It’s easy to tell when peanut butter cookies have turned golden, but chocolate baked goods, including cookies and brownies, are more difficult to assess, since they’re already dark in color. The solution? Do a touch test, says Abigail Johnson Dodge, author of The Weekend Baker (W.W. Norton, $30, www.amazon.com). Brownies and dark cookies should feel dry on top and firm on the sides. And when you gently push them with your finger, they should give slightly but not feel mushy. Brownies also flake on the surface, and the edges begin to pull back from the pan when they’re ready. You can use the same touch test for sugar or shortbread cookies, which are naturally light in color but traditionally cooked until the edges are slightly golden. Or you can sacrifice one and break it open. “It should not look moist inside, and the color should be the same throughout,” Dodge says. If it’s undercooked, the center will appear darker.