Chocolate Chip Cookie question

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hirokei

Assistant Cook
Joined
Nov 23, 2005
Messages
36
my frd made some REALLY good m&ms cookies last week and she sent the recipe to me. so i made them too yesterday and i dont know if shes just that good.. or is it that i just suck.... i followed it exactly and they turned out quite different from the ones she made :( :( :( hers were softer and can stay chewy for days, but mine were more "tough" and doesnt taste nearly as good after only a few hours... maybe i over mixed it? what do u guys think about the recipe anyway

1 cup butter or margarine, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all-purposed flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 package ( 12 ounces) semisweet chocolate pieces

1.Preheat oven to 375 F. In large bowl with mixer at medium speed, cream butter with sugars. Beat in egg and vanilla until well mixed, occasionally scraping bowl. Stir flour, salt and pieces. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart onto cookie sheets.
2.Bake 10 to 12 minutes until cookies are lightly browned. Immediately remove cookies to wire racks; cool.





by the way. is it really that necessary to transfer cookies w/ a spatula to a cooking rack?! can i just move them to my counter top? (its a granite counter top so its pretty cold there too) what kind of difference would it make between cooling them, n jus tleaving them on the pan anyway :wacko: (sorry i just.. really dunno. i just started baking) thank you everyone for all the help!!
 
First of all, use the margarine instead of butter and the cookies will not be as crispy. They will spread out more with butter than with margarine. I like to melt my margarine a bit in the microwave and then add the sugar and the rest of the ingredients as this tends to make them chewier too. Overmixing is likely not a problem. Thats more a muffin thing.

Putting things on a cooling rack allows air to get to the bottoms of your cookies. If you set them on a counter the bottoms will get moist and that is icky. So yes, use a cooling rack.

Did that make sense to you? And don't ever worry about asking questions here, thats you you will learn. We are a friendly bunch here and we LOVE to answer questions, so fire away!
 
aw u guys are all so nice and generous w/ all the help :) thanks so much this place really is great.

so before i start, i shd take the butter out and melt them a little bit? or shd i just microwave them a bit? would that make any difference in taste & texture?

but yea.. i tend to over mix things a lot because sometimes my muffins are really stiff.. i'm only suppose to mix them so they're just mixed, but not realllly mixed right? :glare: i guess thats why my muffins are always so tough... :sleep: oh well. now that i know, next time i bet they'll be better :)


by the way. would using unbleached flour instead of bleached flour make any difference to the taste of things i bake?!

thank you for all the help!
 
you may have the cookies in the oven for too long... that is my problem with the ccc`s.. It seems to me I never get the right time to get them out.. always late... :cool:
so I let my Mum do that.. ;o)
 
I'd agree with Cara. i used to have the exact same problem as you. Cookies wonderful when they first come out, then turn hard after cooled. I think you're leaving them in too long. As for the cookie rack thing. I would think that a rack will help the cookies cool more evenly and quicker.

I see that you are new to baking. If you enjoy it, I'd go invest in a cookie rack. I think if you enjoy baking, you'll end up moving to try baking other things.

Here's a tip, after the cookies have cooled completely, put them in an air tight container with a slice of bread. This is supposed to be like the brown sugar w/ a slice of bread thing and keep your cookies nice and soft. :)
 
htc ---> oh really?! haha i'll try putting it w/ a slice of bread next time. thanks so much for all ur help!

thank you to Andy M. too! i shd use unbleached instead.. its a BIT more healthy
 
One thing to remember when you take out the cookies from the oven. If they seem "solid" enough when you take them out that is not a very good sign. They would seem still very soft when you take it out. Keep it in mind that they will solidify themselves and settle as they get cooled down. Watch the cookies and when the edges are lightly brown it is quite ready, don't wait until they get thoroughly "tanned"!!
 
You might try baking them for 8 minutes and see if that is long enough.

Cameron
 
I don't use butter or margerine (sp?). I use Butter flavored Crisco instead. I've gotten them in stick form as well! Makes the best cookies, IMHO. :chef:
 
Yes, butter flavoured crisco will certainly make for a softer cookie. If you are new to this I would recommend either the Crisco or margarine until you have sort of got this under control. You got some great ideas from the folks here. Keep us posted on how your experiments turn out1
 
With the cooling rack the bottoms of the cookies will get aired out and not be wet and/or sticky.

Grace:)
 
thanks everyone w/ all the suggestions!

ok now i hv a few more questions...

1. would the type of baking sheet used make a difference? if i use the dark metal kind of baking sheet, shd i cut the temp or time? and.. since im too lazy to wash the pan, is it okay if i cover the pan w/ a piece of foil? would that make any difference?

2. is there a particular order when mixing things?! like.. sugar & butter first (what does it mean when they say "mix until creamy/fluffy"?). n then the dry ingredients like flour, salt, baking powder. what about eggs n extracts? is there like.. a order that people usually follow?! maybe the reason why my cookies didnt taste as good is because i dumped EVERYTHING all together at once.. =( if i'm using a KitchenAid mixer, what speed should i do these things that?!

thanks all!
 
You always want to "cream" the fat (butter/margarine/shortening) and the sugar(s) first. This works to not only mix the fat and sugar completely, but to add air to the mix as well. You will know it's getting ready as it will be light in color, and kind of fluffy.

Then, you add the eggs, one at a time. This gives the mixer time to fully incorporate the eggs into the mix.

After that usually follows any liquid flavoring, like vanilla, orange extract, etc.

Your dry ingredients, i.e. flour, leavening, chocolate powder, etc., are sifted together, then added to the mix, slowly, in parts.

Finally, you stir in candies or nuts. Depending on the dough, you may want to chill it before making your cookies (I usually do).
 
Stoneware!

hirokei said:
1. would the type of baking sheet used make a difference? if i use the dark metal kind of baking sheet, shd i cut the temp or time? and.. since im too lazy to wash the pan, is it okay if i cover the pan w/ a piece of foil? would that make any difference?

We find if you use a metal pan put a stone on the bottom rack it makes a difference, or just use a baking stone.

Cameron
 
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