I’ve tried so many recipes over the years and I just cannot make good cookie dough. I can make amazing cakes and bread and all kinds of other things but for some reason I’m completely inept at making decent cookie dough of any kind. I will follow a recipe EXACTLY, I make sure to not over mix but somehow it always comes out this consistency. It’s obviously something I’m doing because I’ve used different recipes (the ones I’ve used the most are the ones on the backs of chocolate chip bags like Nestle, Great Value, and Hyvee)
To salvage this batch I put it in the fridge to hopefully help keep the cookies shape when I bake them.
Is there a foolproof recipe I just don’t know about? What could be causing this? I’m so frustrated I just want to make good cookies 😭
by SpiritualPlan1822
37 Comments
How soft is your butter?
Are you using butter or margarine? If butter is it cold? How long are you creaming it? Do you live in a hot humid climate?
All I know is that I want to eat this with a spoon
What flour are you using? Are your measuring utensils accurate? Temperature of ingredients (fridge vs room temp vs melted butter)? Size of eggs in dough (large vs extra large)?
There are a lot of things that can impact this. It sounds like there’s too much wet for the dry ingredients, which leads me to believe it’s melted butter or a measuring issue. Post your steps and we can help some more. In the meantime, try this [https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/174864/original-nestle-toll-house-chocolate-chip-cookies/](https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/174864/original-nestle-toll-house-chocolate-chip-cookies/) and let us know if it turns out.
There definitely seems to be too much liquid. Is your butter in sticks or blocks (not a tub)? What size eggs do you use? What type of sugar are you using? Do you add any other liquid to the dough?
How isn’t anyone suggesting adding more flour? It can be that your flour isn’t absorbing as it should and you need more to hold everything together better.
Atleast that’s what my instinct osuld tell me to do (and have done multiple times)
If you aren’t using a scale, how are you getting the flour in the measuring cup: scooping it into the flour, or spooning and leveling?
If you have a thermometer, softened butter should be around 65°F (or a little colder). It should be pliable but not completely soft. While creaming should be until it’s light and fluffy, I think that would just make the cookies dense, not too soft. If they’re too soft either there’s too much moisture or the butter is too warm. Too cold is better than too warm – too cold won’t cream as well but too warm butter won’t work at all because it loses its structure. If your house is warmer than that you can put the softened butter in the fridge for 10 minutes or so to cool it down.
All that said, my first guess was something is wrong with the butter or its moisture content – just because I’ve seen it before, you want to be using 100% butter in stick form, we see people using butter from a tub (or country crock/margarine/vegan butter) and it has too much water in it so I just wanted to mention it because it’s more common than you might think. But whatever the issue I don’t think is a recipe issue if you’re using multiple legit recipes and it always turns out like this, I think the issue is either with technique or ingredients.
There are lots of good videos on YouTube that show how to make all kinds of baked goods . I’d recommend checking out America’s Test Kitchen or Claire Saffitz for seeing what things should actually look like at each stage in case it is a technique issue.
You definitely need more flour in there! This level of softness means the ratios are off at least a little but if you’re using melted butter instead of just room temp/softened that will make it more of a wet batter. Add a bit more flour and then refrigerate for 30 min
Butter, chill it
Looks like too many eggs v flour
Is it possible that youre over mixing it? It looks delicious!
Are you weighing your flour? Are your measuring tools off? Whatever the case is, you definitely should add more to this batch until you get a formable dough.
You don’t mention eggs, but everything in US assumes grade A large. Other than that, a cheap scale, (between $10 – $15 at WM) will definitely help. I measure all bulk ingrediets. The Nestle bag recipe is definitely a good basic recipe. Yes, you can get fancy with brown butter, bourbon (OMG! 😋), various nuts, etc., but that recipe has been around almost 100 years.
Aside from the other comments regarding the mixer, you may need to add flour by feel until you find the right amount.
Does this happen with every recipe you try? If so, I agree with others and recommend a scale
It doesn’t look like enough flour to me.
I would think not enough flour. But yes your butter+sugar should be fluffy and light when you add your dry ingredients. It should peak and be slightly stiff 👍
Super weird texture. But if your pour that in a 13×9 it might make a good cookie bar. 😀
Possibly not enough flour
Looks like you measured incorrectly
Is it possible you’re not putting enough flour in or something like that? I agree with other comments, I’d try a scale and see how that works.
