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Cookies questions

post #1 of 10
5/15/05 at 6:01am
Thread Starter 
Hi! I made some cookies yesterday, with walnuts, oats, cranberries and white chocolate chips, but they spread awfully in the oven. Besides, they are chewy, and I thought they would be crunchy. How can I prevent spreading? I read somewhere that the flour/butter ratio is important, but I followed the recipe exactly, so I´m not sure if that can be it. Also....is there any tip for crunchier cookies instead of chewy? this morning the cookies were even more chewy than yesterday, and although the flavor is very good, I don´t like the consistency. Can somebody give me some tips? Thank you very much!!!
Rocio :chef:
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post #2 of 10
5/15/05 at 8:26am
Did you use any brown sugar?

For a crispier cookie, use all butter and white sugar. Also, I've heard that bread flour can make it crispier.

If you have a high proportion of butter to flour will make it spread quicker. Perhaps the recipes is intended for large, chewy cookies, not crisp.

Also, to lessen the amount of spreading, chill the dough and wait until the cookie sheets are cool to use them again.

Are you sifting your flour?
Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read. - GM
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post #3 of 10
5/15/05 at 10:30am
My first thought is that you overcreamed your butter or overmixed the dough.

As for the texture, the recipe is probably designed to be chewy. You can adjust it, though, to the texture you like--this article should help you out:

http://allrecipes.com/advice/coll/ba...cles/177P1.asp

Amy
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post #4 of 10
5/15/05 at 2:09pm
Thread Starter 
Hi, thanks for your answers!

Yes, I did use brown sugar, it was in a 2:1 ratio with respect to white sugar. And yes, I also sifted the flour....How do I know if I really overcreamed the butter? The batter I only mixed until all the ingredients were very well incorporated.
I´ll try all your tips and read the article!
Thanks!!
Rocio :chef:
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post #5 of 10
5/16/05 at 3:41am
In addition to the suggestions already made, what temp was the butter when you started? I find that using butter right from the fridge makes cookie spread easier to control.
At weddings, my Aunts would poke me in the ribs and cackle "You're next!". They stopped when I started doing the same to them at funerals.
www.kyleskitchen.net
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post #6 of 10
5/16/05 at 7:09am
Spread is controlled by the relationship of many of the ingredients in the recipe but none more so than sugar (s), flour (and type of flour) and water. Different fats will affect also. Cake flour (bleached) has the most spread reducing capability. Can you cut some water or baking soda? To achieve a crisp cookie you must bake the moisture content down to 3% or less and then package immediately after cooling in an airtight container with minimum headroon. Try baking cooler and longer. The somewhat crunchiness you experienced at first went away overnight when all moisture in the cookie equalized.
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post #7 of 10
5/16/05 at 7:24am
Thread Starter 

Butter temperature

Well, the recipe called for softened butter, so I put it in the microwave a little while before starting mixing. After that, however, I read that I should never microwave the butter....so I guess part of the spreading is that....
:chef: Rocio
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post #8 of 10
5/17/05 at 3:22am
What we think of as room temp is generally way beyond what cookie recipes have in mind :) I have found that using butter right from the fridge works for me. It also allows me to skip the 'refrigerate the dough' step.
At weddings, my Aunts would poke me in the ribs and cackle "You're next!". They stopped when I started doing the same to them at funerals.
www.kyleskitchen.net
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post #9 of 10
5/21/05 at 11:37am

?

does anyone have a good peanutbutter cookie recipe? :confused:
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post #10 of 10
6/23/05 at 12:20pm

Cookies too chewy and flat

Hi There,
I recently experienced the "flattening of the cookie," and I found that the oven temperature was too high. (Actually it was set to the correct temp. but the oven was old and needed to be calibrated). So, it could be something as simple as oven temp. I agree with one of the others who replied about baking a bit cooler and longer.
Good Luck!
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