My Edible Cookie Dough recipe uses a quick & simple extra step so you can get your cookie dough fix without the harmful bacteria! I’ll be walking you through how to heat-treat flour (it’s easy) and will also include suggestions for some of my favorite add-ins. Recipe includes a how-to video!
A Sweet Treat That’s Safe to Eat
My edible cookie dough recipe will curb all of your cookie dough cravings and spare you from the bacteria that’s in the raw stuff. We’ll be using heat treated flour and leaving out the eggs for a safe snack that tastes and feels JUST like the real thing!
I know, you’ve probably had your fair share of “unsafe” cookie dough and may be wondering, “Why the separate recipe?”. I’ve been there too–I’m pretty sure I’ve eaten more chocolate chip cookies raw than baked in my lifetime–but we all know we’re not supposed to do it.
What many people don’t know, however, is that raw eggs are not the only threat in raw cookie dough. Raw flour can contain bacteria like E.coli, which is not something to mess around with! Heat treating the flour beforehand kills off any bacteria without hurting any of the flavor, and it only takes a few minutes to do.
Let’s get to it!
What You Need
Today’s cast of characters should be pretty similar to your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, with the obvious exception of eggs. Here are a few of them:
- Butter. Using unsalted butter allows us to control the salt level in our edible cookie dough. If all you have on hand is salted, check out my post on salted vs. unsalted butter for substitution instructions.
- Sugar. Most of the sugar in this recipe is brown sugar. You can use light, dark, or a combination of the two (or make your own brown sugar!)!
- Heat treated flour. Heat treating takes just a few minutes and saves you any concerns about contracting foodborne illness from your cookie dough! I’ll show you how to do it below.
- Milk. You may or may not need to add milk. I’ve made this recipe dozens of times and have never needed to add milk, and if you measure your flour properly, you likely won’t need it either. If your cookie dough turns out dry or crumbly though, you will just need to add milk to bring it back together.
SAM’S TIP: During the heat treating process, I found that some of the flour has the tendency to clump or bake together. To keep these clumps out of your cookie dough, run the flour through a sifter before stirring it into your edible cookie dough.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Heat Treat Flour
According to Cooking Light, toasting flour in a 350F oven for just 5 minutes kills off any harmful bacteria (such as E. coli, which is our main concern here).
- Preheat your oven to 350F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper (this will make transferring the flour so easy).
- Measure out your flour and evenly spread it over the parchment paper.
- Bake in your preheated oven for 5-7 minutes.
- To ensure that the flour is really safe, I recommend checking it with an instant read thermometer to verify that the temperature is at least 160F. Allow flour to cool before proceeding with recipe.
How to Make Edible Cookie Dough
- Heat treat your flour, let it cool, then sift it.
- Beat together the butter, sugars, vanilla extract, and salt in a separate bowl until creamy and very well-combined.
- Gradually add in the flour until it’s well incorporated.
- Stir in your chocolate chips or add-ins.
SAM’S TIP: Very important! Make sure you let your flour cool (it doesn’t take long!) before adding it to your other ingredients. Flour that is too hot can leave you with a melted mess.
Frequently Asked Questions
Typically this is a result of accidentally over-measuring flour. To fix this, simply add milk (any kind will work) until your dough begins to come together again, and check out my post on how to measure your flour properly, it contains a few helpful hints .
Edible cookie dough should have a bit of grit-like texture to it, because the real thing does! When cookie dough is raw/un-baked, the sugars in the dough have not yet melted. Anyone who has ever swiped a fingerful of cookie dough from their mixing bowl knows there’s a texture to it that comes from the sugar. Once the dough is baked, the sugars melt, and that texture goes away.
If the grit bothers you, my cookie dough bites and my cookie dough frosting tend to be less gritty and more smooth (thanks to a secret ingredient!), so feel free to try those to get a smoother cookie dough fix!
Yes! Once you’ve made your cookie dough, you can dress it up with all kinds of add-ins. I’ve tried peanut butter chocolate chip , funfetti, and cookies & cream variations. A white chocolate chip, cranberry, and macadamia nut version would be delicious. Get creative with it!
I’d love to hear about the flavor combinations you come up with, so drop me a note in the comments below 😊
Enjoy!
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Edible Cookie Dough
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cup (215 g) all-purpose flour
- 1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter softened to room temperature!
- 1 ¼ cups (250 g) brown sugar, tightly packed
- ¼ cup (50 g) sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1-2 Tablespoons milk optional¹
- ½ cup (85 g) semisweet chocolate chips I recommend using a mix of mini and regular sized
Optional Mix-Ins
- creamy peanut butter
- colored sprinkles
- broken Oreo pieces
Recommended Equipment
- Baking pan
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and spread flour in an even layer over the parchment paper.
