Using my perfected master cookie dough formula, build your own edible cookie dough with a variety of mix-ins like chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, cookies, candies, and ganache. Whether simple or over-the-top, your cookie dough will take you back to a childhood of swiping dough straight out of the mixing bowl.

Edible cookie dough recipes have been trending over the last couple years and who can question it? Buttery, brown sugary swirls of dough? Sometimes vanilla. Sometimes chocolate. And sometimes peanut butter just because.
Most of my edible cookie dough recipes begin with the same basic formula. And now it’s your turn to become the cookie dough imagineer! Use my super (not) secret formula to make any cookie dough flavor you can think of!
Cookie Dough Formula = Edible Cookie Dough Base + Mix-ins + Swirled Add-ins
Let’s get started!
1. The Flavor Inspiration
Start by hypothesizing a flavor or a theme that you want to embody in cookie dough form. For inspiration, consider your favorite . . .
- Doughnut
- Cereal
- Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream Flavor
- Dessert
- Sweet Breakfast
- Baked Good
- Candy Bar
Now, do you have your flavor inspiration? As we step through each of the formula elements, keep in mind your flavor to help inform each choice. And if you want to see an example of how this is done, read through to the bottom, where I use a Cinnabon Caramel Pecanbon as an exemplary test case.
2. The Cookie Dough Base
Think of all the classic cookies we make all the time and each of these make up a cookie dough “base.” For example:
- Brown Sugar Cookie Dough (e.g., traditional chocolate chip cookie, banana, gingersnap)
- Sugar Cookie Dough (e.g., sugar cookies, snickerdoodles, lemon cookies)
- Chocolate Cookie Dough (e.g., brownies, double chocolate cookies, red velvet)
- Peanut Butter Cookie Dough (i.e., more of a spin on brown sugar cookie dough, but i’ve taken the guess work out of the recipe)
The cookie dough base will give you your starting recipe to tweak and play with. When choosing a base, consider the ultimate flavor you are trying to invoke. Each of these cookie dough bases lends itself well to particular flavors, as discussed below.
A. Brown Sugar Cookie Dough Base

Flavors that pair well with brown sugar cookie dough include:
- “Caramel-y” Liquid Sugars: caramel sauce, molasses, maple syrup
- Fruits/Veg: banana, apples, peaches, pumpkin
- Nuts: pecans, walnuts, peanuts
- “Warm” Spices – cinnamon, ginger, cloves, pumpkin pie spice, cayenne, ancho chile, etc.
- All Chocolate: milk, dark, white
When you want to add a liquid sugar flavor, you have two options. (1) Swirl the flavor into the finished cookie dough (e.g., caramel) as a final “add-in” (discussed more below); or (2) Replace some of the sugar and liquid (milk) in the base cookie dough recipe to infuse the dough with flavor.
If you want to add the liquid sugar straight to the dough, then replace up to 1/4 cup of the brown sugar with the liquid sugar in a 1:1 ratio. Then, because your dough will be more wet, omit the milk from the recipe. So in the recipe for edible brown sugar cookie dough below, you could replace up to 1/4 cup of the brown sugar with up to 1/4 cup of maple syrup or molasses and then omit the milk from the dough.
When adding fruits or vegetables, you can mash the fruit or vegetable and replace up to 1/2 the butter in a 1:1 ratio. So in the recipe for edible brown sugar cookie dough below, you could replace 1/4 cup of the butter with 1/4 cup of mashed banana, applesauce, pumpkin puree, etc. If the mashed fruit is particularly liquidy (e.g., your banana was brown or you used applesauce), then you can also omit the milk from the dough to compensate.
Nuts and spices are easy! These can be stirred into the dough without adjusting the recipe. (See “mix-ins” below.) For spices, I would start adding 1/4 teaspoon at a time until you achieve the strength of taste you want.
mikaela | wyldflour
1 Pint
Serves 4
An edible brown sugar cookie dough base!
30 minPrep Time
30 minTotal Time
5 based on 1 review(s)
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (or vegan butter), at room temperature
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1/4 cup white granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons milk (almond, soy, skim, or whole)
- 1 teaspoon honey (vegan: maple syrup)
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose heat-treated flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 3/4 - 1 cup mix-ins
Instructions
- Let your butter come to room temperature. (Important: Do not melt your butter. This will result in a greasy cookie dough.)
- Cream the butter, brown sugar, and sugar together in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Add milk, honey, and vanilla extract and mix until just incorporated. Mix in flour, salt, and baking soda. (If using home heat-treated flour, make sure it is 100% cool or else it may affect the texture.) Stir in the mix-ins by hand and serve!
- Store leftover cookie dough in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to two weeks and in the freezer for up to three months.
- Want cookies? Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and bake small 2-tablespoon sized scoops of dough at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 7-10 minutes. Let the cookies cool and set on the pan.
Notes
DISCLAIMER: The FDA has released information regarding the dangers of raw flour. Please make sure you are using heat-treated flour so that you can enjoy cookie dough worry-free!
B. Sugar Cookie Dough Base

