How a Clever Baker Rolls Cookie Dough (2024)

Sugar cookies are a no-brainer during the holiday season, but it can be a pain if the dough gets too soft during the rolling process. Here’s a trick to easier rolling and neater cut cookie shapes!

Cambrea Gordon

A Better Way to Roll Out Cookie Dough

Most people who make sugar cookie dough from scratch were taught to roll the dough out after it’s been chilled. The goal is to keep the butter in the dough cold which makes it easier to roll out.

The only flaw in this technique is that the dough can be difficult to roll out once it’s been chilled and hardened. The natural response to working with this hard cold dough is to leave it out on your counter to soften before rolling it out, but sometimes you leave it out too long and your dough goes from hard and stiff to soft and sticky!

There’s a better way: Roll the sugar dough out before you chill the dough, but do it between two pieces of parchment paper! The parchment paper acts like a sandwich, with the sugar cookie dough as the filling.

Here’s how to do it:

Sandwich the unchilled dough between two pieces of parchment paper: Once you’ve made the cookie dough, instead of popping it in the fridge right away to chill, pile it on a piece of nonstick parchment paper or wax paper. Place another sheet of paper on top.
Roll out the dough: Put then use your rolling pin to roll it out to the desired thickness. (When the dough is sandwiched between the parchment, it has no chance of it sticking or melting onto your kitchen counter or rolling pin!)
Transfer to a baking sheet and chill in the fridge: After you’ve rolled it out, transfer the dough onto a baking sheet and stick it in the fridge. If the dough slab is too large for your fridge, cut it into smaller pieces and then stack them up on top of each other with parchment in between.
After 30 minutes, take the dough out of the fridge and cut your shapes! Let the dough harden for around 30 minutes, then take the dough out. There's no need to let it come to room temperature before working with it. You can go from the fridge to your counter and immediately start cutting out shapes.

This technique not only saves time and struggle; it also allows you to keep intricate cookie shapes clean when cutting.

How a Clever Baker Rolls Cookie Dough (5)

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How a Clever Baker Rolls Cookie Dough (2024)

FAQs

How to roll cookie dough into a roll? ›

Place slightly chilled cookie dough between the two pieces of parchment paper and form the dough into rectangle using your hands. Using a rolling pin, start at the center and begin to roll the dough away from your body, rotating the dough 90 degrees every few rolls to ensure even thickness.

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What tool would you use to roll out the cookie dough so that you could then use cookie cutters? ›

Using Greenspan's method, you roll the cookie dough directly after you mix it. 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.

How thick to roll cookie dough? ›

With a lightly floured rolling pin, roll the dough out to about 1/4-inch thickness. Use more flour if the dough seems too sticky. The rolled-out dough can be any shape, as long as it is evenly 1/4-inch thick.

How do you keep cookie dough from sticking when rolling out? ›

Different Ways To Keep Dough From Sticking To A Rolling Pin

Coat with excess flour: The foremost tip to prevent your dough from sticking to the dough is to coat your rolling pin with extra flour. ...
Freeze the dough: Another tip to prevent sticking is to freeze the dough ahead. ...
Coat dough in oil:

Mar 8, 2022

How do you roll cookie dough without sticking to your hands? ›

A more dependable and effective technique is to wet your hands with water. This can be cold or warm water. You may have to add some more water on your hands depending on how long you work the dough, but this technique is far less messy than using flour.

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How long do you chill cookie dough before rolling? ›

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).

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What is the best surface to roll cookie dough on? ›

Rolling cookie dough between parchment eliminates the need to dust the dough with flour to prevent it from sticking to the work surface. The more flour introduced, the higher the chances of tough, dry cookies. Sheeted dough promises tender, buttery cookies, just the way they're meant to be.

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How to roll crumbly cookie dough? ›

First, try adding more liquid to the dough. This can be milk, water, or even just a little bit of extra oil. If that doesn't work, you can try kneading the dough for a few minutes to help it come together. Lastly, if all else fails, you can always add in a few tablespoons of flour to help bind the dough together.

What is the best way to roll out cut out cookies? ›

Rather than roll dough on a floured surface, roll it between sheets of non-stick parchment or waxed paper. Adding extra flour to the dough while rolling can make cookies tough. And cutout cookies release easily from paper when you move them to the baking sheet, preserving their shape.

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Why do you fold dough 3 times? ›

To make the recipe with a mix-and-fold method, stir together the ingredients, then perform a bowl fold three to four times in the first hour. As you make those 10 to 12 strokes, working your way around the bowl, you'll feel the dough organizing itself, strengthening, and tightening.

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How do you roll out cookie dough before chilling? ›

Don't Chill the Dough Immediately

Rolling out just-made cookie dough is easy since it's still really soft and pliable, and you don't have to worry about cookie dough that's so cold from the chilling process that it cracks and has to warm up on the counter again before you can work with it.

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How to roll cookie dough into balls without sticking? ›

Dust hands and utensils with flour: Dusting hands with flour before handling the dough is a winning solution to prevent the dough from sticking. Grease hands: Lightly greasing your hands with vegetable oil or cooking spray will ensure the dough doesn't stick to your palms when rolling into balls.