- Bake on 350F (175C) oven for 5-7 minutes²
- Allow flour to cool, then run it through a sifter to break up any clumps that may have formed while baking. Set aside.1 ¾ cup (215 g) all-purpose flour
- In a large bowl (preferably a stand mixer), combine softened butter, sugar, vanilla extract, and salt. Use an electric mixer to cream together until very creamy and very well-combined, 1-3 minutes.1 cup (226 g) unsalted butter, 1 ¼ cups (250 g) brown sugar, tightly packed, ¼ cup (50 g) sugar, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon salt
- Gradually add cooled, sifted flour, stirring until completely combined. If dough is too stiff after thoroughly stirring, add milk, one tablespoon at a time, until desired consistency is reached.1-2 Tablespoons milk
- Stir in chocolate chips (and any additional add-ins you might like!)½ cup (85 g) semisweet chocolate chips, creamy peanut butter, colored sprinkles, broken Oreo pieces
- Best enjoyed immediately after preparing, but you may store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week. Cookie dough will firm up some in the refrigerator, so for best enjoyment let it sit at room temperature for 15-20 minutes before enjoying leftovers.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Naomi
It was fine but I would not make again or recommend.
Naomi
I put it in the fridge and let it cool and got so much better I would totally recamend!!!!!!
Charlotte
My family loves this recipe!!! 🤩😁🤩
Linda Baldwin
Haven’t tried the recipe yet, but be aware that 350 degrees Fahrenheit is not 72 degrees Centigrade. It’s 180 degrees or at least that’s what we use as an equivalent as it’s actually 177 degrees.
The recipe looks very interesting.
Sam
Hi Linda! I’m so sorry for the typo. Thank you for catching it. I have fixed it. 🙂
matilda
Hi do you know how much cookie dough this recipe makes if you roll it into balls?
Sam
Hi Matilda! I do not know. It would really depend on the size of your scoop. Just keep in mind that this is not good for trying to bake into cookies. 🙂
Ray
Ok, I made this with almond flour and it tasted just like when I made it with all-purpose flour! Success!!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Ray! Thank you for the feedback. 🙂
Sheila
Did you bake the almond flour?
Ray
Is it possible to use gluten-free flour for this recipe?
Sam
Hi Ray! I haven’t tried it, but I think that should work here. 🙂
Jen
This recipe is delicious! Do you have a recommendation to make the cookie dough stored in the refrigerator more scoopable? I was thinking corn syrup, but would I then need to adjust the amount of sugar? Thank you!
Sam
Hi Jen! You could add corn syrup but it’s still going to firm up a bit. The best solution is to really let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes before trying to scoop it.
Danielle
Hi! I love this recipe! I’ve been using it for my cookie dough brownies, I just spread a layer on top after they’re baked! I have a ton of these to make next week and I want to get ahead.. can I make a bunch this week and freeze? My gut says yes but wanted to see if you ever done it. Thank you!
Sam
Hi Danielle! This should freeze without any issues. 🙂
Arielle
Have not tried it out yet but, if I am using 1/2 cups of flour should I shorten the baking time?
Ashley Kinsman
This is amazing! My go to treat, I could seriously eat this every single day!
I very unhealthily use margarine from time to time for this to make it much creamier and it doesn’t get so thick when cold.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoy it so much, Ashley! 🙂
ANNA
Well, thank YOU. I didn’t knew I was a cookie dough addict. NOW I know. And that really often 😉
madina walden
absolutly delicious and so fun to make while hanging out with my friends.
ForEsme
Thanks for such a simple and straightforward recipe! Also appreciate that you explained how to heat-treat flour. Plus it’s so delicious. Yes, it’s grainy, but that’s what raw sugar is like – just let it melt on your tongue first if it bothers you 🙂
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much! 🙂
Jen
Great recipe. I made it with my kids and we all enjoyed. Tasty and super safe to eat. 5 stars. I have made several recipes from here and all have been great. This is a keeper!!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Jen! 🙂
erica
I love this it is so easy to find recipes
Ray
Insanely addictive! So delicious! It was so easy and fun to make!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Ray! 🙂
Andres
would this work well with room temp brown butter?
Sam
While I think it should work sometimes when I make a dough with brown butter the dough becomes a little crumbly, but I’m sure it will still taste amazing. 🙂
Lucy
Hi,
If I heat treat the flour the night before, is it still good to use the next day?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Lucy! Yes it is. Enjoy! 🙂