When baking soda is mixed with an acid, the baking soda produces bubbles and a carbon dioxide gas, which cause the raw dough or batter to rise as a result. When baking soda is used in cookies, it gives the cookies a chewy, coarse texture.
It is possible to make cookies without baking soda or baking powder, but the resulting cookie will be dense. This is because carbon dioxide is not being produced by a chemical reaction that typically occurs when baking soda or powder is present in the cookie batter.
In cookies, too much baking soda will give them too much air, causing almost a cake-like texture. They won’t have the classic chewy texture that cookies have. If you notice that you have added too much baking soda, you can double all the ingredients.
When baking soda is paired with an acidic ingredient such as brown sugar, cocoa, sour cream, or buttermilk, it reacts with the acid. That reaction creates tiny bubbles of gas, or carbon dioxide, which makes a batter or dough rise and spread.
When softened butter is mixed with sugar, it creates air bubbles. Those air bubbles are then filled with carbon dioxide from the baking soda and as a result, you get crispy cookies.
Creating the Cookies You Want
There are three main types of cookie categories: crispy, cakey, and chewy. … For softer, chewier cookies, you will want to add much less granulated sugar, slightly more brown sugar, and a fair bit less butter. For cakey cookies, you will often be including even less butter and sugar.
Baking soda is also typically responsible for any chemical flavor you might taste in a baked good–that bitter or metallic taste is a sign you’ve used too much baking soda in your recipe, and you have unreacted baking soda left in the food. … You may see this described as “double-acting” baking powder.
If your ratios of flour, butter and sugar off, the cookie might spread too quickly. … Sugar sucks up liquid, and when those cookies bake, it’ll release the liquid and cause the cookies to spread out. If you use too much butter, the cookies will end up flat and greasy.
Cookies spread because the fat in the cookie dough melts in the oven. If there isn’t enough flour to hold that melted fat, the cookies will over-spread. Spoon and level that flour or, better yet, weigh your flour. If your cookies are still spreading, add an extra 2 Tablespoons of flour to the cookie dough.
If your cookies come out flat on top, with a cake-like texture, you’ve added too many eggs. … Saving cookies from too many eggs isn’t as straightforward as saving it from too much or too little flour. It takes a little finagling. Add some flour and maybe a little bit more sugar.
Baking soda is typically used for chewy cookies, while baking powder is generally used for light and airy cookies. Since baking powder is comprised of a number of ingredients (baking soda, cream of tartar, cornstarch, etc.), using it instead of pure baking soda will affect the taste of your cookies.
Using lower-moisture sugar (granulated) and fat (vegetable shortening), plus a longer, slower bake than normal, produces light, crunchy cookies. That said, using a combination of butter and vegetable shortening (as in the original recipe), or even using all butter, will make an acceptably crunchy chocolate chip cookie.
The key is to always use top-quality ingredients as they’ll result in a better cookie; it really is that simple.
- Always use butter. …
- Choose the right sugar. …
- Choose the right flour. …
- Check your flour is in date. …
- Choose the right kind of chocolate. …
- Cream the butter and sugar. …
- Beat in the eggs. …
- Fold in the flour.
A secret baker’s trick is to rest your cookie dough in the fridge. You can rest it for at least an hour, which will evaporate some of the water and increase the sugar content, helping to keep your cookies chewy. The longer you allow your dough to rest in the fridge, the chewier your cookies will be.
Why Do Cookies Get Hard? … Over time, the moisture in the cookies evaporates, leaving them stiff and crumbly. It’s the same thing that happens to breads, muffins, and other baked goods. The longer they sit, the more stale they become.