making drop cookies efficiently

[sch]

We are very tight on time and need a time efficient way to make a lot of drop cookies (chocolate chip, peanut butter, etc) I don't want to make logs and slice, the cookies just don't look as nice. any suggestions how to speed things up? My workers get bored and slow down, it's painful!

Thanks!

 

[m brown]

scoop with ice cream scoop, freeze and bag for later use.

 

[lentil]

We scoop and bake, but haven't tried freezing them unbaked. Do you find you end up with the same size cookie, all things the same- scoop size, oven temp- if you bake from fresh batter or from frozen batter? Do you thaw the scoops then bake?

 

[nichole]

I always wanted to become a baker cause I love cakes and cookies. I love the idea of having ice cream on cookies but can this affect the taste and texture? Thanks for the information.

 

[pastrymama]

We do all our cookies by scooping and freezing the raw dough. We use a number 30 and number 70 scoop. We keep them in lexans in the freezer and take out what we need daily. I have not had a problem doing this with any type of cookie. The only ones I let soften before baking are ones that need pressing down a little or marked like peanut butter, all the rest can go straight into the oven. Our giant cookies of 5 or more ounces we make into patties about 3/4 inches thick to help them cook evenly and they can go directly into the oven also.

 

[mr.pastry]

without going big - get a hand-crank wire cut machine. You can drop a couple thousand pucks with 2 people in less than a day.

YouTube - The cookie machine!

Welcome to Bakery.com

BENCHMODEL MODEL KOOK-E-KING

Or - using chilled logs, get a pastry guitar, line up the logs, and cut 10 or more logs with one pass on the guitar.

DOUBLE GUITAR CANDY SLICER

Freezing your cookie dough might require minor formula adjustment to maintain spread. Unless your using specialty coated baking powder or leavening acids, some of the chemical leavening is lost in the freezing process, which effects cookie spread in the oven. Plus of course the dry ingredients have more opportunity to hydrate and absorb liquids in the formula that might also affect spread.

Good luck and have fun!

 

[lentil]

That helps, thanks! I'll give it a try.

 

[marmalady]

Just reread your original post, where you said your employees are getting bored. Well, um, gee - no matter what kind of production cooking/catering you're doing, the boredom factor is there just because of the repetitive nature of what you're doing. It just comes with the job. Is there anything you could do to make it 'more fun' for your employees? Like having a contest to see who gets the most done in x amount of time? But, bottom line is that the boredome factor is there, and just another thing they have to realize.

 

[lentil]

Marmalady, I have the same problem with employees/boredom. I was feeling guilty about it and tried to shake it up some by not giving the same person the same job all the time, but one of my (better) employees put it in perspective. She said that all jobs are repetitive so get over it. She's absolutely right! The bottom line is that my most repetitive jobs bring in the most consistent money. Those jobs keep the money coming in even if we have a slow week in the cafe.

One rolled her eyes and groaned when a big bakery order came in- I told her to pick the person I'd have to let go, because that order paid at least one of their paychecks that week. She hasn't said anything since. It helps to keep things in perspective. We've come up with a beautiful cinnamon roll that I want to include in our wholesale orders- we'd send them out frozen to be baked onsite. I've heard the grumblings, but have also heard some say that it's winter and we're lucky to have the work!

 

[marmalady]

Yep, I know what ya' mean! And even the big, 'sexy' jobs get boring when you have to do it over and over. Keep remindin' them how boring the unemployment line can be. !

 

[csyjess]

Hi everyone, sorry to revive an old thread. Has anyone tried dividing & shaping cookie doughs using a bread dough divider machine? Thanks!

 

[chefross]

 
Hi everyone, sorry to revive an old thread. Has anyone tried dividing & shaping cookie doughs using a bread dough divider machine? Thanks!

Yes and with horrible results.

The cookie dough stuck to the blades and the top part of the press. What a mess.

Tried a second time with spraying the heck out of the dough press with pan release.

Yup, the cookies didn't stick, but the knife blades had cookie dough all over them.

We ended up taking the whole machine to the dock and sprayed it with high pressure hot water to clean. I would advise not using this idea however clever it is........