Theoretically, you can pop cookies into airtight containers and freeze them for six months. In real life, we find that six weeks is a better estimate. Cookies grow stale and pick up off flavors in the freezer. Rich butter cookies stay freshest longest, and can be frozen for two to three months if they’re kept in airtight tins.
Soft, cakelike cookies; sticky bars, and many filled cookies do not freeze well. Cookies that have chocolate glazes, buttercream icings, or other potentially sticky toppings are best frozen before they’re frosted. If you must freeze the cookies after they’re glazed or frosted, freeze them in single layers on cookie sheets, then put them into tins with waxed paper between layers.
Most of the recipes on this site include information on whether the cookie can be frozen.
