Hello Cookie Lovers!

Have you ever tempted to eat raw cookie dough?

It’s fine to just have a taste. Raw cookie dough usually contains raw eggs that can carry the invisible bacteria salmonella. If these bacteria are in your body, they can at least cause headache and fever.

To peak, or not to peak?

Since hot air rises, heat from the top of your oven escapes each time you open its door during baking. That means the bottoms of your cookies can be over-baked or burned while their tops and centers are still raw.

However, peak all you want if that is the texture you desire in your homemade cookies.

How do you have fresh homemade cookies anytime?

  • Prepare dough when you have spare time. Portion it on greased or parchment-lined cookie sheets.
  • Place cookie sheets in a freezer until dough is frozen.
  • Put frozen dough in a plastic freezer bag and keep it in the freezer.
  • Whenever you want homemade cookies, bake according to the recipe but adding 2 – 4 extra minutes to the baking time.

Effect of Sugar on Cookie Appearance

I briefly explained, in the last newsletter, how granulated sugar (sucrose) affects texture of homemade cookies. In this issue, let’s find out how it changes appearance.

The most practical way to do so is to compare these recipes: chocolate crinkles (R1), snickerdoodles (R2), cream cheese cookies (R3), and molasses cookies (R4).

1 cup = 8oz = 16 Tbsp = 48 tsp
1 whole egg is approximately 2 oz., yolk is about 0.5 oz. and the white 1.5 oz.

Amount Baker’s %
R1 R2 R1 R2
All purpose flour 2 c. 2 c. 100% 100%
Sugar 1 c. ¾ c. 50% 37.5%
Eggs 4 oz 4 oz 25% 25%
Butter ¼ c. ½ c. 12.5% 25%

Amount Baker’s %
R3 R4 R3 R4
All purpose flour 1¼ c. 2½ c. 100% 100%
Sugar ½ c. 0 c. 40% 0%
Dark brown sugar 0 c. 1/3 c. 0% 13.2%
Dark Molasses 0 c. 2/3 c. 0% 26.8%
Eggs 2 oz 0 oz 20% 0%
Butter ½ c. ½ c. 40% 20%
Cream cheese ¼ c. 0 c. 20% 0%

Granulated sugar tends to crystallize on surface of homemade cookies during baking. As it does, it loses its ability to hold water that is a source of moisture for any baked goods.

The action of baking soda and baking powder eventually causes the dried surface to break, producing a visible cracked appearance.

Additional moisture in other ingredients (cream cheese, sour cream, banana, etc.) and the presence of other types of sweeteners (brown sugar, molasses, syrup, etc.) tends to reduce or destroy this cracking effect.

But most cookie recipes require us to thoroughly blend the sugar into cookie dough, how does sugar (sucrose) arrives at the surface of your favorite homemade cookies during baking?

Please tune in next time for an explanation. Meanwhile, keep on baking!


Published date: March 5, 2008

Copyright 2008 by Trinh Lieu. All right reserved