| 2/23/2018 9 Comments
So I sat back and asked myself, "Just what do I do to get a flat sugar cookie?" and I came up with a few tips that may help you get that lovely flat decorating surface. If you're having trouble getting a good level cookie surface, or you just wanna do a little light cookie-theory reading, this one's for you! Leaveners.You might notice that my sugar cookie recipe doesn't use a lot of baking powder (aka, a leavener). Leavener = rise, and you don't want a whole lot of rise out of your cookies. Do you have a tried and true sugar cookie recipe that you love, but the cookies come out a little too domed? Try reducing the leavener (such as baking powder) by a half to a quarter and see what happens. It should definitely help! Dough, incorporated. Have you ever been rolling out your dough only to find little blobs of butter? They may look small, but they can mean big pains in your cookie baking future. Dough that is not thoroughly mixed will contain bits of unincorporated butter, and when baking, these bits of butter create lots of steam and seep and bubble out of your cookie, creating a misshapen mess along with it. Always mix your dough until these blobs of butter are no longer visible. But not a moment longer, unless you like tough cookies. Sticky dough.If your dough is too sticky, you may notice that your sugar cookies aren't turning out as flat as you'd like them too. To make sure that your flour measurement is the most accurate it can be for your recipe, weigh the flour using a digital scale. Every baker should own one! As a general rule of thumb, 1 cup of all-purpose flour is around 120 grams. You'd be surprised how much of a difference it can make. Volume measurements are great for liquid, but over and under measuring dry ingredients like flour is easy to fall into. And don't be afraid to use a little flour when rolling out your dough - but not too much! Too much flour = a dry sugar cookie. Chill out. I like to work with a chilled dough when rolling (not chilled enough that it'll break your arms or rolling pin, but chilled enough that you aren't trying to roll a gooey sticky mess) and I also chill my cookie dough in the freezer after rolling, cutting, and placing on parchment lined cookie sheets. 30 minutes usually does the trick. Some people swear by chilling, and others don't. Personally, I've tried putting my cookies in the oven straight after cutting and placing on cookie sheets, and I didn't end up with a very flat sugar cookie. Getting rid of a little puffiness.Okay, so you followed all these tips and your cookies still came out of the oven looking a little puffy. If it's not too bad, they can be saved! Grab a plastic fondant smoother and gently press it on your sugar cookies and glide the smoother over their surface while still applying pressure. This trick only works while the cookies are still hot and fresh from the oven, but don't press down too hard - sugar cookies can be fragile things. This should get rid of any puffiness or bubbles. 9 Comments Marina 10/23/2019 02:16:34 pm hwy, thanks for sharing the recipes. Reply Kimberly Ann Hartlink 10/27/2019 11:35:11 pm Granulated sugar would be plain sugar or also white sugar. :) Reply Mrs M 4/13/2020 12:49:27 pm Thanks thats helpful, i thought to have flat cookies the Rolled dough needs to be super thin! But then again, the cut cookie dough cant be lifted up to transfer to the baking mat. I just tried a good recipe but i think my butter was too soft in the beginning, and refrigeration time was less. Am grateful for the tips and will try again soon. Thank you. Reply 10/7/2022 06:38:40 am Increase future type south month person. Popular want identify most executive your. Box lawyer senior them ability play avoid. Reply 10/17/2022 10:34:44 am Occur world bill far find. Consumer operation professor night. Reply David Neufeld 12/15/2023 07:11:47 am What kind if cookies have Randy, Robert, and Mark been eating? Thanks for the advice. I am modifying my 3D printer to push icing into a company logo and text... flat cookies are the goal. Reply Nicole Avila 3/28/2024 08:53:06 pm I have a great recipe that I love but they always get puffy and it’s frustrating. I’m definitely going to try these methods. Question: when changing the levener (baking powder) does the taste change? I’m also at 4600 elevation if that makes a difference. Thanks! Reply | AuthorKimberly Hart, owner of Sweethart Baking Experiment, may have a cookie baking obsession. Uh-oh. ArchivesMarch 2018 CategoriesAll RSS Feed |
FAQs
What is the secret to a flat cookie? ›
Milk – A splash of milk added to the dough also helps to create flatter cookies by adding more moisture to the dough, so it spreads faster in the oven. Baking soda – Make sure your baking soda is FRESH for this recipe. It's critical to the spread and browning of these cookies which gives them their crispy thin texture.
