In order for bakers to produce once of America's most beloved bakery foods, the cookie, bakers must ensure efficient cookie production.
Bakers who produce cookies typically run several different types of cookies on the same line. Effective cookie lines require bakers to keep aware of new technology in terms of mixing, depositing and oven functions.
Today's consumers want more than just chocolate chip cookies. Chocolate chip cookies have become chocolate chunk cookies. Nuts, fruit, oats, marshmallow and other particulates require gentle mixing and even precise cleaning.
Nuts are a common allergen and problematic for cookie bakers. During cookie production, bakers must ensure that the mixer's design prevents allergens from touching the mixing tools after product changeover. One manufacturer recommends that bakers use stainless steel mixers to prevent ingredients—and allergens—from building up on the mixing tools after cleaning. Stainless steel is able to be cleaned with high-pressure hoses, which thoroughly remove most debris.
"Traditionally the industry uses very large, difficult to clean equipment," one mixer manufacturer says, "but it is getting to the point where FDA and USDA are starting to get intrusive enough where people are going to have to start looking for other alternatives."
Because cookie mixers must be cleaned often, it also is necessary to stop production lines periodically. To minimize downtime, bakers should consider mixers with detachable shaft seals, the manufacturer says. Bakers would have several sets of shaft seals, and while one set is being cleaned in a cleaning station, the other set is being placed on the mixer to resume production.
After mixing, cookie dough is transported to depositors. Bakers should ensure accurate cookie depositing to reduce the amount of dough that is given away as overweight. Many depositors have functions that automatically compensate when dough is over-or underweight. If bakers produce cookies less than 1 oz. and 35% of the cookie's weight comes from particulates, one manufacturer says that the likelihood of inaccurate depositing increases.
Because many cookie doughs contain particulates, depositors must be able to accommodate these ingredients
as well. Bakers should check with their manufacturers as to how large sizes of particulates the depositors are able to accommodate. One manufacturer offers a depositor that is able to process cookie dough with particulates as large as 0.5 ins. in diameter. If the particulates are larger than that size, the depositor breaks down the particulates into smaller pieces.
Baking is the last step for cookie dough. Consistency is most easily spotted in this step, so bakers should provide that cookies on both the outsides and insides of conveyor belts are baked evenly. Temperature differences flowing throughout the oven are typical causes of inconsistent cookie bakes.
Indirect heating and recirculating air technology may help eliminate this problem. When production calls for temperature increases inside of specific baking zones, humidity also increases inside the oven. This also has an effect on consistent baking.
Indirect heating solves this problem as well. Bakers are able to adjust temperatures without affecting humidity levels inside the oven.
Baking time is able to be reduced—and cookie production increased—when ovens produce higher air volumes. If an oven blows high amounts of air onto cookies, then moisture evaporation occurs more rapidly. By reducing moisture levels inside cookies, the dough is baked faster. This also allows bakers to install shorter ovens, leaving valuable floor space.
Cookie production requires more than just mixing and depositing dough on conveyor lines to be baked. Cookies often contain many ingredients that require special care during production. If bakers ensure efficient cookie lines, including mixing, depositing and baking, then consumers will continue to enjoy this bakery staple.