How to Bake the Perfect Cookies

Sue Maree P -

Wondering how to bake the perfect cookies so they turn out the same every time needs a few simple tips and hints to follow.

  1. WHIP – take time to whip the butter and sugar for about 8 to 10 minutes until the mixture has change colour and is light and fluffy.
  2. FOLD – in flour at the end to ensure and do not over mix the dough.
  3. CHILL – the dough before baking as it enhances the flavours, increases the buttery flavour, stops the cookies spreading and it makes the dough easier to handle when forming the cookies.
  4. BAKING – grease and line your cookie trays with either baking paper or a silicone mat and never place your cookie dough on a hot tray
  5. TRAYS – I always bake one tray at a time on the middle shelf. This will take a little longer but this ensure the best possible results at the oven is able to concentrate on baking that one tray in the hottest part of the oven. If you need to bake multiple trays to save time, you may need to rotate and swap shelves halfway through.
  6. SCALES – to get the same results every time I would recommend weighing with a set of kitchen scales to the gram and don't rely just on cup measurements.
  7. OVEN – always preheat your oven. If you are unsure how accurate your oven temperature is buy an oven thermometer, they are not too expensive.
  8. ROOM TEMPERATURE – make sure your butter and eggs are at room temperature. As a guide I usually take them out of the refrigerator at least 30 minutes before I want to bake with them.
  9. TIME – never over bake the cookies until they are rock hard. This style of cookie is not fun munch in to.
  10. INGREDIENTS – a simple check before you start baking is to ensure they are fresh and not out of date and buy the best quality ingredients. eg. Instead of home branded chocolate I would suggest buying a good quality chocolate. I once baked at my mum's house and started mixing with her flour only to discover that it was old and had weevils in it. Not a pleasant find.
  11. ORGANISE – mise-en-place is a French term for organise like a Chef. It translates to 'put in place'. I'd highly recommend for A stress-free baking experience and a more ordered time in the kitchen gather and arrange all the ingredients and tools needed for cooking. For many people these organising principles are a way of life.
  12. MEASURE all your ingredients first before commencing. I have been half way through a recipe and realised I didn't have everything.