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Terms of Use wikiHow is where trusted research and expert knowledge come together. Learn why people trust wikiHow
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Food and Entertaining
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Baking
Cookies and Biscuits
How to Soften Hard Cookies Download Article Baker Craig Watson explains how to make hard cookies soft 29 Recipe Ratings | Success Stories Co-authored by Craig Watson and Kyle Hall
Last Updated: March 3, 2026 Approved
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Using a Piece of Bread
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Reheating the Cookies
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This article was co-authored by Craig Watson and by wikiHow staff writer, Kyle Hall. Craig Watson is a Baker, Entrepreneur, and the Founder of Baked Cravings, a nut-free bakery in New York City. With eight years of experience, he specializes in creating high-quality baked goods in a nut-free facility. Baked Cravings has received The Best of Manhattan Award. Craig holds a Bachelor's Degree in Accounting from New Jersey City University and a Master of Business Administration in Marketing from Wilmington University. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. In this case, 80% of readers who voted found the article helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 203,225 times.
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.
How do you soften cookies that are hard?
Baker Craig Watson says to place your hard cookies in a container with a fresh slice of white bread for several hours. The cookies will pull the moisture out of the bread, leaving the bread stale and the cookies soft. Or, for a quicker solution, wrap a cookie in a damp paper towel and microwave it for 10 seconds.
Steps
Method 1 Method 1 of 2:
Using a Piece of Bread
Download Article
1 Obtain a cookie jar or a container that has a lid. Then make sure you like cookies![1]XResearch source
2 Put a piece of fresh white bread on the bottom of the container. Then, put the cookies on top of the bread.[2]XResearch source
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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3 Close the container and keep it closed for at least 24 hours. This will give the cookies enough time to absorb moisture from the bread so they soften.[3]XResearch source
4 Try the cookies later. When you open the container the next day the cookies will be soft and chewy.
Advertisement Method 2 Method 2 of 2:
Reheating the Cookies
Download Article
1 Wet a paper towel and squeeze out the excess water. Make sure the paper towel is damp but not soaking wet so your cookies don’t end up too soggy.[4]XResearch source
2 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]XResearch source
You can also place the cookies on a plate and then cover them with the damp paper towel. Either way will work!
3 Microwave the cookies for 15-20 seconds. The cookies will absorb some of the moisture from the damp paper towel and become softer as they heat up.[6]XResearch source
4 Unwrap the cookies and try one. If they’re still not soft enough, try re-wrapping them with another damp paper towel and microwaving them again.[7]XResearch source
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Question What makes cookies hard and tough? MrExpert Community Answer Over-baking, not enough moist ingredients, and over-mixing. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 6 Helpful 34
Question How do I soften hard cookies? Community Answer Dampen a paper towel and place it under the cookies. Place them in the microwave. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 51 Helpful 80
Question What can I use when the batter is really dry? Community Answer Use water or milk to help soften the dough. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 6 Helpful 12
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Tips
If they are not soft enough, just put in 2 pieces of bread the next time. Thanks Helpful 15 Not Helpful 35
Dunk the cookies in milk to soften them up before eating. Thanks Helpful 10 Not Helpful 24
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Co-authored by: Craig Watson Baker This article was co-authored by Craig Watson and by wikiHow staff writer, Kyle Hall. Craig Watson is a Baker, Entrepreneur, and the Founder of Baked Cravings, a nut-free bakery in New York City. With eight years of experience, he specializes in creating high-quality baked goods in a nut-free facility. Baked Cravings has received The Best of Manhattan Award. Craig holds a Bachelor's Degree in Accounting from New Jersey City University and a Master of Business Administration in Marketing from Wilmington University. This article has been viewed 203,225 times. 29 votes - 80% Co-authors: 14Updated: March 3, 2026 Views: 203,225 Categories: Cookies and Biscuits In other languages Spanish Italian
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Reader Success Stories
Julia Roark
Sep 28, 2017
"What a great site! First timer here. Thanks to Google search for the link. Since I don't eat white bread, I kept scrolling. The aluminum foil with holes was the option for me. The bagged gingersnaps are soft and chewy now. Yum!"..." more
More reader stories Hide reader stories Share your story
Did this article help you?
Yes No Advertisement Cookies make wikiHow better. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Co-authored by: Craig Watson Baker Co-authors: 14Updated: March 3, 2026 Views: 203,22580% of voters found this recipe helpful. 29 votes - 80% Click a star to add your vote
Julia Roark
Sep 28, 2017
"What a great site! First timer here. Thanks to Google search for the link. Since I don't eat white bread, I kept scrolling. The aluminum foil with holes was the option for me. The bagged gingersnaps are soft and chewy now. Yum!"..." more
Meaghan S. Blackburn
Apr 26, 2022
"Yes, I have used the white bread method and it works great. But I am thrilled about the damp paper towels method." Rated this article:
Anonymous
Aug 17, 2023
"I needed to rescue my hard biscuits and this was really useful info."
Jo C.
Jun 18, 2017
"Softening cookies with bread slices really worked. Easy and simple." Share yours! More success stories Hide success stories
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Download Article Baker Craig Watson explains how to make hard cookies soft 29 Recipe Ratings | Success Stories Co-authored by Craig Watson and Kyle Hall 
The Best Ways to Warm Up French Bread 
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Co-authored by: Craig Watson Baker This article was co-authored by Craig Watson and by wikiHow staff writer, Kyle Hall. Craig Watson is a Baker, Entrepreneur, and the Founder of Baked Cravings, a nut-free bakery in New York City. With eight years of experience, he specializes in creating high-quality baked goods in a nut-free facility. Baked Cravings has received The Best of Manhattan Award. Craig holds a Bachelor's Degree in Accounting from New Jersey City University and a Master of Business Administration in Marketing from Wilmington University. This article has been viewed 203,225 times. 29 votes - 80% Co-authors: 14 Updated: March 3, 2026 Views: 203,225 Categories: Cookies and Biscuits In other languages Spanish Italian 
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1 Obtain a cookie jar or a container that has a lid. Then make sure you like cookies![1] 
2 Put a piece of fresh white bread on the bottom of the container. Then, put the cookies on top of the bread.[2] 
3 Close the container and keep it closed for at least 24 hours. This will give the cookies enough time to absorb moisture from the bread so they soften.[3] 
1 Wet a paper towel and squeeze out the excess water. Make sure the paper towel is damp but not soaking wet so your cookies don’t end up too soggy.[4] 
3 Microwave the cookies for 15-20 seconds. The cookies will absorb some of the moisture from the damp paper towel and become softer as they heat up.[6] 
MrExpert Community Answer Over-baking, not enough moist ingredients, and over-mixing. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 6 Helpful 34 
Community Answer Dampen a paper towel and place it under the cookies. Place them in the microwave. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 51 Helpful 80