(Whoops... I just noticed this shot caught me red handed; don't mind the cookieon the right that I was breaking pieces off of as I was taking pictures!)
I have been baking with one issue for about a year now: they come out flat. Flat as a pancake.
NO!
Flatter than a pancake!
More like flat as a piece of paper! The flavor is "spot on" in my opinion, but where is the volume? Where is the fluffiness?I have these same questions when I attempt to do my hair... except the flavor part. I don't eat my hair.
I have tried all sorts of things to remedy this problem of mine. I bought new baking soda, no dice. I added more flour, they turned into biscuits. I tried new recipes, all with the same result.Flat.
Flat, flat, flat.
What am I doing wrong? Any ideas?
6 comments:
What kind of flour are you using? All purpose?
My first guess was the baking soda, but hmmmm, maybe it's the fact that you want to stop eating sweets and therefore you are subconsciously sabotaging your baking...but probably just the flour.
Is your butter too soft? Sometimes that can make the cookies flat. I always use this recipe and it never fails http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/ultimate-chocolate-chip-cookies. I make them probably about once a week.
I think it's pretty funny how many angles you took pictures from to illustrate your point. I don't care how flat they were, they were yummy. Excellent flavor. I'm going to try that recipe and see what my results are.
@Casey: I have changed out all the ingredients at some point. I even used exclusive butter, then margarine, and then butter flavored crisco. When that produced the same ol results I found a recipe that called for half butter and half crisco. Obviously that didn't work either.
I also appreciate your faith in my subconscious. I must have forgotten to mention that even though they are indeed flat as a piece of paper, I can still put a dozen (or more) away in one sitting. They may be flat, but I am not crazy! In my book throwing out perfectly edible cookies IS crazy. ;)
@Brookalicious: BROOKE! Is that YOU?!? HI! How are you? It may be that my butter is too soft! I have never considered that aspect of it...I will give it a try (along with Martha's recipe). THANKS!
@Erynn: I thought they were good too, so thanks for the confirmation. I got the recipe off of PW's Tasty Kitchen; it's her good ol fashion basic chocolate chip cookie recipe. I followed it to the letter, except for the flax seed and coffee granules (so, maybe I wasn't so exact after all). I didn't have either on hand. I'm interested to see how yours come out.
I had that problem. Williams and Sanoma say in my cookbook to Never Ever overstir! Whip the heck out of that butter and sugar, and then you're done whipping. Mix your dry ingredients and then practically fold them into the batter. Mix with wooden spoon just until barely blended. The book also says to use a good 2 tbsp of shortning in place of some of the butter to prevent spreading (the butter melts at high temperatures and spreads). Good luck!
I use a recipe that I got from the Crisco block packs, which uses milk and brown sugar. It is amazing! I add about 1/4 c extra flour, as standard to this recipe. It does not contain butter, as butter usually gives me flat results.
Mix your wet ingredients separately from your dry ingredients, and don't over-beat the eggs. Then gently mix them together. I do it all by hand, just my preference. You can also test 4-6 cookies to see how well they'll set up. If they're flat, just mix in a little more flour, and re-test.
Oh, and be sure to eat them while they're warm! I like them with a small shot of fat-free milk. Keep them sealed tight as soon as they are cool. To freshen them up, place a heal of bread in a plastic bag with them. The bread will dry out as the cookies absorb its moisture.
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