Can You Freeze Cookies? Here's How to Make Holiday Treats Last

'Tis the season for irresistible dessert spreads and cookie swaps.

The holiday season is extra-sweet for many reasons, among them making memories with family and friends and indulging in delicious fare. But if holiday parties, cookie exchanges, and gifting find you with an overabundance of Christmas cookies (Is there such a thing?), you may be wondering, "Can you freeze cookies?"

The good news is, you can freeze cookies to enjoy later, but that's not all. Whether you’re making cookies to gift, serve, or trade this season, you can also make the dough ahead of time and freeze it for up to 3 months. That way, you’re not knee-deep in flour and sugar amidst the holiday chaos. Before you start loading up your freezer, take a look at our tips and tricks for freezing and thawing cookies and cookie dough.

How to Freeze Cookies

Freezing is a great way to carry the taste of the Christmas season throughout the rest of the year, but all cookie types aren't equally suitable for freezing. The best cookies to freeze are sturdy and simple, like drop cookies, cutouts, and cookie bars.

Overly delicate treats—like light and airy meringue kisses—generally don't hold up to freezing well. Cookies made with jam, fresh citrus juice, or zest don't freeze well either. Avoid freezing frosted or glazed cookies too, because the cookie part absorbs moisture and frosting loses its fluffy texture. The solution is to bake these types of cookies, freeze them un-iced or unglazed, and then thaw and decorate them before serving.

To freeze, start with baked cookies that are completely cooled, place them on a baking sheet in a single layer, and then set the sheet directly in the freezer. Once frozen, 30 to 60 minutes, stack them in an airtight food storage container with parchment paper or wax paper between layers to prevent the cookies from clumping together.

For extra protection or to keep cookies longer, up to a year, you can individually wrap each frozen cookie in plastic wrap and then stack them in a container, or store several cookies in a freezer storage bag and then in a container. The more layers between each cookie and the air, the better protected it is from freezer burn.

How to Thaw Frozen Cookies

When you’re ready to enjoy your cookies, remove them from the freezer a few hours in advance, leaving them to thaw at room temperature in the container they were stored in. Before adding icing or a chocolate drizzle, wait until they’re completely defrosted, and then have fun decorating!

To recreate that warm, right-out-of-the-oven, cookie-eating experience, you can warm up most thawed cookies by placing them on a baking sheet in a 325-degree oven for 5 to 10 minutes. On a smaller scale, a few seconds in the microwave gives you the same effect.

How to Freeze Cookie Dough

Having extra cookie dough isn't the most critical problem you could have. In fact, it's usually not a problem at all because you can freeze almost any kind of cookie dough for up to 3 months.

The best kind for freezing is a thick, robust dough, like the kind used for drop or cutout cookies, or the kind that requires refrigeration, like the store-bought slice-and-bake dough. If a cookie's dough is thin, it's probably best to bake the cookies first and then freeze them, rather than freeze the batter.

To freeze cookie dough, form it into one or more logs (making sure they'll fit into your freezer bag), tightly double-wrap each in plastic wrap, and then place the wrapped logs in a freezer bag. Make sure to label and date these logs, especially if you're working with several different kinds of dough.

Alternatively, you can spoon dough onto a cookie sheet, roll each into a ball or other cookie shape, and then set the loaded sheet in the freezer. Once the individual unbaked cookies are frozen, layer them in a freezer bag—with parchment or wax paper between layers—and store them until you’re ready to bake.

How to Thaw Cookie Dough

If you've just taken a log of dough out of the freezer, it's best to set it in the refrigerator overnight to thaw thoroughly. You know it's ready when you can easily slice through it with a knife, and then bake according to recipe directions.

If you're starting with frozen pre-portioned cookie dough shapes, place them on a greased baking sheet at room temperature for about 15 minutes, and then pop them in the oven. You can also bake cookies directly from the freezer, but be mindful that frozen cookie dough may need an extra minute or two to bake, so keep an eye on the oven to make sure your treats don’t burn.

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