Duff Goldman's Simple Tip For Making Mouthwatering Chocolate Chip Cookies

If you need light-hearted, easy-to-follow baking advice from a reliable culinary expert, look no further than Duff Goldman. While you may be familiar with Goldman by way of his 10-season stint on the popular Food Network show, "Ace of Cakes," he is also a renowned pastry chef and cookbook author. Apart from whipping up impressive cakes and light-hearted quips on camera, Goldman has developed a mean collection of delicious dessert recipes over the years, including bakery-style chocolate chip cookies.

Although there are countless ways to perfect one of America's favorite desserts, Goldman relies on one simple tip for satisfactory results each time. In a YouTube video, he explained for the best outcome, you need to have a gentle hand. But what does this mean exactly?

Next to securing the right ingredients and adding each as instructed, take your time building your chocolate chip cookie dough, following each step with careful consideration. Besides using room-temperature butter, aerating this ingredient with the right combination of white and brown sugar helps create baked goods with a lighter, more delicate texture. In addition to whipping your butter for proper aeration, be careful how long you mix your cookie dough once all other ingredients have been incorporated into the same bowl.

Among the 13 pro tips for making the best chocolate chip cookies, Duff Goldman recommends a controlled hand when mixing the dough. Perfectly chewy and soft baked goods are only possible with a combination of ingredients that haven't been overworked. Excess mixing may result in cookies with a tough, dense consistency. This is in part due to the protein in flour becoming overly developed. Dough that has been over-mixed often looks greasy and is more difficult to manipulate. The ideal dough should be light, smooth, and easily scoopable.

Since the idea of over-mixing can be interpreted in several ways, follow Goldman's advice and exercise caution when combining wet and dry ingredients in your favorite recipe. Instead of adding dry ingredients in small increments, add the recommended flour all at once to streamline the mixing process. Once all ingredients have been incorporated into the same bowl, mix the dough until you can no longer see streaks of flour. 

Since you're also adding inclusions like chocolate chips or chopped nuts, incorporate these ingredients when only a bit of visible flour remains. Before anything else, work slowly to ensure you're being methodical throughout preparation. Goldman's advice is not only applicable to the dough-making process but extends into baking protocol as well.

According to Duff Goldman, preparing chocolate chip cookies with calculated ease includes baking these delightful treats for just the right amount of time. If you wonder how he ensures his cookies have a perfectly soft middle, the master baker relies on his senses. Once cookies have retained some color, they're ready to come out of the oven. Chocolate chip cookies with an unbeatable texture are typically cooked between eight to 12 minutes at 375 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Another thing that makes Goldman's chocolate chip cookies exceptional is the distinct ripples along the outer edges. To achieve these eye-appealing wrinkles, make sure to properly aerate butter and sugar in the dough-making process. Then, once they have been properly portioned and baked, remove them from the oven before fully set. This leaves the outside portion of your cookies puffed up and wrinkled and the centers, deflated and gooey. 

This contrast of textures creates a perfectly soft and chewy outcome. While each step is important when it comes to making homemade chocolate chip cookies, for the best result every time, follow Goldman's advice and prepare your confections with a gentle hand every step of the way.