Crumbl Cookies is a popular cookie chain that offers a rotating weekly menu of specialty cookies. With many customers asking if Crumbl has any gluten-free options, this article will provide a comprehensive look at what gluten-free choices Crumbl provides.
What is Crumbl Cookies?
Crumbl Cookies was founded in 2017 in Logan, Utah by Jason McGowan and Sawyer Hemsley. The business quickly grew through word-of-mouth and now has over 200 locations across the United States.
Crumbl is known for its weekly rotating menus that feature 4-5 specialty cookie flavors. Some of their most popular cookies include Milk Chocolate Chip, Cornbread, Cookies & Cream, S’mores, and their signature Pink Sugar Cookie.
The cookies are baked fresh in-store daily and customers can order cookies for delivery, pickup, or catering. Crumbl also offers ice cream, cookie cakes, and other treats.
What is gluten and celiac disease?
Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye. It helps baked goods maintain their shape and texture. However, for those with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity, consuming gluten can cause serious health issues.
Celiac disease is an autoimmune disorder where the ingestion of gluten leads to damage in the small intestine. This damage prevents the body from absorbing necessary nutrients. Symptoms of celiac disease include diarrhea, abdominal pain, bloating, fatigue, and anemia. The only treatment for celiac disease is maintaining a strict lifelong gluten-free diet.
Gluten sensitivity or intolerance is a condition where an individual experiences adverse reactions after ingesting gluten, such as gastrointestinal distress and fatigue. While less severe than celiac disease, gluten sensitivity also requires avoidance of gluten in the diet.
With celiac disease and gluten sensitivity on the rise, gluten-free eating has become an important requirement for many consumers. The demand for tasty gluten-free treats like cookies has increased as well.
Does Crumbl offer gluten-free cookie options?
Currently, Crumbl Cookies does not offer any gluten-free cookies on their weekly rotating menus. All of their standard cookies contain wheat flour, which contains gluten.
However, in recent years, some Crumbl locations have occasionally tested out gluten-free cookie flavors. For example, in 2021 some stores offered gluten-free Snickerdoodle cookies for a limited time.
In 2022, a gluten-free Double Chocolate Oreo cookie was tested at some locations. While these gluten-free options are only sporadically available, it indicates an interest by Crumbl to accommodate gluten-free diets when possible.
How to order gluten-free from Crumbl
Since gluten-free cookies are not regularly offered at Crumbl, the only way to order gluten-free is to visit during a time when your local store happens to be testing a specialty gluten-free cookie.
The best way to find out if any gluten-free options are available is to check the Crumbl Cookie flavor menu for your location each week. The weekly menus update every Sunday night for the following week.
If a gluten-free cookie flavor is being tested, it will be noted on the online menu. You can also call your local Crumbl store directly to ask if they have any gluten-free cookie flavors available that week.
Crumbl also recommends reaching out to their support team to notify them of your interest in gluten-free menu options. The more feedback they receive requesting gluten-free selections, the more likely they may expand these offerings in the future.
Are Crumbl facilities gluten-free?
While Crumbl does not have dedicated gluten-free facilities, they do have procedures in place to reduce cross-contamination for gluten-free orders.
According to Crumbl, when preparing rare gluten-free cookie offerings, employees follow thorough sanitation processes. This includes changing gloves, using separate trays and utensils, and extensive cleaning of all prep surfaces and equipment.
However, their kitchens do regularly handle products with gluten, so there is always a slight risk of cross-contamination. Anyone with celiac disease or high gluten sensitivity should use their own judgment on whether they feel comfortable purchasing the occasional gluten-free item from Crumbl.
Crumbl gluten-free cookie options history
Here is a brief timeline showing the limited instances when Crumbl has offered specialty gluten-free cookies in the past:
| Year | Gluten-Free Cookie |
|---|---|
| 2021 | Gluten-Free Snickerdoodle (limited time at some locations) |
| 2022 | Gluten-Free Double Chocolate Oreo (limited availability) |
As you can see, Crumbl has very rarely experimented with gluten-free cookies. When they did, it was only for a short test period at certain locations. But the fact that they have trialed some recipes shows that Crumbl recognizes the customer demand.
Reasons Crumbl should offer gluten-free cookies
Here are some of the main reasons why Crumbl Cookies should consider adding dedicated gluten-free options to their weekly menu lineup:
– Growing consumer demand – A huge portion of consumers now require gluten-free options for medical reasons or by choice. Offering gluten-free would allow Crumbl to serve a wider customer base.
– Increase sales revenue – By offering gluten-free cookies, Crumbl would open up new sales potential from health-conscious and gluten intolerant customers.
– Competitive edge – Other popular cookie chains like Insomnia Cookies have gluten-free options. Having gluten-free choices could help draw customers away from competitors.
– Reputation for inclusivity – Providing gluten-free menu items would build Crumbl’s reputation as an inclusive brand accommodating all dietary preferences.
– Opportunity for innovation – Gluten-free baking encourages creativity. Unique gluten-free cookie recipes could become new signature items.
– Greater brand awareness – Introducing gluten-free would garner press and social media buzz, boosting Crumbl’s overall brand visibility and awareness.
– Customer retention – Those who start buying gluten-free cookies from Crumbl are likely to become regular long-term customers.
Overall the pros seem to outweigh any cons when it comes to Crumbl expanding offerings to be more gluten-free friendly. With demand only increasing, the cookie company would be smart to get ahead of trends and start catering to gluten-free consumers.
