Continuing on my earlier post about chocolate chip cookies, and science. A while ago I saw a meme where someone hacked the chocolate chip cookie, demonstrating what one could do by adjusting various factors in the recipe and preparation. With that in mind, Id like to try The Great Cookie Experiment. Goal: To examine the effect that adjusting the balance of baking soda/powder, white/brown sugar, butter/shortening and drier/moister batter will have on the end product, while keeping the other relevant variables as constant as possible. Method: Since this experiment has 5 independent variables, it is important to modulate them all separately. Two of the variables relate to the wet portion of the batter, two relate to the dry portion, and one to the ratio between them. As such, I will have following experimental groups: Ratio Leaven. Sweetener Wet Mix Control: 1:2 Soda White Butter (W)Wet: 2:5 Soda White Butter (P)Powder: 1:2 S+P White Butter (B)Brown: 1:2 Soda Brown Butter (S)Short: 1:2 Soda White Shortening W+P: 2:5 S+P White Butter W+B: 2:5 Soda Brown Butter W+S: 2:5 Soda White Shortening P+B: 1:2 S+P Brown Butter P+S: 1:2 S+P White Shortening B+S: 1:2 Soda Brown Shortening W+P+B: 2:5 S+P Brown Butter W+P+S: 2:5 S+P White Shortening W+B+S: 2:5 Soda Brown Shortening P+B+S: 1:2 S+P Brown Shortening All4: 2:5 S+P Brown Shortening Recipes: Ill ultimately need 1/2 C of each experimental batter, to make a set of two cookies. That means I will need 1/6 C (or 2 Tbls + 2 tsp) of the wet mix for every 1:2, and 1/7 C (or 2 Tbls + 1 tsp) for every 5:2. I will need significantly more of the dry mix, which comes out to 1/3 C per 1:2, and 1/4 C + 1 Tbls + 1 tsp for every 5:2. That means that I will need a total volume of 1 1/3 C of each dry mix, and a total of 1 1/4 C of each wet mix. So allowing for ease of calculation and a little waste, we can create the following... Generalized dry mix (1 1/2 + 1 Tbls + 2 tsp total): 1 C AP Flour 1/2 tsp leavening (Soda or S+P) 1/2 C + 1 T + 1 tsp sweetener (white or brown sugar) 1/2 tsp Salt Generalized wet mix (1 1/3 C + 1 tsp total) : 1 C oil (butter or shortening) 1 tsp vanilla 2 egg (6 Tbls) If the mix calls for a 1:2 ratio, then 2 Tbls + 2 tsp of the wet mix will combine with 1/3 C of the dry mix. The total volume ought to be 1/2 C, which is enough for 2 cookies. If the mix calls for a 2:5 ratio, then 2 Tbls + 1 tsp of the wet mix will combine with 1/4 C + 1 Tbls + 1 tsp of the dry mix. The total volume ought to be 1/2 C, which is enough for 2 cookies. All told, I will produce 16 sets of 2 cookies, for a total of 32. The plan is to bake one immediately, and then refrigerate the other overnight and bake it in the morning. That will allow me to see any difference that a day in the fridge might make. When baking, the temp will be as near 350 dF as possible. The cooking time will be 10 minutes, and halfway through cooking I will rotate the cookie sheet 180 degrees to account for thermal differences inside the oven. Assessment and Intended Results - Once the protocol has been followed, results will need to be collected and examined. Two lines of data will be collected and analyzed. They are - 1) Physical data. The cookies, 5 minutes after they are removed from the oven, will be measured for their physical characteristics. That will consist of laying them on a piece of white paper and photographing them, for a colorimetric analysis. The diameter and thickness of the cookies will be measured, as well as the mass (this last for an assessment on moisture loss during baking). 2) Subjective data. The cookies will be assessed by (up to) three testers and myself, in order to judge them for relevant traits like taste, texture and mouth feel. Volunteers will be asked to recount the three most striking observations about each cookie. As well, each cookie will be rated for sweetness, moistness, texture, and ease of consumption. Once collected, the results will be collated into a final report that summarizes current research in this area, along with the observed effect of the variables and any other significant observations.
Posted on: Mon, 29 Sep 2014 03:56:53 +0000
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