Chocolate Crinkle Cookies Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What makes crinkle cookies crinkle? ›

Coating the cookies with either type of sugar draws out moisture from their surface, promoting cracks by drying out their tops before the interiors set. But granulated sugar does so more efficiently because of its coarse, crystalline structure.

If your crinkles aren't cracking, check that your oven is at the correct temperature and that your leavening agent (baking powder) hasn't expired. Why is my crinkle cookie dough too wet? The cookie dough is expected to be moist, sticky, and formless.

Why are my crinkle cookies not moist? See note above about baking times. The most likely reason that the cookies are not moist is that they've been overbaked. With cookies, overbaking by only a few minutes can be the difference between a perfect cookie and a dry, crumbly one.

Crinkle cookies are easy to make, but you HAVE to chill the dough, it is mandatory. If you don't chill the dough, the dough will be too sticky, and you will end up with a chocolate cookie mess…. and no crinkly tops!

How to Prevent the Powdered Sugar from Melting. The trick is to coat the dough with granulated sugar first, and then with powdered sugar. This way, the granulated sugar draws out moisture from the surface to create that crinkled exterior while the powdered sugar remains on top.

To make crispy cookies, use less flour, eggs, and brown sugar in your recipe since these ingredients hold onto moisture and make cookies softer. Also, try baking your cookies for longer and at a lower temperature than the recipe recommends, which will help dry out the cookies so they're crispier.

If crinkle cookies are baked at 350°F, the outside bakes and hardens more quickly, which doesn't give the dough enough time to spread. As mentioned earlier, the spreading of the dough is essential to a good crack.

Butter contributes milk solids and water to a cookie, both of which soften it. Brown sugar contributes molasses – again, a softener. Using lower-moisture sugar (granulated) and fat (vegetable shortening), plus a longer, slower bake than normal, produces light, crunchy cookies.

Add Molasses or Honey Another way to add more moisture to your cookies is incorporate a tablespoon of molasses into a standard-sized cookie recipe. Don't use any more than a tablespoon, because it will make your cookies very sweet and runny. One tablespoon is just enough.

What adds moisture to cookie dough? ›

To avoid this, try using as little flour as possible while preparing to roll your dough. Dry – “Dry” or “Crumbly” dough is a product of over-mixing or using too much of any ingredient during the mixing process. This can be reversed by adding one to two tablespoons of liquid (water, milk or softened butter) to your mix.

Another way to soften cookies is by placing the cookies in an airtight container with a damp paper towel. The paper towel will release moisture and help to soften the cookies without making them too soft or mushy. Another way is to place the cookies in a plastic bag with a slice of apple or a damp tea towel.

Many recipes only roll Chocolate Crinkle Cookies in powdered sugar, but the moisture from the cookies causes the sugar to melt a bit, so it loses its bright white, opaque appearance and instead becomes slightly transparent giving the coating a yellowish appearance.

As a general rule of thumb, you should refrigerate cookie dough for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours. More than that, and you won't see a noticeable difference in the final product. Once the dough has chilled, let it warm up at room temperature until it's just pliable (about 5 to 10 minutes).

There are two reasons why your Chocolate Crinkle Cookies came out flat. Either the dough wasn't chilled or you didn't use enough flour. Make sure to properly measure flour by scooping it into your measuring cup and leveling off the top.

While brown sugar keeps your cookies moist and soft, white sugar and corn syrup will help your cookies spread and crisp in the oven. Using more white sugar in your cookies will result in a crispier end product.

Different types of sugars affect the texture because they absorb different amounts of water. Remember moisture is the key! White sugar creates crispier cookies and brown sugar creates chewier cookies.

They're cake-like cookies made with unsweetened cocoa powder, vegetable oil, and a handful of other pantry staple ingredients. Before baking, the cookies are coated in confectioners' sugar. When they bake up, they end up with a cracked (or "crinkled") effect.