Single-serve Homemade Cookies

I'm not saying it's hot here in Southern California, but two Hobbits just threw a ring in my backyard and then fainted. The last thing I want to do right now is turn on an oven. Of course, that doesn't stop me from wanting fresh, homemade cookies, because DUH.

What, oh what, is a girl to do?

Allow me to present the freezer method for single- (or quadruple-) serve fresh, homemade cookies. This method works best for-- Well, I've really only tried it with chocolate chip cookies. I imagine it works with most drop cookies. I am guessing that this method is limited only by your imagination, but I don't know for certain. YMMV

You will need:
+Baking sheet
+Lining for the baking sheet (I've used both aluminum and parchment equally well)
+Freezer

Make your cookie dough like normal. I suppose you could buy the dough if you wanted, but why would you want to, when the part that takes the longest is the baking? Anyway, make up your dough. Then drop your cookies onto a lined baking sheet like normal. If you're making peanut butter cookies, go ahead and use the fork to make your cross-hatch marks. However you normally get your dough ready for baking. EXCEPT, instead of giving the dough room to spread, you can put them as close together as you can get them without actually touching each other.

Partway through the process. Fill the whole tray! Depending on your recipe, you may need more than one.

Pop the tray in the freezer. You want to give the dough-servings enough time so that they're fairly hard and won't stick to each other. I try to give them an hour, although I've been known to get distracted and remember they're still in there two days later. That's a bit long, and depending on the state of your freezer, it might be too long, but so far I've been lucky.  :)

At the end of your hour (or days, whatever), grab a freezer bag (or two) and write the baking instructions on the bag. You probably want to identify what the recipe is, too. Something like "Chocolate chip cookies. Bake at 375F for 10-12 minutes" or whatever the instructions are for your recipe. Now, since the dough has been frozen, you'll want to give them a couple of extra minutes, but you won't need too much more than that. Then pull your tray, pop the dough into the freezer bag, squeeze all the excess air out, and pop back in the freezer.

I added two minutes to both sides, to give them a bit of thaw-time.

The next time you want fresh baked cookies, you won't have to bake an entire batch. If you want, you can bake only one or four in your toaster oven. (This is especially useful on One-Ring days when using the full oven is simply not an option.) Just follow the instructions you wrote on the outside of your bag.

Just put them in the toaster oven.

Oh yeah! Almost there...

Voila! Homemade, single-/quadruple-serve cookies.

Are you SURE they should cool first?

Delicious!

No. It totally came out of the oven that way. I swear!

I don't know how long they'll last in your freezer before they get freezer burnt. I did once forget about a bag I had (can you believe it?) and by the time I found them again half a year later, they were getting a little freezer burnt, so they won't last forever. But they'll last longer than they would in your fridge.