Bity
This freezer cookie dough means warm chocolate chip cookies are never more than fifteen minutes away in our house. I make one big batch of soft brown sugar dough, scoop it into balls, freeze them on a tray and tip them into a bag. Then whenever someone fancies a cookie, I bake two, or ten, straight from frozen.
Honestly, the freezer stash started as self defence. A whole tray of fresh cookies on the side never lasted the evening, so now I only bake what we will eat. As a bonus, cookies baked from frozen come out thicker and softer in the middle than ones made from freshly mixed dough, with crisp golden edges.
In short, freezer cookie dough is a soft brown sugar chocolate chip dough scooped into balls, frozen solid on a lined tray for 1 to 2 hours, then bagged and kept for up to 3 months. You bake the balls straight from frozen at 180°C (350°F) for 12 to 14 minutes, and one batch makes 20 to 24 cookies at about 220 calories each.
Quick Breakdown
Why You’ll Love This Freezer Cookie Dough
- Bake from frozen. No thawing and no planning ahead. In fact, baking them frozen is what keeps them thick.
- Bake only what you need. Two cookies for a Tuesday night pudding, a full tray when friends drop round.
- Keeps for 3 months. As a result, one batch covers a whole season of lunchbox treats.
- Bakery style texture. Crisp at the edges, soft and gooey in the centre, with big pools of melted chocolate.
- Nine pantry ingredients. Butter, two sugars, eggs, vanilla, flour, bicarb, salt and chocolate.
Ingredient Notes
- Butter. 225 g (1 cup), softened. It should dent easily with a finger but not look greasy. Butter that is too warm is the main reason cookies spread.
- Brown sugar. 150 g (3/4 cup). It brings moisture and a toffee flavour, which keeps the centres chewy.
- White sugar. 100 g (1/2 cup) for crisp, golden edges.
- Eggs. Two eggs, at room temperature if you remember.
- Vanilla extract. One teaspoon.
- Plain flour. 300 g (2 1/2 cups). Weighing it gives the most reliable result.
- Baking soda. One teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda, for spread and browning.
- Salt. Half a teaspoon. It makes the chocolate taste richer.
- Chocolate chips. 200 g (1 cup). I actually used chopped chocolate chunks in the photos, which melt into bigger pools, but chips work exactly the same.
How to Freeze Cookie Dough
The secret to good freezer cookie dough is freezing the balls separately before they go into a bag. If you scoop the dough straight into a container, the balls freeze into one solid lump. Instead, spread them on a lined tray, freeze until solid, and only then bag them. After that, they stay loose and you can grab exactly as many as you want.
Label the bag with the date, the oven temperature and the baking time. Then anyone in the house can bake a batch without hunting for the recipe. King Arthur Baking uses the same scoop, freeze and bag method, and notes that small frozen balls bake in about the same time as chilled dough.
How Long to Bake Freezer Cookie Dough
Bake the balls straight from frozen at 180°C (350°F) for 12 to 14 minutes, until lightly golden around the edges. The middles will still look a little soft; they firm up as the cookies cool on the tray.
| Bake time | Result |
|---|---|
| 12 minutes | Pale edges, very soft and gooey centre |
| 13 minutes | Golden edges, soft bakery style centre |
| 14 minutes | Deep golden edges, chewier all the way through |
How To Make Freezer Cookie Dough Balls
1. Cream the butter and sugars. First, in a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and white sugar until smooth and fluffy. This takes about 3 minutes with an electric mixer.
2. Add the eggs and vanilla. Next, add the eggs and vanilla extract and mix until combined.
3. Add the dry ingredients. Then stir in the flour, baking soda and salt until a soft dough forms. Stop as soon as the flour disappears.
4. Fold in the chocolate. After that, fold in the chocolate chips until evenly spread through.
5. Scoop the balls. Now scoop the dough into balls using a spoon or cookie scoop, and place them on a lined tray in a single layer.
6. Freeze, then bag. Freeze the tray for 1 to 2 hours until the balls are solid. Transfer them to a freezer-safe bag or container, label it and freeze for up to 3 months.
7. Bake from frozen. Finally, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Place the frozen balls on a lined baking tray, leaving space between them, and bake for 12 to 14 minutes until lightly golden around the edges. Let the cookies cool on the tray.
Why Are My Cookies Spreading Too Much?
Cookies from frozen dough balls spread too much mainly because the butter was too warm or the balls softened before baking. Use butter that is soft but cool, weigh the flour and move the balls straight from the freezer to the oven. The usual causes:
- The butter was too warm. Usually this is the culprit. Soft but cool butter holds air; melted butter makes flat cookies.
