How to Freeze Cookie Dough and Bake it Later (The Best Way!)

Cookie dough freezes extremely well and is the perfect sweet treat to keep stashed in your freezer to instantly satisfy those sweet tooth cravings. Here’s how to freeze cookie dough and bake it later.

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Can You Freeze Cookie Dough?

Can you freeze cookie dough? Yes – absolutely!

You can freeze cookie dough a couple of different ways, depending on how you plan to use it and your personal preferences. I’ll review everything you need to know about freezing cookie dough in this post.

Freezing Cookie Dough

We have been stashing as much extra food in the freezer as possible lately (within reason – I promise there is no hoarding going on here). Having a freezer well stocked with staples, freezer meals, and lunches for myself just makes our life a lot easier.

Whenever we make anything, we make extra and stash it in the freezer. Including stashing extra cookie dough in the freezer to use later.

For me, it is so much easier to make an extra large batch of cookie dough and keep them in the freezer for when we need them. Or want them. Need. Want.

It’s all pretty much the same thing when it involves a cookie fix, am I right?

Why I Love to Keep Frozen Cookie Dough on Hand

3 reasons I almost always have cookie dough in my freezer:

1. I love freezing cookie dough so I can bake them at a later date. Preparing the original recipe is a thing of the past and all that’s left to do is enjoy fresh cookies.
2. Freezing cookie dough is great if you don’t want to bake the whole batch at once, but you also don’t want the kids to eat all the leftover cookie dough in the fridge.
3. Having frozen cookie dough on hand means that I am able to have homemade cookies ready at a moment’s notice when kids have friends over or anyone is craving dessert.

If you’ve never tried freezing cookie dough before, I promise that it is something your future self will thank you for!

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Cookie Dough Freezing Supplies

You’ll need a few kitchen tools to properly store frozen cookie dough. Here’s what I recommend having on hand before freezing cookie dough:

• Cookie Dough – have a batch of your favorite cookie dough ready to go! Need inspiration? Check out these cookie recipes.
• Cookie Scoop – I like to use a cookie scoop to make my cookie dough balls uniform in size, and it makes quick work of scooping and rolling all of the dough.
• Parchment Paper or Wax Paper – great for lining the pan so the cookie dough doesn’t stick.
• Cookie Sheet or Baking Tray – I flash freeze my cookie dough balls on a baking sheet before putting them in the freezer.
• Gallon Sized Ziploc bag or Air-tight Container – whatever you choose to use to store your frozen cookie dough in, make sure it is freezer-safe.
• Permanent Marker or Label Maker – useful for labeling the frozen cookie dough with the contents, recipe directions, and date.
• Rolling Pin and Cookie Cutters – if you plan to make cut out cookies for your freezer.

How to Freeze Cookie Dough

The process is super simple, only takes a few minutes, and is a great way to be prepared in advance for parties or holiday gifting. It’s worth making a double batch of your next cookie recipe, I promise you won’t regret it!

Here’s how to freeze cookie dough balls, how to freeze cut out cookie dough, and how to freeze a batch of cookie dough; the method will differ slightly depending on what types of cookie dough you’re freezing:

How to Freeze Drop Cookies

Drop dough cookies are any type of cookie that are formed by scooping balls of dough (i.e. when you roll the cookie dough balls). Follow these simple steps to freeze:

1. I like to use parchment paper to line the pan when freezing the cookies, so do that first.
2. Then, roll the entire batch of cookie dough into balls just like you would if you were baking them. Layer them on a sheet pan in a single layer as you scoop them.
3. Fill the baking pan or tray with all the uncooked rolled cookie dough balls. Then, cover it with plastic wrap.
4. After layering the individual dough balls in a single layer on the parchment lined pan, stick the filled pan in the freezer for the initial freeze.
5. Freeze until the cookie dough balls are hard. Meanwhile, take a gallon sized zip top freezer-safe bag and label it with the recipe name, date, cooking temperature and time details.
6. When the cookie dough is frozen, remove the pan from the freezer.
7. Store the cookie dough in an airtight container, plastic freezer bag, or in vacuum sealed bags.
8. Label the bag or container with date, contents, baking instructions, and bake time. All that’s left to do is stash the cookies in the freezer for later!

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How to Freeze Cut Out Cookies

Freezing cut out cookies is great if you want to get a head start on baking Christmas cookies!

You can do all the hard work of preparing the recipe, rolling the dough, and cutting the cookies out well before Christmas. Then, all that you have to do during the busy holiday season is bake and enjoy!

1. For cut-out cookies, like these vanilla cutout sugar cookies or these gingerbread cookies, you will follow the same instructions as above, but instead of rolling the cookie dough, you’ll pre-cut your batch of cookies.
2. After you flash freeze the cookie dough on the parchment lined baking sheet, store the cookies in the same way as cookie dough balls.

How to Freeze a Container of Cookie Dough

If you don’t want to go to the trouble of rolling the cookie dough balls or cutting out the cookie with cookie cutters before freeze, you can still freeze the cookie dough! Here’s how I like to do it:

1. Transfer the prepared cookie dough to a gallon sized zip-top freezer bag.
2. Press the cookie dough flat so it fills out the gallon bag and is in a thin rectangular shape, rather than a big hunk of cookie dough.
3. Seal the bag.

Freezing the cookie dough in bulk takes longer to thaw, but if you flatten it to the shape of the bag it will thaw much faster. Why? Because the cookie dough is thinner and more surface area is exposed.

