How to Freeze Cookies and Desserts

One way to make your holiday baking go better is to learn how to freeze cookies and desserts so that you don’t have to do all the baking in one day.

It all depends on the type of time you have available but learning to freeze and store your delicious creations will help a lot.

Be sure to check out the rest of our easy cookies recipes, too!

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How to FREEZE Cookies, Desserts and Baked Goods

How to Freeze Cookies, Desserts and Baked Goods

Wondering how to freeze cookies and your other baked goods?

The first thing you need to be able to freeze and store your holiday baked goods is the right supplies.

You’ll need parchment paper, freezer safe containers, plastic zipping bags, butcher paper and spray oil.

These things will help you save your baking goods properly so that they taste freshly baked on the day you enjoy them.

All of these need various methods of freezing to ensure that they are still fresh and tasty when it’s time to eat them.

One important tip to remember is not to freeze any of your baked good recipes that are low fat or fat free.

They are best cooked and served the same day as they get dry or conversely gummy when frozen.

Freeze Cakes, Cheesecakes and Pies

The hardest of the above to freeze are fully made cakes, cheesecakes and pies.

These require specialty containers to ensure that they don’t get too much frost and that you also thaw them properly for best results. Let’s start with these.

Fully made cakes

If you completely frost and prepare a cake you can still freeze it. It takes a little more work, though. Use parchment paper or freezer paper oiled up really good with spray oil that is flavorless like corn oil or you can also use Crisco.

Then wrap the cake tightly with the freezer paper, wrap that with plastic wrap, freeze until solid and then put the entire container into a tin or hard freezer safe box to protect it from other things in your freezer.

Unwrap completely before thawing.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

Cheesecakes

These have very high moisture content but can be frozen if you are careful. Most cheesecakes are made in a spring form pan.

You can freeze directly on the spring form or you can make a round of hard cardboard (or buy one at the craft store).

If using cardboard, the best way to do it is to wrap the cardboard with foil.

Slide the cheesecake onto the foil-wrapped cardboard; you can spray some spray oil on it first to help remove it later.

Then wrap with plastic wrap (bottom and all), spraying oil on the top layer too.

Wrap with multiple layers, freeze fully and then place in a harder container to protect. Unwrap completely to thaw in refrigerator.

When almost completely thawed, put back on spring form bottom or other serving platter for serving.

For fruit-covered cheesecake, make that at the time of serving for added freshness.

cream-pie

Pies

Freezing cream pies doesn’t work very well, so use these instructions for fruit pies and make creamed pies closer to the time of serving. You can freeze pie crusts in their tins and bake from frozen.

To freeze a fully baked fruit pie, place it in the freezer uncovered, freeze, and then pop it in a freezer bag.

To serve, unthaw overnight in the refrigerator or thaw on the counter for three to five hours. Break open the seal so that the moisture from freezing can escape to avoid a mushy crust.

You can freeze unbaked pie crust the same way. Just don’t slit the crust beforehand.

When baking, unwrap, slit the crust and bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 Fahrenheit and bake for 45 more minutes.

The other items mentioned above can be frozen very easily just by first bringing to room temperature, then starting in the refrigerator.

Finally wrap with freezer paper or parchment paper, and then pop into a freezer bag.

You can freeze these items for six months.

To thaw, just take out and put on the counter. Or for anything with eggs in it, start in the refrigerator.

Other Tips for Freezing Your Holiday Baked Goods

Soft Ginger Cookie Recipe - FB

Fully cooked cookies

You can also freeze fully cooked cookies.

Find a round freezer safe container and put a single layer of fully cooled cookies in the bottom, top with parchment paper, adding layers until the container is full, topping again with parchment, and then sealing the container.

To thaw, just remove cookies to a serving platter and let thaw for about 2 or 3 hours the day you want to enjoy them.

The great thing about cookie dough is that it can be frozen and saved for up to six months.

You can make a lot of dough, separate it up into serving sizes and freeze in a long bar to chop into the right size for baking.

