Lemon Sugar Cookie Recipe
With over 1.5 million views and counting, this lemon sugar cookies recipe is one of the most popular cookie recipes on my website, and for good reason! These soft lemon sugar cookies can be made with one bowl, are thick, chewy and easy to freeze.
Soft and Chewy Lemon Cookies
I spent a whole week baking lemon cookies. The first batch failed miserably. The cookies were paper thin and see through!!
The batches got better as I made small tweaks to the recipe. By the time I was happy with the recipe, I had made it 5 times – that’s about 2 dozen cookies per batch, or 120 cookies in total!
Ryan took a lot of those with him to work. He said a few coworkers asked him if we had an industrial sized oven!
Why This Recipe is the Best
- Common pantry ingredients
- Great recipe for beginngers
- Chewy & soft cookies
- Bright, fresh, real lemon flavor
This lemon cookie recipe is chewy on the outside and soft on the inside. And they are just puffy enough! And the lemon flavor is everything you’d want it to be in a cookie. The fresh lemon zest really gives them a bright lemon flavor.
They are one of my favorite lemon desserts to make with whenever we have fresh lemons.
They follow similar steps as classic sugar cookies where you cream butter and white sugar together in a medium bowl. Add the remaining wet ingredients, including plenty of lemon zest. Then add in the flour mixture and use a hand mixer to gently combine.
Roll into balls and bake on parchment paper or a silicone mat. They turn out to be the best chewy lemon cookies!
Lemon Cookie Ingredients
- unsalted butter – adds flavor and and tender texture
- granulated sugar – adds sweetness, flavor and encourages browning
- lemon zest and lemon juice – adds that fresh lemon flavor
- egg – binds the cookies together by providing structure
- all purpose flour – flour is necessary to build structure in cookies
- baking soda – helps to leaven and lift the dough, affects browning and flavor
- salt – enhances the other flavors in the cookies
Where’s the extract?
You can add in 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract. If you’d like a more intense lemon flavor (hello lemon lovers) add 1 teaspoon lemon extract.
Lemon Cookie Recipe Variations
I have made these cookies multiple times with King Arthur’s Gluten Free Measure for Measure Flour with great success.
How to Make Lemon Cookies
- Cream together. In a large bowl or bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter, granulated sugar and lemon zest together on medium speed.
2. Mix in. Add in the fresh lemon juice and egg, beat again until smooth.
3. Dry ingredients. Gently add in the dry ingredients, mixing on low or by hand just until combined.
4. Refrigerate. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes.
5. Scoop. Use a cookie scoop to form dough balls, roll the balls in sugar then place on a silicone mat lined baking sheet. Bake and Cool.
Time Required
- 10 minutes to make the cookie dough
- 30-60 minutes to chill the dough in the fridge
- 11-13 minutes to bake the cookies
- 15 minutes to cool the cookies
How to Store Lemon Sugar Cookies
Store lemon sugar cookies in an airtight container on the counter for up to 5 days.
How to Freeze Lemon Cookie Dough
Drop cookie dough balls onto a silicone mat lined baking sheet. You can place the dough balls close together since you won’t be baking them.
Place the baking sheet in the freezer until the cookies are frozen solid, about 1 hour.
Remove the baking sheet from the freezer and transfer the frozen cookie dough balls to a ziplock freezer bag. Label the bag with baking directions.
Freeze the cookie dough for up to 3 months.
To bake: remove the dough from the freezer. Pre-heat the oven to 350ºF. Roll the balls in sugar and bake for 13-15 minutes. Frozen cookies may need to bake for 1-2 minutes longer than non frozen cookies.
Tips for Making Lemon Sugar Cookies
- Properly measure the all purpose flour using the spoon and sweep method.
- Use room temperature butter for easier creaming of the butter and sugar.
- Refrigerate the cookie dough for 30-60 minutes. I’m telling you, this helps to make the best thick & chewy cookies!
- Use a cookie scoop to form cookie dough balls.
- Bake cookies on a silicone baking mat.
Our lemony cookies have a chewy texture that is to die for! They complement our soft sugar cookies really well.
Lemon Cookies Recipe FAQs
The King Arthur website explains, “Chilling cookie dough before baking solidifies the fat in the cookies. As the cookies bake, the fat in the chilled cookie dough takes longer to melt than room-temperature fat. And the longer the fat remains solid, the less cookies spread.”
