Pillsbury Has a Whole Line of Safe to Eat Raw Cookie Dough

For years, impatient hedonists of all sorts have snuck a bite or two (or ten) of cookie dough while baking. You've probably counted yourself among them at one point or another, despite the fact that your cookie dough's packaging often explicitly advised you not to eat it raw. Sure, the label warned you, but you have to taste what you're baking before it's done. And if cookie dough is a frequent ice cream ingredient, it can't be that dangerous, right?

Well, the good news is that Pillsbury has put out a full line of cookie dough products that take the guesswork and safety risk out of sneaking in that little bite while you bake. During this (otherwise terrible) year, the company has put out a whole host of cookie and brownie doughs that are explicitly marked as safe to eat raw, saving you from that awkward moment of having to decide if you're ready to risk foodborne illness to get that sweet, sweet taste.

So how's it work? Well, most "normal" cookie doughs use flour and eggs. In its natural state, flour can harbor germs that cause food poisoning, and the only way to get rid of them is to cook that flour — i.e. baking a cookie dough into cookies. In order to make its dough safe to eat raw, Pillsbury says they "use heat treated flour and pasteurized eggs" to help avoid the risk of foodborne illness associated with "normal" cookie doughs.

While not every bit of Pillsbury cookie dough you'll find on store shelves is inherently safe to eat raw, the newest line of edible cookie and brownie dough features pretty clear labelling indicating exactly that. There's an extensive line of Pillsbury Ready to Bake! Cookie Doughs carrying the "Safe to Eat Raw" label, including plenty of specialty options and seasonal favorites. There's a few different Place & Bake Brownie Doughs that fit the bill as well.

You'll find a whole host of this new and improved take on Pillsbury's doughs from retailers around the country. That's good news, because if there was ever a time just to go to town on a whole bunch of cookie dough without even thinking about turning on the oven, it's right now.