Those who know me know I love cookies. I love to bake them, eat them, research recipes, try friends’ cookie creations and talk about cookies. Cookies are my passion.
On Tuesday’s Palos Verdes real estate Broker’s Tour, an agent made cookies and was serving them during her open house. I asked if they were made from scratch and thus began a discussion about the nuances of cookie baking. The agent suggested that I write about cookies on this blog as I am both knowledgeable and passionate about them. Some years ago, I had a commercial bakery called Carlson’s Cookies;we packaged and sold our cookies in Bristol Farms, Hughes, Ralphs, and gourmet stores across the country.
Here are some hints for fabulous cookies:
- Always use butter for the best flavor.
- After the cookies cool, package them and serve them the next day as that allows the flavors to develop and separate. On the day of baking, the overwhelming flavor in the cookie is the sweetness from the sugar.
- Turn the oven temperature down 25 to 50 degrees and increase the baking time. This will give you a more flavorful cookie.
- If the cookies spread too much, consider decreasing the sugar or use baking powder instead of baking soda.
- Use a cookie scoop (that’s why those cookies in the photo are the same size) for more uniform baking and you won’t end up with smaller over-baked cookies or larger under-baked cookies.
- Use real vanilla, not imitation or vanillan (which has an aftertaste). Also check the chocolate chips you are using to ensure they also have real vanilla as an ingredient.
- Unless it is a delicate cookie, consider trying whole wheat flour in your cookies for a nuttier flavor.
Next week, I will write about my favorite bakery in the South Bay.
