Why do my choc. chip cookies always spread?

[Arianwen1174]

DH loves a good, chewy chocolate chip cookie. I was using the Toll House recipe but the cookies would spread so much they'd end up flat and too crispy. I found a great recipe at AllRecipes.com,thinking maybe I needed a different recipe. The same thing happened. I follow the recipes. I use butter and not margarine. The only thing I wonder about is if it has anything to do with using WW pastry flour. I don't have this problem with most other cookies, it's primarily chocolate chip ones. Strange, huh? Anyone have any advice? Oh--could it be at least partly because the baking sheets are sprayed/greased too well???

[Barefoot~Baker]

Originally Posted by Arianwen1174

DH loves a good, chewy chocolate chip cookie. I was using the Toll House recipe but the cookies would spread so much they'd end up flat and too crispy. I found a great recipe at AllRecipes.com,thinking maybe I needed a different recipe. The same thing happened. I follow the recipes. I use butter and not margarine. The only thing I wonder about is if it has anything to do with using WW pastry flour. I don't have this problem with most other cookies, it's primarily chocolate chip ones. Strange, huh? Anyone have any advice? Oh--could it be at least partly because the baking sheets are sprayed/greased too well???

This happens to me too! They're a little better if I put in a little baking soda.

I don't think you're supposed to grease the pans for these cookies, that could be a contributing factor.

[lurable]

Yes, I think your both right about the greasing of the sheets. From my experience that has been my cookies downfall as well!

ETA- I don't think it's the WW flour because that's what I use for my choc chip cookies and they turn out fine. I do think that when they don't I have put in too much butter or the cookie sheet has been greased- which has only happened once.

[lotus.blossom]

I've always used the toll house recipe too but recently I got a kitchenaid mixer and used their recipe and got the BEST cookies! They puffed up and were chewy and perfectly done (not thin and soggy like toll house) I think they call for more flour than toll house.

[LianneM]

When I make them, I use the toll house recipe, real butter, no greasing pans. The best results for me come from bread flour - not even AP flour. I haven't tried ww pastry in a long time but will do that soon, for testing purposes, of course

But yeah - don't grease the pans!

OH also - don't put so many chocolate chips. I've found that 1 cup is plenty. 2 cups is way too chocolatey (and I'm a chocoholic )

[SeekingJoy]

Are you creaming in cold butter? That can make them spread and go crispy. Let the butter soften to room temp first instead.

[kel32brown]

When you use whole wheat flour, you're changing the starch level of the cookies. Most recipes, including tollhouse, are designed for starchy AP flour.

Those more bran filled ww flour molecules need a little extra time to swell with the inherent liquid from the eggs and vanilla. One option is just to chill your cookie dough for an hour, or my fave trick - toss it in the freezer for half an hour to chill out. I then scoop with a melon ball scoop for uniform cookie size, and then give each cookie a little palm press half way down.

This eliminates several issues by the way. The butter/margarine firms up - which impedes spreading, and it just the time you wait lets the flour and bran in the whole wheat swell up a bit.

One trick we do that might work well for you is to grease the pans and then sprinkle them with a touch of flour, and shake it off or use a oil/flour pan spray. This reduces/eliminates spreading too. That works especially well for chocolate chip cookies.

Always use cool sheets too, because a hot cookie sheet will guarantee a spreaded, lacy edged cookie.

I hope that helps. If all else fails, you can use either some ultrafine whole wheat pastry flour and add a bit extra to the recipe, or add 1/4 cup of all purpose white flour to end spreading.

[maryeliz]

I heard a piece about this on the Splendid Table radio show-I think you can listen to it on podcast. Apparently the type of wheat in regular flour/or the gluten content or some such has changed since they introduced the toll house recipe, so someone tested a recipe that uses half bread flour/half cake flour. I think you can also find the recipe on the New York Times site. It works great-the cookies are nice and thick and chewy.

[LianneM]

oooh yes - room temp butter, and if you let the eggs warm up to room temp also it's even better. I forgot about that.

Thanks for the fridge tip - I'm definitely going to try that with ww pastry flour.

[lonegirl]

I found I had best success when, rather than just "dropping from spoon" I rollled into balls and slightly flatten (similar to peanut butter cookies-just not as much)

[Pam_and_Abigail]

I second the 'let it sit' suggestion - I try to do this with whole wheat muffins and pancakes too. I wonder if adding extra wheat gluten would help?

[chelko]

Alton Brown on Good Eats did an episode where he made 3 different textured cookies, flat & crispy, cakey, and chewy. He talked about fats - butter (melted vs softened) or shortening, amounts of sugar (white/brown), eggs, and leavening, and how it all affected consistency from a chemical perspective. Maybe this will help.

[cristeen]

Chill your cookie dough thoroughly before baking. They'll spread less.

Be sure to use a cold sheet pan, and not one that you just pulled out of the oven.

Increase the gluten content of your flour... pastry flour will definitely spread more than bread flour.

And you can also try subbing a solid oil for part of the butter... butter contains water, which is why a butter cookie will spread more than the same cookie made with shortening. Coconut oil or palm oil either one would work.

[425lisamarie]

If you're trying to use whole grains, adding a little extra baking powder and baking at a slightly higher temperature will make them "puff" faster and set. That and or an extra egg white. You kind of half to experiment

[columbusmomma]

Taking notes, I've given up on baking CC cookies

[kiwiva]

Originally Posted by columbusmomma

Taking notes, I've given up on baking CC cookies

Seriously, me too! I make like 15 kinds of cookies at the holidays and they are all fine but my cc cookies are flat and crispy. Yuck.

I use room temp butter, I chill the dough, cookie sheets are always cool. I use cookie sheets with rims (sister who can't cook but makes great cc cookies suggested). I've even tried parchment paper. This happens to me whether I use ww pastry, ww or white, doesn't matter! Nothing works and I end up packing all the dough into a brownie pan and making bars as otherwise I get depressed.

[staceychev]

I use the Tollhouse recipe and they always turn out great. Some things:

* I never grease the cookie sheets. In fact, I don't know anyone who does this!
* I keep the dough in the freezer in between batches, or on a cold windowsill, to keep it nice and col
* I cool down the cookie sheets in the freezer in between batches.

[Pam_and_Abigail]

I think the unfortunate thing about making chewy cookies is a high amount of sugar, because I think the sugar caramelizes during baking, and that makes the chewiness. This is a theory I came up with when trying to make chewy brownies, but I think the same applies to cookies.

[mamadelbosque]

Hmm this is all very intersting, cause' you can definetly count me as another whose given up on CC cookies with ww pastry flour - it seems to work fine for most everything else except cc and oatmeal cc cookies. :sniffle:

[goldfinches]

Is it a no-no to use crisco? that will cure your problem. if you want, you could do 1/2 crisco and 1/2 butter. (I don't know much about this forum, if crisco is frowned upon?)

And, chilling the dough is awesome. I actually, if i can plan ahead, chill mine for 36 hours. And, grind a small amount of sea salt onto the dough ball.

I use a silpat on my cookie sheet, I guess it's sort-of like greasing without the grease.