'Do not consume raw cookie dough'? Please.

Two months after reports of E. coli contamination prompted its removal from supermarket shelves, Nestle Toll House refrigerated cookie dough is returning to a store near you. 
 
Here's the PR Newswire release.

It states: "To make it easy for both retail partners and consumers to identify the new batch of cookie dough, a blue "New Batch" label will appear on all new production cookie dough items. NESTLE TOLL HOUSE shipping cases also are marked in blue (rather than the previous black) to denote new production and will contain the statement: "Do not consume raw cookie dough." The adoption of this distinct labeling is the result of helpful discussions between Food and Drug Administration officials and Nestle, following reports of E. coli O157:H7 illnesses that appeared to be related to the consumption of raw cookie dough."

If you're not distracted by the delightfully tongue-in-cheek (as I read it) word "helpful," you might well wonder about the point of buying cookie dough if you can't eat it raw.  

-- Tami Dennis

Photo: Sure, cookie dough is just fine baked. But to appreciate the nuances of the ingredients, one must also sample the raw version.

Credit: File

Comments

[mUglles]

Hmmm, a good case for making your own cookies I think.

[David]

Tami -

You are a fool. Do you eat raw eggs? raw ground beef? unpasteurized milk?
Consuming processed foods raw is the equivalent of playing Russian roulette. No system of food safety is fool proof.

[Andrew]

David-

You are confusing several different foods.
Eating raw eggs, for the most part, is fine. Eggs are now pasteurized and thus relatively safe to eat raw.
Ground beef, yes, you should not eat raw.
Most good cuts of steak however, can be eating very rare as bacteria only grows on the surface.