You can also save in balls for cookies like peanut butter cookies that are supposed to start as balls.

Thaw, and then process as usual. Always unwrap fully before thawing.

homemade-bread

Raw yeast dough

Shape the dough after the first rise into the shape you will bake it in.

A ball for a roll, three balls for a clover roll, a log for a bread loaf and so forth.

Shape the dough, freeze on a pan in the freezer, then pop into freezer bags.

You can also wrap the dough in parchment or freezer paper, then pop into a larger freezer bag to keep more in one bag.

To prepare, thaw in the prepared baking pan that you want to cook the bread in.

It will rise as it thaws.

You can start in the fridge the night before or you can do it within 3 to 5 hours the day of. It’s up to you.

Bake as usual according to your instructions.

Quick breads or muffins

Fully cool the bread or muffins after baking, then wrap tightly in freezer paper, parchment paper or foil.

Then wrap with plastic wrap tightly and put inside a freezer bag.

The extra steps will ensure that your bread is moist and delicious after thawing.

To thaw, unwrap and thaw on the counter for 2 to 3 hours, or in the fridge overnight.

Wrapping in foil is especially good with coffee cake.

You can thaw in the foil, then toss in the oven to warm.

How to Store Baked Goods

Freezing your holiday baked goods and storing them for later is a great idea because you can bake just a little at a time, or have a quick bread baking day, a cookie dough mixing and freezing day and so forth.

Most of these items will still taste fresh with proper storage for up to three months, some for six months.

If you have extra freezer space, this gives you quite a long time to prepare for your holiday baking.

Find more sanity saving home tips to help make your house run more smoothly.

18 Comments

  1. I need to be better about freezing treats, these are great tips!

  2. Thank you for this post! I never really know how long I can freeze something! I have some frozen gingerbread cookies right now! Freezing cookies works for me because when I make them, I can’t stop eating them and I hate to throw them away just because I can’t control myself! Freezing is the way to go!

    1. LOL. I totally know what you’re talking about Gigi. My husband and I have been known to throw away goodies because we just can’t stop eating them. But keeping some out fresh and putting the others in the freezer makes it easy to do smart portions 🙂

  3. Hi! Visiting your from ‘Oh My Heartsie’ Link-up! Great and unique post, if I ever have left over desserts – will definitely try!

  4. I’d never even thought to freeze any treats…mainly because they’re all devoured the same day they’re made:) I also would have thought the taste/texture would somehow be altered after being frozen, but now I see that all you need are the right supplies!

    1. Freezing then the right way is definitely the key! We make buckeyes almost every Christmas… and freezing them right lets us enjoy them for months to come… oh yum!

  5. My husband’s grandmother is always freezing things, includes all of her yummy baked goods! It’s the way to go during the holidays! Thanks for sharing at #HomeMattersParty!

  6. Great tips! I freeze a lot of these things and learned a few new tricks! Thanks so much for sharing this with us at Throwback Thursday! I’m looking forward to what you’ll have next week! 🙂

    Mollie

  7. Thanks so much for the great tips here. Sometimes I need to do things ahead.
    Hugs,
    FABBY

  8. Thanks for sharing this info, it couldn’t have come at a better time for me.

    I am due to have key hole surgery on my knee on Monday but have my birthday on Wednesday, we are expecting lot of visitors but I am always wary about freezing things like this because of the taste.

    I’m going to give it a whirl!

  9. Thanks for all the wonderful tips! I love baking, but I feel like I’m having to do it everyday when I could just do mass batches and freeze. I’m glad I read this so now I can try some of the techniques.

    1. Mass batches are the way to go! I love having fresh baked goods… but I don’t like having to spend the weekend doing it. Happy eating 🙂

  10. These are great tips for freezing those special desserts! Thanks so much for sharing your special post with us at Full Plate Thursday this week. Hope you have a great week and come back to see us real soon!
    Miz Helen

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