10 Secrets to Baking the Perfect Cookie

Butter acts like the ‘glue’ that holds together the other ingredients. Because of its structure, butter holds the key to the texture, aeration, and shape of cookies. Many cookies call for ‘creaming’ the butter and sugar together before adding dry ingredients. This ensures the butter will be distributed evenly throughout the cookie. For best results, creaming should be done for 2-3 minutes in most cases. Room temperature butter is best for this procedure. Avoid creaming butter and sugars together at a speed higher than medium. Too much friction will cause the butter to heat up and break down. For flaky cookies and many shortbreads you will need very cold butter. The cold butter globs settle between layers of flour and, when baked, melt leaving pockets of air which create layers and texture. For best results, cut butter into small cubes and place them in the freezer before starting dough. Consult the recipe and follow it closely.