12.12.2010

Cookie Dilemma

Before I start...dilemma, that is a funny word don't you think. It is one of those words that when you say it, it just sounds odd. Anyway, back to my post, sorry, I am a little scatter brained at times and I figure I may as well share that part of my personality with you all so you can get some insight into me! So why am I here today on my second day of vacation? To discuss sugar cookie recipes of course! Before I start, can I just tell you how phenomenal vacation is, no matter what I do (or don't do), there is something unbelievable about vacation. No where to be, nobody asking me to make decisions and wondering if my decision is in fact the best choice for the situation, no stress, no pager, and best of all-I get to catch up on my many months of sleep deprivation which has been making me a little kookoo these past few days!

So on to the topic of the day...sugar cookie recipes! I was hugely inspired from Sweet Sugarbelle's post on the debate between RI vs glaze frostings. Now this post requires some reader participation from anyone who bakes sugar cookies, and I thank you in advance for your help! So I never put much thought into the recipe I used for sugar cookies, mostly because I believed that sugar cookies are more about looking than eating. But for about the last year and a half, I realize, taste really does matter! So up until the last month or two I always used adorable Marian's recipe from Sweetopia with a few adjustments (more flour), and I absolutely LOVE the taste! It is almost like a shortbread cookie, so buttery and delicious. There are many pros to this cookie in the taste department; however, there is one con...they tend to be a bit fragile and since I tend to ship most of my cookies, this was so heartbreaking to find out they would occasionally break on transit. So I started researching some other recipes and through a fellow blogger friend Amalia @ Cookie Construction she told me she used Pam's recipe at Cookie Crazie. So I gave this recipe a shot. What did I find???
Pros:
definitely more sturdy
less trips to the store for butter
probably more figure friendly, but since I don't eat my own cookies, I guess that is ok ;)
easy to work with
lighter in color and bakes more evenly
tastes pretty good and the consistency  is light and fluffy
Cons:
the taste is not quite as taste bud tantalizing

So what is a gal to do? I simply cannot figure out what is more important in a cookie...taste or texture! Let me know what you all think, I would love to hear anyone's opinion on the matter at hand! Hope you are all enjoying your Sunday and like always...Happy Baking...Happier Eating Stay tuned for my post of fudge making, which let me remind you is my FAVORITE holiday treat!!!

6 comments:

  1. Taste is more important in a cookie. In the fall, I decided that I wanted the perfect looking cookie. I switched recipes, and boy did I regret it. Yes, my fall leaf cookies baked beautiful and perfect, but they tasted like cardboard. I was so embarrassed that I ended up throwing them in the trash. In the end, taste was more important!

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  2. I think taste is more important. There is nothing more disappointing than seeing someone take one bite of a cookie, that you've worked so hard on, and then throwing it away. Just my opinion. I love your blog, by the way!

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  3. I agree....taste is hugely important! I am just like you...always aching to find the perfect recipe... I think I'm still looking!!!! I will let you know as soon as I find it:) I'm so excited to see your fudge...mmmmm..... Anything chocolate is my weakness:)

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  4. I have found an emulsion that is called princess cake and cookie emulsion i use it in addition or in place of vanilla in the recipe and it adds a certain something that you cant put your finger on that just makes it oh so yummy. And I use the wilton sugar cookie recipe which taste pretty good to me is sturdy and holds its shape very well. Hope any of this helps

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  5. Thank you all so much for your comments...ugh so hard, but I may go back to the other recipe I used to use, better tasting, but definitely more fragile when shipping! Cant win em all!

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  6. I know this is an old post, But I say TASTE is most important! There is a bakery where I live called Provo Bakery and they are known for their AMAZING sugar cookies. Theyre kind of like what you were describing your 1st cookies as... shortbreadyish but fragile. Well thats exactly how their cookies are. Everytime I buy them they break in the bag while im bringing them home. they sometimes even break while the cashier girl is putting them in the bags for me. But i dont care. no one cares. we get them mostly just because they taste amazing, taste is everything

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