All About Cookies
Of all of the desserts you can bake, cookies can be the easiest and the most fun. Right after my dad taught me to make coffee (there are some priorities), Mom taught me how to "cream my butters and sugars". Children are taught at an early age, like I was, to make cookies. If you are intimidated by baking, this is a great place to start.
There are six different types of cookies, which are classified by the way the dough is handled. These types are: drop, bar, rolled, refrigerator, pressed and molded. Besides describing the types of cookies, I will also talk about their common ingredients, preparation, storage, and helpful hints.
Drop cookies are the easiest individual cookies to make. Balls of dough are dropped from a spoon onto a cookie sheet. Recipes: Coffee Nut Drop Cookies from Juan Valdez and Golden Chocolate Treasure Cookies.
Bar Cookies are prepared by putting the dough in a rectangular pan. They are baked and then cut into squares. Most drop cookie recipes can be converted to this type of cookie. These are the easiest cookies to make, because several batches are baked at once. Recipe: Caramel Squares
Rolled Cookies take a little more preparation. With a rolling pin, chilled dough is rolled out. The dough is cut into shapes by using a knife, pastry wheel or cookie cutter. Recipe: Sugar Cookies
Refrigerator or Ice Box Cookies are prepared by shaping the dough into long rolls and then refrigerating them. Once cold, the dough can be sliced and baked. This is a great prepare-ahead-of-time dough because it can also be frozen. Recipe: Cranberry Icebox Cookies
Pressed Cookies are made by pressing the dough through a cookie press or pastry tube to form different shapes. Recipe: Lemon Spritz Cookies
Molded Cookies dough is formed by the hands into shapes such as: wreaths, crescents, canes, or balls. Balls are sometimes flattened with the bottom of a glass. Recipe: Peanut Butter Cookies
Most cookies are made from the same basic ingredients. The dry ingredients consist of all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. The sweetness comes from granulated and/or brown sugar. The fat is either softened butter or margarine and sometimes shortening. Eggs and vanilla extract are also used. For different flavored cookies add: chocolate, cocoa, nuts, raisins, oatmeal, spices or extracts.
Making the dough is pretty consistent with all cookies. Mix your dry ingredients in a medium-sized bowl. In a large bowl, cream your butters and sugars, then add your slightly beatened eggs and vanilla. To this mixture, slowly add the dry ingredients until well mixed. Usually at this point the extra flavorings are added to the dough. Then the dough is prepared the way dictated by the cookie type.
Storing cookies differs according to texture. Soft cookies, such as bar cookies, are stored in a container with a tight lid. If they tend to dry out, add a slice of apple to the container. Crisp cookies should be stored in a container with a loose lid, like a cookie jar. If there is a lot of humidity in your area, add a piece of bread to the container. The bread helps to absorb the moisture.
Even though cookies are easy to make, there are few hints to make it even easier. Use only the freshest ingredients. Large eggs are the standard eggs used. Try not to use substitute fats. If the recipe calls for butter, use butter. Make sure you measure your ingredients properly. Keep the dough chilled in between baking batched of cookies. Cool your cookie sheets by running tepid water over the back of them. And last but not least, don't eat all the cookie dough. Save some for the baking process.
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