Well, there can be a debate about whether air-fried cookies are the same as baked ones but, I believe that air-frying them is the best way.
The air fryer uses conventional air to cook the food, this way the cookies can be chewy on the inside and crispy, and crunchy on the outside. They come out with a perfect brown color that you’d see in those cafes in Italy.
Baking cookies can be therapeutic, they are easy and keeps you from all the mess of the oven. The option for frozen cookies is even nice, this can save you the hassle of preparation and some time.
Now, let’s discuss more in detail how cookies can be cooked to perfection in the air fryer and if it gives the desired result as baked ones or not. So keep on reading.
What Exactly Is An Air Fryer?
An air fryer is a small countertop appliance that cooks food by circulating air around it using convection heating.
The food is held within in a basket, and a fan rapidly circulates air around it, enveloping it in the same manner that food in a deep fryer is surrounded by hot oil. Finally, it works well to give food that crispy, fried feel without adding a lot of extra fat.
Air fryers use little to no oil to achieve the same effect as traditional deep frying and provide simpler, less time-consuming recipes than traditional baking.
What Distinguishes Air Frying From Baking In An Oven?
Conventional ovens generate heat from an element (either gas or electric).
Over time, heat is gently diffused throughout the oven. That time is sped up in convection ovens by the employment of a fan, similar to the one seen in an air fryer.
Air fryers, on the other hand, use quick air technology to generate heat rather than an element. This allows them to heat up considerably faster than an oven. Because of their compact size, they distribute heat more evenly, crisping up your food without hot spots.
Can cookies be baked in an air fryer?
Yes, cookies can easily be baked in the air fryer.
Cooking cookies in an air fryer takes far less time than in the oven. You will not even have to wait for it to get all heated up. On the other hand, your kitchen won’t get heated by all the heat radiating from the air fryer like it does when you turn on the oven.
Baking cookies is all an art of patience and resilience. You will have to manage the time and temperature of the cookies s you don’t end up overcooking them.
Here’s what you’ll be needing to make cookies in the air fryer:
- Unsalted butter
- Large eggs
- Granulated Sugar
- Brown sugar
- Vanilla essence
- All-purpose flour
- Salt
- Baking soda
- Chocolate chip cookies
Instructions:
Combine the butter, sugar, and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl. Mix until smooth and creamy.
Then stir in the eggs, vanilla extract, salt, baking soda, and half of the flour. Combine the dry ingredients and the butter mixture in a mixing bowl.
Mix in the rest of the flour on medium speed until the cookie dough is thick and creamy. Once the dough has been combined, stir in the chocolate chips and optional nuts until they are evenly distributed throughout.
Now shape the dough into balls with a cookie scoop. After shaping, place the dough balls on top of the parchment paper in the air fryer basket. Leave about an inch of space between your cookies so that when they expand they don’t stick together.
Air fry for 7-8 minutes at 300°F. Now keep on checking, when you see your desired color on cookies take them out remove the cookies from the air fryer and place them on a wire rack to cool.
What happens to frozen cookie dough in an air fryer?
Whenever you’re choosing to air fry frozen cookie dough, remember that most of the time there is no need to defrost the frozen cookie dough before baking it in the air fryer.
However, if you have a frozen dough ball, it will keep its shape much better when air fried than if baked in a conventional oven, so expect some tall round cookies. They will still be delectable!
Are cookies better in the oven or an air fryer?
The answer to this question is really about preferences. If you’re a cookie lover, you might not love how they are air-fried. In air frying, the shape of the cookie remains and it doesn’t expand.
However, if you look at cooking in the oven, it can come out the way you desire, crunchy on the outside and soft in the middle, with a cookie-perfect shape.
On the other hand, if you don’t like heating your kitchen cooking them in the air fryer will be a plus. This way you’ll exactly know when to look up your cookies.
The air fryer also lets you know the temperature and that can be a plus since ovens can sometimes mess up your temperature system and it takes time to bring it back to the actual temperature.
Another con is you can cook frozen cookie dough in the oven, you will always have to thaw it first so it can acquire its desired shape and texture.
How Much Nutrition Do Cookies Have?
Cookies are a delight to eat, they can be chocolate, caramel, lavender, oatmeal, or raisin. However, they can have different nutrition in them due to specific ingredients.
Let’s take a look at the chocolate chip cookie nutrition ingredients so that you can evaluate if you can adjust it to your diet or not:
| Nutrients | Amount (19 g) |
| Calories | 90 |
| Fat | 4 g |
| Sodium | 75 mg |
| Carbohydrate | 12 mg |
| Sugar | 6 g |
| Protein | 1 g |
| Potassium | 20 mg |
How long do cookies take in an air fryer?
Cookies don’t take long in the air fryer; they can be cooked in under 7 to 10 minutes max.
However, if you want them to be more crunchy and give you that little burnt smell and taste that most people prefer, you can cook them for 15 minutes. Trust me, you wouldn’t want to cook them for more than 15 minutes.
Simply turn on your air fryer, set it to 300 degrees, 280 degrees, or whatever your daily cooking temperature preference is, and set the timer to 7 minutes. If you think your cookies need more time, go for 2 more minutes, and voila, you have homemade air-fried chocolate chip cookies.
Can you cook frozen cookies in an air fryer?
Yes, you can cook frozen cookies in the air fryer easily.
The cookie dough can even be baked without being thawed. However, because frozen cookie dough does not spread as much during baking, your cookies may be a little thicker than if you baked them from fresh dough.
How to bake premade cookies in an air fryer?
Baking pre-made cookie dough in the air fryer is quite easy, all you have to do is follow the steps below:
- Line the bottom of the air fryer basket with parchment paper.
- Roll cookie dough into balls and flatten them. Lay it out on parchment paper. (A standard air fryer can hold approximately four cookies.)
- Air fry cookies for 6-8 minutes at 320oF, or until browned on top.
- Remove the air fryer basket. Allow the cookies to cool in the basket for 5 minutes before removing them.
Can I put foil for cookies in an air fryer?
Yes, placing foil for cookies in the air fryer is an option you can go for. Foil stays in its position, so it will keep your cookies intact and it doesn’t melt when exposed to heat.
Putting foil in the air fryer under your cookies can help you keep them clean and save you from all the cleaning hassle.
However, you should always check the manual of your air fryer and if your brand recommends using foil in it or not.
For more information, you can also read What kind of paper can I use in my Air fryer?
Do you put parchment paper in the air fryer for cookies?
Air fryers’ baskets have a non-stick coating, which means technically no food will stick to the basket, however, you can always use an oil mister to spray the bottom of the basket for your satisfaction.
Using parchment paper or aluminum foil to keep the cookies intact is a good idea, this way the crumbs won’t get into the tray underneath the basket.
It will save you the time and worry of cleaning your air fryer basket. Since the parchment paper is heat resistant you don’t have to worry about it sticking to the sides or surface.
Summary
- As stated above, there can be a long debate on how can air-fried cookies are better than baked ones, however, in my opinion, air-fried ones are the best.
- Air frying can save you the hassle of heating your kitchen as it happens when you light up your oven.
- To have perfect cookies all you have to do is follow the instructions above and keep an eye on your time and temperature limits.
- You can even place parchment paper or foil in your air fryer if your manufacturer doesn’t label it as a no on the user manual.
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