How To Bake Perfect Cookies From Frozen Dough Without Thawing First

Homemade cookies from scratch are one of life's simple pleasures, but let's be real, it's time consuming and not all that simple to whip up a batch of cookie dough when you have the urge to treat yourself. Sure, you could indulge in pre-made dough from the grocery store, but we all know store-bought can be hit or miss at best. A great solution is to freeze a batch or two of your favorite recipe when you have some time on your hands, but most cookie recipes don't include baking tips for frozen dough. We have some good news — the solution to a fast, freshly baked from frozen cookie can be as simple as adding a few extra minutes to the timer.

Because frozen cookie dough balls are relatively small and have so much surface area, they can be baked directly from the freezer without any need to thaw them out first. Just space them out as you usually would on your cookie sheets and bake as usual. At the end of the recommended baking time, add a minute or two longer if your cookies aren't quite done.

If you like to scoop out extra large cookies, decrease the recommended oven temperature in your recipe by 25 degrees for the best results when you bake them from frozen. That's because the oven heat will take a bit longer to reach the center of a large dough ball and while the cookie is finishing the edges could become overdone. Experiment with one or two cookies to find the perfect combination of time and temperature for your preferred cookie scoop.

Baking straight from the freezer also works for other shaped cookies, not just rounded scoops. If you've frozen a batch of roll-and-slice icebox cookies, for example, you can bake slices from the roll directly out of the freezer. Likewise, cut-out sugar cookie dough shapes can go straight from frozen to baked for a fast batch of festive treats. Remember that resting your cookie dough is a step that actually makes your cookies better, so don't hesitate to tuck a batch in to bake when the mood strikes.