What can I bake in a hot oven while it cools?

I don't want to waste the waste heat from my cooling oven. What can I cook or bake in there?Kay, Sheffield"Kay could use his cooling oven to preserve a lot of things," says Mark Birchall, chef patron of Moor Hall in Lancashire. Herbs that are no longer at their best ("or those that need cutting, like rosemary, for example") can be dried on an oven rack and then stuffed into a roast chicken, for example, while bread that is about to come out can also be dried (cut off the crusts first) in a cooling oven and crushed into breadcrumbs.

You can also process the tomatoes into future treasures, says Sam Grainger, chef-owner of Belzan in Liverpool. "Cut them in half, add salt and a little oil [so they don't stick] and put them in a skillet or cast iron skillet. Leave them in the hot oven until it cools, and they'll get better and better the longer they stay there. He adds his oven-dried tomatoes to salads and ramen, or turns them into soup or sauce, though for the latter two he recommends peeling them first: "The skin doesn't mix, so everything will be small otherwise."

Toasting nuts or spices is another use for a cooling oven, says former Bake Off star Rahul Mandal, whose new book, Showstopping Cakes, was released in October. "Roasting oats, nuts and seeds for 10 to 15 minutes is a great way to increase their shelf life," says Mandal, who stores them in an airtight container, ready to eat as muesli. While ground spices are convenient, “whole spices have a longer shelf life and are also less expensive. Grilling them releases their essential oils and makes them fragrant. Mandal spread cumin, coriander, fennel, cloves or cardamom in a thin layer on a baking sheet and, after the oven is off, whisk them for 10-15 minutes. "Grind into a powder, then use in a few weeks."

There are, of course, times when you just need a cookie, and that cooling oven book here too. Grainger suggests following "pretty much any recipe" for the dough, then slicing it and transferring it to a lined platter. "Always use a well-insulated pan - a small aluminum tray, for example, won't retain heat." Put the cookies in the hot oven off for half an hour, and you'll have something "soft, gooey, warm - and perfect for after dinner".

If you have Pyrex glassware or a metal sieve to dry, Mendal recommends doing this in the cooling oven as well; the same goes for plates or dishes that need to be reheated. When cooking for friends, Adriann Ramirez, pastry chef at Finks in London, recommends "sticking plates or, if I'm serving sauce, a ceramic bowl after the oven is off, to warm them gently".

That said, it's also worth thinking about how best to use the oven when it's also on. Do not roast or bake a single item; instead, fill it out. “Put all your slow cooks on at once and do a week at the same time,” Grainger suggests. Yes, it does require an element of planning, but batch cooking and freezing is a no-brainer. "Becoming best friends with your freezer is the game to play right now."