Potential gluten-free cookie options for Crumbl
If Crumbl did decide to add gluten-free cookies to their rotation, there are many delicious flavors they could offer. Here are just a few ideas for gluten-free Crumbl cookies that customers would love:
Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip – A gluten-free version of Crumbl’s famous Milk Chocolate Chip cookie. Could use oat flour or almond flour rather than wheat flour.
Gluten-Free Sugar Cookie – Their famous Pink Sugar Cookie reimagined with gluten-free flour.
Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Brownie – A chewy peanut butter cookie layered with rich gluten-free brownie.
Gluten-Free Snickerdoodle – Recreate their previous Snickerdoodle recipe using certified gluten-free ingredients.
Gluten-Free Oatmeal Raisin – A gluten-free take on the classic oatmeal cookie with juicy raisins.
Gluten-Free Double Chocolate Chip – For chocolate lovers, load chocolate chip cookie dough with extra chocolate chunks.
The possibilities are endless for the creative gluten-free cookie options Crumbl could add to menus. Even starting with just 1-2 per week would make a huge impact in showing their commitment to accommodating gluten-free diets.
Should you risk eating non-gluten-free Crumbl cookies if you have celiac disease?
For those with celiac disease, eating a Crumbl cookie that contains gluten could have serious consequences. When someone with celiac disease ingests even small amounts of gluten, it can trigger severe intestinal damage and other negative reactions.
The results can include:
- Abdominal pain, bloating, and diarrhea
- Fatigue and weakness from malnutrition
- Weight loss from poor nutrient absorption
- Skin rash and inflammation
- Joint pain
- Damage to the nervous system
- Increased risk of osteoporosis and bone fractures
- Higher chance of developing other autoimmune disorders
Additionally, continued exposure to gluten can increase the risk of intestinal cancers for those with celiac. Eating gluten-free is the only way to heal existing intestinal damage and prevent additional harm.
While an occasional minor contamination may sometimes be tolerated, those with celiac disease should never purposefully eat products containing gluten. The health risks are simply too severe.
Until Crumbl decides to offer certified gluten-free cookies, it is safest for celiac customers to avoid their non-gluten-free menu items. The dessert-lovers with celiac can hope the brand decides there is ample demand for dedicated gluten-free choices. But until then, they should stay away from Crumbl’s glutenous cookies.
Alternatives for gluten-free Crumbl cookie lovers
Although Crumbl currently does not cater to gluten-free diets, there are some alternatives where gluten-intolerant customers can get their fix of delicious cookies. Here are some options:
1. Insomnia Cookies
Insomnia Cookies offers a handful of gluten-free cookie options at all locations. Their gluten-free choices include Chocolate Chunk, Oatmeal Raisin, Sugar Cookies, Vegan Chocolate Chunk, and custom Gluten-Free Build Your Own options.
2. Local gluten-free bakeries
Many cities have dedicated gluten-free bakeries these days. Searching for “gluten free bakery near me” can uncover some tasty local options for buying gluten-free cookies. These small businesses usually offer excellent gluten-free baked goods.
3. Gluten-free brands at grocery stores
Grocery stores now sell multiple brands of gluten-free pre-packaged cookies that you can enjoy from the comfort of home. Some common brands to look for include Annie’s, Enjoy Life, Cherish, and Pillsbury Gluten Free.
4. Specialty online gluten-free companies
For those willing to buy cookies online and pay for shipping, there are great gluten-free companies like Erin Baker’s and Katz Gluten Free that sell all kinds of gluten-free cookies, muffins, and other baked goods.
5. Bake your own
Don’t forget baking your own gluten-free cookies at home is an option too. There are many easy gluten-free cookie recipes out there for classics like chocolate chip, peanut butter, and oatmeal cookies.
Is Crumbl likely to offer gluten-free cookies in the future?
Based on Crumbl Cookie’s limited history of testing occasional gluten-free flavors, it unfortunately seems unlikely they will add full-time gluten-free menu items in the near future.
However, customer requests do seem to be influencing them to trial gluten-free offerings at some locations for temporary stints. The more feedback they receive from customers about the need for gluten-free options, the better chance it will become a permanent menu feature.
Crumbl does appear aware of the growing demand. On their FAQ page about food allergens, they answer the question “Do you offer Gluten-Free products?” by responding:
“Not currently. As the need arises, we will work to accommodate reasonable requests to the best of our abilities.”
This provides hope that increased customer encouragement on social media or directly contacting Crumbl about gluten-free interests could lead to more gluten-free trials and eventual permanent menu additions.
While not perfect, Crumbl does seem to be taking customer feedback into account. If sales and customer feedback on the sporadic gluten-free experiments remain strong over time, the odds of gluten-free cookies joining their menu increase. So for those wanting gluten-free from Crumbl, be sure to keep requesting it!
Conclusion
In summary, while Crumbl Cookies currently does not offer any regular gluten-free cookie options, they have occasionally tested gluten-free flavors on a limited trial basis when demand is high enough at certain locations.
Those with celiac disease or gluten intolerance should not consume Crumbl’s standard cookies containing wheat until the company commits to dedicated gluten-free menu items. But Crumbl does show potential to expand their gluten-free choices in the future if customers continue to express interest and purchase the limited-time gluten-free offerings.
So if you require gluten-free, keep an eye out for any temporary gluten-free Crumbl specials in your area. And be sure to let Crumbl know that you’d love to see gluten-free cookie choices become a permanent menu fixture.
