor compared to some of the others you have posted. It is funny though...

I was going to use a hand-held mixer to mix some batter. I plugged it in, placed it on the counter, and went to put the beaters in. I pushed the beaters in with my left hand while using my stomach for resistance to hold the mixer in place. Well, my stomach hit the "on" button, turning the beaters, and my whole hand went up between them. I had to turn off the mixer and eject the beaters to get my hand out. Boy, I learned my lesson to put the beaters in before I plug in the mixer.

April, my mother had the same thing happen with a handheld mixer a years ago. It almost broke her wrist, it was swollen an black an blue.

I was making carmel for carmel popcorn in school, I was stirring the popcorn an another girl was pouring it in. She poured it onto my hand, sat immediatly. Had to peel it off, ouch!!

The funniest story I have is when I was at a Pampered Chef show talking about the importance of using the guard on the mandalin or Ultimate Slice an Grate. I was slicing potatoes, an the potato broke an my thumb went through the blade. It took a circular chunk from the bend of my thumb. I stoped what I was doing, put my hand in the pocket an ran to the bathroom. I never told them what had happened! It's healed now, but the skin is puffy.

These are funny an awful! I've enjoyed them.