I’ve done a lot of baking these past few weeks – from writing an article about what I’ve procrastibaked a while back to contributing to bake sales and bringing in treats for work – and my stand mixer and dishwasher have never worked so hard.
When I did find time to bake for myself, though, I often opted for cookies since they are simple enough to make… at least, the prep part, that is. Creaming the butters and sugars and then folding it all in might seem like the hardest part, but I have found that letting the dough chill in the fridge and waiting is what’s most difficult.
Sometimes you want to whip up a batch of cookie dough and put it in the oven as soon as it’s done, and I understand that! However, there are so many reasons you should pop the bowl of dough in the fridge for a bit, and they all contribute to a better tasting cookie in the end!
- Less spread in your cookie dough
Once the cookie dough comes together, you’ll notice that it can be a little runny and soft. Chilling your cookie dough solidifies the fat in it so that it will spread less – meaning that your cookies will not be super flat (unless the recipe is designed for it to be as such!). This results in much nicer-looking cookies that will generally have crispy edges, and chewy middles.
Here’s a little tip: what I like to do before I chill my cookie dough, however, is portion it out on a baking sheet using a cookie scoop, so all I need to do is pick the dough balls up, space them out, and bake. Chilling also certainly changes the texture, so it will be much more firm after a while. It’s not fun to dig out hardened cookie dough!
- You’ll end up with more developed flavors
I’ll admit, in the past I would have a hankering for cookies that would just not go away and would follow a no-chill chocolate chip cookie recipe. Although I’m sure it works for some people, I’ve found that it tasted just okay, and the texture was much too soft for my liking. Chilling your cookie dough has the same benefits of chilling bread or pizza dough in that it hydrates or ripens the flour and letting the flavors become more intense that way.
A few of my favorite chocolate chip cookie recipes – with one prime example being BA’s Best Chocolate Chip Cookies – require you to brown the butter instead of simply melting or softening it. Although that specific recipe did not ask for the dough to be chilled, I did so anyways and blown away by the butterscotch flavor!
- Chill time = free time
Depending on how long you chill your dough, you can end up with more free time to relax or to tend to other things. I personally use the chilling time to clean up the mess I just made or prepare other foods.
Most recipes might advise you to chill them for 30 minutes, although one hour is what I try to aim for if I’m not in a rush. You can even chill them for up to ten days or just bake them from frozen if that’s what you prefer.
All in all, chilling cookie dough is something I don’t recommend you skip unless you want a less pronounced flavor or a not ideal texture. It is hands-off work, and after a while you learn how to distract yourself while they’re in the refrigerator rather than watching the clock. I urge you to chill your cookie dough if you don’t do so already, and you’ll notice the amazing results right away!