Refrigerating the cookie dough will help produce cookies that are chewier and softer because they won’t spread as much.
But I get it. Sometimes I really dislike chilling dough. So here’s my suggestion – if you can fit it in, refrigerate the dough, even for 15 minutes.
If not, at least refrigerate the dough between baking batches. For example, if you can fit 8 cookies on one baking sheet, bake those and put the dough in the fridge while you’re waiting.
It’s important to properly measure the flour to ensure the cookies are moist and not dry. Follow the section How To Properly Measure Flour. Also be sure to bake the cookies for the proper amount of time. Over-baking will produce dry cookies.
Sugar cookies can become hard if they are over-baked. Remove the cookie sheet from the oven as soon as the cookies have set and developed a bit of color. We do not want the edges of the cookies to brown.
This specific recipe does require that you refrigerate the cookie dough for 30-60 minutes before baking. Refrigerating the cookie dough will help produce cookies that are chewier and softer because they won’t spread as much.
The main difference between a sugar cookie and a regular cookie lies in their ingredients and flavor profile. Sugar cookies are primarily made with a higher proportion of sugar and butter, resulting in a sweeter and more delicate taste. Regular cookies, on the other hand, have a more balanced combination of ingredients like sugar, butter, flour, eggs, and often include mix-ins like chocolate chips, oats, or nuts, leading to a broader range of flavors and textures.
More Dessert Recipes
Lemon Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature, 1 cup – 230 grams
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar, 300 grams
- 3 tbsp lemon zest
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 large egg
- 3 cups all purpose flour, 360 grams
- 1 tsp baking soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- ¼ cup sugar, for rolling cookies, 50 grams
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, beat the butter, sugar, and lemon zest with an electric mixer for 1-2 minutes.
- Add in the lemon juice and egg, beat again to combine.
- Gradually add in the flour, baking soda and salt, mixing by hand with a spatula until combined.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30-60 minutes.
- Remove the dough from the fridge. Pre-heat the oven to 350ºF. Place 1/4 cup sugar in a bowl for rolling the cookies.
- Use a cookie scoop to form balls, rolling each ball into the sugar. Place the cookies 2 inches apart on a silicone lined baking sheet. Bake for 11-13 minutes or until the edges have a faint golden color.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then move to a cooling rack to cool completely.
As a coworker of Ryan’s, I’m gonna give these a 9.8/10. Subtracting a 0.1 for the visible lemon zest (which for some, might be a plus for denoting exactly WHAT kind of sugar cookie they were, but it just seemed odd) and another 0.1 for the oddball humans that don’t like lemon. I’m looking at you, Justin.
LOL thanks for the honest rating Weston!
How long would these last in the freezer?!
I would see what this post recommends! https://www.thekitchn.com/the-best-cookies-to-freeze-and-how-to-do-it-tips-from-the-kitchn-213638
I tried putting about 1 cup of leftover dough and it didn’t hold up well in the freezer.
Hi Kailani! I recommend rolling the dough into balls then freezing. Did you freeze the dough in one big ball instead individual cookie sized balls?
3tbs of flour or three cups?
Hi Esme! The recipe calls for 3 cups.
Is there a substitutions for the lemon zest? My mom doesn’t like any sort of zest and know immediately if I use it without telling her.
Hi Lynn! The lemon zest is important to this recipe for flavor. Maybe try looking for a lemon cookie recipe that uses lemon pudding mix instead?
I substituted lemon extract and it worked great!
I used 5 tbsp of lemon juice and it worked fine
Try using lemon essential oil. I use it for zest of lemon and orange oil for orange zest. It’s fantastic
Thank you for the recipe! Just made this for my family at my grandma’s house and everyone loved it! I had to substitute most of the lemon zest for more lemon juice though, ’cause I only had two lemons left. It worked pretty well, I think.
Quick question – do you know why your sugar cookies have this interesting shape? They are not completely flat on top, but have a bit of a dip in the middle. I’ve seen it on other recipes online, but mine never do that, they are always just dome-shapped. I don’t mind exactly, just got me curious.
Maybe fluff not compact the baking soda?
I’d like to know the reason for this too, Beth???
I’m thinking it might have something to do with how long you are baking them. I like to under bake my cookies just slightly, that way they are still chewy! But with under baking them, they will slightly fall in the center. Everyone has a different perception of what a “done” cookie is, so baking time will vary and effect this.
