A Complete Guide to Freezing Holiday Cookies
This complete guide to freezing holiday cookies is full of tips for preserving your baking this year. Make the most of the holidays by preparing and freezing cookies in advance!
These tips are great for cut-out cookies, sandwich cookies, decorated cookies, peanut butter cookies, bar cookies, delicate cookies, gingerbread cookies and seriously any kind of cookie that you want to save for a later date.
Did you know that baked cookies and even cookie dough can last for months in the freezer? Between baking gifts for neighbors, gifts from friends and holiday cookie exchanges, there are many cookies going around this time of year!
Complete guide to freezing holiday cookies:
Holiday baking is one of my favorite parts of the holiday season and there is nothing like pulling out the perfect batch of cookies from the oven. If you’re tight on time and don’t want to spend a lot of time preparing cookies or just want to save them to enjoy after the holidays, here is the complete guide to freezing your holiday cookies.
How to freeze drop cookies:
Drop cookies are cookies that are formed from balls of cookie dough like chocolate chip cookies, eggnog cookies or peppermint dipped chocolate cookies that have a chewy texture to them. These types of cookies freeze exceptionally well and they will usually end up being even chewier after you freeze them!
If your cookie falls into this category, here is how to freeze them the easy way!
- Prepare your cookie dough as directed and drop cookie dough balls on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.
- Freeze your cookie dough in a single layer on the cookie sheet, covered in plastic wrap until solid.
- Store them in a freezer-safe bag or airtight container in the freezer until you’re ready to bake.
- Bake them straight from the freezer and add a few minutes to the baking time.
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My kitchen essentials for baking:
- I love using this non-stick bakeware for all of my baking.
- These silicone mitts are perfect for grasping hot pans and baking dishes.
- This Henckel Knife is my favorite for slicing and dicing in the kitchen.
- These parchment paper bags are perfect for packaging and these large Rubbermaid food storage containers are great for storing baking in the freezer.
How to freeze slice and bake cookies:
One of the most common freezer-friendly cookies are the slice and bake variety. These cookies usually end up being cut from a cookie dough log like these shortbread cookies or classic sugar cookies.
Whether you are buying the dough store-bought or making your own cutout cookies here is how to freeze them!
- Prepare the cookie dough as directed in the recipe.
- Freeze the entire log of cookie dough at one time.
- Wrap it up in plastic and put it in a freezer bag until you’re ready to enjoy it.
- Put it in the fridge overnight to thaw before slicing and baking the cookies.
- Alternately you can freeze the cookie dough slices individually by freezing them on a baking sheet until frozen solid.
- Then transfer to a freezer container or plastic bag.
- When you’re ready to enjoy them, bake from frozen by adding a few minutes to your cooking time.
How to freeze iced cookies:
While it is best to freeze the cookie baked or before icing, you can still freeze cookies with a topping like royal icing or glaze. Sometimes the icing colours can start to spot or run after they’ve been frozen, so make sure that you test your cookies before freezing.
- Let your frosting or glaze completely dry before freezing.
- Freeze your cookies on a cookie sheet for about one hour, then put them in a freezer-safe container with wax paper to divide them.
- If your sprinkles have dye, they may run while freezing, so if you are freezing a cookie with sprinkles, follow the same steps as #1, but make sure that you take extra care when thawing them.
- Leave them in their packaging in the fridge overnight, and allow them to come to room temperature before unwrapping.
How to freeze baked homemade cookies:
If you are dealing with leftover cookies or cookies that have already been baked, it’s a simple process to store cookies like these caramel turtle cookies, wookie cookies or candy cane brownie blossom cookies. This is the best way to store cookies for the holidays! I often do all of my baking for the holidays early or host a baking exchange and freeze the cookies for later.
- Make sure that your cookies are completely cool.
- Flash freeze them on a cookie sheet and then move them to a freezer-safe container once solid.
- To thaw, put them in the fridge overnight, then bring them to room temperature on the counter.
Tip: cookies with a high moisture content or cookies with a thin batter won’t freeze well. These are often crisp cookies and don’t do well in the freezer.
Tips for freezing keto baking:
Most keto baking and cookie recipes will freeze in a similar way to traditional baking. Some have a higher moisture content and a variety of ingredients that freeze differently though.
- Freeze keto cookies already cooked for best results.
- Keto marshmallows tend to shrink in the freezer so be prepared for that – they still taste yummy!
- I find that keto recipes with higher moisture content like brownies and fudge develop ice crystals over time.
As you can see, there are so many different ways that you can preserve your cookie dough for later or save your holiday cookies from freezer burn to enjoy all season long. Whatever your reason for saving them in the freezer, I hope you found this guide to freezing holiday cookies helpful!
More tips for Holiday Baking:
- Double or triple recipes to make large batches of goodies. This allows cookies and bars to be made in an assembly line fashion and speeds up the process.
- Pick holiday recipes that compliment each other and look good plated together.
- Participate in a Holiday Baking Exchange! This is a great way to prepare for a season of holiday entertaining.
- Start baking early and store goodies in the freezer until they are needed. I use these large Rubbermaid food storage containers to save a mixture of cookies and bars in my freezer so that I have them ready to go for Christmas parties and gatherings all season long.
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