Lemon Butter Cookies
I know I’ve been all about being healthy the past few weeks but even I need the occasional cookie or sweet treat. A simple cookie won’t tip the scales if you’ve been cutting back, but it could temper those cravings that we all get now and again. Personally, I love a good chocolate chip cookie, especially if it’s right out of the oven. But every so often I prefer something fruity. Something with a little tang, and these lemon butter cookies absolutely fit the bill.
These cookies have three things I love: they’re full of butter, they’re full of lemon and they have just the right amount of sweetness. One bite and it’s citrus heaven. The secret to these cookies? Butter. As I mentioned, they’re full of it. I’m sorry, but a cookie just isn’t a cookie if it doesn’t have butter. While plenty of cookies can go without eggs or flour, a cookie without butter is… I don’t know what it is, but it certainly isn’t a cookie. At least not one worth talking about. Yes, you could use margerine or some butter substitute, but it wouldn’t be the same. Like so many things, there really is no good replacement for the classic. Luckily, you won’t have to worry about that since, as I have said a few times now, this cookie is full of it. That butter is actually what makes these cookies so delicious and why they literally melt in your mouth.
While my first choice is always a chocolate something, I have no problem going the opposite direction and eating something sweet and citrusy. These cookies fit that bill. They’re full of bright, tart lemon. But not just any lemon, they’re full of Meyer Lemon, my favorite. Meyers are the juicier, slightly sweeter cousin to the classic Eureka lemon… and they’re everywhere now. See, this is the height of citrus season. This is when you can get the Cara Caras, the Satsumas, the Blood Oranges and of course the Meyer Lemons. Since it’s citrus season now is the perfect time to make these cookies.
While these shortbread cookies are great on their own, Shelly Jaronsky takes them one step further and adds a delightful lemon icing to the top. That icing gives an extra burst of lemon flavor that puts these treats over the top. While they’re great any time of day, these cookies are ideal with a hot cup of tea and a good book. Of course I won’t judge if you eat them all by themselves morning, noon and night. After all, that’s what I do.
Ingredients
- 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, room temperature
- 1-3/4 cup powdered sugar, divided
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 4 tablespoons lemon juice, divided
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 1-1/2 cups flour
Instructions
- Mix the butter and 3/4 cup powdered sugar together until smooth, about 2 minutes.
- Add the cornstarch, salt, vanilla, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and zest until combined.
- Mix in the flour until just combined. Divide the dough in half and roll into 2 logs that are about 8 inches long. Wrap the logs in plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours and up to overnight.
- Once ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator and slice the logs into 1/2-inch thick rounds. Place the cookies on the sheet and bake for about 10 minutes or until golden. As soon as they come out of the oven, use the back of a spoon to make an indentation in the top of each cookie. Transfer cookies to a rack to cool completely.
- While the cookies bake, make the icing by whisking together the remaining lemon juice and powdered sugar until smooth. Spoon the icing into the indentations and let set. Serve.
