Of all foods, cookies may well be responsible for the greatest number of accidental peanut exposures. Peanuts pop up in cookies you’d never suspect would contain peanuts, and cookies that are supposedly peanut free often are the victims of cross contamination. Following are some common scenarios that should make you think twice about eating a cookie you haven’t baked yourself:

A baker decides that a few ground peanuts, a little peanut butter, or even peanut flour would make this batch really special. Because the peanut is pulverized and is used in such small quantities, it’s completely disguised, making detection by sight, smell, or even taste nearly impossible. Pulverized peanuts also find their way into some pie crusts.

A restaurant serves typically peanut-free chocolate chip cookies. A new cook is hired who always sticks ground up peanuts in the dough to make the cookies a little crunchy. The server assures you that the restaurant’s cookies are peanut free, not knowing that the change of cooks resulted in a change in the recipe.

The server assures you that a particular brownie doesn’t have peanut in it, but when she dishes up your dessert, she uses the same spatula she used to serve up a dessert that contains peanuts. You may think that the amount of peanut residue would be miniscule, and it is, but it’s enough to cause a severe reaction in some people. Cross contamination may occur when the baker or server uses the same mixing bowl, cookie sheet, spatula, or tongs.

Related posts:

1. Peanut Allergy : Other baked goods
2. Peanut Allergy : Finding peanuts in ice creams and tasty toppings
3. Peanut allergy : Peanut’s favorite hideouts
4. Peanut Allergy : Choosing a peanut-lite restaurant
5. Peanut Allergy : Uncovering peanuts in candies