Edible Cookie Dough

By Melissa Knific

Published May 29, 2024

  • Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Spencer Richards.
Media 1 of 1
Total Time
50 minutes
Prep Time
10 minutes
Cook Time
20 minutes, plus 20 minutes’ cooling
Rating
5(257)
Comments
Read comments

The tasty practice of sneaking a couple bites of cookie dough before baking has likely been around as long as cookies themselves, but making and tucking into a full bowl of raw dough — made expressly to eat — is relatively novel. Perhaps it was the success of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream, a flavor that popped up some time in the mid-1980s, that started the mass love affair, but the concept stuck, and brands and businesses have fully embraced it. This at-home version is safely edible; it’s made without eggs and the flour is heat-treated, or baked to a temperature of 165 degrees, to rid it of harmful bacteria. (And without the eggs, as well as a few other ingredients, this dough cannot be baked.) Regular or mini semi-sweet chocolate chips are a classic mix-in, but feel free to replace them with equal amounts of white chocolate chips, M&M’s or chopped nuts.

  • or to save this recipe.

  • Subscriber benefit: Give recipes to anyone

    As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.

    Subscribe

  • Share this recipe

  • Print this recipe

    or to print this recipe.

Advertisement

Ingredients

Yield:6 to 8 servings (about 2 cups)

  • 1 cup/125 grams all-purpose flour

  • ½ cup/113 grams unsalted butter (1 stick), softened

  • ⅓ cup/73 grams packed light brown sugar

  • 2 tablespoons/25 grams granulated sugar

  • 2 tablespoons milk, dairy or nondairy

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal)

  • ¾ cup/130 grams regular or mini semi-sweet chocolate chips, or a combination

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 to 8 servings)

35 grams carbs; 31 milligrams cholesterol; 287 calories; 5 grams monosaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 10 grams saturated fat; 17 grams fat; 1 gram fiber; 126 milligrams sodium; 3 grams protein; 21 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Powered by

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat-treat the flour: Heat oven to 400 degrees. Line a sheet pan with parchment, add the flour and spread it into a thin layer. Bake flour for 5 minutes (see Tip). Cool flour completely.

  2. Step 2

    In a large bowl, combine butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar. Beat on medium-high with a hand mixer until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in milk and vanilla until combined.

  3. Step 3

    Add the salt, then sift in the flour. Beat on medium-low until well combined and no white streaks remain. Fold in the chocolate chips by hand with a spatula or wooden spoon. Serve immediately, using a cookie scoop or spoon to transfer to small bowls, or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. (The cookie dough will be very soft if served right away; if you’d like it a bit firmer, refrigerate the dough for 15 minutes and check the firmness, adding more time to increase firmness if desired. If refrigerated for several hours or overnight, bring it to room temperature about 30 minutes before serving to soften.)

Tip

  • A quarter sheet pan or 9-by-13 baking pan is ideal for heat-treating the flour because of the small amount used in the recipe; if a standard-size sheet pan is used, double or triple the amount of flour and store leftovers in an airtight container. Once the flour is baked, use the parchment to quickly but carefully transfer it to a small bowl and use an instant-read thermometer to take the temperature. It should read at least 165 degrees.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Ratings

5 out of 5
257 user ratings
Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Comments

Laura

I’ve never found a cookie dough that wasn’t edible… going to be 69 in June.

Ellen

I once made a batch up chocolate chip cookie dough (with eggs and regular flour) that never got baked. I was at the apex of planning a large conference and for a solid week my nightly dinner consisted of chocolate chip cookie dough eaten with a spoon, a small bowl of Trader Joe's baked cheese curls, a gin and tonic, and a hard boiled egg. The hard boiled egg was a nod to nutrition that made it OK, in my max-stressed state, and I survived a week of eating raw cookie dough just fine.

kathleen

I think your numbers for how many it serves are off. Forget 6-8 servings. It makes ONE serving for a very happy person.

Suzanne

I'll have to try this recipe. I've always made my raw cookie dough with chickpeas, peanut butter, (or your favorite nut butter), almond flour, vanilla and maple syrup. Blend in the food processor and add chocolate chips and refrigerate. It's easy and yummy.

Anonymous

I’m unclear why the recipe doesn’t lead with the fact that raw flour is a salmonella hazard. Many people probably don’t understand this.

world vegetarian

The answer is YES and the question does not even matter. I made this (using Miyoko butter and Oatly Full Fat Milk) and then made it and then made it again. After the first time I knew I needed to double the recipe and even still, let's be honest, this is just for me. Because of how hot it's been I haven't wanted to turn on the oven so I've been microwaving the flour. In my microwave full power for one minute gets the flour to 175+. This recipe is one of the best things to have ever happened to m

Private comments are only visible to you.

Recipe Tags

or to save this recipe.