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My sister swore by weighing flour for cookies, and I finally tried it.
She's a pastry chef in Austin and has told me for years to stop using cups for flour. Last weekend, I made my usual chocolate chip recipe but weighed the flour instead of scooping. I used 360 grams for what should have been three cups. The dough was much firmer, and the cookies spread less and kept a better shape. I got about two dozen cookies that were all the same, which never happens for me. Has anyone else made the switch to a scale and noticed a big change in their results?
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ruby_wright25d ago
So you finally saw the light, huh? I read this whole article once about how a cup of flour can weigh anywhere from like 120 to 180 grams depending on who's scooping it, which is nuts. It makes total sense that your cookies got better when you stopped guessing. I keep a cheap little scale on my counter now for stuff like that, it just takes the stress out.
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corastone2mo ago
My mom's old banana bread recipe was always hit or miss until I weighed the flour. Turns out my "cup" was packing in almost 50 extra grams. The loaf stopped sinking in the middle. It's wild how much a scoop can vary.
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rayking2mo ago
Weighing ingredients is the real fix. That sinking middle usually means too much flour or not enough leavening. Your heavy cup was throwing off the whole balance. Baking is just chemistry, and you finally gave it the right amounts. Good on you for figuring it out.
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