Frozen cookie dough question (fundraiser)

[Silent1CB]

DH ordered some cookie dough at work from someone doing fundraiser thing for their kids.

It was a large tub of Otis Spunkmeyer triple chocolate cookie dough.

When he received it & brought it home, I noticed the tub says "Keep Frozen". He said when he received it in the morning at work, it wasn't frozen, and it sure wasn't by the time he got home with it at the end of the day.

I threw it in the freezer, but now I'm wondering, is it safe to use? A frozen food fundraiser sounds like a difficult thing to orchestrate.

Has anyone ever done frozen food fundraisers? Is this how food is delivered? Not frozen?

Unfortunately, he doesn't remember what the fund raiser was for.

[JerseyJanice]

It should have been kept in the freezer. It'll be alright after one thaw-out, but keep it frozen now until you're going to use it.

[Silent1CB]

Thanks. Its frozen & I'll just keep it that way. I didn't want to bake & poison any guests.

I just found a video that explains how Otis Spunkmeyer delivers frozen products to the schools, and how schools should distribute same day to kids. It shows parents walking out with cases of frozen product. But stops there.

I know if that was me, I would NOT have room at home to keep that frozen until I delivered it to family & friends HOPEFULLY next day.



http://www.spunkmeyer.com/Our-Custom...elivery-Video/

[laurie31]

DD's school does frozen cookie dough in the spring.

The rule is - if you/your child SELLS the cookie dough, YOU (the parent) are responsible for picking it up and delivering it in a frozen state.

It's clearly noted what day and time the dough is going to be delivered to the school. It is delivered frozen. If you order, you're supposed to pick in up within a 1-2 hour window, as the school cannot store it in its freezer very long (they need the space for lunch foods).

I have sold the dough, and while it's a good fundraiser (people like the dough, it's handly to keep around), it's a pain to pick it up at such a specific time, plus deliver it frozen.

I did sell to co-workers last year, and I won't do it again. (don't flame me for selling at work - I only offer it to a select group and I buy the stuff their kids sell, so it evens out). Anyway, we have a full fridge (with a freezer) in our break room, so people were able to keep it there. It was a PITA for me to bring several tubs of it to work, though. I brought it in a cooler, then transferred it to our freezer. The people that bought lived close enough to get it home before it thawed, but that meant they couldn't stop and do errands on the way home that day.

I've also bought frozen dough from friends' kids, (they attend a different school) and they delivered it to my house after they picked it up from their school.

I agree that it's probably okay to use your dough, but don't let it thaw again until you're ready to cook them. Actually, ours don't have to be thawed first, just take them from the freezer and pop them in the oven.

Shame on your DH's coworker for not keeping it frozen though.

ETA - we have a deep freeze (a free-standing freezer) so I did have the space to store the dough until I delivered it. I presume the parent that brought it to me on her way home from picking it up did not have the space to store it, though. She was very anxious to bring it to me - lol.

[Silent1CB]

OK, another question since I haven't even opened it yet & I've never had frozen cookie dough.

Can I just take it straight from freeze & TRY to scoop out what I want to use? Are you saying I need to thaw it to use it & when I thaw it, I'm going to need to use it all? Its a big tub. Cookies anyone?

ETA: I decided to break the seal & open the tub. Its frozen scoops, so I guess as long as I can pry off what I want to use, no need for me to thaw the tub first. Thanks everyone.

Just told all this to DH & he thinks frozen food fundraisers are a dumb idea. LOL He had no idea it was even frozen food when he bought, received & not until I told him it said it on the package. Men.

[S. C.]

I won't buy it again. While the cookies are yummy I don't trust how people handle the dough. Grandsons school (years ago) had them just piled in the gym with the hot sun pouring thru the windows on top of the boxes.

I ordered 2 tubs from a co-worker 3 years ago. He brought them in barely chilled to the touch, when I asked did he keep them cold he said yes they were still cold. We did have big fridges (no freezers) at work I put my two tubs in the fridge. Hours later before the end of the shift he still had a few tubs sitting on a table
(he never put them in the fridge) and was asking people did they want to buy the extras. I heard him tell others who were asking that the dough was cold while taking the money.

Lesson learned for me. I did take mine home and put them in the freezer but could never bring myself to bake them. I ended up tossing them out and chalking it up to I was helping his daughters school.

Forgot to mention ... his daughter had hand written thank you notes with each order. Nice touch....but....he told me his wife had picked up the order the day before and DD had spent the evening before making out the thank you notes. Where did he keep 30 - 40 tubs of cookie dough that evening, overnight, and the next day until he got to work at 4pm. No wonder they were barely chilled when he handed them to me at 4:15pm. And we didn't get off of work until 2am.

[laurie31]

The tub should contain a bunch of preportioned cookies. You just take out however many you want to bake.

If they are stuck together, which they might be considering they got thawed, just pop them apart with a butter knife, or even a spoon. Just something to get them loose with.

[Imzadi]

Originally Posted by Silent1CB

He said when he received it in the morning at work, it wasn't frozen, and it sure wasn't by the time he got home with it at the end of the day.

What do you mean? Was it sitting on a desk for 8 hours? Or did he put it in the fridge? If it has egg in it, I wouldn't trust it if it has been sitting around. It could have grown salmonella all that time. One of the reasons that food is NOT supposed to be refrozen after it thaws is the possible growth of bacteria once it starts thawing.

Originally Posted by S. C.

I won't buy it again. While the cookies are yummy I don't trust how people handle the dough. Grandsons school (years ago) had them just piled in the gym with the hot sun pouring thru the windows on top of the boxes.

