Rough Around The Edges

No matter how carefully we roll and cut and bake, at some point we will get a cookie that is a little rough around the edges. Sometimes it is caused by a cookie cutter, sometimes by spreading when our butter is a bit too soft and sometimes there is no reason why our cookies bake up a little rough around the edges. Not to worry. You can always fix it.

I find that whenever I use a plastic or 3D printed cutter, I get a little rougher edge than when I use a metal cutter. After freezing the cuts, I prefer to brush off the edges with my fingers before baking. I usually tell students that you can totally bake the cookie without cleaning the edges but you will likely have to deal with crumbs after baking. In the case of these cookies, they were a little too close on the stone so they attempted to fuse themselves together. When I separated them, I got those rough edges.

All you need is your citrus zester. Gently rub it along the edge of the cookie and it will file down all the rough edges. I typically do it over the sink because I don't want a whole bunch of crumbs near my frosting.

If you don't have a citrus zester, you can use a fine cheese grater. You just have to be careful because the larger grater will take a serious bite out of your cookie if you are not careful. Rubbing the cookie's rough edge increases the likelihood of you breaking the cookie. Using a zester or grater will gently shave off the unwanted rough edges.