Baking tips

Cookie Texture

Published March 1, 2007.
Courtesy of Cook's Illustrated Test Kitchen



How can I get the cookie texture I want?

By adjusting key ingredients, you can change the texture of any cookie recipe.



If you want chewy cookies, add melted butter. Butter is 20 percent water. Melting helps water in butter mix with flour to form gluten.

If you want thin, candy-like cookies, add more sugar. Sugar becomes fluid in the oven and helps cookies spread.

If you want cakey cookies, add more eggs. Yolks make cookies rich, and whites cause cookies to puff and dry out.

If you want an open, coarse crumb and craggy top, add baking soda. Baking soda reacts quickly with acidic ingredients (such as brown sugar) to create lots of gas bubbles.

If you want a fine, tight crumb and smooth top, add baking powder. Baking powder works slowly and allows for an even rise.