Flavors that pair well with sugar cookie dough include:
- Fruits: berries, citruses – lemon, lime, orange
- Nuts: macadamia, almonds, pine nuts
- “Warm” Spices – cinnamon, ginger, cloves, pumpkin pie spice, etc.
- Chocolate: milk, dark
Anything that has more of a buttery shortbread finish, as opposed to a carmel-y finish will likely pair better with a sugar cookie dough than a brown sugar cookie dough!
When infusing the dough with citrus, use 1/2-1 tablespoon of zest, creamed in with the sugar.
When infusing the dough with berries, use freeze-dried berries that have been blitzed into a powder using a food processor. Add 2-4 tablespoons of the powdered berries and reduce the flour by the same amount.
Nuts and spices can simply be stirred into the dough! Add spices to the dough about a 1/4 teaspoon at a time until you get the right flavor.
Sugar Cookie Dough Base Recipe
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2/3 cup white granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose heat-treated flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon zest (optional)
- 1/2 – 3/4 cup mix-ins
- Allow the butter to come to room temperature. (Do not melt the butter or you will get a greasy cookie dough.)
- Cream together butter, sugar, and zest (if using) in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Beat in vanilla. Mix in flour, baking powder, and salt. (If using home heat-treated flour, make sure it is 100% cool or else it will make the texture crumbly.) Stir in any mix-ins and serve!
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week or freezer for up to three months.
- For Baking: If you wish to bake up the remaining cookie dough, preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and bake 2 tablespoon-sized balls of cookie dough for 9-10 minutes.
C. Chocolate Cookie Dough Base

Flavors that pair well with chocolate cookie dough include:
- Fruits: berries, orange citrus
- Nuts: macadamia, almonds, peanuts, walnuts
- “Warm” Spices: cinnamon, ginger, cloves, ancho chile, cayenne, etc.
- All Chocolate: milk, dark, white
- Cookies
- Candy Bars
- Coffee, red wine
When infusing the dough with citrus, use 1/2-1 tablespoon of zest, creamed in with the sugars.
When infusing the dough with berries, use freeze-dried berries that have been blitzed into a powder using a food processor. Add 2-4 tablespoons of the powdered berries and reduce the flour by the same amount.
Nuts and spices can simply be stirred into the dough!
Chocolate, cookies, and candy bars can be incorporated into the dough in a variety of ways, discussed below!
To infuse the dough with coffee, add 1 teaspoon of instant espresso to the dough with the cocoa powder and dissolve 1 tablespoon of instant espresso in the milk before adding to the dough.
Infusing anything with red wine flavor is notoriously hard, particularly when combined with cocoa since the cocoa is so over-powering. I would recommend using a red wine emulsion (in place of 1 tablespoon of milk) or extract (in place of the vanilla).
Edible Chocolate Cookie Dough Base Recipe
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup all-purpose heat-treated flour, cooled
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 – 3/4 cup mix-ins
- Allow the butter to come to room temperature. (Do not melt the butter or you will get a greasy cookie dough.)
- Cream together butter and sugars. Beat in cocoa powder. Mix in milk and vanilla until well-combined. Mix in flour, baking powder, and salt. (If using home heat-treated flour, make sure it is 100% cool or else it will make the texture crumbly.) Stir in any mix-ins and serve!
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week or freezer for up to three months.
- For Baking: If you wish to bake up the remaining cookie dough, preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and bake 2 tablespoon-sized balls of cookie dough for 9-10 minutes.
D. Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Base