I also had dome shaped cookies. Not flat at all. I don’t have a mixer so maybe this is why?
Hi Emily! I used a hand mixer – did you mix by hand? I’m worried that the butter and sugar may not have been whipped enough if mixed by hand.
For flatter cookies, once they’re out of the fridge and you roll them, take a cup and ‘slightly’ flatten the top before putting them in the oven. I usually dip the bottom of a cup in some white sugar between each pressing, so the glass doesn’t stick to the cookies.
I haven’t tried this recipe yet, but you bet I will! YUM!
First, I have to say that I love this cookie!! Soft, perfectly lemon and delicious. I would also like to use this recipe to make just a plain sugar cookie too. Could I just leave out the lemon zest and lemon juice and maybe add some vanilla extract?
You will need to cut the baking soda by half if you omit the lemon juice or your sugar cookies will taste distinctly alkaline. Part of the purpose of the baking soda here is the neutralize and react with the acidity in the lemon juice.
Can you make these heart-shaped? I want to make some lemon-flavored heart shaped cookies for Valentine’s Day and these look like fun, but I’m not sure whether they would work for the effect that I’m looking for.
I’m sure they would turn out okay!
Maybe do Strawberry instead of Lemon for Valentines
Not sure where I went wrong. The dough seemed way too dry and crumbled. Followed the directions to a T.
I have made these several times and everyone loves them. However, I tried today with the KA gluten free flour and they did not turn out. Totally flat after baking. Any ideas on what happened? I am certain I included the baking soda.
Hey Karen! I’ve made these with the KA gluten free flour before! Honestly, sometimes baking flukes happen. You used room temperature butter – not melted, right?
First words out of my hubby’s mouth were ‘Oh. My. God.’ And he was right. Bright, sunny, delicious, and just the right combination of chewy and crispy. Definitely making these again. Thanks!
WOOHOO!!
Didn’t do the stars as I didn’t make these yet…. just waiting for the blasted snow to stop so I can go get lemons. Can’t wait ❤️❤️❤️
How important is “unsalted butter”? I just have salted butter.
Salted butter is fine! Just omit the additional salt in the recipe.
Hi beth, your cookies look scrumptious! Don’t mean to be a bother, but can you pls help with the flour and sugar measurement in grams. This will be very much appreciated, Thank you in anticipation.
Yinka from Nigeria.
Hi Yinka! I just added gram measurements, hope that helps!
What size cookie scoop?
I use this cookie scoop and make heaping dough balls (about 3 tbsp) – https://amzn.to/3hGVOl0
Can you recommend a good sugar substitute? Was hoping to make sugar free cookies.
Hi Shuney! I would recommend looking for a sugar free lemon cookie recipe on google. Sugar is a critical ingredient in this recipe.
You know, when i substitute sugar in my recipes, i use honey.
About how many lemons did you use for this recipe?
2 lemons! I used the zest from 2 lemons and then squeezed them to measure out 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice.
My dough turned out super flaky and the cookies never held their shape. Idk why!!
What if you don’t have a silicone baking sheet?
I’d recommend parchment paper!
Made these yesterday – were delish right out of the oven (crunchy and chewy like you said they’d be). I put them in an airtight container and today they are HARD!! Any guesses why? Thanks
Hi Hazel! Could you have possibly over baked them? Then they would get even harder as they sit.
I have found that if you stick a slice of bread in with cookies it keeps them soft. A client’s grandmother told me that tip. I tried it and it worked. I can’t wait to make these cookies I love lemon flavored items.
No, they weren’t over baked – they were perfect when they came out of the oven. Next time I’ll try the bread in the storage bowl – I have heard that before but never needed to do it! :-)
Cookies shouldn’t be perfect straight out of the oven they are still very soft and a bit undercooked sitting on the hot pan finishes them up and the cooling rack will give you the crunch. You definitely over baked them.
I love lemon anything in desserts! I cannot wait to make these cookies Beth! Thanks so much for sharing!
These look so yummy! I love lemon flavored desserts. Do you think you could use lemon essential oil?
Hi Karen! I’m not familiar with baking with essential oil. If you want them to be extra lemon-y you can add lemon extract.
The lemon oil would work well. I bake with it frequently. I would use it as a back up or convenience substitute though. In side-by-side tastings, baked goods made with zest are brighter tasting than those made with lemon oil.
