Christmas cookies: bake a big batch now and freeze them, or wait until December?
Holiday baking content is already everywhere in early November and I am trying to plan. I bake for about 15 people across two family gatherings, and last year I did everything the week before Christmas and was exhausted. This year I am tempted to bake shortbread and gingerbread now and freeze them, but I worry they will taste stale by the time anyone eats them. For people who freeze holiday cookies: which types actually hold up for a month, and which ones should I still bake fresh?
1 answer
- Freeze the dough, bake fresh
Freeze the dough, not the finished cookies. I portion shortbread dough into logs, wrap them tight, and slice and bake them the day before. They taste fresh because they are fresh, and the freezer work takes one afternoon instead of a week of baking. Anything with a soft icing or a jam filling is the exception - bake those fresh or they go soggy.