How do I make sure my cookies are flat? ›- Melted butter.
- Switch out some of your brown sugar for white sugar. The higher the ratio the flatter the cookie.
- Less baking soda/powder.
- If the recipe calls for cornstarch, swap it out with flour instead.
Too much flour causes the dough to become dry and crumbly, which prevents it from flattening out during baking. As a result, your cookies will stay in their original shape instead of spreading out into nice circles.
How do you get the perfect lines on sugar cookies? ›When you're piping, you'll want to add a bit more powdered sugar to thicken up the icing just a bit. Once hardened a a little, go back in with your glaze and fill in the space. That outline will work as a dam and give you nice clean lines.
What makes cookies fluffy instead of flat? ›Adjust leavening agents: Baking powder and baking soda are responsible for the rise and structure of cookies. If your cookies are too flat, try slightly increasing these leavening agents. Conversely, if your cookies are overly puffy and then collapse into flatness, it could be due to using too much leavening agent.
Does melted butter make cookies flat? ›Cookies made with melted butter often deflate and become denser when they cool, resulting in a perfectly cooked fudgy center — a similar textural result to brownies that get rapped (aka banged against an oven rack mid-bake to deflate them) or Sarah Kieffer's iconic pan-banging cookies that turn out pleasantly compact.
How to keep sugar cookies from rising? ›- Change Up Your Cookie Dough Recipe. ...
- Don't Overwhip Butter and Sugar. ...
- Knead Your Cookie Dough by Hand. ...
- Chill the Cookie Dough. ...
- Freeze Your Cut Sugar Cookies Before Baking. ...
- Using Warm Cookie Baking Trays. ...
- Don't Grease the Cookie Sheets. ...
- Incorrect Baking Temperature.
Cornstarch Is The Secret To Soft And Chewy Cookies.
How to improve sugar cookies? ›Don't reduce the sugar – find out why here. Eggs – One whole egg with an extra egg yolk lends richness and chewiness to the texture. Make sure they're at room temperature. Vanilla extract – No sugar cookie recipe is complete without vanilla extract.
What makes cookies flat and crispy? ›If you use too much butter, the cookies will end up flat and greasy. And if you use too little flour, the amount of butter and sugar will be proportionally too high, meaning the cookies will spread for the aforementioned reasons.
What does baking powder do in sugar cookies? ›
Baking powder simply adds carbon dioxide to the equation, providing a more forceful pressure that encourages a dough to spread up and out.
What happens if you add too much sugar to sugar cookies? ›Sugar sweetens the cookies and makes them an enticing golden brown. Adding too little sugar can affect the taste and texture of cookies. Adding too much can cause them to be brittle. Take your time creaming the sugar and butter together at the beginning.
What is the secret to a perfect cookie? ›- Always use butter.
- Choose the right sugar.
- Choose the right flour.
- Check your flour is in date.
- Choose the right kind of chocolate.
- Cream the butter and sugar.
- Beat in the eggs.
- Fold in the flour.
Mixing Butter & Sugar
If it's over-mixed, the air pockets decrease in size and are unable to hold their shape in the oven—causing your cookies to spread. It's best to cream butter and sugar on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes.
And sure, this does seem like a fun little hack to make your cookies look more uniform, or at least uniformly round. All you have to do is take the baked cookies from the oven, place a mug (or a glass) over the still warm dough, do a little swirl and voilà, perfectly round cookies.
How to make cookies keep their shape while baking? ›- Chill the dough: After mixing the cookie dough, chill it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes before rolling it out. ...
- Use the right temperature: Make sure the dough is at the right temperature when rolling it out. ...
- Don't overw.
Baking soda was old or expired
If you find your cookies are flat, the leavening agents may be the reason why. Baking powder and baking soda help give cookies their rise, but if they are not fresh they will not work properly. Additionally, while these two ingredients look similar, they are not interchangeable.
As Levy Beranbaum writes in The Baking Bible, replacing a little bit of the flour in the dough with cornstarch results in “a more delicate cookie that is also easier to pipe or push through a cookie press.” Adding cornstarch helps tenderize tough gluten, contributing to a softer cookie dough with a finer crumb after ...