Freezer Cookie Dough Balls, Baked From Frozen
A stiff, scoopable chocolate chip dough designed to be portioned at 45 g, frozen solid on a tray, then baked six at a time straight from the freezer. Cool butter and low free water keep the balls firm through three months at 0°F. Bake at 350°F and add two to three minutes depending on ball size. No thawing, no overnight planning.
Ingredients
- 2⅓ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ¾ tsp fine sea salt
- 12 tbsp 1½ sticks unsalted butter, cool and pliable at 65°F (18°C)
- ¾ cup light brown sugar packed
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1 large egg cold
- 1 large egg yolk cold
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1¼ cups semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Whisk the flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Set aside.2⅓ cups all-purpose flour, 1 tsp baking soda
- Beat the cool butter with both sugars for 2 minutes, until just combined. Do not aerate it pale and fluffy.12 tbsp 1½ sticks unsalted butter, cool and pliable at 65°F (18°C), ½ cup granulated sugar
- Beat in the egg, the yolk and the vanilla for 30 seconds.1 large egg, 2 tsp vanilla extract
- Add the dry mix. Beat on low until no flour is visible.
- Fold in the chocolate chips by hand. The dough will be stiff.1¼ cups semisweet chocolate chips
- Portion on a gram scale at 45 g per ball. Roll each one smooth.
- Space the balls an inch apart on a parchment-lined sheet pan.
- Freeze uncovered for 2 hours, until hard.
- Transfer to an airtight bag. Press the air out, seal, and label with the date.
- To bake: heat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Place 6 frozen balls on a lined pan, 3 inches apart.
- Bake 14 to 15 minutes, until the edges are set and lightly browned and the middle still looks soft.
- Rest 5 minutes on the hot pan before moving them.
Nathan's Tips
- Weigh the balls. Every bake time on this page assumes 45 g. Ten grams either way moves the timer by about a minute.
- Two hours on the tray, then the bag. We skipped this once and got a single frozen lump. There is no recovery from that except baking it as a slab.
- Bake the vanilla-forward doughs first. Shape and texture held past day 90 in our test, but the vanilla was clearly fainter. Under 60 days is the sweet spot.
