When deciding to bake cookies, a lot of questions come to mind.
How to use baking powder. What is corn starch? What do I have to
do if I don't find some ingredients? Etc. In this article I will
approach a few problems and give some easy answers and tips.
You decided to bake some cookies and at the last minutes a lot
of questions arise. Oven temperature, chewy or crispy cookies,
eggs size, and so forth. I tried in this short article to
address a few common problems and give a quick solution or an
explanation.
How to Make Chewy Cookies
The secret in making any cookie recipe into a soft and chewy
cookie is to use Butter flavored Crisco instead of butter. If
you want a crispy cookie use butter. Another trick to have
chewier cookies is to cut your baking time by about 2 minutes
(baked at the temperature stated on the recipe. Your cookies
should be baked through but not yet crispy. You can also reduce
your oven temperature by 25 degrees and bake for the time stated
on the recipe. Always bake one batch according to the recipe the
first time you try a new recipe and then make the adjustments
based on how it came out. Make a note of your changes and keep
your "customized" recipe for the next time.
Baking Soda or Baking Powder ? Baking powder is alkaline and
needs to be mixed with acidic ingredients in order to react.
Baking powder is baking soda with an added acidic ingredient,
usually cream of tartar. In cookies, baking soda tends to make
them spread out more and baking powder tends to make them rise
and become puffy or more cake-like. If your recipe calls for
baking soda, simply try to reduce it a bit.
Make Chilled Dough for Better Results
Make sure the dough is chilled and the baking sheets are cool
before putting them in the oven. Otherwise the fat in the
cookies will melt too soon, resulting in flat cookies regardless
of the leavener you are using. Note that vegetable shortening
(e.g. Crisco) melts a higher temperature than butter. You can
try then to substitute half the butter with Crisco.
Beware of nutritional information
You might one day read a recipe that has, for example, 2 sticks
of margarine or butter. The nutritional information will read
'0' cholesterol. Why so? It is because the nutritional for
recipes are calculated using the first ingredient when two
ingredients are given. For example, when it says "margarine or
butter", the nutritional are calculated using margarine. If
butter were listed first, it would be calculated using butter.
Dark or Shiny Pan?
Remember the darker the finish on the pan, the faster the sheet
will heat and the longer it will hold the heat. The shinier the
pan you use, the longer it will take to heat up. Dark absorbs
heat, so your bottoms will be done more quickly then the tops or
centers. By the time your tops and centers are baked, your
bottoms will be crispy if not downright burnt. Shiny reflects
heat and your cookies will bake more evenly.
How many trays in the oven?
Don't try to crowd too many cookie sheets into your oven at
once.. Your best results will be one tray at a time on the
middle rack of the oven with plenty of room for the warm air to
circulate around the tray. Don't keep opening your oven to peek.
Every time you do that, you loose warmth and your oven will have
to struggle to maintain the correct temperature.
The tips and answers that you just have read will give you a
better reason to start cooking your own cookies at home. You
will find all possible recipes in the various articles that are
n the author's website. Before baking your cookies check the
website for new recipes and ideas.
About the author:
Dr. Freddy Maier owns a website specialized on cookies and
baking. He sells an e-book with only cookie recipes. His website
can be visited at :
http://thecookierecipes.info
