If you want to make edible cookie dough or any other no-bake treat that has flour in the recipe, you MUST use heat-treated flour. This is to ensure that any bacteria living in the flour (which would ordinarily be killed when used in a baked recipe) is destroyed.
Eating raw flour that has not been heat-treated has the potential to make you sick. So please don’t do it. Ever. Instead, read my guide on how to easily heat-treat flour at home and make it safe to eat in no-bake recipes.
WHAT IS HEAT-TREATED FLOUR?
Heat-treated flour is simply raw flour that has been heated to a temperature high enough to kill off any harmful bacteria that may be lurking in it.
The Food Standards Agency advises that raw flour is heated to a temperature of 70℃ for a minimum of two minutes.
I prefer to heat it to a minimum temperature of 75℃ to err on the side of caution and allow for slight thermometer inaccuracies.
WHY DO YOU NEED TO HEAT-TREAT FLOUR?
We don’t usually think about flour as a raw ingredient that may potentially be unsafe to eat as we almost always cook or bake with it.
But if we want to make raw, edible cookie dough or no-bake treats and desserts that contain flour, we are potentially going to consume raw flour. So why does that matter?
Flour is typically produced from grains. Grains are grown outdoors in an environment where bacteria are prevalent. The harvesting and milling processes involved in producing flour do not destroy these bacteria.
Potential nasty pathogens (bacteria) such as salmonella and E.coli can lurk in raw flour.
In general, bacteria live and breed in temperature conditions ranging from 5-63℃. Heating to a minimum sustained temperature of 70℃ for two minutes will kill off any bacteria. So unless we are using flour in a recipe that requires cooking and baking, those potential pathogens will still be lurking in our flour waiting to make us sick if we digest them.
This is why we must subject raw flour to a heat-treating process if we are going to use it in edible cookie dough or other no-bake recipes.
HOW TO HEAT-TREAT FLOUR?
Heat-treating flour is easy but it does require a food thermometer / temperature probe. It can be done in the oven, on the stovetop or in the microwave.
It is best to heat-treat your flour in small batches, making just a little more than the quantity required in the recipe you will be using it in. (For example, if a recipe calls for 200g heat-treated flour, I will make up 210g).
IN THE OVEN
Heat your oven to 180°C/ 160°C fan. Spread the flour out across an appropriately-sized baking tray with sides. Bake in the oven for five minutes.
Remove, stir thoroughly and return to the oven for another five minutes. Stir again then check the temperature of the flour in several places across the tray. If every reading is 75°C or more, your flour is safe and ready to use in your no-bake recipe. If not, return to the oven and repeat the stir and temperature check process until your flour has reached the correct temperature.
ON THE STOVETOP
Weigh your flour into a heavy-bottomed pan and begin to heat on a low-medium setting. Keep stirring the flour as it heats.
Heat for around three minutes then remove the pan from the heat and check the temperature of the flour in several places in the pan. If every reading is 75°C or more, your flour is safe and ready to use in your no-bake recipe. If not, return the pan to the heat and continue to heat, stir and temperature check until your flour has reached the correct temperature.
IN THE MICROWAVE
Weigh your flour into a microwave-safe container and heat on full power for 30 seconds. Stir thoroughly and return to the microwave for a further 15 seconds.
Stir the flour then check its temperature in several places. If every reading is 75°C or more, your flour is safe and ready to use in your no-bake recipe. If not, return the container to the microwave and continue to heat, stir and temperature check in 15-second bursts until your flour has reached the correct temperature.
Whichever method you use, allow the flour to cool before using in your recipe.
