I did the same hand test for years and told myself I could feel 225 from 250, which was a total lie I was telling myself every single cook. The truth is my hand was reading somewhere between 200 and 300 and I had no clue which end I was on until the meat came off dry. A $15 probe is the cheapest lie detector on earth and it took me way too long to buy one. I still run my hand over the firebox out of habit, but now it is just for fun, the probe makes the call. Taping it in at 195 and walking away is the move, and honestly the sleep is worth more than any fancy gadget on the market.

Chilling the dough is a game changer, my grandma always did that and I never knew why until I tried it myself. Now I just bake one test cookie first to see if the dough is too warm before wasting a whole tray.