If you do choose to thaw the drop cookie dough balls, place them on a baking sheet and defrost them in the fridge overnight or on the countertop for 1-2 hours.
If you’re baking packaged frozen dough balls or following a recipe that’s intended for frozen dough balls, just follow the instructions as-is. Keep an eye on the cookies as they approach the recommended baking time. Pull them from the oven when they look just slightly underdone—they’ll finish baking outside the oven.
Chocolate chip cookies Chewy chocolate chip cookies Chickpea chocolate chip cookies (gluten free)
You can place the scoops very close together on the baking sheet, so long as the dough balls aren’t touching. Consider spraying your tablespoon or ice cream scoop with cooking spray to help the sticky dough release more easily. The baking sheet needs to fit into your freezer. If it won’t fit, you can scoop your dough balls into a few empty ice cube trays instead. Spray the trays with cooking spray beforehand, if desired.
Label the bags with the date, number of dough balls, and cookie type. Bake the frozen dough balls within 6 weeks for the best results. After that, the flavor and texture of the cookies might suffer. If you froze your dough scoops in ice cube trays, just pop them out and put them in a zip-close bag.
A slight thaw is all you need. As long as it’s just a little soft on the outside, it will slice and bake up just fine.
Cookie dough logs should always be chilled thoroughly before slicing and baking, and there’s really no difference between working with a dough log that’s been chilling in the fridge for an hour or one that’s slightly thawed after being frozen for a month.
Add just a little time to account for the still-frozen centers of the cookie rounds. Even with the longer estimated baking time, though, check the cookies regularly for doneness. Shortbread cookies can go from slightly browned to overcooked very quickly.
You’ll usually be instructed to mix the dough and work it into a log shape by hand, aiming for a log with a diameter equal to those of the cookies you want to bake. Work the dough only as much as is necessary to form it into the log shape. You can use a recipe for classic shortbread cookies, or try your hand at shortbread swirls.
After you wrap the log, place it in a zip-close freezer bag. Label the bag with the date and cookie type.
You want the dough to thaw but remain thoroughly chilled, so defrosting in the fridge is the better option if you have the time.
If the dough is getting stuck in your cookie cutters, try dipping the cutters in flour first, or spraying them with cooking spray.
While the finished cookies cool a bit, whip up some colorful icing and add a decorative touch!
Aim for making the discs around 1 in (2. 5 cm) thick, but don’t worry about being precise with the thickness or the circular shape. Cut-out sugar cookies are great for many types of get-togethers and celebrations.
