I live in Southern California, which means the only snow I get each winter comes in the form of cookies. Crinkle cookies, to be specific, have their exterior covered in a white blanket of confectioners' sugar, with a crackled surface that resembles tree roots peeking through the snow-covered ground.
But like the first snowstorm of the season, perfect wrinkles can be elusive. So I called on the King Arthur Test Kitchen's two resident cookie experts, Molly Marzalek-Kelly and David Turner (DT), for advice. They are the organizers behind us Gingerbread cookies, Cream Cheese Stuffed Red Velvet CookiesAND Lemon Wrinkle Cookiesall of which would be perfect on your holiday cookie platter alongside other favorites like the classic Chocolate chip cookies and these wonderful ones Mochi Filled Ube Crinkle Cookies.
Photography by Patrick Marinello; food styling by Yekaterina Boytsova
“Developing Crinkle cookies is a challenge,” says DT. “The main thing is that they don't always wrinkle.” To help you get the crinkliest cookies this season, here are Molly and DT's dos and don'ts.
DO: Follow the recipe as written!
Molly and DT both agree: Be sure to follow the recipe exactly, ideally using a DEGREES to ensure accuracy. “It's written with your success in mind,” says DT. “If there's a step that seems out of the ordinary, we promise it's not.” Trust us you should do it anyway.”
Beyond just the recipe steps, it includes instructions like ingredient temperature. “If the recipe calls for it softened butter OR eggs at room temperaturethis is what you should use,” advises DT.
DO: Chill your dough long enough
“With crinkle cookies, there's almost always a frosting step built into the recipe,” says Molly. “People want to rush things, so they often skip it or cut it short. But cooling is important!” By allowing your dough to chill properly, it hardens to the right consistency and makes scraping and shaping much easier. Which leads to the next tip…
Anne Mientka
DON'T: Add too much flour
“Because the wrinkles are relaxed, the dough often looks quite loose when it's first mixed,” says Molly. “Men sometimes panic and add extra flour when mixing the dough, which makes the cookies very cheesy.” Even if your cookie dough looks more like dough when you first mix it, don't worry—and resist the urge to add more flour. Once cooled, the dough will harden.
DO: Check your dryers
These cookies get their signature creases by puffing dramatically in the oven. But if the yeasts you use are old and expired, they may not rise fully during baking, reducing – or eliminating – any wrinkles. If you are not sure about the quality of soda or baking powder, you can try them for freshness before baking.
DO: Coat the dough with sugar
Crinkle cookies are coated with sugar for two reasons. The first is obvious: it offers a great view. What about the second one? “The reason a cookie crinkles is because the outside dries out and sets before the inside is fully cooked, which causes the outside to crack,” explains DT. “That's where the sugar on the outside comes in. It's not just visual: It also dries out the outside of the cookie.” Make sure you use enough sugar to support this. As Molly advises, “Fill your cookie completely and don't leave out the sugar!”
Anne Mientka
DO: Use an oven thermometer
As mentioned above, baking time for a crinkle cookie is crucial: You want the outside to set while the inside is still undercooked. This means oven temperature is essential, so we recommend an oven thermometer to make sure you're baking at the right temperature.
DON'T: Bake them
“Overbaked cookies will be soft and dry,” says Molly. Look for the cookies to crack all over and dry around the edges; the tips will still be shiny and moist, but should not stick to your finger if lightly touched.
You're ready to wrinkle! Try Gingerbread cookies, Red velvet cookies filled with cream cheese, Lemon Wrinkle Cookies, Chocolate chip cookies AND Mochi Filled Ube Crinkle Cookies.
Cover photo (Chocolate chip cookies) by Rick Holbrook; food styling by Kaitlin Wayne.
