Melted Butter vs Soft in Cookies?

[my65289stang]

I made some chocolate chip cookies the other day from a recipe that I have used in the past with excellent results. This time they came out very flat after they cooled so of course I was wondering why....the only thing I could think of was maybe I used margarine last time and butter this time(I don't think this was the case though). So the butter thought led me to the question: When baking cookies, what will the difference be in the end result in a dough that was made with melted butter vs one that was made with softened butter(if any)? Also, aside from taste, what will the difference be between dough made with margarine vs butter?


Thanks
Brian

 

[Gretchen]

In most of my cookie recipes the butter and sugar are creamed together. This would not work if the butter is liquid.

 

[Andy M.]

Brian:

The butter is the culprit. Butter has a low melting point and goes from solid to liquid very quickly. As a result, when you put the cookies in the oven, the butter melts and the dough spreads out before the cookie can bake and set its shape.

The solution is to chill the mixed dough in the fridge for an hour or so. then put the dough onto cold cookie sheets and bake. The unused dough goes back into the fridge between batches. The cookie sheets go into the freezer between batches for a couple of minutes.

All this, while a pain in the xxx, keeps the butter in solid form long enough for the dough to set in a more rounded cookie.

Once you get a rhythm going, it's not bad at all.