Granulated Sugar Vs Powdered: Which Is Best For Baking Chewy Cookies? (2024)
molly harris
·2 min read
When it comes to baking the perfect batch of cookies, sugar plays a pivotal role in determining their texture, flavor, and overall appeal. One of the key debates in cookie baking is whether granulated sugar or powdered sugar is better for achieving that sought-after chewy texture. The answer? Granulated sugar takes the crown for chewy cookies, and here's why.
The quest for chewy cookies is all about moisture retention. Granulatedsugar, which is composed of larger crystals, is your go-to choice for achieving this desirable texture. Here's how it works:Granulated sugar has a hygroscopic quality, meaning it attracts and holds moisture. When incorporated into cookie dough, it interacts with other ingredients, helping to retain moisture throughout the baking process. This moisture is crucial for creating a chewy, tender cookie.
On the other hand, powdered sugar, also known as confectioner's sugar, is typically used for frostings, glazes, and dusting.Powdered sugar has a much finer texture and a higher cornstarch content, which can absorb moisture and lead to a drier, crumbly cookie texture. If you use powdered sugar in place of granulated sugar, you'll likely end up with cookies that are more cake-like and less chewy.
To ensure you get super chewy cookies when using granulated sugar, there are several more tips you can turn to.Cream the granulated sugar and butter together thoroughly, ensuring that the mixture is light and fluffy. This step is essential for incorporating air into the dough, which contributes to a tender, chewy texture. Be sure to use the right flour too. Opt for all-purpose flour rather than bread flour or cake flour, as these flours have different protein contents that can affect cookie texture.Avoid overmixing the dough after adding the dry ingredients to avoid tough cookies.
Refrigerate the cookie dough for at least an hour before baking. This not only enhances the flavor but also helps control spreading during baking, resulting in thicker, chewier cookies. Keep a close eye on your cookies as they bake. They are done when the edges are set, but the centers still appear slightly underdone. The residual heat will continue to cook the centers, leaving them delightfully chewy.
So, stock up on granulated sugar, perfect your cookie dough, and get ready to savor the chewy delights that emerge from your oven.
Granulated sugar takes the crown for chewy cookies, and here's why. The quest for chewy cookies is all about moisture retention. Granulated sugar, which is composed of larger crystals, is your go-to choice for achieving this desirable texture.
Powdered sugar has a much finer texture and a higher cornstarch content, which can absorb moisture and lead to a drier, crumbly cookie texture. If you use powdered sugar in place of granulated sugar, you'll likely end up with cookies that are more cake-like and less chewy.
Brown sugar, on the other hand, contains more moisture and is slightly acidic, so cookies made with mostly brown sugar will be chewier and rise higher (because the baking soda reacts to the acid in the sugar).
The longer you let it rest, the chewier its cookies will be. This is because the liquid content in your cookies will actually evaporate. And while this may sound like it would create a dryer, more crumbly cookie, the higher sugar content (especially brown) will actually make them chewier.
Powdered sugar (also known as confectioners' sugar) contains cornstarch. The cornstarch absorbs moisture from the rest of the ingredients, making an extra tender and chewy cookie.
Granulated sugar: Derived from either sugarcane or sugar beets, this is the most commonly used sugar in baking, and for good reason. It's neutral in flavor and has medium-sized, uniform crystals that are small enough to dissolve into batters and large enough to create air pockets when creamed with butter.
A. It is not recommended to substitute powdered sugar for granulated sugar. Since powdered sugar has a much finer texture, and it contains a small percentage of cornstarch to prevent caking, substituting can give you unexpected results.
Cornstarch helps product soft and thick cookies. Using more brown sugar than white sugar results in a moister, softer cookie. An extra egg yolk increases chewiness. Rolling the cookie dough balls to be tall and lumpy instead of wide and smooth gives the cookies a bakery-style textured thickness.
Here's a baker's trick you'll find in our new Monster Cookies recipe: Adding a piece of fresh white bread to the storage container will keep cookies from becoming hard or stale.
Cookies that are dense and chewy incorporate more moisture into the batter. This can be achieved by making substitutions with wet and dry ingredients, or even just changing the way you incorporate certain ingredients. Plus, your particular baking technique and your method of storing cookies can also play a role.
The ingredients you use and how you shape your cookies both play an important role in whether your cookies turn out crispy or chewy. The type of flour and sugar you use, if your cookie dough contains eggs, and whether you use melted or softened butter all factor into the crispy-chewy equation, too.
How to Soften Cookies in the Microwave: Place the stale cookies on a microwave-safe plate and cover them with a damp paper towel. Microwave them in short bursts of 10-15 seconds until they become soft. Be careful not to overdo it, as the cookies can become too soft or lose their texture.
Hard cookies: you are over mixing, baking too long, baking at too high a temperature, or some combination of these. Cakey cookies: not enough brown sugar, too much or too little egg, too much flour, maybe you used baking powder instead of baking soda?
Powdered sugar has a much finer texture and a higher cornstarch content, which can absorb moisture and lead to a drier, crumbly cookie texture. If you use powdered sugar in place of granulated sugar, you'll likely end up with cookies that are more cake-like and less chewy.
Using granulated white sugar will result in a flatter, crispier and lighter-colored cookie. Granulated sugar is hygroscopic, so it attracts and absorbs the liquid in the dough. This slows down the development of the gluten (flour), which makes the cookies crispier.
Powdered sugar can be used for several purposes in baked goods: Sweetener: provides a sweet flavor. Tenderizer: interferes with gluten formation, protein coagulation and starch gelatinization. Shelf life improvement: reduces the amount of water available for microbial deterioration.
The powdered sugar works to keep the dough from sticking to your work surface just like flour, but the powdered sugar dissolves into the cookie when baked. Meaning, no raw flour taste or cookie coated in white dust.
Powdered sugar can be used for several purposes in baked goods: Sweetener: provides a sweet flavor. Tenderizer: interferes with gluten formation, protein coagulation and starch gelatinization. Shelf life improvement: reduces the amount of water available for microbial deterioration.
Generally, it's recommended to use 1 cup of granulated sugar for 1 3/4 cups of powdered sugar. A more accurate (and easier) way to substitute the sugars is based on weight, not volume. If a recipe calls for 1 cup of powdered sugar (4 ounces, or 113 grams), you should use 4 ounces of granulated sugar.
Your cakes and biscuits will have a slightly finer texture when using caster sugar while if you use granulated sugar, your cakes will have a slightly coarser texture and your biscuits will be more crunchy.
Introduction: My name is Carlyn Walter, I am a lively, glamorous, healthy, clean, powerful, calm, combative person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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