Comments on: Flat Cookies? Not in This House

By: Chris

Chris — Sat, 06 Feb 2010 00:56:46 +0000

Wow, very nice tip! I always wondered how specialty stores got their cookies fluffy and full, and thus yummier. It's also great for people who buy from cookie dough fundraisers"?

By: ambitious

ambitious — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 20:35:34 +0000

I always have butter and eggs at room temperature to make soft, chewy cookies.

Using baking soda AND baking powder also yields good and not flat cookies!

Heather – wouldn’t it be bad for the chocolate chips to go from extremes- super cold to super hot? I feel like they would melt and crack from the moisture. Please elaborate Thanks!

By: mom, again

mom, again — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 23:46:44 +0000

Angela, If you put the hot baking sheet in the freezer, you likely will cause it to warp, which will be the end of it. A few minutes on the counter should work out until you can track down another of the same brand!

OP:

The most important bits (according to my baking instructor at culinary school!):

Chill the dough before baking it. Doesn’t matter if you scoop it and chill the ready to bake scoopfulls, or put the whole bowl in the fridge. Chilling it relaxes the glutens that have developed, as well as re-firming whatever fat you have used. This matters because you want the flour suspended in the fat, not to have absorbed the fat.

Pre-heat the oven, and don’t open it longer than necessary to remove/replace the sheets between batches. Consistent temp is important. If you have a fan oven, learn to use it, the temp is more consistent, and you can use every shelf, depending on the size of your oven/recipe you may get them all baked in one go.

Use the fat listed in your recipe. Margarine has more water in it than butter or shortening anda brand vary too; butter has more water than shortening. This variance can matter. Less important in home-sized recipes than in bakery sized recipe I work with. But still, there are plenty of recipes out there: you can find one developed for the fat you prefer.

other things to do:

Cool the baking pan before re-filling it for subsequent batches; so that the whole scoop of dough is a consistent temperature going in.

Experiment with the shape of your scoop of dough, it may be that your scoops are too big, and the middle isn’t cooking through. flatten them a bit, or scoop smaller.

By: Angela

Angela — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 21:49:52 +0000

Wow… I guess I will be making cookies til I figure it out. I am going to try hand mixing it first, I alway use my stand mixer. The oven is good, it is new and so is the baking powder. It also could be the baking sheet. I have my favorite and that is the only one I use.

Could I quickly cool it in the freezer between batches?

If that does not work, I will try the shortening. I need to get some to make biscuits anyways. It is not something I keep in my house. I am a butter lover, everything is better with butter:)

By: Spider Lady

Spider Lady — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 16:55:48 +0000

What works for me, along with cold margarine, is I add about 1/4 cup EXTRA flour so the dough is a stiffer dough. The cookies come out very fuffy and soft.

By: Heather

Heather — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 16:02:04 +0000

Of course it’s legal. She took the shortening, cold dough, and minimal mechanical manipulation route. It is a combination of the above suggestions and a different recipe.

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:42:40 +0000

Not sure if its legal to do this, BUT on another blog, Barb (New Chelsea Morning) mentioned the same problem and then solved it WITH PHOTOS.

http://anewchelseamorning.blogspot.com/2008/01/butler-did-it.html

they look awesome and big!

By: Heather

Heather — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 10:30:09 +0000

Shortening definitely can change the texture / rise of the finished product, however there are a lot of people out there who avoid it altogether. I have mixed emotions on the ingredient and avoid it when possible.
I do use shortening in my biscuits and when I can’t find an alternative recipe that looks promising.

By: Jackie Leeper

Jackie Leeper — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 05:16:49 +0000

The other ladies are right.The problem is BUTTER! Use vegetable shortning, I used margarine for years with the same miserable results. When I switched to shortning, problem solved. There is also a difference caused by the difference between brown sugar and regular sugar but I forgot what. It was covered by Good Eats. Good Luck!

By: Alli C.

Alli C. — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 03:55:57 +0000

I have noticed that when I bake cookies, I sometimes have the same problem and for me it’s usually related to how hard I handle the cookie sheet or how hard I shut the oven door. Similar to other baked goods, I’ve had my cookies “fall” on me when I don’t handle things gently enough. Maybe this is just me, but perhaps it will help!