Secrets To Making Perfect Cookies
Source of Recipe
Internet
List of Ingredients
READ YOUR RECIPE CAREFULLY BEFORE STARTING. Be sure you have all the ingredients called for and that you understand the recipe clearly.
Cultivate the do-it-right attitude and habit. REMEMBER: IF IT IS WORTH DOING, IT IS WORTH DOING RIGHT! Baking demands accuracy and care. Unlike other kinds of cooking, such as soups or stews, you cannot improvise or substitute ingredients.
Never carry on another activity while you are mixing a recipe. Distractions, no matter how small, lead to mistakes. Let the telephone ring!
USE GOOD TOOLS AND UTENSILS. Assemble all the bowls, pans, and utensils you will need on your counter or worktable before starting. Use standard measuring cups and spoons.
USE CORRECT PAN SIZES. Use the type of pan specified in the recipe. Recipes are carefully calculated as to yield and changing the pan size also alters the baking temperature and time. Larger, shallower pans need increased heat; smaller, deeper pans need decreased heat. The size of a baking pan or dish is measured across the top of the container from the inside edge to inside edge. The depth also is measured on the inside of the pan or dish from the bottom to the top of the rim.
Prepare the pan carefully according to the recipe. Place pans as near the center of the oven as possible. Do not place pans directly over another and do not crowd the oven (this makes for uneven baking).
USE TOP-QUALITY INGREDIENTS AND ASSEMBLE THE INGREDIENTS
BEFORE STARTING. You can't expect a first-rate product using second-rate ingredients. Be sure your ingredients are fresh and of the finest quality. If your recipe says the ingredient must be room temperature, be sue it is room temperature before proceeding.
MEASURE THE QUANTITIES CORRECTLY. This is a baking must. One common cause of cooking failures is inaccurate measurement of ingredients. You can use the best ingredients in the world, but if you do not measure correctly, the recipe will not come out properly. Also always use level measurements (all measurements in a recipe are level).
MEASURING LIQUIDS: Use a glass measuring cup. The glass permits you to see the level of the liquid being measured. The cup for liquids should have additional space above the one-cup line, so that a full cup can be accurately measured without spilling. Check the measurement at eye level.
MEASURING DRY INGREDIENTS: Use standard individual cups. Lightly spoon dry ingredients into correct cup size, heat up, and level off with edge of spatula by cutting across the top. Use measuring spoons in this way too.
Flour need not be sifted before measuring unless recipe specifies it. Sifting flour onto a sheet of wax paper instead of into a bowl cuts down on dishwashing.
Measure brown sugar by packing it firmly into a measuring cup or into a measuring spoon.
Shortening should hold its shape when turned out of the measuring cup. The same applies to brown sugar.
ROOM TEMPERATURE: Have all ingredients at room temperature for more glamorous perfect cookies.
Cookies should be of a uniform thickness and size so they will bake in the same amount of time.
BAKING SHEETS: A baking sheet should be either cool or at room temperature when the cookie dough is placed on it; otherwise, the dough will start to melt, adversely affecting the cookies' shape and texture. Bake one cookie sheet at a time, and be sure that the sheet fits in the oven with at least one inch of space around its edges for the proper heat circulation.
Unless the recipe directs otherwise, remove baked cookies from cookie sheet to wire rack immediately to prevent further baking.
Store soft cookies and crisp cookies separately. Store cookies in an airtight box or tin to keep them crisp. Separate layers with sheets of wax paper or aluminum foil.
Recipe
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