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Soft or Crispy Cookie Fan, Here's How to Bake the Perfect Batch

I just read this article from "Southern Living" magazine and I thought
I'd share if anyone might be interested.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/foodanddri...3dK?li=BBnb7Kw

When it comes to baking cookies, there are a million and one tips and
techniques that bakers use to achieve the perfect batch. We've seen it all,
from pan-banging to refrigerating dough balls for days before baking. If
you grew up in the kitchen, you're probably attuned to the countless cookie
hacks that home bakers and pastry chefs alike swear by.

But the problem with deeming one hack to make the "perfect" batch of
cookies is that everyone likes their cookies a different way. While some
prefer soft, chewy cookies, others look for a cookie with snap and crispy,
lacy edges. This also varies greatly based on the type of cookie you're baking;
we may look for a soft, gooey center in our chocolate chip cookies, but want
a crunchy, crispy gingersnap.
We may not be able to tell you one secret to make the perfect batch of cookies,
but we can guide you in achieving the perfect cookies for your taste. We're spilling
all our secrets on how to make soft cookies and how to make crispy cookies€”all
that's left is for you to decide which type will win your heart.

How to Make Soft Cookies

1. Cream your butter and sugar well

When baking soft cookies, start with softened butter. Creaming your butter and
sugar until it's light in color and fluffy will result in a lighter, more tender cookie.
The ratio of different sugars (for example, brown and white sugar) will impact the
final texture of the cookies. Using a higher ratio of brown to white sugar will help
to keep the cookies soft€”while the white sugar encourages spreading, brown sugar
helps the cookies retain moisture.

2. Choose a low-protein flour

Different types of flour contain different amounts of protein€”while bread flour
typically packs a higher percentage of protein, which encourages gluten development,
cake flour contains a lower percentage of protein, which keeps cakes delicate and tender.
AP flour is a great standard choice for most baking projects, including cookies, but if you're
looking for a really soft, tender cookie, consider using a lower-protein flour like cake flour.
Have you ever seen cookies made from boxed cake mix? This is the secret behind those
wonderfully chewy cookies.

3. Don't overmix your dough

Overmixing your cookie dough will dry it out. When you add the dry ingredients, mix
until it is just combined.

4. Chill your dough

While we understand the temptation of wanting to bake your cookies right away, chilling
your dough will help the dry ingredients hydrate and will prevent the cookies from spreading
as much in the oven. We recommend chilling your cookies for at least 8 hours, or up to overnight.
Want to have chocolate chip cookies on demand? Freeze a few dough balls€”just pop them in
the oven when you're craving a sweet treat.

How to Make Soft Cookies

1. Cream your butter and sugar well

When baking soft cookies, start with softened butter. Creaming your butter and
sugar until it's light in color and fluffy will result in a lighter, more tender cookie.
The ratio of different sugars (for example, brown and white sugar) will impact the
final texture of the cookies. Using a higher ratio of brown to white sugar will help
to keep the cookies soft€”while the white sugar encourages spreading, brown sugar
helps the cookies retain moisture.

2. Choose a low-protein flour

Different types of flour contain different amounts of protein€”while bread flour
typically packs a higher percentage of protein, which encourages gluten development,
cake flour contains a lower percentage of protein, which keeps cakes delicate and tender.
AP flour is a great standard choice for most baking projects, including cookies, but if you're
looking for a really soft, tender cookie, consider using a lower-protein flour like cake flour.
Have you ever seen cookies made from boxed cake mix? This is the secret behind those
wonderfully chewy cookies.

3. Don't overmix your dough

Overmixing your cookie dough will dry it out. When you add the dry ingredients, mix
until it is just combined.

4. Chill your dough

While we understand the temptation of wanting to bake your cookies right away, chilling
your dough will help the dry ingredients hydrate and will prevent the cookies from spreading
as much in the oven. We recommend chilling your cookies for at least 8 hours, or up to overnight.
Want to have chocolate chip cookies on demand? Freeze a few dough balls€”just pop them in
the oven when you're craving a sweet treat.

How to Make Crispy Cookies

1. Use a higher ratio of white to brown sugar
While brown sugar keeps your cookies moist and soft, white sugar and corn syrup will help your
cookies spread and crisp in the oven. Using more white sugar in your cookies will result in a
crispier end product.

2. Don't chill your dough

To achieve a crispy cookie, skip the rest in the fridge. Baking your cookies right after making
the dough will encourage them to spread in the oven, resulting in an extra-crispy cookie.

3. Smash your dough and bang the pan

When looking for soft cookies, we bake our dough in balls, which will spread as they bake
but remain gooey in the middle. If we're looking for crispy cookies, we smash down our dough
balls before baking, which will encourage them to flatten in the oven. Cookies that are rolled
out and cut into shapes, such as slice-n-bakes or sugar cookies, rather that scooped into balls
also tend to be crispier.
Another tried-and-true trick to achieve crispy cookies? Bang the pan. Once your cookies have
fully baked, remove the sheet tray from the oven and bang it on the countertop. This encourages
the cookies to spread and flatten even more than they did in the oven.

