Dough

• Drop cookies defy rolling and cutting by the soft nature of their dough and frequent additions of nuts, chocolate chips and other tidbits. Basic drop cookie dough frequently tolerates the trials of everything-but-the-kitchen-sink attempts and must be sticky enough to hold onto everything. Rolled cookies demand stiff dough with just enough moisture to press flat and stay together for rolling and cutting. The newly cut shapes must endure being shuttled from the work area to the cookie sheet and a wet dough is not up to the task.

Time

• Rolled cookies are high-maintenance and require some fuss before you can get them into the oven. They frequently need time to chill before submitting to a roll out and cut session. Some varieties will first require filling, folding or decorating. Drop cookies occasionally need a little chill time in the refrigerator, too, but many do not. Use a couple of spoons to scoop and mound them straight onto the pan. They only ask for a cool pan to start and little space to spread.

Texture

• While drop cookies and rolled cookies deliver the textures of whatever trimmings have been mustered to create the cookie, dried fruit for example, the two differ in dough texture. Drop cookies offer a wide spectrum of texture. Sometimes chewy, sometimes crispy and, often, something in between; the drop cookie appeals to just about any preference. Rolled cookies snap or break when you bite into them. While using too much flour when rolling the dough or re-rolling scraps can make them tough, their delicate nature requires a gentle touch when handling, to which many gingerbread men can attest.

Appearance

• Rolled cookies generally take the prize in appearance. They dazzle the eye with their perfect shapes and all the glitz and glam a creative and well-stocked baker can supply. Dyes, sprinkles, icings and jams are just a few of the many accessories for dressing up an otherwise plain canvas of a cookie. Drop cookies, on the other hand, offer the casual come-as-you-are appearance right out of the oven.