Need some help with the butter

When I was in the states I had a small home business selling hand decorated cutout cookies.   So I have made literally thousands of cookies.  I have made my receipe over and over trying different variations but have never  had a cookie turn out like it did this morning.  

I decided to make cutout cookie recipe this morning and got all the ingredients I needed...only six...and made the dough.  It handled similarly to the dough I usually make but the taste is different as well as the texture.  They seemed to be on the dry side.  I am guessing that it is the butter or possibly the flour.  I used Sainsbury's butter and Homepride flour.  I have noticed that butter in the states is hard when it comes out of the fridge but butter here is still somewhat squeezeable.  

Can anyone offer any advice on what may be a better butter or margarine.  I am going to try marge next because whenever my mother-in-law came to visit she would always bring Echo marge to make pasties because our marge was a lot more oily.

Thanks for any help

Kathy

I can't help here. My cooking has gone in the dumpster since moving here. The number of times I made a Victoria Sponge, 8 halves, all in one day, to only have them all go flat and no higher than a pound coin, had me so depressed I swore I'd never bake again. (I since discovered that I was measuring in a cup the volume of the flour and not the weight in grams. Huge mistake. If you don't have a scale, get one.)

The butter, well I like it here better than in the US. The flavor, that is. But I like French butter better and I am on a mission to discover how to get some. I can't testify to its baking prowess, however. Cows are definitely fed differently here, so you may be on to something. You'll notice a huge difference in how mince/ground beef fries up.

Give Hopster a shout. She's a baking queen. In fact, I'm seeing her tomorrow; I'll mention your question.

Need any taste testers??

.... I used Sainsbury's butter and Homepride flour.  I have noticed that butter in the states is hard when it comes out of the fridge but butter here is still somewhat squeezeable. ....

If you think that it is the butter try one of the alternative types of butter.  The cheapest butter available in the UK is often from New Zealand (which I think is where Sainsbury's butter comes from) and a good bit softer than English butter, which is, I think, just about the hardest available in the UK - it tends to chip or break if you attack it with a knife when it first comes out of the fridge.

Here I am!!!!  

First, I only use unsalted butter on my cookies. I wish I could say I discovered it myself, but I got it from Martha Stewart (jailbird) Holiday cook book and it's never let me down.  OH and I have a real upmarket cookie book from the states that also says only use unsalted.

But I don't think that's your problem. I think it's the flour.  I don't know what they're doing to the flour or how they're milling it or whatever, but lots of people seem to have a problem with the flour over here (that is US cooks). I've tried them all (sponge flour was the least successful) and always with weird results.  I just think the plain flour is not like our All Purpose flour - but couldn't possibly explain why. I always use double the baking powder on any recipe, even cookies.  And I double or triple sift.

Hope this is of some use?

I actually read an article years ago about someone who published a Cake cook book here -can't remember who, but some famous cake baker-and anyway, she had to come over here and spend a month experimenting because all the flours and things were different.  According to her, strong white bread flour is like our all-purpose flour and plain flour is like cake flour.  I also use a heaping teaspoon of  baking powder.  

Afraid I have no helpful advice, but I did want to chime in.  I've not been very successful with baking over here either.

My mother sent me a bag of Nestle Toll House chips and the cookies turned out nothing like they would in the US.  I also had her send me a US measuring cups, so I know my measurements were right.

I think the only thing I've successfully baked in the UK has been snickerdoodles.

I've baked a few cookies since I've been here and I've found that Lurpak is the best butter to use.  However, my cookies were never the same as when I baked in the US.  It is the flour that is causing the problem.  My husband loves Yorkshire Pudding and before I arrive in England, I "practiced" making the puds.  They never turned out...they were always flat and just unedible.  Then, after arriving here, after only a couple times trying, I am now making beautiful yorkies that come out the same everytime.  If you  look closely at the flour you can see that it is slightly grainer than our flour back in the states.  The UK mills a different type of wheat than the US which may account for the difference.

Try using the Lurpak (brick) butter...it may make a difference.  

LisaE...

I've seen 'President' butter in Sainsbury's, which i believe is French butter.

Hope you can find it!

What about Anchor butter?  Have you tried that one?

I actually read an article years ago about someone who published a Cake cook book here -can't remember who, but some famous cake baker-and anyway, she had to come over here and spend a month experimenting because all the flours and things were different.  According to her, strong white bread flour is like our all-purpose flour and plain flour is like cake flour.   

Yep, I've also read this, and it's included in the food conversions page in the main part of the site. Though I have to say I haven't tried the substitutes, I haven't been baking much lately.
For my shortening/margarine in cookie recipes, I use the tubs of Stork. My chocolate chip cookies turn out pretty darn good. Using a recipe that was a mistake actually, lol. Some day if I get caught up on life, I'll start baking again. Or else start ordering in KTurner specialties.

I have a source that says you can get Gold Medal Flour from Harrod's, http://www.harrods.com/; as well as from Made in America, who also has Crisco, http://www.madeinamerica.co.uk/, Panzer's Deli also has Gold Medal, http://www.panzers.co.uk/, and Partridges, http://www.partridges.co.uk. See if any are closest or cheapest.

Yes I have a mega list of grocery sources to get into the site. Catching up.....  

......  According to her, strong white bread flour is like our all-purpose flour .....

I am no expert on baking but what Mindy says is consistent with what I know about flour sold in the UK.  Wheat grown in the UK doesn't make good bread, so "strong" wheat is imported from the US to make bread from (though I undestand that a small proportion of local (British) wheat is blended with it).  It is to do with the weather - I think that the hotter drier weather of the mid-west makes the wheat grains drier and denser.

What is mystery to me is why American bread made from American wheat costs $2 a loaf whereas as British bread made mostly from imported American wheat only costs about half that?  

I've seen 'President' butter in Sainsbury's, which i believe is French butter.

Thanks, yes, have tried it. Not the same. Can't describe the "French butter" taste too well, other than I KNOW what it is. For some odd reason, President here just doesn't have the "French" taste. Dunno why!

I'm not as keen on Anchor as I am on Lurpak.

Gold Medal flour...ooh, am gonna have to try to get that!

Thanks for all the advice....I think I will definitely try the strong bread flour because even before reading the posts I noticed when I made up a batch of popover mix that the batter looked grainy.

Did another test run this morning and tried butter I found at Iceland that was the hardest I have felt since being here.  Boy I sound like some weirdo going around squeezing butter in stores!   And also tried Stork marge.  Have to admit that the marge is getting closer to the taste and texture I had in the states.  Right now the biggest problem is the texture...it seems very dry.  

I'll let you know what happens with the strong bread flour!

Thanks again!

The mad baker

Thanks, yes, have tried it. Not the same. Can't describe the "French butter" taste too well, other than I KNOW what it is. For some odd reason, President here just doesn't have the "French" taste. Dunno why!

I'm not as keen on Anchor as I am on Lurpak.

Gold Medal flour...ooh, am gonna have to try to get that!

Hi Lisa,

We get some type of French butter here at our stores.  Not sure what you are looking for.  I think they have sea salt in them.  I have never purchased them but if you want I can give you names the next time I run to the store.  I just know we have French butter not sure if it is because we are so close.  Let me know.

Cheers,