Cookie Science: How the Temperature of Butter Impacts the Texture of Cookies

Butter is key in many baked goods like chocolate chip cookies. Not only does the fat from butter give flavor, but it also provides liquid. The added moisture provides structure to the cookies helping them to rise. But, the temperature of the butter is key to whether your cookies will turn out cakey, chewy, crispy or flakey.

We tested out how room temperature, cold, and melted butter impacts the way our traditional Nestle Toll House Cookies turned out and the results were visible before we even got them in the oven.

Melted butter, or even warm butter (yes, I’m talking to you putting your butter in the microwave to soften it up) in combination with sugar made our batter runnier – as to be expected. But, the melted butter also struggles to lift and lighten the cookies. This in turn means your cookies will be chewier and have more of a brownie-like consistency.

Cold butter right from the fridge will also change the texture of your cookies. The cold butter will be harder to mix with the sugar. The butter and sugar won’t be as well incorporated into the dry ingredients and instead, you will be left with pockets of butter throughout the dough. Not only will this leave you with less dough for cookies, it will also lead to a dense, crispier texture.

Room-temperature butter around 70-72 degrees – will offer the best of both worlds. The butter will be soft enough to incorporate air into the cookies, but not so soft that the butter will melt immediately in the oven. This will give us a more uniform cookie that has a cakey texture with crispier edges.

So if you want a cookie with a soft, cakey center and golden brown crispy edges, don’t rush getting the butter to room temperature. About 15-20 min on the counter is all you’ll need to get that consistency.

And if you want to try Nestle Toll House chocolate chip cookies yourself here’s the recipe:

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) Nestlé Toll House Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels
1 cup chopped nuts (if omitting, add 1-2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour)

Step 1
Preheat oven to 375° F.

Step 2
Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

Step 3
Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.