Expert: Elyse Grau - 11/27/2008

Question
My uses a time honored recipe for choc chip cookies that always works.Tonight it didn't work.The cookies came out flat.She's very disappointed.The only thing she used different that she can think of is she used Gold Medal flour when she usually use either Pillsbury or Ceresota.Why is there a different result between the 2 flours? G.M. was the only one she could find in the store where she shopped.Thank you, Jim


Answer
Jim:

This is a puzzle. One possibility is that the baking powder was old, it won't give any rise if it is too old, or if it was exposed to moisture in the can. another vague possibility is that the batter was too warm, or even the butter. If it was over beaten in the creaming stage it could get too warm. This would make the cookies spread out more as soon as they hit the oven. Putting the dough on a hot cookie sheet would also cause them to spread.

If the oven temperature was too low the cookies might spread more, too. If you have one of those digital thermometers with a probe you could check the oven temperature and see if it is accurate. Of course, if it wasn't you should notice it with other things you bake as well.

Usually flat cookies result when the fat used is oil or margarine rather than butter. But different brands of butter could act differently, too- but I wouldn't expect such a dramatic difference.

The same goes for flours. Different brands will give you different results, but it is usually more apparent in cakes and breads than cookies. Actually, I like my chocolate chip cookies flat, but if you don't I can understand the disappointment. Hope this helps, better luck next time.

Elyse