Ps: I’ve always heard to use either scale or cups, but not both in the same recipe. Stick to doing either weight or volume and try not to switch around in the same recipe
What recipe is this?
There are soooo many bad recipes online.
Are you using real butter and not margarine or “I can’t believe it’s not butter?” Margarine and butter are not interchangeable.
Might seem like a stupid answer, but you are using a measuring cup for dry ingredients, right? Liquid measuring cups will mess up everything when it comes to flour and sugars.
Here is my recipe, it looks like yours has too much butter or not enough flour.
https://drellfamilycookbook.com/2018/02/20/chocolate-chip-cookies/
There has to be a misunderstanding at some point in the recipe. Are you using powder sugar instead of granulated? It looks so shiny and greasy.
Are you weighing or measuring? If you’re measuring, switch to weighing.
This is going to possibly sound insane, but have you had someone else make cookies at your house using everything you would, and see if it turns out the same? Someone who you know makes good cookies. Because if you’ve ruled out your ingredients, measurements and tools, it could be something about your technique, and that would show if someone else has success where you don’t.
If they also fail, maybe your kitchen is haunted by a cookie-hating ghost that sabotages you?
What type of fat are you using? Butter, margarine, oil? If margarine, anything less than 41% -/+ you will have this issue, if butter try adding more flour and chilling the dough. What recipe did you use? If their ratios were off that might be part of the issue.
I’ve used the cookie recipe from Sally’s baking addiction with success and chilling the dough is essential not just for flavor but also keeping the spread potential low.
For the % of fat in margarine it will tell you in the fine print.
You don’t have jumbo eggs do you? My mother-in-law went to a lady’s house to see why her meringue was always “mile high” with only two eggs and she beat it with a fork. My sister in law went also and said well no wonder, that lady was using GIANT eggs.
Ok bear with me, could you please share the exact recipe you are using and please describe the EXACT amount of butter you are using and how are you measuring it? The dough looks extremely greasy and shiny as if you’re somehow adding too much butter maybe? It would help also if you could write out the exact brands and amounts of everything you are using.
Hi! Baker here.
I saw in a comment that you said you are using soft butter. Actually, the temperature of the butter is incredibly important and I’ll tell you why. If your butter is melted, you won’t be able to emulsify the sugar and butter together properly. You’ll end up with cookies that spread. If your butter is too hard, it will also be difficult to emulsify the butter and sugar together. The butter will just adhere to the paddle and spin around.
The temperature of the butter should be around 62-65 F. So definitely not soft, but it is pliable.
This gives you the best emulsion. Also, if you cream it together for too long you can end up collapsing the structure you built. Here is my method of making cookies:
Pre-measure all ingredients.
Emulsify butter and sugar until the color has started to lighten but it isn’t super light yet. Add eggs slowly one at a time and mix gently until incorporated. Then add all dry ingredients and chocolate chips at once and mix until just combined. Do not over mix.
FULLY CHILL DOUGH. For me, I put my cookie dough in the fridge and don’t bake until two full days have passed. Some people can’t wait that long, I get it. But time = flavor. Chilling it also helps set your dough before baking.
Also pro tip, brown your butter. Just make sure it is the right temp when you make your cookie dough.
Bring a friend over who makes cookies and have them tell you where you’re screwing up.
You’re not following the recipe.
Weigh your ingredients and don’t substitute anything. No margarine for butter, no egg substitute for eggs, no rice flour for all purpose wheat, etc.
Even if the package says butter, check the label. The only ingredient should be milk. A lot of butter like country crock is actually made from milk solids and vegetable or olive oil, which will do this.
this is freaking me out. I need to know what you’re doing. I just can’t imagine someone “following a recipe” and ending up with this. this is just… wrong.
Your butter was too soft…like to the point that I’m questioning whether you used butter. It kinda looks like you used a whipped butter or a butter substitute. Margerine or any of the “butter products” that come in a tub aren’t actually butter. They have a lower melting point and some of them are literally oil and air. Oil + air does not bake the same as butter.