The Cookie Dough Lover’s Cookbook

It is always fun to sneak a little taste of homemade cookie dough, whether you’re a little kid or a big kid (adult), even though eating raw cookie dough isn’t necessarily the best idea because of the raw eggs it contains. There is something about the flavor of cookie dough that draws us in time and again. Ben & Jerry’s capitalized on our love of cookie dough by turning it into ice cream, and The Cookie Dough Lover’s Cookbook uses it in a whole host of different recipes and takes cookie dough a few steps further than just putting it into a batch of ice cream. Every recipe in this book – from cakes to candies – features cookie dough as a flavor and ingredient in its own right.

The book starts off with an eggless chocolate chip cookie dough recipe. This is the basis for all of the other cookie doughs in the book, and it is a dough that you can feel comfortable indulging in because it contains no raw eggs. You will be amazed at the variety of recipes that the dough gets incorporated into here. It is used as a filling for cupcakes, a center for candies, a layer in cakes and even as a surprise base at the bottom of a creme brulee. The recipes are very creative – and they’re also easy to follow along with, with clear directions. There are many beautiful pictures throughout the book that make the recipes look as fun as they sound, and are a great source of inspiration as you read through. In addition to the basic recipes, you’ll also find lots of tips for perfecting the techniques used in the recipes and suggestions for variations on them.

The only thing that a chocolate chip cookie fan might find a bit unusual about this book is that these egg-free cookie doughs are not meant to be baked. They are designed to be at their peak when uncooked. In addition to excluding eggs, they also do not use any leavening, so the baked dough would not have the texture of a regular cookie. Fortunately for those looking to pair the raw dough with a real cookie, there are a few recipes in the book that have that concept (raw dough + baked cookie) covered. The book is definitely indulgent and, while these recipes might be a little over-the-top for everyday baking (since you can get tired of the dough if you eat too much), the idea is well worth a try for anyone who has every snuck in a second bite of cookie dough when mixing up a batch of chocolate chip cookies.