Hands in the air if you ate cookie dough from the bowl as a kid.
It seems like getting salmonella from eating raw cookie dough would never happen you, but we all know we shouldn’t risk it. Thankfully, cookie dough sans raw eggs is now a thing. In the yummy sea of egg-free goodness lies Edoughble, a cookie dough company based in Los Angeles. Making cookie dough all day? Sounds like a dream, but, like any company, it didn’t come to fruition without blood, sweat, tears, and sugar.
Photo courtesy of @itsedoughble on Instagram
Edoughble was started by John and Rana Lustyan, who happen to be a married couple. #RelationshipGoals AF. Rayna was at the University of Michigan studying Org Studies while John was a UCSB studying Psych and English. Like most of us, Rana didn’t know what she wanted to do straight out of undergrad, but knew she loved baking, so she enrolled at Le Cordon Bleu.
After graduating, she worked as a pastry chef in some restaurants in California and went to grad school. She and John met there and came up with the idea of Edoughble. The concept stemmed from a bunch of cookie dough recalls going on at the time due to people getting hospitalized from salmonella and E.coli outbreaks. Yuck, right? Cookie dough is totally safe when baked, but it just doesn’t have the same scrumptiousness as raw cookie dough. The Lustyans realized that and brought Edoughble to life.
Photo courtesy of Edoughble.com
Their current recipes took four years to perfect, and the process is ongoing since they come out with more than ten flavors a year. They love coming up with fun flavors such as “Chocolate 3-Way” (with handmade fudge chunks) and Makin’ Whoopie Pie, along with launching special flavors for holidays and seasons. The top three sellers are Chocolate Chip, Birthday Bash, and Cookies n’ Dream. They really care about the safety and quality of their dough so in addition to having no eggs, every scoop is also lacks preservatives, hormones, and artificial colors.
Photo courtesy of @itsedoughble on Instagram
Making all this happen takes a lot of clever planning. Rana stated that the most challenging part is running it all herself on a limited budget. Shipping also gets disrupted and delayed when people enter the wrong address, want to change their order after entering it, want a different delivery date, or forget the personalized note, which costs the business money. John occasionally helps with the marketing, but works full time, and the couple has two babies. Talk about having a lot on their plate.
Photo courtesy of Edoughble.com
Of course, trying to launch Edoughble or any specialty homemade product in stores nationwide is a long, expensive process.The Lustyans are currently focusing on their online store and growing their brand but are open to the possibility of a permanent shop in the future. For anyone who wants to start their own food business, Rana advises interning for a small food business since that gives you a real idea of the passion, hard work, and money that goes into a small business.
Photo courtesy of @itsedoughble on Instagram
Despite the hiccups, it’s all been worth it. I mean, come on, they get to make cookie dough for a living! In all seriousness though, making something successful out of their skills and passions is the most satisfying part. As Rana stated, “Building something from nothing is incredible.” I’d imagine that when that something is a cookie dough company, life’s especially sweet.