Be honest — what’s your biggest cookie struggle? • Too flat? • Too dry? • Spreads too much? • Raw center? 👇 Drop it below (even one word is fine) I’ll answer a few with the science behind it.

Baking Chilled Dough — What Changes? Chilled dough enters the oven cold, with firmer butter and a more stable structure. Before baking, chilling allows: • Butter to firm up • Flour to fully absorb moisture • Gluten to relax When baked: • Butter melts later • Dough holds its shape longer • Structure sets earlier This often results in: • Less spread • Thicker centers • More defined cookie shape Chilled dough sets first, then spreads. That timing difference is what changes cookie structure.

Baking Fresh Dough — What Happens? Fresh cookie dough is baked right after mixing, while the butter is still soft and the dough is warm. Because of this: • Butter melts very early in the oven • Dough spreads quickly • Structure forms later As a result, cookies made from fresh dough often: • Spread more • Bake thinner • Have softer edges • Lose some height This doesn’t mean fresh dough is wrong — it simply spreads before the structure has time to fully set. Fresh dough spreads first, then sets. In the next post we will talk about what happens when we freeze the dough first then bake it

How Cold Butter Change Cookie Structure🧈🌡️ Cold or frozen butter stays solid longer in the oven. Because it doesn’t melt right away, the dough keeps its shape during the early stage of baking. This gives the cookie time to set its structure before spreading. As a result: • The cookie spreads less • The center stays thicker • The shape is more defined • The structure is stronger Instead of fat melting first, the dough sets first. That shift in timing is what creates: • Taller cookies • Softer centers • More controlled spread This is why chilled or frozen dough often produces thicker cookies — even when the recipe is exactly the same. Butter temperature doesn’t change ingredients. It changes when structure forms. In the next part, we’ll look at how chilling the entire dough affects texture even more.

• Why Room-Temperature Butter Is Often Ideal Room-temperature butter has a soft but solid fat structure.🧈🌡️ This matters because butter at this stage can: • Hold its shape during mixing • Trap small air pockets when combined with sugar • Melt gradually in the oven, not instantly In baking, timing is everything. 🔥 When butter melts slowly, the dough has time to: • Set its structure • Develop a balanced spread • Bake evenly from the inside out That’s why room-temperature butter often gives: • Evenly spread cookies • Soft centers • Defined edges • Balanced texture ❗️This doesn’t mean it’s the only correct choice — but it’s often the most forgiving and predictable.❗️ Understanding how butter behaves at different temperatures helps you control results, not guess them. In the next part, we’ll look at how colder butter and chilled dough change cookie structure.