Flavors that pair well with peanut butter cookie dough include:
- Fruits: bananas, apples
- Nuts: macadamia, almonds, peanuts, walnuts
- All Chocolate: milk, dark, white
- Cookies
- Candy Bars
When adding fruits, you can mash the fruit and use an amount that is equal to half the butter and half the peanut butter. So for example, in the recipe for peanut butter cookie dough base, below, you would use 2 tablespoons butter, 2 tablespoons peanut butter, and 1/4 cup mashed banana. (If you use apple sauce, omit the milk to compensate for the extra liquid.)
Nuts can simply be stirred into the dough!
Chocolate, cookies, and candy bars can be incorporated into the dough in a variety of ways, discussed below!
Edible Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Base Recipe
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup shelf-stable peanut butter (e.g., Jiff or Skippy)
- 1/2 cup light brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons milk (nonfat, whole, almond, etc.)
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoons honey
- 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons heat-treated all-purpose flour, cooled
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- Allow the butter to come to room temperature. (Do not melt the butter or you will get a greasy cookie dough.)
- Cream together butter and peanut butter. Cream in the sugars. Mix in milk, honey, and vanilla. Incorporate flour, baking powder, and salt. (If using home heat-treated flour, make sure it is 100% cool or else it will make the texture crumbly.) Stir in any mix-ins and serve!
- Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week or freezer for up to three months.
- For Baking: If you wish to bake up the remaining cookie dough, preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and bake 2 tablespoon-sized balls of cookie dough for 9-10 minutes.
As a final note – remember that if you just can’t decide between two cookie dough bases, maybe it’s time to consider a swirl???
3. The Mix-Ins

Once you have decided on a cookie dough base, you need to decide on your mix-ins! There are oh-so-many possibilities and many of these can be mixed and matched. I would probably stick to no more than three, just so that you’re getting the full flavor experience in every bite.
- chocolate chips (mini, milk, dark, white)
- peanut butter chips
- cinnamon chips
- caramel bits
- toffee bits
- mini marshmallows
- shredded coconut (toasted or not)
- chopped nuts
- chopped candy bars (twix, reese’s cups, rolos, m&ms, snickers, etc.)
- crushed cookies (oreos, fudge stripe, girl scout, circus animal, etc.)
- crushed sweetened fruit chips (banana, apple, peach, etc.)
- dried fruit (raisins, prunes, apricots, peaches, pineapple, etc.)
- cereal (cinnamon toast crunch, cap’n crunch, fruit loops, etc.)
- bacon crumbles
- homemade butter truffle bits
For mix-ins, you don’t usually need to adjust the recipe in any way. I will note that for anything dry and crunchy (cereal, cookies), the mix-ins will absorb moisture from the surrounding cookie dough over time. So these recipes are typically best within a couple days of making it.
4. Swirled Add-Ins