Soft or Crispy Cookie Fan, Here's How to Bake the Perfect Batch

On 2021-02-19 12:41 p.m., wrote:
>
> I just read this article from "Southern Living" magazine and I thought
> I'd share if anyone might be interested.
>
> https://www.msn.com/en-us/foodanddri...3dK?li=BBnb7Kw
>
> When it comes to baking cookies, there are a million and one tips and
> techniques that bakers use to achieve the perfect batch. We've seen it all,
> from pan-banging to refrigerating dough balls for days before baking. If
> you grew up in the kitchen, you're probably attuned to the countless cookie
> hacks that home bakers and pastry chefs alike swear by.
>
> But the problem with deeming one hack to make the "perfect" batch of
> cookies is that everyone likes their cookies a different way. While some
> prefer soft, chewy cookies, others look for a cookie with snap and crispy,
> lacy edges. This also varies greatly based on the type of cookie you're baking;
> we may look for a soft, gooey center in our chocolate chip cookies, but want
> a crunchy, crispy gingersnap.
> We may not be able to tell you one secret to make the perfect batch of cookies,
> but we can guide you in achieving the perfect cookies for your taste. We're spilling
> all our secrets on how to make soft cookies and how to make crispy cookies€”all
> that's left is for you to decide which type will win your heart.
>
>
> How to Make Soft Cookies
>
> 1. Cream your butter and sugar well
>
> When baking soft cookies, start with softened butter. Creaming your butter and
> sugar until it's light in color and fluffy will result in a lighter, more tender cookie.
> The ratio of different sugars (for example, brown and white sugar) will impact the
> final texture of the cookies. Using a higher ratio of brown to white sugar will help
> to keep the cookies soft€”while the white sugar encourages spreading, brown sugar
> helps the cookies retain moisture.
>
>
> 2. Choose a low-protein flour
>
> Different types of flour contain different amounts of protein€”while bread flour
> typically packs a higher percentage of protein, which encourages gluten development,
> cake flour contains a lower percentage of protein, which keeps cakes delicate and tender.
> AP flour is a great standard choice for most baking projects, including cookies, but if you're
> looking for a really soft, tender cookie, consider using a lower-protein flour like cake flour.
> Have you ever seen cookies made from boxed cake mix? This is the secret behind those
> wonderfully chewy cookies.
>
>
> 3. Don't overmix your dough
>
> Overmixing your cookie dough will dry it out. When you add the dry ingredients, mix
> until it is just combined.
>
>
> 4. Chill your dough
>
> While we understand the temptation of wanting to bake your cookies right away, chilling
> your dough will help the dry ingredients hydrate and will prevent the cookies from spreading
> as much in the oven. We recommend chilling your cookies for at least 8 hours, or up to overnight.
> Want to have chocolate chip cookies on demand? Freeze a few dough balls€”just pop them in
> the oven when you're craving a sweet treat.
>
>
> How to Make Soft Cookies
>
> 1. Cream your butter and sugar well
>
> When baking soft cookies, start with softened butter. Creaming your butter and
> sugar until it's light in color and fluffy will result in a lighter, more tender cookie.
> The ratio of different sugars (for example, brown and white sugar) will impact the
> final texture of the cookies. Using a higher ratio of brown to white sugar will help
> to keep the cookies soft€”while the white sugar encourages spreading, brown sugar
> helps the cookies retain moisture.
>
>
> 2. Choose a low-protein flour
>
> Different types of flour contain different amounts of protein€”while bread flour
> typically packs a higher percentage of protein, which encourages gluten development,
> cake flour contains a lower percentage of protein, which keeps cakes delicate and tender.
> AP flour is a great standard choice for most baking projects, including cookies, but if you're
> looking for a really soft, tender cookie, consider using a lower-protein flour like cake flour.
> Have you ever seen cookies made from boxed cake mix? This is the secret behind those
> wonderfully chewy cookies.
>
>
> 3. Don't overmix your dough
>
> Overmixing your cookie dough will dry it out. When you add the dry ingredients, mix
> until it is just combined.
>
>
> 4. Chill your dough
>
> While we understand the temptation of wanting to bake your cookies right away, chilling
> your dough will help the dry ingredients hydrate and will prevent the cookies from spreading
> as much in the oven. We recommend chilling your cookies for at least 8 hours, or up to overnight.
> Want to have chocolate chip cookies on demand? Freeze a few dough balls€”just pop them in
> the oven when you're craving a sweet treat.
>
>
> How to Make Crispy Cookies
>
> 1. Use a higher ratio of white to brown sugar
> While brown sugar keeps your cookies moist and soft, white sugar and corn syrup will help your
> cookies spread and crisp in the oven. Using more white sugar in your cookies will result in a
> crispier end product.
>
>
> 2. Don't chill your dough
>
> To achieve a crispy cookie, skip the rest in the fridge. Baking your cookies right after making
> the dough will encourage them to spread in the oven, resulting in an extra-crispy cookie.
>
>
> 3. Smash your dough and bang the pan
>
> When looking for soft cookies, we bake our dough in balls, which will spread as they bake
> but remain gooey in the middle. If we're looking for crispy cookies, we smash down our dough
> balls before baking, which will encourage them to flatten in the oven. Cookies that are rolled
> out and cut into shapes, such as slice-n-bakes or sugar cookies, rather that scooped into balls
> also tend to be crispier.
> Another tried-and-true trick to achieve crispy cookies? Bang the pan. Once your cookies have
> fully baked, remove the sheet tray from the oven and bang it on the countertop. This encourages
> the cookies to spread and flatten even more than they did in the oven.
>
>
Thanks! A useful summary. Since I find US cookie recipes to be far too
sweet, the trick it seems is to cut out the white sugar and bash the
cookies before baking.

