Cookie Dough Tips & Tricks (2024)

Cookie Dough Tips & Tricks (1)

Make your next batch of cookies your best with a few of these simple cookie dough preparation tips.

Cookie Dough Tips & Tricks (2)

Categories: baking / / thanksgiving / Christmas

Cookies make everything better, especially around the holidays when their delicious scent fills your entire house, making it smell like fresh-baked magic. But not all cookie attempts yield perfectly baked cookies that everyone will enjoy. This sweet dilemma usually starts with the dough. That’s why C&H® Sugar has prepared a few tips and tricks to help make sure your cookies both look and taste like perfection.

Cookie Dough Tips & Tricks (3)

Check Your Cookie Dough’s Consistency

The texture of your cookie dough can dramatically affect how your cookies look and taste once they come out of the oven. After mixing your ingredients (sugar, flour, water, etc.), check that the consistency of your dough isn’t:

Tough– For rolled cookies, your dough can become “tough” by adding too much flour to your pin or counter before rolling it out. To avoid this, try using as little flour as possible while preparing to roll your dough.

Dry– “Dry” or “Crumbly” dough is a product of over-mixing or using too much of any ingredient during the mixing process. This can be reversed by adding one to two tablespoons of liquid (water, milk or softened butter) to your mix.

Soft– Dough that’s “soft” or “runny” can be thickened by adding one or two tablespoons of flour to your mix. This will help keep your batch from “Spreading” and coming out of the oven looking like flat, not-so-cookie-like puddles.

Turning Your Cookie Dough Into Delicious Cookies

After mixing your dough to the correct consistency, it’s time to bake them. Some steps you can take to ensure that your cookies come out of the oven looking like fresh-baked perfection are:

Chilling your dough beforehand– Chilling cookie dough keeps it sturdy as it bakes into delicious cookies. This practice also heightens the flavor profile of your cookies and gives your ingredients time to meld.

Using a silicone cookie sheet– This silicone cookie baking tool grips the bottom of your cookie dough patties and keeps them in the perfect shape while they bake. Using one also allows your cookies to brown more evenly.

Sticking to single batches- Bake one batch at a time if possible. Cooking your batches one at a time, on the center rack, is a great way to avoid hitting hot spots in the oven that could result in uneven cooking.

Cooling cookies with a cooling rack– When your cookies are finished baking, remove your pan from the oven and let them settle for about five minutes on a cooling rack. This will keep the cookies from overcooking on your hot pan.

Knowing your oven’s true temperature– If possible, purchase a digital thermometer to get an exact reading of how hot or cold your oven is before you start to bake. A too-hot oven is another factor that will cause your cookies to overcook, while one that is too cold can leave them too raw.

Cookie Dough Tips & Tricks (4)

Additional Tips

Measurements– Make sure all ingredients are properly measured.

Ingredients– Use fresh ingredients.

Room temperature– Use ingredients at room temperature.

Cookie Dough Tips & Tricks (5)

Butter and sugar– Beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

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Scraping the sides– Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed to ensure all ingredients are evenly incorporated.

Cookie Dough Tips & Tricks (7)

Dry ingredients– Add dry ingredients and mix until combined, do not over mix.

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Ice cream scoop– When using a cookie recipe that calls for dropping the dough, use an ice cream scoop to drop your cookie dough evenly. Utilizing this simple tool will ensure that your cookies are even portions, uniform in shape andwill come out of the oven evenly baked.

Cookie Dough Tips & Tricks (9)

Cooling– Allow cookies to rest in the pan for 10 minutes and then transfer to a cooking rack.

Following these tips will ensure that your cookie dough has the best shot at turning into tasty and evenly baked cookies that your guests will love.

Our Favorite Cookies, Brownies & Bars

  • Easter Sugar Cookies with Royal Icing Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Mimosa Cookies Prep Time: 25 minute
  • Banana Oat Snacking Bars Prep Time: 10 minute
  • Chocolate Marble Cookies Prep Time: 20 minute
  • Hibiscus Lemon Cookies Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Chocolate Crinkle Cookies Prep Time: 25 minutes
  • Brown Sugar Cookies Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cookie Dough Bites Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Chocolate Cupcake Cookies inspired by Hostess® Cupcakes Prep Time: 20 minutes

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Cookie Dough Tips & Tricks (2024)

FAQs

Cookie Dough Tips & Tricks? ›

Additional Tips

What are 3 tips for rolling out cookie dough? ›

Place two equal-sized sheets of parchment paper underneath and above the dough, making a kind of dough sandwich. Then roll out with your rolling pin, keeping the dough sandwiched between the two parchment sheets. Once it has been rolled to the thickness you're going for, chill the dough for the requisite time.

How long should cookie dough sit before baking? ›

As a general rule of thumb, you should refrigerate cookie dough for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours. More than that, and you won't see a noticeable difference in the final product. Once the dough has chilled, let it warm up at room temperature until it's just pliable (about 5 to 10 minutes).

What makes cookies chewy and not hard? ›

Use Melted Butter

If the goal is a chewy cookie, then you absolutely need to be using melted butter. The technique of creaming softened butter and sugar together is often used for making cakes. And for good reason! The process of creaming incorporates air into the butter which results in a more airy and cakey cookie.

Is it better to flatten cookie dough before baking? ›

Flattening the cookie dough provides more surface area that comes into contact with the ice bath, shortening the time it takes to chill. Then submerge the dough in the ice water and let it chill. After 20 minutes the dough will be completely chilled and ready for baking.

Can you overmix cookie dough? ›

Unless you want extra-crispy cookies, avoid overmixing your dough. "Overmixing your dough will result in flatter, crispier cookies," Cowan said. If you overmix, you will end up aerating (adding air to) the dough, which causes the cookies to rise and then fall, leaving you with flat cookies.

How long to chill sugar cookie dough before rolling? ›

Be sure to scrape the sides of the mixing bowl a couple of times so there are no streaks of flour in the dough. Cover and chill the dough: Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour. This firms up the butter in the dough and helps prevent the cookies from spreading as they bake.

Can you put cookie dough on parchment paper? ›

Kneading or rolling dough for pizza and bread

In addition, parchment paper makes rolling out your pizza and cookie dough a breeze.

What happens if you don't chill cookie dough before baking? ›

Chilling cookie dough makes the cookies much more flavorful, with that blissful caramelized butterscotch flavor, and it makes them thicker, chewier, and browner.

Do you bake cookie dough straight from fridge? ›

The cookie baked from room temperature, being thinner, has a more uniform texture, while the one baked straight from the fridge. is thick enough to accommodate a softer interior. and crispier exterior. No contest. Generally speaking, you should chill your cookie dough before baking it.

Should you cover cookie dough in the fridge? ›

Airtight containers: Place the cookie dough in an airtight container, such as a Tupperware or glass container, and store it in the fridge for 2-4 days or the freezer for up to 3 months. Parchment paper: Scoop the cookie dough onto a sheet of parchment paper and use the paper to wrap the dough into a ball.

What makes a high quality cookie? ›

The best cookies have layers of texture. A slightly crisp outer shell that holds up to some heat with an inner core that's soft and chewy.

What is cookie secret? ›

Cookie Secret is the secret used to encrypt and sign session cookies. If you don't provide a cookie secret, Pomerium will generate one for you.

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