52 Weeks of Baking

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Welcome to 52 weeks of theme-based baking! A new challenge each week of the year. This is a great way for beginners to learn, and for experienced bakers to expand their skill set and explore their creativity.

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Okokimup

Week 23: Celebration of Life - Tollhouse Cookies RIP Grandma (lemmy.world)

submitted 7 months ago by Okokimup to c/52weeksofbaking

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I just read that the original tollhouse recipe from the 70s had water in it, so I added some. Presumably that's the way Grandma would have been accustomed to them. Mom said these were one of her faves.

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[–] Flummoxed 2 points 7 months ago (2 children)

Any idea why they would have omitted the water? Was it just that they thought people wanted less flour hydration?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 7 months ago (1 children)

The only water that I would normally add to a chocolate chip cookie recipe would have been in the form of butter. The water wasn't omitted, it's addition is the oddity.

[–] Flummoxed 2 points 7 months ago

Yes, I meant in the subsequent recipe, my apologies for lack of clarity. Seems it was because more water creates a crisper cookie, and people wanted fluffier.

Adding additional water can further hydrate the flour and make a cookie chewier. In larger amounts, water in cookie dough can cause a more drastic spread (increasing crispness) and a crinkled texture as the dough rapidly rises and falls in the oven, as seen in the pan banging cookies I mentioned above.

[–] Okokimup 2 points 7 months ago (1 children)

This article is all the information I have.

[–] Flummoxed 2 points 7 months ago

Thank you, this confirms my suspicion. They took the water out because they thought people wanted fluffier cookies, which is achieved by less flour hydration.

According to Redditor aylagirl63, the Toll House Chocolate Cookie recipe of her childhood was different than the one printed on the back of the morsel bags today. The retro recipe produced a thinner, crispier cookie that still had a pleasant chew thanks to one secret ingredient.