Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookies: Peanut Free & All Ingredients Processed in Peanut Free Facilities

Chocolate Chip Cookies are one of my favorite cookies to make. When I was a little girl, I used to love baking these cookies with my Mom and still make them as often as I can. I have been told many times that my chocolate chips cookies are delicious, and have been asked, ‘what do you do to make these cookies taste so great, what is your secret?’. Well, I use superior ingredients that contain no preservatives, corn syrup or ‘bad’ ingredients, and I add more vanilla extract than most. My chocolate chip cookies are gooey, sweet, but not too sweet, and very comforting. When I eat these cookies I am transported back to childhood and the wonderful time I would have making these with my Mom, and sneaking bites of cookie dough and chocolate chips when she was not looking.

All the ingredients in my recipe are peanut free and are processed in peanut free facilities so there is no risk of cross contamination. Next to each ingredient in my recipe is the brand that I use. Happy Baking 😊

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Makes approximately 24 cookies.

Cookie Ingredients:

2 ¼ Cups Unbleached Organic All-Purpose Flour-King Arthur Flour

1 Teaspoon Baking Soda- Bob’s Red Mill

½ Teaspoon Fine Crystals Sea Salt

1 Cup (2 Sticks) Organic Unsalted Butter- Straus Family Creamery

¾ Cup Organic Cane Sugar- Wholesome

¾ Cup Organic Brown Sugar- Wholesome

2 Eggs- I buy my eggs at my farmers mark so I can make sure that the chickens are fed allergen free feed, are free range etc.

2 Teaspoons Organic Vanilla Extract- Spicely

1 Bag of Chocolate Chips-Enjoy Life, or any on my No Peanut Foods lists.

Directions for Dough:

1. In a stand mixer combine the eggs and vanilla extract (make sure the eggs are at room temperature).

2. Add the butter (make sure the butter is room temperature or it will not mix in thoroughly), mix until all combined, about 1 minute.

2.Add both sugars and mix until fluffy, and all combined, about 1 minute.

3. In a separate bowl mix all the remaining dry ingredients.

4. Slowly combine the dry ingredients with the wet, stopping the mixer to scrape down the edges of the bowl a couple times, mix until combined.

5. Add the bag of chocolate chips and mix only once, so that the chips do not break down. You can also mix the chocolate chips in by hand with a spatula.

Directions for Baking:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

2. Spoon, or ice cream scoop, the dough onto a greased/buttered cookie sheet making sure to leave some space between each cookie because these do spread out while they are baking.

3. Bake the cookies at 375 degrees for 9-11 minutes.

I hope you enjoy my recipe!

As with most baked goods these cookies will be tasty for around 3-4 days when stored in a air tight container.

On my lists of foods and products that are both peanut free, and processed in peanut free facilities you'll see all the brands I choose to support because they offer transparency with their facilities and ingredients. There are several brands of baking chocolate that I like to use and I honestly usually buy whichever is on sale at my local market. You can view my lists by clicking here, or on the No Peanut Foods site.

#Peanutfreekitchen #peanutfree #nopeanutfoods #chocolatechip #peanutfreecookie #peanutfreekitchen #peanutfreefacility #chocolate #cookie #chocolatechipcookie #enjoylifefoods #strausfamilydairy #spicely #wholesomesugar #bobsredmill #kingarthurflour #homecook #homebaker #homemadecookies

Back to Nature Products Made in a Facility with Peanuts

I have been struggling to find foods that are both #peanutfree & processed in a peanut free facility. So I’ve created a website where you can see my lists for No Peanut foods, foods that are safe for those of us with a peanut allergy & Do Not Eat, a list of foods to avoid due to the risk of cross contamination from other foods with peanuts made in the same facility.

I began creating my lists by looking at the food brands I had in my own pantry. I had a unopened box of Back to Nature's Harvest Whole Wheat Crackers. I looked on the box of crackers, and on the Back to Nature website, to see if I could find out if the facility that the crackers are made in is peanut free. The Back to Nature website states that "any items that are labeled Peanut Free do not contain peanuts and are made in a peanut free facility" I visited my local Venice Whole Foods location and checked the Back to Nature products, and I could not find any with the "Peanut Free" label. I reached out to Back to Nature and they responded to my email saying that they needed a "UPC code and photos of the top, bottom, front and back of the package" to answer my question. They did not tell me which of their products, if any, are made in a peanut free facility. I replied to their email, sending them the requested photos of the box of Harvest Wheat Crackers, since this was the only product in my pantry and thus the only box of Back to Nature food that I could photograph. I asked them, 'are the Harvest Wheat Crackers processed in a facility with peanuts? Do you manufacture any products in a peanut free facility? If so what Back to Nature products are processed in a peanut free facility.' I was very disappointed with their response. Here is their response:

Dear Elizabeth,

Thank you for taking the time to contact us at B&G Foods.

