7 Tips For Baking Amazing Cookies

Ensure the butter is completely softened.

When the recipe requires softened butter, leave it at room temperature ahead of time and ensure it is completely soft before using. When the butter is still partially firm, the other ingredients do not blend as easily, and in the worst case, they could separate. I usually leave it at room temperature for at least a few hours.

Or when I forget, I heat it in the microwave for about 5 seconds or so, turning the butter each time. It's important to do so to prevent the butter from melting!

This step is unnecessary when the recipe requires cold butter, just like ​my tart crust recipe​.

Use parchment paper to roll out the dough.

You can roll out the cookie dough on a lightly floured work surface, but I often sandwich it with parchment paper instead.

The benefits are:

1. The dough does not stick to the table, which makes the process easier.
2. You do not have to worry about applying too much flour, making the cookies crunchier.
3. There is no risk of the cookie surface getting slightly white with the flour.

But if you are used to rolling it out with flour, go ahead and use that method! Pick whichever way you feel most comfortable with.

Thicker cookies spread more in the oven.

The thicker the cookie dough is, the wider it spreads in the oven. I normally roll it out a bit thinner than ¼ inch if it's cut-out cookies.

Of course, you do not need to worry about this for chewy cookies when you want them to spread! Follow the recipe as directed.

Preheat the oven. (Always!)

Before baking cookies, always preheat the oven ahead. Preheat it to the baking temperature even when the recipe does not say anything about it. The dough spreads more or gets burned while baking when the oven is not preheated.

Cookies get browned slightly more with the remaining heat.

You do not worry about it much when you want to make the cookies toasty and crispy, but I get more cautious about it when I want to keep the bright colors of cut-out cookies or make soft cookies.

Take them out just slightly before the ideal color.

Store it in the freezer and bake cookies later!

Baking cookies can be very time-consuming, especially when baking for a large crowd! You can always make the dough ahead and freeze it. Thaw it overnight in the fridge or leave it on the kitchen counter if you forget to transfer it into the fridge.

You can also freeze the cut-out cookies and bake them straight in the preheated oven!

Store them with silica gels to keep them very crispy!

My last tip is about how to store them. This does not apply to soft, chewy cookies. When you want to keep the cookies very crispy, store them in an airtight container with ​silica gel​. I find it makes a huge difference, especially when your room is humid or when you have to store it for more than a few days.

I highly recommend investing in silica gel if you plan to bake many crispy cookies! They are always in my pantry for cookies, tarts, meringue cookies, etc.