Did you know??? If you have the type of oven that beeps letting you know it's done pre-heating (let's say you set it to 350°), chances are VERY good it's not actually up to 350° yet when it beeps. In fact, I've NEVER had an oven that has been. My current oven is only at about 300° when it beeps...it needs another 20 minutes to get up to 350°.
This is why using an oven thermometer is so important. A lot of people think they're not "bakers" because their baked goods come out gooey or they fall/collapse. But chances are good you're actually just under-baking them due to your oven temp. You don't notice this when cooking because you simply let it go longer until it's done or browned. But baking is science/chemistry and oven temp is crucial to making that science work.
Also, if your oven temp is "off", did you know it can be calibrated to be correct? Just Google how to calibrate your make/model oven and you can easily adjust it!
Oven thermometers are inexpensive... I have a double-oven and have one in each.