I wouldn’t. Essential oils aren’t safe to consume, “Lemon oil should never be ingested, but it is safe to use in aromatherapy and diluted, topical applications”
Lemon extract, a food safe extract, would be okay!
Excited to make these! Do you have any estimates for a calorie count on these bad boys?
Hi Brittany! I don’t have an estimate, but if you copy and paste the ingredients into a calorie estimator, that will give you a ballpark!
I plugged the ingredients and servings into my fitness pal and it says 134 calories. Definitely not mad at that considering they taste AMAZING!! Thank you Beth!!
These are so yummy!! Mine didn’t flatten out as much as your cookies in the picture, but they tasted so good I don’t even care!!
These Lemon Sugar Cookies are great! Will pass on the recipe! Yummy cookie! Thanks!!
Can I substitute vegetable oil for butter in these delicious looking cookies?
Hi Telly! I haven’t tried it myself. If you are wanting a dairy free alternative to butter, I recommend Earth Balance butter!
I don’t have a cookie scoop. What diameter ball should I form with my hands?
The balls I formed were about 3 tbsp of dough!
These cookies are stalking me! I’ve seen them on Instagram and Pinterest at least every other day this week. They’re happening in my house this weekend, you’ve convinced me! lol!
Can the dough be refrigerated overnight?
Hi Loretta! Yes you can. Be sure to wrap the dough well in plastic wrap. I would recommend allowing the dough to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before rolling into balls. I haven’t tried refrigerating overnight, but my guess is that it would be fine!
I made these cookies today. In your pictures, it looks like the cookies should have spread. Mine stayed as small balls. Is this normal?
these are delicious! Would they turn out if uppity refrigerated the dough over night? or would that be too long? Also is there anything you can use in place of butter? my sister is trying to cut out dairy?
Hi Ashle!
Yes you can refridgerate over night. Be sure to wrap the dough well in plastic wrap. I would recommend allowing the dough to sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before rolling into balls. I haven’t tried refrigerating overnight, but my guess is that it would be fine!
I’ve made cookies with Earth Balance Vegan Butter before (it comes in a tub) and it works great!
Hi! I am wanting to make this recipe, but I would like to cut it in half, as I do not need very many cookies. Would you suggest using a medium size egg?
Hi Jelisa! I haven’t tried cutting this recipe in half and experimenting with egg size. Let us know if you try it with a medium egg.
Hi! I came across this recipe and realized I have everything at home right now to make it! (except only 2 cups of flour! ?) what do i need to do differently to make these cookies if I only have 2 cups?
Hi Kylie! Flour is a critical ingredient in adding structure to the cookies. I would wait until you have 3 cups of flour to make this recipe.
My first batch came out like little lemon biscuits but they were good!
Has anyone thought about or tried adding white choc chips to these? I haven’t tried but it sounds delicious to me and was curious.
I bet adding white chocolate chips would be delicious!
Just made these, delicious! I used brown sugar instead of white (it was all I had and I really wanted a cookie) and they turned out great! I’ll have to make them with white sugar one day to see what kind of difference it makes.. another day another adventure. Saw a previous comment about halving the recipe and I’m here to say I did, used 1 egg and like I said above, turned out great. Wonderful recipe, thank you!
Where do I find the measurements for this recipe? Thanks! :)
I found them! Thanks!
These are so good! Chewy and soft! I even added extra lemon juice and they are amazing! i will make these again!
Just made these. While the dough was thicker and dryer than I expected, the cookies were perfection. Thick, chewy and just the right touch of lemon. Hands down a winner!
Made these cookies yesterday and they were a hit. Easy recipe and delicious
These cookies are SO good! I think I’ve found my sugar cookie recipe. I love the lemon version (made them yesterday). I was also thinking you could make plain sugar cookies by substituting vanilla extra for the lemon juice and zest. Or Almond, substitute almond extract and maybe roll in sugar and sliced almonds … So many possibilities! Peppermint extract at the holidays, and roll them in crushed candy canes!
I believe this recipe is a direct copy of my Lemon Crinkle Cookies, so much so that you actually left my title in your recipe about 2/3 of the way through. Im giving you the benefit of the doubt that you made an error but please give credit to those who worked hard on content before placing it on your own site for profit. Thank You.
