This Tip Will Easily Upgrade Your Premade Cookie Dough

It's happened to almost everyone: You need to make cookies in a pinch and are forced to reach for the premade cookie dough at the grocery store. The baked result never ends up looking homemade, often resulting in a tasty but slightly disappointing treat.

Even if you made the dough from scratch, the cookies may bake unevenly, which is one of the common mistakes made by home cooks, according to AllRecipes. Or perhaps the cookie dough spread too thin and the cookies blended into one another, making them look messy, as well as making them too crunchy and hard. The trick to baking both crunchy and chewy cookies lies partly in the dough ingredients and how they are handled, according to Southern Living. However, there is one simple thing found in most homes that can help to make cookies that are baked evenly, aren't too thin, and end up perfectly textured — and best yet, it works with premade cookie dough.

To make that perfectly baked cookie, swap out the traditional cooking sheet for a muffin tin, according to Bon Appétit. What makes this method great is how it cooks the dough by surrounding it with heat, so the bottoms and sides all cook evenly and get golden brown. This technique enhances the flavor of the cookie and satisfies both people who love crunchy cookies and those who crave a chewy cookie. A fun bonus is the appealing, thick shape that results when the cookies are baked in the round tins.

Or, if you are looking to create more uniformly shaped cookies, muffin tins can be perfect for that, too, says Southern Living. Simply take a spoon or cookie scoop and plop the dough into the unbuttered muffin tins, and then press the dough down using a small jar and plastic wrap. For a smaller cookie, just use a small muffin tin! Next time you find yourself crunched for time to make cookies, you can still reach for that premade cookie dough ... but also grab the muffin tin in your pantry.