marsha-tbay
Well-known member
Archive Swap 49801-49900
Harimad, self-proclaimed choc chip cookie maven
Here are hints that work (although Ann and I disagree on one of them)...
To make the cookie puffy and not spread much, you want to create conditions that keep the cookie compact. This means having the outside of the cookie cook before the dough ball has time to spread. Here are a bunch of tried & true methods:
1. Use a cool cookie sheet, not a hot one. A hot sheet will heat the dough before the outside cooks, allowing it to spread. So use several sheets in rotation and cool them well between batches (put them outside in cold weather, run a cold sponge or ice cube over them in hot weather).
2. Don't grease your sheets. Grease is slippery. Instead, use parchment paper. PP makes it easy to remove cookies (or anything else, it's a godsend) without making the sheet slippery. It's also faster -- slip the sheet of PP onto the cooling rack instead of having to remove each cookie separately -- and the sheet stays clean since the cookies never touch the sheet.
3. This is where I disagree with Ann: I say *do* chill the dough. As with hint #1, this keeps the dough cold -- and therefore compact -- while the outside rim is cooking. Once the rim is cooked, the cookie won't increase size. Freezing scooped cookies (see below), then baking them frozen, works even better.
4. Use a cookie scoop to scoop out your dough. A cookie scoop looks like a spring-driven ice cream scoop, only smaller. I like the 2T size but there are many sizes available. Using a scoop makes an almost spherical lump of dough, which is more compact and less likely to spread before the edges cook.
Now here are some non-baking hints to keep your cookies fat and puffy:
5. Don't overcream your fat and sugar. Doing so will incorporate too many air bubbles into your dough and it becomes fragile. A fragile dough don't have enough structure to stay puffy when baked and so will fall flat. They're still tasty and chewy, but that's not what you're looking for.
6. Use a fat with a higher melting temperature. Maybe. Your choices are butter, margarine, and crisco (unless you want to experiment with lard or suet, in which case you're on your own). Butter tastes best and gives the right mouthfeel. This is because it melts at mough temperature. Margarine and crisco melt at higher temperatures. This is good for keeping your cookie compact as it bakes, not so good for taste. Up to you: some people can tell the difference, some can't, and it all depends on what works best for you. Try several recipes, the same except for the fat used, and compare.
Good luck.
Harimad, self-proclaimed choc chip cookie maven
Here are hints that work (although Ann and I disagree on one of them)...
To make the cookie puffy and not spread much, you want to create conditions that keep the cookie compact. This means having the outside of the cookie cook before the dough ball has time to spread. Here are a bunch of tried & true methods:
1. Use a cool cookie sheet, not a hot one. A hot sheet will heat the dough before the outside cooks, allowing it to spread. So use several sheets in rotation and cool them well between batches (put them outside in cold weather, run a cold sponge or ice cube over them in hot weather).
2. Don't grease your sheets. Grease is slippery. Instead, use parchment paper. PP makes it easy to remove cookies (or anything else, it's a godsend) without making the sheet slippery. It's also faster -- slip the sheet of PP onto the cooling rack instead of having to remove each cookie separately -- and the sheet stays clean since the cookies never touch the sheet.
3. This is where I disagree with Ann: I say *do* chill the dough. As with hint #1, this keeps the dough cold -- and therefore compact -- while the outside rim is cooking. Once the rim is cooked, the cookie won't increase size. Freezing scooped cookies (see below), then baking them frozen, works even better.
4. Use a cookie scoop to scoop out your dough. A cookie scoop looks like a spring-driven ice cream scoop, only smaller. I like the 2T size but there are many sizes available. Using a scoop makes an almost spherical lump of dough, which is more compact and less likely to spread before the edges cook.
Now here are some non-baking hints to keep your cookies fat and puffy:
5. Don't overcream your fat and sugar. Doing so will incorporate too many air bubbles into your dough and it becomes fragile. A fragile dough don't have enough structure to stay puffy when baked and so will fall flat. They're still tasty and chewy, but that's not what you're looking for.
6. Use a fat with a higher melting temperature. Maybe. Your choices are butter, margarine, and crisco (unless you want to experiment with lard or suet, in which case you're on your own). Butter tastes best and gives the right mouthfeel. This is because it melts at mough temperature. Margarine and crisco melt at higher temperatures. This is good for keeping your cookie compact as it bakes, not so good for taste. Up to you: some people can tell the difference, some can't, and it all depends on what works best for you. Try several recipes, the same except for the fat used, and compare.
Good luck.