I ordered 2 tubs from a co-worker 3 years ago. He brought them in barely chilled to the touch, when I asked did he keep them cold he said yes they were still cold. We did have big fridges (no freezers) at work I put my two tubs in the fridge. Hours later before the end of the shift he still had a few tubs sitting on a table
(he never put them in the fridge)

Thiis is why I don't buy from bake sales anymore. Having worked with professional caterers, I have seen some of the Health dept. rules & regulations they have to go through for cleanliness, proper food preparation, keeping the foods at the proper temperature at an off-site environment. Some of them barely adhere to those rules.

Now way, would I trust an unregulated, home cook, who I don't personally know, and can trust they know how to properly store, prepare and cook foods.

[C.Ann]

After several bouts of food poisoning, I can tell you right now that I would not purchase an item that was supposed to be kept frozen and wasn't - nor would I use it..

I think it's a very bad idea for a fund raiser and would never purchase such an item..

[laurie31]

Hmmmm...

On the one hand, thinking about the dough just sitting out all day, unrefrigerated, is pretty gross. However, cooking the dough should have destroyed any bacteria that may have grown. It's also possible that the "egg" in this mass-produced dough was really egg powder or something.

I am very paranoid about eating raw egg (although I will eat raw cookie dough made with Egg Beaters, as it is pasteurized) but I would eat the OP's cookies. Fully baked, that is.

[JerseyJanice]

I have successfully avoided most fundraising throughout DS's school years--until now. I've become a band parent.

We had 3 big fundraisers this year. Yankee Candles, frozen pies, and a wreath/grave blanket sale. By far, the pies are the biggest nuisance. I have a spare freezer at home. If I didn't, I probably wouldn't sell any.

[IDoDis]

I've organized fundraisers for my DD's figure skating club where we sell Butter Braids that have to be kept frozen. On delivery day, I have them dropped off and sorted into boxes for each club member to pick up. I have a 2 hour time frame for people to come get them. They stay frozen because each person's braids are packed together in small cardboard boxes. Then I have a designated person with an extra freezer pick up and store the ones that didn't get picked up. This last fundraiser in October I had 100% pick-up. The members know they are responsible for keeping the braids frozen until they distribute them. The Butterbraids are made of bread dough with various fillings inside (I just baked a cinnamon one this evening) that have to be left out to thaw and rise before baking, so these would definitely not be able to be refrozen once they were thawed.

One of the reasons we haven't done cookie dough is because the size of the tubs would make it difficult to store and keep frozen. I don't know if your dough is safe to eat, given that it sat out all day.

[Just Jan]

I used to work in an Otis Spunkmeyer Sales Center (not the corporate offices).
The cookie dough is stored in deep freezers and I can assure you the cookie dough nuggets (pucks) are rock hard!
The fundraiser cookie dough is delivered in freezer vans at a time that has been predetermined by the fundraising Rep and whomever (parent,organization) is running the fund raiser. Though the dough stays frozen for a long time, I wouldn't wait all day to have parents pick up. It is usually picked up within a couple of hour of delivery. Your husband's co-worker screwed up.
Is he able to contact the fundraising rep to have this corrected? Sometimes something can be done to replace product. Is the sales center near you?

Jan

[Imzadi]

Originally Posted by laurie31

Hmmmm...

On the one hand, thinking about the dough just sitting out all day, unrefrigerated, is pretty gross. However, cooking the dough should have destroyed any bacteria that may have grown. It's also possible that the "egg" in this mass-produced dough was really egg powder or something.

I am very paranoid about eating raw egg (although I will eat raw cookie dough made with Egg Beaters, as it is pasteurized) but I would eat the OP's cookies. Fully baked, that is.

A cookie might not be baked long enough to kill the bacteria. Especially if you want to keep cookies on the soft, chewy side. The directions are usually to under-bake them, so they are chewy. Crispy cookies should be baked for the full time recommended (and watched carefully.)

I *think* in order to kill a bacteria, such as salmonella, you have to keep the food at a constant high temperature for about 20 minutes. Cookies, from start to finish, don't take that long to bake.

Although, perhaps a company like Otis Spunkmeyer would be using an egg substitute like Egg Beaters, as they know there may be chances, like this one, where the dough wasn't properly stored & delivered before finally getting baked.

The cookies in the really great Cookies from Cakes Mix thread on the Cooking Board all work because cake mixes have been throroughly tested in the lab kitchens under a large variety of bad cooking conditions, faulty ovens, bad bakers, so that even a first time baker, such as a small child, will have a cake that turns out correctly, instead of one that is flat as a pancake, tough or hockey puck-like, etc. because they overmixed it, or whatever.

Perhaps, Otis Spunkmeyer prepared their doughs for less than optimal handling conditions.

[Silent1CB]

Ok, you've all scared me sufficiently that I won't be using the dough. We really don't need the cookies anyway.

We don't have kids. We don't get contacted often to buy from fundraisers and this was both of ours first experience in ever seeing a frozen product done as a fundraiser. DH had NO idea it was even supposed to be kept cold.

Upon further questioning, I've learned he met her in the parking lot in the morning & she had several tubs in her trunk. He took his & put it in his car....for the day.

Neither of us remember what the temp was like that day. It could be anywhere from 45 to 70 degrees. We've had whacky weather. For that reason, nope, won't be eating it.

Chalk it up to lesson learned for all of us. I really can't blame him. He's a guy. He was just trying to help out the fund raiser. It probably all works out fine when you don't take tubs to work though.

Funny thing, I really don't like the taste of store bought refrigerated cookie doughs. I don't buy them & don't eat them when nieces & nephews bake them & bring them.