Just in time for the holidays: The U.S. Department of Agriculture sent out a warning that foods containing raw or partially cooked eggs should not be consumed — and that includes cookie dough.
In an email, the USDA said to “avoid raw or partially cooked eggs or foods containing raw eggs, such as cookie dough,” The Blaze reported.
The caveat is that undercooked or raw edges can give consumers salmonella or other diseases. But some say the warning isn’t necessary.
“[It’s] actually really hard to get salmonella from eggs,” reported FoodBeast.com. For instance, bakers regularly sample their precooked wares, including cookie batter, and rarely, if ever, get sick, the site said.
In 2013, however, a mother in Las Vegas died from E. coli from raw cookie dough, The Blaze reported.
And EatRight.org, an organization of food and nutrition professionals, agreed with the USDA’s warning.
“Sampling the batter while baking treats may seem like as much of a tradition as singing carols or decorating the house, but eating batter or cookie dough that contains raw eggs can lead to salmonella poisoning,” the group cautions on its website. “It’s especially important to teach children to not eat cookie dough.”
The EatRight.org group suggests a pre-bake talk with children that included discussion of the “Cookie Rookie Pledge … to help them understand what they can do to stay healthy and happy and enjoy their cookies too.”
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
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