The Mysteries of... Cookies

   The word "cookies" comes from the dutch word kockie, meaning "little cake". Cookie is used only in North America, although Britain uses the term biscuits in the same content. English buiscuits are usually smaller than North American cookies and almost always are crisp rather than soft and chewy.

   Cookies come in infinite shapes, sizes, flavors and textures. Crispness, softness, chewiness and spread are the characteristics that vary in each cookie. Cookies are classified by their makeup methods as well as by their mixing methods. No matter which cookie method you use, theymust be made of uniform size and thickness. This is essential for even baking.

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Cookie Types

• Bagged/Pressed : made from a soft dough that can be piped or put through a cookie press.
• Dropped : a soft dough that are the same as bagged, but deposit cookies with a spoon or scoop.
• Rolled : cut out from a stiff dough usually those cute cookie cutters are for this sweet dough.
• Molded : a fast and accurate way of dividing cookie dough into equal potions. Press the dough into the desired mold. This also includes rolled out dough that is pressed and then cut.
• Ice Box/Refrigerator : great for longterm storage to be baked fresh later. Cookies can easily be sliced and baked as needed. This method is also used to make multicolored cookies in various designs, such as checkerboard and pinwheel cookies.
• Bar : the dough is baked in long - narrow strips and later cut crosswise into bars.
• Sheet : they are almost like sheet cakes, only denser and richer, they may even be iced like sheet cakes. Some consist of two or three layers that are added and baked in separated stages.
• Stencil : a special technique used with a particular type of soft dough. This batter is often called stencil paste. It is used not only for making this type of cookie but also for making ribbon sponge cake for decorative work in delicate cakes.

  To test out some of these cookie styles checkout Alton Brown's sugar cookie recipe as a base.