The above is simply a quick summary of this how to freeze cookie dough. Check out the full recipe in the free printable recipe card at the bottom of this post for all the detailed instructions.

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Frozen Cookie Dough FAQs

Got questions about freezing cookie dough? Here are the answers to a few commonly asked questions. Feel free to leave any other questions about this frozen cookie dough tutorial in the comments on this post and I’ll respond with answers.

Can you freeze chocolate chip cookie dough?

Yes! Chocolate chip cookie dough is the most commonly frozen cookie dough in our house. Follow the instructions for freezing drop cookies.

Can you freeze sugar cookie dough?

Yes! Sugar cookie dough freezes great!

If you’re making non-cut out sugar cookies, you’ll want to follow the instructions for freezing drop cookies. For cut-out sugar cookies, follow the instructions for freezing cut out cookies.

Can you freeze gingerbread cookie dough?

Yep! Cut-out gingerbread cookie dough freezes very well. This is perfect if you want to get ahead on your holiday cookie making and have a gingerbread cookie dough ready to bake.

Can you freeze a container of cookie dough?

Yes! I have instructions in this post for freezing a whole batch of dough without rolling the balls.

You’ll have to thaw the entire batch of dough to make the cookies, but there is nothing wrong with freezing this way.

How long does cookie dough last in the freezer?

According to Bob’s Red Mill, frozen homemade cookie dough will last 6 to 12 months in the freezer. My family goes through frozen cookie dough much faster than that though, so I’ve never had to throw it out!

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Can you bake cookies from frozen?

Can you bake frozen cookie dough is a very common question. Well, the answer is: Yes, sort of. Whether or not you can bake frozen cookie dough depends on the type of cookies:

• Drop cookies will be frozen in round balls and won’t achieve the necessary spread if you try baking frozen cookie dough.
• Cut Out Cookies are much thinner with a larger surface area than drop cookies, so they thaw much quicker when baked, so you won’t have the same concerns as you do with drop cookies.

Here’s some more info on the best way to bake each type of frozen cookie dough:

How to Bake Frozen Cookie Dough

Baking frozen cookie dough is a breeze, but how you bake depends slightly on what type of cookie you are making. I’ll break it down into cut out cookies and drop cookies below:

Baking Frozen Drop Cookies

When baking balls of cookie dough that have been frozen, you’ll need to allow some defrost time before baking. Why can’t you just bake the cookie dough balls straight from frozen?

There are three reasons that frozen drop cookies need to be set out at room temperature to thaw before baking:

1. If you don’t thaw the cookies from their frozen state before baking, the baking time will be much longer since the cookie dough is so cold.
2. With a longer baking time, the edges of the cookies could get dried out, over cooked, burnt, or just crunchy before the middle has a chance to finish baking.
3. In addition that, the cookies won’t spread in their typical way and you can end up with unevenly baked cookies or odd shaped cookies.

For best results your frozen dough balls should thaw until the dough is pliable but not overly soft. This will allow your fresh-baked cookies to be normal shaped instead of domed because they didn’t spread enough.

Note: You should follow these guidelines unless the original recipe directs you to bake them from frozen.

Baking Frozen Cut Out Cookies

When baking frozen cut out cookies, you won’t have the same concerns that you have with drop cookies.

The best way to bake cut out cookie dough cookies is if they’re slightly cold still. It’s typical in a cut out cookie recipe to chill the rolled dough and cut out shapes prior to baking them anyway.

Baking from the chilled state, you’ll have nice edges because the cookies won’t spread, which in this case is a actually a bonus.

Homemade Cookie Recipes That Freeze Well:

Now that you know how to freeze cookie dough, it’s time to get to it! Here are some of our family favorite cookie recipes to keep stashed in the freezer for any time that a sweet tooth strikes.

Try this Frozen Cookie Dough Tutorial!

Next time you’re wondering how to freeze cookie dough, give this frozen cookie dough tutorial a try!

Did you love how easy it is to stash your favorite cookie dough in the freezer? Leave a comment below and give it a review for others to see what you thought of this kitchen tip.

On Instagram? Share your photo and tag me @goodlifeeats #goodlifeeatsrecipes. I’d love to see a photo of your cookies!

More How to Freeze Tutorials:

Now that you know everything there is to know about freezing cookies, here are some more helpful freezer. tutorials:

Did you know that you can also freeze kale? Here’s How to Freeze Kale 4 different ways, depending on how you want to use it!

Frozen grapes make for great snacks on hot days, and they can be thrown into smoothies. Here’s How to Freeze Grapes the easy way!

Next time you make a batch pancakes or waffles, make some extra and follow this quick and easy tutorial for How to Freeze Pancakes and Waffles. I’ve also given instructions on how to reheat them!

Freezing raspberries is a wonderful way to enjoy summer’s harvest year-round! This guide explains How to Freeze Raspberries, plus it answers the most commonly asked questions about thawing frozen raspberries and using them in recipes.

Did you know that smoothies can easily be prepped in advance and frozen. So easy and delicious! Check out How to Make Freezer Smoothies.

Yep, you can freeze spinach too. Here’s How to Freeze Spinach, plus a yummy smoothie you can make with it.

Who doesn’t love a good kitchen tip? Looking for more kitchen tutorials? Check out the entire Kitchen Tips and Tricks archive for lots of great ideas!

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