Characteristics of cookies

Cookies!

1. CHARACTERISTICS OF COOKIES

2. CRISP A crisp cookie is generally produced from a dough with little moisture or liquid in it. It also contains a large amount of granulated sugar and fat.

3. SOFT Soft cookies and cakes have a similar texture. Using hygroscopic sugars such as brown sugar, molasses, corn syrup, and honey that easily absorb moisture from the air, produces a softer cookie. Softer cookies are created when a low-protein flour is used because low-protein flours do not bind with or absorb as much water as a high-protein flour.

4. CHEWY Cookies made with high-protein flour are chewy because of the gluten development.

5. BROWN The easiest way to increase the browning of a cookie is to increase the oven temperature or the baking time. Browning occurs when a higher proportion of baking soda is used. Flours that are high in protein also produce cookies that brown better than flours lower in protein.

6. PALE Underbaking is one way to prevent a cookie from browning. The lower the protein content of a flour used in a cookie dough, the less browning occurs. Flours that are bleached and acidic, such as cake flour, also produce paler cookies.

7. SPREAD Varying ingredients of a cookie dough can also affect how much the dough will spread in the oven

8. INCREASED SPREAD A thinner cookie dough with a great deal of liquid in it produces a cookie with more spread. A high amount of granulated sugar also increases spread. Flours with low-protein produce more spread. Placing the dough on a greased cookie sheet also increases spread.

9. DECREASED SPREAD Using flours with high-protein contents decreases spread by binding with more liquid within the dough, creating more structure. Baking at higher temperature reduces spread because the cookie dough sets faster. Placing the cookie dough on a degreased sheet pan reduces spread.