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You may be craving some homemade cookies on a hot day, but the last thing you want to do is fire up your oven. Take advantage of the heat and bake cookies on your car dashboard. This article will teach you how to bake cookies on the dashboard of your car or truck.
Ingredients
- Pre-made cookie dough, commercial or home-made (for an egg-free version used in this article, see egg-free cookies recipe and add chocolate chips, as desired)
Steps
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Make sure the outdoor temperature is at least 95 °F (40 °C) before you try this project. For best results, park your car in a sunny spot. [1] X Research source
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Remove any items that you may need from your car. You will have to keep your car doors and windows closed throughout the baking process. Ensure that the car is parked somewhere clean and away from the exhaust of other cars that are running.
- Take your air freshener out of the car first. It might contaminate the cookies, and you won't need one afterwards when your car smells like fresh baked cookies. [2] X Research source
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Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. [3] X Research source
- You could use a sprayed surface but beware that this could cause the cookies to spread.
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Prepare the cookie dough if needed. Do either of the following:
- Cut a log of pre-made cookie dough into even rounds. Place the rounds onto the cookie sheet, leaving about 1½" (4cm) of space around each cookie.
- If you haven't purchased pre-made cookie dough, make the dough from this recipe (as was done for this article) or use your own cookie recipe (preferably egg-free, to avoid any potential for problems of not baking the egg sufficiently). Arrange each cookie on the baking sheet, adding blobs about tablespoon wide and leaving some space around the cookies to allow for spread.
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Place the pieces of unbaked cookie dough on the cookie sheet about 1 1/2 inches / 38mm apart.
- Use a spatula or a fork to flatten the cookies, if needed. They may be fine without this.
- Cover the cookies with plastic-wrap if not baking immediately and keep in the refrigerator until needed. Don't make the dough too far ahead of use though, use within a few hours.
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Place the cookies on the baking sheet into the car. Gently push into place on the dashboard.
- Place a thermometer next to the cookie sheet on the dashboard. You want to make sure that your car temperature reaches at least 165 °F (70 °C) to kill any germs that were present in any raw ingredients. [4] X Trustworthy Source FoodSafety.gov Online portal combining food safety information from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Food Safety and Inspection Service, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Go to source
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Shut the doors and let the sun begin the baking. You can expect the cookies to begin baking immediately but unlike baking in oven, it's advised to hang around and keep an eye on things as this is far more experimental than standard baking. [5] X Research source
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Keep an eye on the baking process by looking through the windshield regularly. The cooking time will vary depending on the temperature inside your car. Your cookies will set, but they won't brown much because the car isn't hot enough to caramelize the sugars in the cookies.
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Check now and then. Open the car door to check your cookies when they begin to look set. Touch the edges and the centers. The edges should be firm, and the centers should be set but not gooey.
- Try to slide a cookie from the parchment paper. If the cookie is done, it will come off of the paper easily. If the cookie is not done, it will stick to the paper.
- Close the car door if not done yet. Continue to check on the cookies every 15 to 30 minutes until they are done.
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Remove the cookie sheet from your car. Remove the cookies from the sheet with a spatula and place them on a wire rack to cool completely, although they won't be as hot as when they're removed from the oven.
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Finished.
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Community Q&A
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QuestionI'm a vegan. Can I still bake cookies on my dashboard with vegan cookie dough?Community AnswerYes, just make sure you know the differences between non-vegan and vegan cookie dough before you try this out.
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QuestionCan I let my child do this by themselves?Community AnswerI would not recommend this unless you are supervising and/or helping them. Children should not handle hot surfaces alone.
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Tips
- Bring cookie dough in a portable refrigerator or cooler on a camping trip. You can easily bake chocolate chip cookies on your car dashboard while you swim or do other activities.Thanks
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Warnings
- Do not sit in the car with the cookies as they bake. Temperatures rise over 200ºF in a car on a hot day.Thanks
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Things You'll Need
- Cookie sheet
- Parchment paper
- Knife to slice cookies
- A car or other enclosed vehicle
- Kitchen towel
- Thermometer
- Spatula
- Wire cooling rack
References
- ↑ https://cars.usnews.com/cars-trucks/advice/best-cars-blog/2016/07/how-to-bake-cookies-in-your-car
- ↑ https://cars.usnews.com/cars-trucks/advice/best-cars-blog/2016/07/how-to-bake-cookies-in-your-car
- ↑ https://www.autoblog.com/2018/08/07/car-hack-bake-cookies-dashboard-heat/
- ↑ https://www.foodsafety.gov/keep/charts/mintemp.html
- ↑ https://www.autoblog.com/2018/08/07/car-hack-bake-cookies-dashboard-heat/
- http://bakingbites.com/2007/09/car-baked-chocolate-chip-cookies-step-by-step/
- http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/07/10/bake-cookies-in-hot-car_n_1661460.html
About This Article
Article Summary
X
To bake cookies on your car dashboard, you'll need to be parked in a sunny spot on a day when it's at least 95 degrees Fahrenheit out. First, spread cookie dough out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Then, set the baking sheet on your car dashboard, and shut all of the doors. Finally, check on the cookies every 15-30 minutes until the edges of the cookies are firm and you're able to slide them off the parchment paper. To learn how to prepare the cookie dough for your experiment, scroll down!
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