Cookies 'n Creaming

(Not that kind of creaming, you perv.)

If you were to peruse my recipe collections, you'd find that the instructions for many of them simply state "__________ method," especially the cookie recipes. You can save a lot of writing and thinking when you can reduce the instructions of a recipe to its mixing method. A mixing method is the particular way ingredients are combined in order to achieve a particular texture and taste, as well as ensure the baked good rises properly. For example, egg whites and sugar are the leavening agents in angel food cake, so its mixing method (conveniently called the angel food method) involves whipping the egg whites and sugar into an air-filled meringue that give the cake its structure.

There are several mixing methods: creaming, biscuit, foaming, combination, etc. You won't need to memorize them, except maybe the creaming and biscuit methods, as they're the most commonly-used methods for cookies, cakes, biscuits and quick breads. Today we'll be doing the creaming method, which is achingly simple. The "creaming" action is whipping air into the butter and sugar. The sugar stiffens the butter, allowing it to hold all the microscopic air bubbles. Chemical leaveners, like baking soda and baking powder, release more air as they're heated.

Along with the different types of mixing methods, there are different types of cookies, organized by how they're formed. Rolled cookies are cut out from sheets of dough that have been rolled flat; bar cookies are baked in a sheet, like brownies, and cut from the pan; drop cookies are spooned out and dropped on the baking sheet; and so on. Stenciled, molded, and ice-box cookies are pretty involved and often involve extra tools--I haven't done any of them since baking school. Everyone's pretty familiar with drop cookies, whether they know it or not, so that's what we'll be doing today.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Drop Cookies; Creaming Method

Ingredients

1 c (1/2 lb) butter

1 c brown sugar, packed

1 1/2 c granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 Tbsp (1 oz) milk

2 1/2 c AP flour

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 package chocolate chips

Oven at 375 F

1. Mise en place! (The French term for "everything in place." It's pronounced "mees on plahs," if you want to impress your friends.) This includes preheating the oven, if you plan to bake right after mixing.

I like to combine the dry ingredients in one bowl whenever possible--it saves on counter space. Same for the wet ingredients. In this case, the vanilla extract was dumped right into the milk.

2. Throw the butter into the bowl, and beat for a minute or so. The butter should be room temperature--soft enough to whip air into it, but not so soft that it can't hold its shape. Add the sugars, and beat until there are no lumps.

3. Add the eggs, one at a time. Make sure to blend the eggs thoroughly, and scrape down the bowl each time. You want to make sure you don't have chunks of sugar-butter floating around in the batter.

4. If you haven't combined the dry ingredients, go ahead. Then scoop about half the flour mixture into a sifter or strainer, and sift it into the bowl.


Sifting is not necessary, per se, but you really should if you want a high-quality cookie or cake. This is the most efficient way to evenly distribute ingredients, like the baking soda and salt. It also eliminates lumps, so you won't have pockets of flour or cocoa powder in the cookies/cake. Even a boxed cake mix benefits from being sifted; my friend Teresa noticed her cakes were smoother and lighter when she started sifting the mix. And it's easy and free! Sift your dry ingredients, and you'll see the difference.

Anyway, blend the dry ingredients on low speed, or flour will go everywhere. Add the milk and vanilla, and blend again. Then add the second half of the dry ingredients, sifting again. As always, scrape the bowl and beater(s) thoroughly, so the batter is mixed evenly. You don't want to just mix mix mix mix mix to get every bit of butter and flour incorporated into the batter. Why? Because mixing dough creates gluten, the protein that gives baked goods their structure. Too much mixing = too much gluten = a tough, chewy cookie.

5. Add those chocolate chips, and mix.



6. Wrap and chill/bake.

Since I made these for work, I decided to wrap the dough up and stow it into the freezer, to bake later. You can store your cookie dough in the freezer; in the fridge if you're going to bake them off in the next day or two; or bake them right away.

Since my cookies are meant for sale, and thus, have to be uniform, I scooped them with an ice cream scoop while the dough was still chilled. You don't have to get an ice cream scoop for a relatively uniform cookie; you can eyeball it. I recommend working with the dough when it's still cold, because it'll be easier to roll and shape than if it's warm and soft.

Now, obviously these aren't just plopped by the spoonful on to the baking sheet. But, as I said before, these cookies are professional cookies. They don't do casual, not even business-casual, so they need to be uptight, perfect little circles. You, however, are baking for fun, and can spoon your cookies out of the bowl and right on the sheet, and for that, I envy you.

Flattening the cookies is optional. If you do, you may want to chill the baking sheets in your fridge, if you have the room. Flattening them a little is optional. If you do, however, you should chill them for a little while before baking. Throwing chilled dough into a prepared oven keeps the dough from spreading too much, so the cookies will keep their shape, and won't bake into each other.

Do NOT grease your cookie sheets! Never, ever, ever, unless the recipe specifically calls for it. The fat used to grease the sheet is going to burn at a (relatively) low temperature, lower than the temperature needed to bake the cookies. They'll come out with burned bottoms, and nobody wants that. If you don't have parchment paper--I know I don't at my house--you can go without any sort of lining on the sheet.

7. Bake at 375 F for 7-10 minutes. I always set the timer to the halfway-point, and rotate the pan(s). Many ovens, especially gas ovens, don't heat evenly. Rotating the pans makes sure the cookies will bake evenly. Your cookies will be done when they spring back up after you press the top (gently) with your finger. Remember--they'll keep baking on the sheet after you take them out of the oven. So if they give only a little resistance, they may still be ready to take out. Regardless of how well- or under-baked you like your cookies, they should always give at least a little resistance when you push on them. Otherwise, you'll have gross gooey cookies that'll give someone food poisoning, instead of the good kind of gooey cookies.

I probably flattened these just a smidge too much, but they turned out pretty good. The edges are crisp, the centers are chewy, and I certainly can't complain about the taste. Whether you use this particular recipe or not, you should try to be mindful of the steps as you complete them: mixing thoroughly, scraping the bowl between steps, sifting the dry ingredients, chilling the dough. After a certain point, it becomes second nature, and you'll surprise yourself by how effortless it is to whip up a batch of bakery-quality cookies.