A swirled add-in refers to any liquid-like add-in that will have to be swirled through the dough rather than mixed in. Again, there are SO many possibilities, but your options include:
- milk chocolate ganache
- semi-sweet chocolate ganache
- dark chocolate ganache
- white chocolate ganache
- infused chocolate ganache (cereal milk, espresso)
- caramel sauce
- hot fudge
- whipped buttercream (vanilla, chocolate, cinnamon, strawberry, raspberry, etc.)
- cinnamon roll-style cream cheese frosting
- peanut butter (opt for a shelf-stable brand like Skippy or Jiff)
- nutella
For any add-in, make sure you have already fully incorporated your solid mix-ins. I also usually pre-refrigerate my add-in so that it is thicker and less likely to just be absorbed by the cookie dough.
Place dollops of your soft add-in all over the dough and gently fold the dough to swirl the add-in throughout the dough. I serve the cookie dough with extra of whatever is swirled through it so that others can choose to top it off with a little more.
Note that for most cookie doughs that have a swirled add-in, they will bake up very flat, because of the extra moisture. But they are still delicious!
5. The Test Case
Now let’s see this formula in action! Cinnabon has always been a weakness of mine. In particular, their caramel pecanbons. <insert heavenly sigh here> So let’s say I want to create a similarly-themed cookie dough recipe.
First, I make a list of all the flavors associated with my idea. For a caramel pecanbon, here is my list of flavors:
- Sweet white yeasty dough
- Cinnamon sugar
- Buttery
- Nutty toasted pecans
- Caramel sauce
- Slightly tangy whipped frosting
Caramel Pecan Roll Cookie Dough = Base + Mix-ins + Swirled Add-ins
Second, I choose my cookie dough base. I can instantly eliminate chocolate, since that falls nowhere on my list of flavors. So do I choose brown sugar or sugar cookie dough base? Honestly… this one could go either way. But a caramel pecanbon has a lot of warm, almost fall-like flavors going on. So I would select a brown sugar cookie dough base.
I could also consider mixing caramel into the dough… but I think the vanilla-y brown sugar dough will give me enough of a start towards caramel.
I could also consider mixing ground cinnamon into the dough. But I think I really want to use cinnamon chips and adding ground cinnamon might be TOO much cinnamon. So I think we’ll stick with a traditional brown sugar cookie dough base.
Caramel Pecan Roll Cookie Dough = Brown Sugar Cookie Dough Base + Mix-ins + Swirled Add-ins
Third, I choose my mix-ins. Chopped pecans are obviously a must. But to take the flavor profile one step farther, I am going to pre-toast those pecans before I mix them into the dough. That way they have that just-baked-on-top-of-a-cinnamon-roll flavor.
Then… I also want to incorporate cinnamon from my flavor list in some way. Instead of mixing cinnamon into the dough, I’ve decided to mix cinnamon chips into the cookie dough. I’d rather have just little surprises of cinnamon flavor, rather than cinnamon in every bite.
Caramel Pecan Roll Cookie Dough = Brown Sugar Cookie Dough Base + Toasted Pecans + Cinnamon Chips + Swirled Add-ins
Last but not least – swirled add-ins! Now, for a caramel pecan roll… caramel sauce seems like a must! But I also LOVE the way the traditional cinnamon roll frosting melds and melts together with the caramel sauce on a Pecanbon. Which leaves me options:
- Option 1: Change my mind and mix caramel into the dough. Then swirl in a cinnamon roll frosting.
- Option 2: Change my mind and mix a little cream cheese into the dough. Then swirl caramel sauce through the finished dough.
- Option 3: Blend caramel sauce with cinnamon roll frosting and then swirl the combination through the dough.
As a food blogger, this is where recipe testing would occur and I would make all three. 😉 But let’s be clear, here. ALL of those options sound AMAZING and would be absolutely delicious. So don’t be afraid to just go for it!
Because I want that ooey gooey essence of cinnamon roll frosting melting into the warm caramel sauce, I think I would lean towards combining caramel sauce and classic cream cheese frosting before I swirl it into the finished dough!
So there we have it!
Caramel Pecan Roll Cookie Dough = Brown Sugar Cookie Dough Base + Toasted Pecans + Cinnamon Chips + Swirled Caramel Cream Cheese Frosting
If you need more examples, check out wyldflour’s edible cookie dough recipes for more ideas on how to combine flavors and mimic a particular flavor inspiration!


6. Edible Cookie Dough FAQs
Health concerns with eating raw cookie dough stem from two ingredients: raw eggs and raw flour. These cookie dough recipes omit eggs and use heat-treated flour in order to avoid the risks associated with these ingredients.
I personally prefer to purchase my heat-treated flour from either Page House or Do Bakery, because (a) they have a well-tested process for killing 99.9% of the possible bacteria, and (b) it allows for last minute cookie dough cravings without having to heat treat the flour myself.
Do so at your own risk, but I have also home heat-treated flour. Honeyville has recommended heat-treating your raw flour by toasting it. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spread your flour out on the baking sheet. Bake the flour for five minutes, remove from the oven, and allow to cool completely before using in your recipe. (Using hot flour will change the texture of the cookie dough so make sure it is 100% cool.)
Yes! You will need to experiment with each dough in particular to see how well it bakes up and how long it takes to cook. But in general, remove the cookie dough from the fridge and let come to room temperature so it is easier to scoop (about 1 hour). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and bake small 2-tablespoon sized scoops of dough at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 7-10 minutes. Let the cookies cool and set on the pan until you try to move them.
Still need help?
Shoot me a message at mikaela {at} wyldflour.com or reach out to me via instagram with your flavor inspiration and I’d be happy to help!

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