Absolutely. In fact, I strongly recommend making them ahead of time in order to save yourself time and effort. There are essentially three ways to make Valentine's Cookies ahead of time. We'll cover all three methods below, along with my personal recommendation. Let's discuss.
Quick Answer:
Valentine's cookies can indeed be made ahead of time. The first, and easiest method, is baking and decorating the cookies fully, and then letting them sit at room temperature in an airtight container. Stored like this, most cookies will retain their texture and flavor perfectly for up to five days. The next best method is baking and then decorating your cookies and freezing them. Finally, cookie dough can be shaped and frozen, and then baked directly from frozen (just add two minutes to the bake time).
Make-Ahead Timeline for Valentine's Cookies
3 Months Ahead: Freeze Cookie Dough
- Prep and Shape: Start by prepping your dough, and then forming the dough into balls or logs.
- Freeze It: Transfer the dough to freezer bags, label with a date and what you intended to bake with it. You don't realize how important the labeling is until you've used the wrong dough for the wrong recipe.
- Bake: Cookies can be baked directly from frozen, just add two minutes to the bake time.
- Best For: This method is best for sugar cookies, traditional chocolate chip cookies, or shortbread cookies.
1-2 Weeks Ahead:
- Bake and Cool: Bake the cookies completely, and then allow them to come to room temperature.
- Freeze: Freeze the cookies in a single layer (such as on a sheet pan), and then transfer them to airtight containers. The cookies can remain frozen like this for up to two weeks.
- Thaw and Decorate: Let the cookies thaw for about two hours before decorating.
- Best For: This method is best for cut-out cookies that you'll decorate a day or two before Valentin's Day.
3-5 Days Ahead: Bake and Decorate Completely
- Bake and Decorate: Bake and then fully decorate your Valentine's Day cookies. This includes cookies that use royal icing or buttercream.
- Set: Let the icing set for 24 hours before stacking. Use parchment paper to create layers. Do not stack the cookies on top of each other.
- Store: Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. The cookies will keep nicely for 3-5 days, with flavors actually improving over the first 2-3 days.
- Best For: Decorated sugar cookies.
- My Recommendation: This is my preferred make-ahead method for almost all types of cookies, including traditional chocolate chip cookies.
Bonus Method: 1-3 Days Ahead, Refrigerate the Dough
- Tip: Most cookie dough improves with refrigeration, as it allows the flavors to develop and prevents spreading.
- Wrap the Dough: Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap, and pop it in the fridge.
- Room Temp: Bring the dough to room temperature before baking.
- Best For: Sugar cookie dough, chocolate cookies, and any rolled cookies.
Tips for Best Results
- Proper Storage Is Crucial: Use airtight containers only, and separate cookies into layers using parchment paper.
- Freeze Properly: If your cookies are decorated, I recommend flash freezing for 1-2 hours so that the icing retains a nice texture. You want the icing to harden completely. Then transfer the frozen cookies to airtight containers.
- Label Everything: Seriously, label your frozen dough with a date and what you were baking with it. You'll thank me later.
- Royal Icing vs Buttercream: Royal icing dries and sets hard, meaning it handles freezing better than buttercream. This makes royal icing ideal for freezing.
Bottom Line
Valentine's cookies can indeed be prepped in advance. How you choose to prep your cookies in advance depends primarily on how far ahead you want to make them and what type of cookie you are preparing.
Happy Baking!
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