Why do cookies need shortening

I vote wooing your relative to release the recipe! Still trying to find a recipe that a bakery used to make as a child.

It was crispy and almost powdery. I guess others are looking for the same. I just made these and doubled them. I used two cups brown sugar to one cup white sugar. Thank you.

These are fantastic tips Karen, thank you!! I wonder if the bakery used mostly shortening? A lot of bakeries use shortening instead of butter because of cost. I love the idea of the two cups brown sugar.

That will add a depth and maybe make them crispier? Some recipes call for a teaspoon of cornstarch in the recipe.

I thought texture was slightly powdery. My mom has been using the recipe for decades. Thank you! Just tried this recipe and my cookies turned out flat! What did I do wrong? My husband said they tasted great but not sure why they flattened out like pancakes. Oh no! Usually the culprit in flat cookies is too-soft butter.

I always err on the side of too-firm butter. You can also chill the dough before baking, that helps in case the butter had softened.

Other reasons: Too little flour if under measured. If you put new dough on hot cookie sheets. Home » Food Crafts » cookies » tip to make the best chocolate chip cookies. Pin Share Tweet Yummly. As an affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Prep Time 15 minutes.

Whether you use butter, margarine or shortening, it is essential that you use the appropriate form recommended in the recipe. For example, if the recipe calls for melted butter, use that form only. Using solid butter or boiling it to a thin liquid will significantly change the ultimate texture of the cookie. Similarly, if the recipe calls for room-temperature margarine or shortening, be sure to pull the product out of the refrigerator several hours before you plan to bake the cookies.

Nutrition Desserts and Snacks Cookie Recipes. Baking Cookies: Butter Vs. Shortening Vs. Margarine By Krista Sheehan. Krista Sheehan. Krista Sheehan is a registered nurse and professional writer. She works in a neonatal intensive care unit NICU and her previous nursing experience includes geriatrics, pulmonary disorders and home health care.

Her professional writing works focus mainly on the subjects of physical health, fitness, nutrition and positive lifestyle changes.

A child holds chocolate chip cookies and a glass of milk. But recently as I whipped up batches of cookies and a plethora of pies, I began to wonder about the difference between using shortening vs.

Butter is a familiar ingredient. Shortening on the other hand is a bit more complicated, starting with the name. This kind of shortening is typically made from soybean, cottonseed, or palm oil.

It goes through a special process called hydrogenation so it remains semi-solid at room temperature. Even though these ingredients are clearly different, shortening and butter are often used interchangeably in recipes with acceptable results. Cookies made with butter, especially high-sugar recipes, tend to be flatter and crispier than cookies made with shortening.

To see just how different the spread would be, I baked two batches of our Self-Rising Crunchy Sugar Cookies one made with all butter, one with all shortening , for another shortening vs.

As predicted, the cookies made with shortening spread less and remained slightly rounded, thanks to the higher melting point. You might recognize this slightly sandy, crumbly feel as the characteristic texture of shortbread. A quick fix? Consider chilling your butter-based cookie dough to help control spread and bonus, you'll also experience a wonderful depth of flavor, too!

What about cake? Would the cake rise in the oven? Or would it collapse? Would it have a large crumb? We needed to find out! One cake was baked using all butter, while shortening was the fat of choice in the other. The result? The difference between shortening vs. The height was comparable, as were the color and crumb. The texture of the cake made with shortening, however was quite pleasant — tender, lofty, and light.

When shortening is creamed with sugar, it traps air molecules, which helps to leaven cakes and make them tender. A fork slides through a slice of shortening-based cake easier than one made with butter.

The rich creaminess of a classic butter cake is hard to replace. But shortening might have its place in your frosting recipe too. We replicated hot, summery conditions when so many of us cake bakers are called upon by putting frosted cupcakes in a low oven for 10 minutes.

The results were drastic: the all-butter buttercream melted and spread down the sides of the cupcake, while the buttercream made with shortening held its shape. So if heat isn't a problem, you might want to stick with a Classic Buttercream recipe. They can both be used to make delicious, tender baked goods that are full of flavor and richness. There might be certain cases when it just makes more sense to use butter, like in a classic cake perhaps.

There are other times when a can of Crisco is now the thing I reach for: when making pie crust, frosting, and even sandwich cookie filling.