- The dough sat out too long. Move the balls from freezer to oven without letting them soften on the side.
- The tray was hot. Let the tray cool between batches, since warm metal starts melting the dough before the oven sets it.
- Too little flour. Cup measures vary a lot, so weigh it if you can.
Tips for the Best Freezer Cookie Dough
- Do not thaw freezer cookie dough before baking. Baking from frozen keeps the cookies thick and soft.
- Slightly underbake them for a softer, bakery style centre.
- Freeze the dough balls flat first so they do not stick together.
- Press a few extra chocolate chips on top before baking for that pretty, chunky look.
- Use a cookie scoop so every ball is the same size and bakes evenly.
Storage
- Freezer. Keep freezer cookie dough balls in a labelled, freezer-safe bag or container for up to 3 months. Squeeze out as much air as you can to avoid freezer burn.
- Baked cookies. Store in an airtight tin for 3 to 4 days.
- Raw dough. As tempting as it is, avoid nibbling the unbaked dough. Houston Methodist explains the risks from both raw eggs and raw flour.
Variations and Substitutions
- Different chocolate. Dark, milk or white chocolate all work, or use a mix.
- Nuts. Swap 50 g of the chocolate for chopped toasted pecans or walnuts.
- Sea salt finish. A few flakes on top right before baking make the chocolate sing.
- A tangier bake. If you keep a sourdough starter, my sourdough discard cookies are thick and chewy with a subtle tang.
- Brownies instead. When you need a crowd sized traybake, my sheet pan brownies make 24 bars from one pan.
What to Serve With Freezer Cookie Dough Balls
A warm cookie with a cold glass of milk is the classic for a reason. For pudding, I sandwich a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream between two cookies still warm from the oven.
If you are filling the freezer anyway, make a tray of my freezer lasagna on the same afternoon. Dinner and pudding are then both sorted for a busy night.
Frequently Asked Questions
Freezing and Baking
Can you bake freezer cookie dough straight from frozen?
Yes, no thawing needed. Space the frozen balls on a lined tray and bake at 180°C (350°F) for 12 to 14 minutes, until lightly golden at the edges. Baking from frozen keeps the cookies thick and soft.
How long do frozen cookie dough balls last?
Up to 3 months in a labelled, freezer-safe bag or container with the air squeezed out. Once baked, the cookies keep for 3 to 4 days in an airtight tin.
How many cookies does one batch of freezer cookie dough make?
Between 20 and 24 cookies, depending on the size of your scoop. A cookie scoop keeps every ball the same size, so they bake evenly.
Do frozen cookie dough balls need extra baking time?
Very little. Small frozen balls bake in 12 to 14 minutes at 180°C (350°F), only a minute or so longer than fresh dough. 12 minutes gives a gooey centre and 14 minutes a chewier cookie.
Ingredients and Troubleshooting
Can I use milk chocolate chips in cookie dough for the freezer?
Yes. Use the same 200 g (1 cup) of dark, milk or white chocolate chips or chopped chocolate, or a mix of all three.
Why do cookies from frozen dough spread too much?
Usually because the butter was too warm when the dough was made. Use soft but cool butter, weigh the flour and bake the balls straight from the freezer on a cool tray.
Can I use salted butter in freezer cookie dough?
Yes. Use the same 225 g (1 cup) of salted butter and reduce the added salt from half a teaspoon to a pinch.
Can I freeze cookie dough as a log instead of balls?
Yes, then slice and bake from frozen. However, scooped balls bake thicker and more evenly, which is why I prefer them.
Is it safe to eat raw cookie dough from the freezer?
No. The dough contains raw eggs and raw flour, which can both carry harmful bacteria, so always bake it before eating.
Ingredients
- 225 g butter softened (1 cup)
- 150 g brown sugar 3/4 cup
- 100 g white sugar 1/2 cup
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 300 g plain flour 2 1/2 cups
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 200 g chocolate chips 1 cup
Instructions
- In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and white sugar until smooth and fluffy.
- Add the eggs and vanilla extract. Mix until combined.
- Stir in the flour, baking soda and salt until a soft dough forms.
- Fold in the chocolate chips.
- Scoop the dough into balls using a spoon or cookie scoop.
- Place the dough balls onto a lined tray in a single layer.
- Freeze the dough balls on the tray until solid, about 1 to 2 hours.
- Transfer the frozen dough balls to a freezer-safe bag or container. Label and freeze for up to 3 months.
- To bake, preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F) and place the frozen dough balls onto a lined baking tray.
- Bake for 12 to 14 minutes until lightly golden around the edges.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the tray.
