Cookie 101

When I was a kid I didn't know cookies were round, until I went to Kindergarten. My mother could never bring herself to scoop cookies, so we always had bar cookies. She often tells the story about how I came home from school and said, "guess what mom, we had round cookies today!" I was totally amazed. Still to this day, she refuses to scoop cookies. I on the other hand, could never do bar cookies (unless that's the way they were intended to be made).

I've always liked making cookies. A small part of me has always wanted to go into the business some day. I actually use to make cookies for a living, before I went to the ER.

Tonight, I thought I'd give you a few helpful hints to making perfect (or almost) cookies. If you don't believe me, look at the pic above. I made those tonight!

Tip #1

Always, always, always use cold dough. After you mix-up the dough, put it in the refrigerator while the oven is preheating (or even longer). When you do this the dough shapes much nicer.

Tip #2

This one might be controversial to some. I always use cold butter. I never let it sit a room temperature. Many will disagree, even Martha Stewart. This just goes back to tip #1, cold is better. Have you ever bought frozen cookie dough? Look how much better shaped the cookies are.

Tip #3

Ball all cookies, unless they are cake like cookies. Just like PB cookies. This will give a smoother appearance.

Tip #4

Pat or press dough down after they been shaped into balls.

I usually only bake one tray at first, to determine how much I need to press down the dough.

Tip #5

Bake for the exact time instructed. If they don't appear done, gently with a spatula lift and look at the bottom of the cookie (not the top). Once it just barley turns golden, that means they are done. Sometimes if I'm in doubt, I leave them on the pan a few minutes (out of the oven).

Tip #6

If a cookie is misshaped when taken out of the oven, quickly with a butter knife mold it back into shape. The worst cookie can end-up looking great.

One last thing. Invest in a good scooper, small ice cream scoopers are the best. Also, try to scoop even mounds of dough.

I hope this has been helpful!