How to Soften Hard Cookies (2024)

Whether you just accidentally overbaked your cookies or waited too long to eat them, this baking guide is going to show you how to soften hard cookies in 5 different ways! So you can now say goodbye forever to dry or stale homemade and store-bought cookies hard as a rock!

How to make hard cookies soft again? 5 easy ways

So you just baked a batch of your favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies but you left them in the oven too long! Now if you’re thinking, can I make hard cookies soft again? Yes! I’m going to show you how to soften hard cookies with these 5 easy methods!

1. White Bread

It's so simple to make hard cookies soft again with bread. All you need is a container or jar with a tight-fitting lid and a fresh slice of white bread. It’s important to use white bread so that the cookies don’t absorb other flavors.

Place the bread on the bottom of the jar. Then put the cookies on top and tightly close the jar. Now, keep the jar closed for at least 24 hours so that the cookies have time to absorb moisture from the bread. If after 24 hours the cookies are still hard, replace the bread with fresh bread, and then put the lid back on for another 6 hours.

2. Microwave

Next, let’s learn how to soften hard cookies in microwave! This method works wonderfully well if you want to know how to make cookies soft again fast and plan to eat them right away. Just keep in mind once they cool off the cookies become even harder.

Just wrap a cookie or two in a damp paper towel and then put them in the microwave for about 10 to 15 seconds. The moisture from the paper towel should soften the cookies right up. So if you wonder how to soften hard cookies quickly? Microwave is the way!

3. Sugar Cubes

For this next method, I’m going to show you how to soften hard cookies without microwave, but instead using sugar cubes! Sugar cubes will just add some moisture back into them similar to how the white bread method works.

All you have to do is put some sugar cubes in the bottom of an airtight container and then place the cookies on top. Just make sure to secure the lid tightly. Then leave the cookies in the container with the sugar for 12 hours.

4. Sliced Apple

This tutorial even covers how to soften hard cookies with apple, which is also a great way to learn how to soften stale cookies as well! Yet, your cookies may take on a bit of apple flavor, which could make them even tastier if you’re trying to soften my Oatmeal Craisin Cookies.

First, put some sliced apple in the bottom of an airtight container or jar. Then put the cookies on top and close the container. Now, leave the cookies in the container for about 24 hours.

This method teaches you how to soften hard cookies after baking. It’s perfect for when the cookies first come out of the oven and you realize that you’ve baked them for too long.

Just wrap each individual cookie in plastic wrap while they are still warm and the moisture created should soften them back up. You could also try putting all the cookies into a container to lock the heat in and steam them a bit. These are both super easy ways to soften hard cookies quickly by using steam.

+1 Tip: Use a correct recipe

Most cookie recipes require chilling time before baking for butter to solidify which helps to avoid flat cookies. However, some less reliable recipes simply use a higher proportion of flour that makes the cookie dough already solid enough to bake immediately, claiming it is a "no chill cookie" recipe.

This extra flour, in fact, make the dough less soft, however, also results in dry and hard cookies, simply because the dry ingredients (flour) are off compared to the fat (butter). Do not trust cookie recipes that claim that they are "no chill" as they almost always result in overly dry and hard cookies. Browse our cookie recipes here: Cookies.

What to avoid when trying to soften cookies

Now that I’ve shown you how to soften hard biscuits and cookies, I should also mention the things that you shouldn’t even consider when thinking about how to make cookies soft again.

You may be surprised that I haven't mentioned how to soften hard cookies in oven. Putting the cookies back into the oven will just dry them out more making them even harder. The oven removes moisture and to soften cookies you need to add more moisture.

You should also never warm cookies in the microwave without wrapping them in a damp paper towel. You need the moisture to make them soft again. Without it, they will just become even harder when reheated.

Tips for baking soft cookies

It’s always best to bake cookies that are soft and yummy, to begin with, so you don’t even have to ask how to make cookies softer!?!

1. Measure your flour accurately

Any time you are making cookies you should always use a digital scale to properly measure all your ingredients. Accidentally adding too much flour to a cookie recipe can easily lead to dry cookies. To learn more about how flour works in baking, check out my flour guide.

2. Use a timer

One of the easiest ways to almost ruin perfect cookies is by leaving them in the oven for too long. But this can easily be avoided by setting a timer.

3. Bake at the correct temperature

Make sure that your oven is heating correctly by double-checking it with a digital oven thermometer. It could be baking at a much higher or lower temperature, which will dry out the cookies.

4. Don’t overmix the dough

Over-mixing is one of the leading causes of hard dense baked goods. If you beat the dough too much it aerates the cookies, which causes them to fall and spread creating flat crispy cookies. My article, Why Are My Cookies Flat? explains the science of how it happens.

5. Use a cooling rack

Once the cookies come out of the oven transfer them to a cooling rack after about 2 minutes. This prevents them from continuing to cook on the bottom. They only need to stay on the baking sheet long enough to set.

6. Use brown sugar

Replace all or some of the white granulated sugar with brown sugar the next time you bake cookies. Brown sugar naturally has a bit of molasses in it, which means it has higher moisture content. To learn more about how to use sugar in baking check out my guides on Cane Sugar vs Granulated Sugar as well as Brown Sugar Substitute, which explains the different types of sugar.

7. Add baking powder or baking soda

A lot of cookie recipes don’t include baking powder but it’s what makes cookies soft and fluffy. However, baking powder also makes the cookies cakier so if you prefer chewy cookies, use baking soda instead of baking powder. If you are looking for substitution options, check out my Baking Powder Substitute or Baking Soda Substitute guide.

8. Consider adding cornstarch

Cornstarch helps to tenderize gluten, which prevents cookies from becoming tough. Cornstarch is an ingredient in cake flour meaning it will make your cookies softer, but at the expense of a fudgy chewy texture. I cover everything there is to know about cornstarch in my Cornstarch Substitute guide.

Tips for storing cookies to keep them soft

1. Store the cookies in an airtight container

Putting the cookies in an airtight container or cookie jar with a tight-fitting lid is how to keep cookies soft after baking. This will prevent them from drying out.

2. Store the cookies in a sealed bag

You can also store cookies in a ziplock bag. Just make sure to push all the air out before you seal the bag.

3. Store the cookies at room temperature

Putting them in the fridge makes them tough because it causes the fat in them to harden.By storing them at room temperate you shouldn't even have to think about how to soften hard cookies.

4. Separate soft and crispy cookies

Different textured cookies should be stored separately. If you store crispy cookies and soft cookies together the crispy cookies will absorb the moisture from the soft cookies. So you will end up with crispy cookies that are now soft and soft cookies that are now dry.

5. Cool the cookies

The cookies need to cool completely before you store them. You don’t want warm cookies to steam up a closed container. While it is true that steam will make cookies soft, just like with any food it can also make them go stale faster due to the excess moisture. So steaming cookies only really works when you are trying to figure out what to do with hard cookies.

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