How to Soften Hard Cookies

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Co-authored by Craig Watson and Kyle Hall

Last Updated: June 6, 2025 References

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Using a Piece of Bread

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Reheating the Cookies

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Video

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Q&A

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Tips

Are you tired of eating rock-hard cookies? Do you want to have melt-in-your-mouth cookies? There are a couple of tricks you can try to get hard cookies soft and chewy again.

Method 1

Method 1 of 2:

Using a Piece of Bread

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Then make sure you like cookies!^{[1]
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Put a piece of fresh white bread on the bottom of the container. Then, put the cookies on top of the bread.^{[2]
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- If you don’t have a piece of white bread, you can use a damp paper towel instead. Just wrap the paper towel in aluminum foil, poke some holes in the foil, and place the foil in the container with the cookies.
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This will give the cookies enough time to absorb moisture from the bread so they soften.^{[3]
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When you open the container the next day the cookies will be soft and chewy.

Method 2

Method 2 of 2:

Reheating the Cookies

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Make sure the paper towel is damp but not soaking wet so your cookies don’t end up too soggy.^{[4]
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Wrap the cookies you want to soften in the paper towel. If you’re reheating a lot of cookies, you may need to use more than one paper towel.^{[5]
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- You can also place the cookies on a plate and then cover them with the damp paper towel. Either way will work!
The cookies will absorb some of the moisture from the damp paper towel and become softer as they heat up.^{[6]
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If they’re still not soft enough, try re-wrapping them with another damp paper towel and microwaving them again.^{[7]
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Community Q&A

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Question

What makes cookies hard and tough?

MrExpert

Community Answer

Over-baking, not enough moist ingredients, and over-mixing.

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Question

How do I soften hard cookies?

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Dampen a paper towel and place it under the cookies. Place them in the microwave.

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Question

What can I use when the batter is really dry?

Community Answer

Use water or milk to help soften the dough.

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Video

Tips

If they are not soft enough, just put in 2 pieces of bread the next time.

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Dunk the cookies in milk to soften them up before eating.

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