Product Review: Immaculate Baking Company Gluten Free Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Product: Immaculate Baking Company Gluten Free Chocolate Chunk Cookies – $5.49+

My friend Jenn knows the way to my heart.  She knows what can lift my spirits.  She knows how to get me to smile.

Three words.

Gluten Free Cookies.

Yep.  That does it every time.  And this past weekend, when I went up to visit and escape my real life where I live for awhile, she totally lifted my spirits and helped me find that smile that has been absent during this winter year.  And that was before the cookies were even mentioned.

Saturday was a busy day…and one that included many culinary adventures.  But, as the night was winding down and before we all settled in to watch Despicable Me 2, we (being Jenn, Cathy and I) quickly made our way to the kitchen because we were celebrating Jenn’s birthday and cookies had to be had.  For real.  Out of the freezer she pulled a package of Immaculate Baking Company Gluten Free Chocolate Chunk Cookies.  I think I might have salivated immediately.

Cookie monster, remember?

Anyway…we knew these wouldn’t take too long to cook, so we got right to work, preheating the oven to 325°F and prepping a baking sheet with parchment paper.  I tore into the cookie dough package and removed the tray of 12 balls of dough.  From there, Jenn and I began to remove the cookie dough and place the little balls of chocolate chip gluten-free joy onto a baking pan, about 2 inches apart.  When the oven was up to the proper heat, we popped the pan inside and let it cook for 16 minutes.

Longest 16 minutes ever.  The three of us had a little snack of Jenn’s homemade pink salad…while we were waiting…because it seemed logical.  And, for the last five minutes, we all just sort of stared at the timer…eagerly awaiting our chocolate chip treats.  Except we were cooking from frozen, we gave them a little longer, but not much.  When we removed them, they were golden balls of cookie dough, because we didn’t pay attention to the part of the baking instructions that said to flatten the cookie before shoving it in the oven.  Whoops.  No worries.  We now had to let the cookies sit for another 5 minutes.  That was sheer torture, because now the kitchen smelled like chocolate chip cookies.  As those five minutes finished, Jenn scooped a cookie off the sheet to plate it.  Then she said the most glorious words ever (and honestly is one of so many reasons she and I get along so well) when she exclaimed, “Screw this one cookie thing! We’re each getting two!”

There were no arguments.  At least not from Jenn or I.  Cathy might have looked a little bit startled but she happily complied to the 2 cookie vote.

I won’t lie.  I was the first person to take a bite.  It was still very soft in the middle…not raw…but close.  We probably should have let them cook a wee bit longer since we were cooking them from their frozen state.  But…they were really good.  The cookie dough was fantastic.  I loved the buttery flavor of the cookie itself and, even more, the sweetness from the chocolate chunks that were throughout the cookies.  They didn’t skimp on the chocolate, and I appreciate that so much!  I love that no bite was without a bit of chocolate.  The flavor actually reminded me of these large cookies that my school district offered from K-12 grades that were soft and chewy and just above that half-baked level.  They tasted so much like that and it brought back some really happy memories.  I enjoyed these so much.  I might have licked the crumbs off the plate.

The next day, Jenn sent Cathy and I on our way with two more for each of us.  I found that I liked them even more on the second day.  I might have gotten a little hungry halfway home so we had a bit of a snack.  One part of this snack was one of the cookies.  Soft in the middle.  Chewy.  No hard bites that break your teeth.  Still amazing and delicious.  YUMMY!  I might be addicted to these.  The other two were consumed as dessert after dinner that night.  And I once again reminisced about how good they were…how amazing they tasted…but now…they were gone.

Immaculate Baking Company Gluten Free Chocolate Chunk Cookies are made from semisweet chocolate, palm fruit and canola oils, brown sugar, potato starch, tapioca starch, sugar, rice flour, whole eggs, invert sugar, water, natural flavor, xanthan gum, baking soda, and guar gum.  No crazy ingredients that make me question what they might be doing in food…or foody treats like cookies.  These cookies are also completely dairy-free as well.

Now let’s talk nutrition.  I know…cookies.  Cookies are treats and really not nutritionally sound…but…COOKIES!  This from a true cookie monster.  Let’s remember…everything in moderation.  And if you stick to the serving size, these really aren’t too bad on the nutrition scale.  A serving is 1 cookie.  This cookie will give you 150 calories and 8 grams of fat.  This serving will also provide you with 10 mg sodium, 85 mg sodium and 11 grams of sugar.  Yes…that is a lot of sugar.  About 3 teaspoons per serving, actually.  But, remember…cookies.  These are cookies.  Finally, one cookie provides you with less than 1 gram of fiber and 1 gram of protein.  So, these aren’t made to be filling.  And with all that sugar, they won’t be.  But…yeah…they are beyond tasty.

I love that Immaculate Baking Company has a few gluten-free options in their product lineup.  Honestly.  Even more…I am beyond impressed with the way the Immaculate Baking Company Gluten Free Chocolate Chunk Cookies baked up and came out.  Yes…even with the misstep on our part for baking time.  They are really delicious with great flavor and at least a chunk of chocolate in each bite.  I want to fill my freezer with these and cook them all the time.

Consider this cookie monster hooked!