Consumer Reports rates store bought cookie doughs

Posted Tuesday, July 24, 2007

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Testers Find Frozen Doughs Come Close To Cookies From Scratch

Yonkers, NY — Love the smell of fresh cookies baking in the oven? Consumers with a sweet tooth and a busy schedule can avoid the hassle of mixing ingredients by using store bought dough. Consumer Reports tested seven preformed cookie doughs — frozen or refrigerated — and found that the best of the bunch, all from frozen doughs, rated "Very Good" by CR and produced a cookie that tasted close to the baked-from-scratch variety.

Trader Joe’s Chunky cookie dough, which made cookies with a buttery flavor, chocolatey chunks and a good chunk-to-cookie ratio, was the top rated and the only cookie dough identified as a Consumer Reports Best Buy.

After Trader Joe’s, in order of overall quality, Omaha Steaks, Fat Boy Cookie Company and Whole Foods all rated “Very Good” by the Consumer Reports trained panelists, who baked a total of 370 cookies to test the best doughs. Cookie size varies by brand as does cost per cookie. Calories per cookie range from 100 to 150; fat varies from 5 to 8 grams, corresponding to cookie size.
 

While raw dough is tempting, Consumer Reports recommends against eating unbaked dough. “We hate to spoil the fun but eating raw cookie dough could be risky because the raw eggs may contain bacteria that causes salmonellosis, an intestinal infection,” notes Ronni Sandroff, Health editor at Consumer Reports. “So, be a smart cookie and wait until the cookies are out of the oven.”

Three brands were deemed “Good” by the CR panelists, with David’s receiving the top ranking in this category, followed by Pillsbury and Nestle. Nestle’s refrigerated dough was the lowest rated. CR’s panelists note that the Nestle Toll House cookies bore little resemblance to those from the make-from-scratch Nestle Toll House recipe. They didn’t taste fresh baked and had a bit of old-fat taste, and were smaller than most cookies.

So how can consumers get their hands on the “Very Good” dough? Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods are available in their stores; Omaha Steaks and Fat Boy are sold online or over the phone (www.omahasteaks.com or 800-960-8400; www.fatboycookiecompany.com or 888-328-2690). David’s, rated “Good” can be purchased at www.davidscookies.com or 800-217-2938, and Pillsbury and Nestle, also rated “Good,” can be purchased at most supermarkets.