As per your inquiry, please know that the Back to Nature Harvest Whole Wheat Crackers are made in a facility that does produce products that may contain peanuts and tree nuts. To avoid cross contamination, we employ the use of Good Manufacturing Practices which require if any of the top 8 allergens (Dairy, Eggs, Fish, Shellfish, Tree nuts, Peanuts, Soy or Wheat) is run on a line, the line must be cleaned and evaluated prior to running a product that does not contain the allergen. Since ingredients and facilities may change from time to time, always check the label on a specific product for current ingredient and allergen information.

Thank you again for reaching out and for being a loyal consumer.

Sincerely,

Alex Corporate Consumer Affairs B&G Foods, Inc.

The email let's me know that those crackers are not safe for me to eat, and are made in a facility with peanuts. But, they still did not answer if they manufacture any foods in a peanut free facility. It is disappointing that they could not just tell me weather or not any of their products are produced in a peanut free facility. Back to Nature foods are on my Do Not Eat-Peanuts in Facility list because they failed to answer my question.

What I am finding, as I reach out to more and more companies, is that many larger brands do not understand the seriousness of food allergies, or choice to ignore it. They need to leave the choice of risking eating something processed in a facility with peanuts to up to the consumer. They need to always state any cross contamination risk on the package with a 'may contain' list. Informing me that the risk cross contact is low, as Back to Nature and many other brands have, is condescending, and incredibly unhelpful. I do not want even the smallest possibility of going into anaphylactic shock by cross contact. Until the FDA changes the food labeling law when it comes to allergens I choose to not consuming anything where there is any chance, however remote, of any cross contact with peanuts.

#peanutallergy #nopeanutfoods #peanutfreefacility #foodallergy #fdamaycontain #maycontainlist #peanutinfacility #peanutcrosscontamination #backtonature #peanutcrosscontact #backtonaturecrackers #foodcrosscontact #wheatcrackers

Be Careful, there might be Peanuts in your Olive Oil

I started No Peanut Foods because I found out that the olive oil I was using, Montebello Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil, was made in a facility with peanuts & “not safe for consumption for anyone with a peanut allergy”. This information is not on the product label or on the company’s website. I found out when I reached out to them directly. This is scary and frustrating.

I started looking into which olive oils are made in a peanut free facility and I found a couple, you can read a separate blog post about that here and these brands are listed on the No Peanut Foods website No Peanuts List.

But, I would like multiple options of safe olive oils so I am still emailing companies. Today I received a response from Colavita Foods. It’s frustrating to receive responses like this. Here is there email to me:

Dear Elizabeth,

Thank you for your inquiry.

The raw material oils that Colavita utilizes to produce its olive oil products are sourced from facilities that may also process other food oils. Colavita requires documented authentication of each raw material purchase.

Colavita does not produce, store or distribute nut-based oil products. Colavita production processes are in fact formulated to minimize food safety risks. It needs to be noted however that all of our products are agricultural at their core and as such are subject to a variety of growing conditions.

As for our Colavita vinegars, there is no presence of peanuts in the facility.

We urge consumers who are affected with food-related allergies to exercise the same prudence with Colavita products as they do with other naturally grown products. We also ask consumers to consult with their medical professionals on specific inquiries relating to the advisability of utilizing such products in their diets.

Please contact us if there are any further questions.

Sincerely,

Marisa De Sapio

Quality Assurance

Colavita USA

1 Runyons Lane

Edison, NJ 08817

Phone: 732.404.8300 Ext. 152

Fax: 732.287.9402

They clearly state that their vinegar is safe to eat but are very vague about their olive oil. It is a yes or no question, and not difficult to answer! 😣Because the Colavita Vinegar is safe from any peanut cross contamination I have added Colavita to my Some Products OK list.

#peanutfree #peanutallergy #oliveoil #nopeanutfoods #peanutfreeoliveoil #oliveoilnotjustoliveoil #peanutfreefacility #colavitaoliveoil #peanutinoiliveoil #colavitafoods #montabellooliveoil #crosscontactoliveoil #peanutcrosscontact #peanutcrosscontamination

#foodallergy #foodallergyawareness #oliveoilcrosscontact #oliveilcrosscontamination