I am not very happy about Trader Joe’s Gluten Free Chocolate Chunk Cookie Dough. Let me tell you why…
I was very sad when Trader Joe’s stopped selling the Chunky Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough earlier this year (2023). I went in to get it one day and it was missing from the shelf above the eggs section where they had been selling it for well over 10 years. I went up to the manager’s station and asked about where the cookie dough was and he said it was discontinued.
I was sad. Sure I could go to Safeway and probably buy something very similar but it wouldn’t be the same because Trader Joe’s uses whole ingredients, not corn syrup, and used real dark chocolate chunks. It was like a pet had died. The comments about removing the old cookie dough were pretty strong on Facebook and Reddit. But Trader Joe’s is well known for their gluten free products
So, wouldn’t you know a few weeks later this new Trader Joe’s Gluten Free Chocolate Chunk Cookie Dough shows up in the same exact spot as my favorite (with gluten) cookie dough in new bright packaging.
I say to myself, OK, I’ll give it a shot. Gluten Free cookies have come a long way in the past few years. How bad could Trader Joe’s Super Chocolatey Gluten Free Chocolate Chunk Cookie dough be?
It’s clear that they intended to replace the old regular chocolate chip cookies with this one. They are basically the same product but without the gluten. Making them is the same process. Warm up the oven. Put the cookies on a sheet pan and bake. Voila! perfect cookies!
So, just like the old version of the cookie dough, you get twelve blobs of cookie dough that are ready to bake. This product is located in the egg section so they are refrigerated and have a limited shelf life. The price is $4.99 for a dozen fresh cookies.
Baking them is a pretty easy affair. Warm up the oven. Line a baking sheet with some parchment paper. Put the balls of dough on the paper, but no closer than three inches (according to the diagram). Because the dough is cold, it is easy to just pick up and plop down the dough balls with your fingers without a lot of mess.
Pop them in the oven as soon as you are done and bake for 15 or so minutes. I saw the edges turning brown right around then so I pulled them out and let them sit on the hot baking sheet for 10 minutes like they said in the instructions. Not sure if this is because they are gluten free.
Then after 10 minutes, I moved them to a cooling rack for about five more minutes until I sampled them.
The shape of the cookie is a little different. Mine didn’t flatten out as much as the picture showed. They were a little more domed, but that is just aesthetics.
You can clearly see the big chunks of semi-sweet chocolate in the cookies so that is a major positive. A lot of chocolate can overcome shortcomings in other areas.
They smelled absolutely wonderful while they were baking and after pulling them out of oven and letting them cool
Getting gluten free chocolate chip cookies just right can be harder than regular cookies with flour. Coming up with your own gluten free chocolate chip cookie recipe can be tough. There is no coconut flour or regular cane sugar just brown sugar and invert sugar for sweetness.
I’ve had my fair share of gluten free cookies and many times they are grainy or have some weird taste. These did not have any off flavors that I could tell, but their texture was more cake like and less cookie than I expected. They were very soft and stayed that way after a day or two. I like a little “chew” to my cookies and while these didn’t crumble apart, they were very soft.
The first thing you taste is chocolate so that is always a good thing! Lots of gooey chocolate bits (they were still warm) and like I said, lots of chocolate can really make things taste great. In fact, the first ingredient on this list is semi-sweet chocolate. Which I appreciate. These cookies are not cloyingly sweet like so many cookies can be.
Reading through the ingredients, you realize that the binder holding them together is potato starch.
Final Thoughts
Having said all that. I am saddened by the loss of the Chocolate Chunk cookie dough (with gluten) but this is how Trader Joe’s rolls. One day it’s there and the next it’s gone and no explanation. While I like Trader Joe’s Super Chocolately Gluten Free Chocolate Chunk Cookie Dough, it is not nearly as good as its predecessor. I am a little miffed at TJ’s for seemingly trying to replace so many products with gluten free options. While some are good not every one is and it seems like the trend has gone a little overboard.
One cookie is 170 calories and 25% sugar. Which is about the same as the old cookies.
On their own, I will rate these cookies 7 out of 10 Bells. They are good but the old ones were like 9 out of 10 Bells. The new ones are sad replacement.
Ingredients
SEMISWEET CHOCOLATE (SUGAR, UNSWEETENED CHOCOLATE, COCOA BUTTER, SOY LECITHIN [EMULSIFIER]), PALM OIL, BROWN SUGAR, POTATO STARCH, SUGAR, TAPIOCA STARCH, WATER, RICE FLOUR, INVERT SUGAR SYRUP, CONTAINS 2% OR LESS OF EGG, NATURAL FLAVOR, SEA SALT, BAKING SODA, GUAR GUM, XANTHAN GUM.
- CONTAINS EGG, SOY.