Soft or Crispy Cookie Fan, Here's How to Bake the Perfect Batch

On Friday, February 19, 2021 at 1:57:06 PM UTC-6, Graham wrote:

> Thanks! A useful summary. Since I find US cookie recipes to be far too
> sweet, the trick it seems is to cut out the white sugar and bash the
> cookies before baking.
>
If you want to make me a pan of cookies I'd not complain if you didn't
bash them first. No one would know you skipped this step anyway.

;o)

Soft or Crispy Cookie Fan, Here's How to Bake the Perfect Batch

On Fri, 19 Feb 2021 12:56:59 -0700, Graham wrote:

> Thanks! A useful summary. Since I find US cookie recipes to be far too
> sweet, the trick it seems is to cut out the white sugar and bash the
> cookies before baking.

U.S. cookie recipes?

-sw

Soft or Crispy Cookie Fan, Here's How to Bake the Perfect Batch

On Fri, 19 Feb 2021 16:11:25 -0600, Sqwertz >
wrote:

>On Fri, 19 Feb 2021 12:56:59 -0700, Graham wrote:
>
>> Thanks! A useful summary. Since I find US cookie recipes to be far too
>> sweet, the trick it seems is to cut out the white sugar and bash the
>> cookies before baking.
>
>U.S. cookie recipes?

They're cookies that cater to people who don't have diabetes yet.

Soft or Crispy Cookie Fan, Here's How to Bake the Perfect Batch

On Friday, February 19, 2021 at 4:09:10 PM UTC-6, Sqwertz wrote:
>
> There's also a third category: Crunchy.
>
> -sw
>
Doesn't that come under the category of 'crispy'? It would for me.

Soft or Crispy Cookie Fan, Here's How to Bake the Perfect Batch

On Fri, 19 Feb 2021 itsjoannotjoann wrote:
>On Friday, February 19, 2021 Sqwertz wrote:
>>
>> There's also a third category: Crunchy.
>>
>> -sw
>>
>Doesn't that come under the category of 'crispy'? It would for me.

For me that comes under the catagory High Brown.

Soft or Crispy Cookie Fan, Here's How to Bake the Perfect Batch

On Saturday, February 20, 2021 at 10:38:15 AM UTC-5, Sheldon wrote:
> On Fri, 19 Feb 2021 itsjoannotjoann wrote:
> >On Friday, February 19, 2021 Sqwertz wrote:
> >>
> >> There's also a third category: Crunchy.
> >>
> >> -sw
> >>
> >Doesn't that come under the category of 'crispy'? It would for me.
> For me that comes under the catagory High Brown.

It certainly is possible to make a crispy cookie that is pale.
Pepperidge Farm does it all the time.

Cindy Hamilton

Soft or Crispy Cookie Fan, Here's How to Bake the Perfect Batch

On Friday, February 19, 2021 at 2:41:19 PM UTC-5, wrote:
> I just read this article from "Southern Living" magazine and I thought
> I'd share if anyone might be interested.
>
> https://www.msn.com/en-us/foodanddri...3dK?li=BBnb7Kw
>
> When it comes to baking cookies, there are a million and one tips and
> techniques that bakers use to achieve the perfect batch. We've seen it all,
> from pan-banging to refrigerating dough balls for days before baking. If
> you grew up in the kitchen, you're probably attuned to the countless cookie
> hacks that home bakers and pastry chefs alike swear by.
>
> But the problem with deeming one hack to make the "perfect" batch of
> cookies is that everyone likes their cookies a different way. While some
> prefer soft, chewy cookies, others look for a cookie with snap and crispy,
> lacy edges.

I observe a triune taxonomy of cookies:

Soft and chewy
Soft and somewhat cake-like
Crisp

I tend to favor soft and chewy.

Cindy Hamilton

Soft or Crispy Cookie Fan, Here's How to Bake the Perfect Batch

Cindy Hamilton wrote:
> On Saturday, February 20, 2021 at 10:38:15 AM UTC-5, Sheldon wrote:
>> On Fri, 19 Feb 2021 itsjoannotjoann wrote:
>>> On Friday, February 19, 2021 Sqwertz wrote:
>>>>
>>>> There's also a third category: Crunchy.
>>>>
>>>> -sw
>>>>
>>> Doesn't that come under the category of 'crispy'? It would for me.
>> For me that comes under the catagory High Brown.
>
> It certainly is possible to make a crispy cookie that is pale.
> Pepperidge Farm does it all the time.
>
> Cindy Hamilton
>
Silly ... he's talking about titties.