Cookie Family
The word cookie is a broad term and can mean a variety of textures and techniques. Below are different cookie textures and how to achieve them:
· Crisp: High ratio of fat and sugar compared to a small amount of liquid. These result in a thin batter.
· Soft: Low amounts of fat and sugar and a high amount of liquid added to create a thick dough.
· Chewy: High amounts of fat, sugar, and liquid. The final dough should be chilled before baking.
There are 8 classifications of cookies, each are wildly different with fairly broad definitions…
1. Drop: These cookies have a soft and chewy texture; think a classic chocolate chip cookie. This dough gets its name because you can just scoop the dough onto a pan and bake. Usually this cookie uses the creaming method. I prefer to use an ice cream scoop to portion my drop cookie dough for a faster and more uniform process.
2. Icebox: This cookie is usually made with rich and buttery doughs, which can mean anything from sugar cookies to shortbreads. Cookies in this category get their name because the dough is usually formed in to a log shape before being chilled or entirely frozen. This log is then sliced into disks before baking.
3. Bar: One of the more interesting entries, cookies in this category can range from fudgy and chewy to crisp and buttery. The commonality with bar cookies is that they are cut after baking. Biscotti and brownies are both bar cookies and represent two extremes of texture.
4. Rolled: This type of cookie is classically baked crisp but can be soft. For best results roll out chilled dough, and after cutting and placing on a pan for baking, chill the dough again. These are usually made with buttery tart dough and cut, think holiday sugar cookies and gingerbread.
5. Stencil: This style is typically used as a garnish and is thinly spread on a silicone mat and can be shaped right after baking. They are usually called tuile cookies and are light and crispy.
6. Piped: These finicky cookies are usually called spritz cookies. Spritz cookies can have problems with spreading due to too much fat, too delicate of flour or over creaming the fat. These cookies are reminiscent of those that originally filled what now holds your Mom’s sewing supplies.
7. Meringues: Meringues can be made three different ways and are categorized as French, Swiss, and Italian. They are all egg white based and can be stabilized with sugar, cream of tartar, salt or lemon juice. French meringue is made by whipping egg whites and sugar, this is the easiest to make but the egg whites are raw in this technique. Swiss and Italian meringue are both techniques that cook the egg whites but must be baked like the French meringue to make a hardened cookie. Italian Meringue whips egg whites and a hot sugar syrup and is in my opinion the most stressful meringue to make because the timing is crucial. I prefer the Swiss technique which cooks the eggs and sugar together over a double boiler before whipping. If you are worried about using raw egg whites or have had problems making meringue, you can use meringue powder instead (just hydrate with water and whip). Take care not to let the egg whites come in contact with fats such as egg yolks or grease because this will deflate the meringue. Cookies in this category are piped onto a sheet pan and baked at a low temperature to dry out the ‘batter’.
8. Petit Fours: These are more than just cute little tea cakes. Petit Fours can be au sec, prestige, deguises, frais, or glace.
a. Au sec means ‘dry’ and includes all butter or nut cookies that are unglazed. Think shortbreads, macarons, macaroons, or spritz cookies.
b. Prestige is a small version of a dessert; in my experience this style is usually labor intensive and includes molds and working out of a freezer. But a prestige can also be as simple as a small cupcake.
c. Deguises are fresh, dried or candied fruits that are dipped in either a sugar syrup, liquid fondant, marzipan, or chocolate.
d. Frais is any kind of mini dessert, like a cream puff or mini fruit tart.
e. Glace petit fours are the classic makeup of two sheets of sponge cake sandwiched with jam or buttercream and covered with a fondant glaze. While the petit fours listed above are mostly European, feel free to substitute desserts from all over the world.
Now that you know about cookie textures you’d like to have, click here to learn about different mixing methods you can use.