Hi Lauren! I wish you would have left your actual email address so I could get in touch with you. This post was originally published Thursday April 28th 2018. I updated the post for SEO, adding additional search terms similar to lemon sugar cookies, and republished it April 2020. In my post I talk about how I worked on testing this recipe multiple times back in 2018.
A perfect cookie ! Easy to make, lots of lemon flavor! just delicious ! We could’t stop eating them ! great recipe!!
Read the recipe and comments. I’m inspired to bake while on lockdown in Windhoek, Namibia! Lemon trees in my yard. Lemon cookies here I come!
During this time I have only found salted butter sticks. Will it still work out? Limited supply at the store.
Hi Michele! Definitely, just omit the additional salt.
tried few times already and absolutely love them:)
For the last 2 weeks I’ve been wanting something lemon, I’ll be making these tomorrow.
Thanks for the recipe!
How about rolling the first few into balls and putting them in the fridge while rolling the remaining dough? Then put them in the fridge while the first are cooking. Since it’s not a big lump of dough, the balls should cool quicker. Does that sound feasible to you?
Yes, that sounds like it would work. Just keep in mind, the dough might be slightly more sticky if trying to roll the balls right away.
I wanted to love this recipe, I was so excited… however even though I followed the recipe exactly, they did not bake right. They stayed in balls even after baking. I tried flattening them on my next batch (like peanut butter cookies) and again, they did not move from where I flattened them. I tried baking them longer and shorter and neither one helped. What gives?! They look nothing like your picture of them.
Hi Eryn! That doesn’t sound good. A few questions to help me trouble shoot: How did you measure the flour? How long did you refrigerate the dough? Did you make any substitutions?
Do I have to roll them in sugar are is that just adding for more flavor of sweet?
Hi Tara! You don’t have to roll them in sugar. It’s more for that classic sugar cookie look.
I tried refrigerating the cookies and putting strawberry buttercream in the middle to make a sandwich. It tastes like a macaron. No need to roll in sugar.
This cookie is delicious I will be making them again and again. I’d like to try them with orange zest. Keeper!!
These are the BEST sugar cookies I’ve ever made! Followed recipe exactly. So good! Thanks for the great recipe.
Really looking forward to making these. Just a quick question, do you have a fan assisted oven? What temp would you suggest is used for a fan assisted oven? Thanks :)
Hi Janine! I’m not familiar with fan assisted ovens, sorry!
How many calories does one cookie contain please?
I’ve made a lemon loaf cake with similar ingredients that called for vanilla extract. Do you think that would be a good add here to your recipe?
Yes! You can add 1 tsp vanilla extract.
How many grams were those sticks of butter each
1 stick butter = 1/2 cup butter = 113 grams butter
I’d love to try these.
My problem is I don’t have a cookie scoop, nor easy access to one.
I really wish there was a pic of just how big one of the pre-bake balls is compared to a thumb/finger (like the one of a baked cookie being picked up. Or failing that; how much (approx) one weighs?
Hi Yetta! My dough balls were about 3 heaping tablespoons of dough, that’s a good reference to use if you don’t have a cookie scoop.
made these today and my husband and i love them. perfect summertime cookie. goes great with iced tea and white wine. lol. i guess i made them a little small because i got 54 out of the batch but it was a happy accident. perfect size. i’ll be making these for family bbqs this summer. thank you.
This looks delicious, thank you for sharing!
These are SOOOOO good!! It’s definitely my new favorite. I added 1/2 tablespoon of vanilla extract to round out the tart and it was perfection. I used a large cookie scooper (3 tb) and baked it at 350 for 12 min. I literally stared it down until they were cool enough to take a bite. They were BURSTING with fresh lemon flavor. Sooo good.
These lemon cookies are delicious! Based on a few of the reviews I read, I added an additional tablespoon of lemon juice. Perfect! I’m a lemon junkie and can never have too much lemon.
These cookies were a hit with my “cookie monster” husband. I didn’t have butter so I used margarine cubes and they turned out perfect. Nice and soft and great lemon flavor. Thanks for the recipe. I will make these alot.
Anyone use Raw sugar to roll them in before you bake them? Was thinking that might be nice.
I made these for a wedding reception. I decided to add 1/4 teaspoon of lemon extract to the dough because i wanted extra lemont flavor. I cooked them for 11 minutes. They were soft and lemony. I overheard people raving about these cookies. I will absolutely make these again.
My cookies turned out dome-shaped. I followed the recipe exactly. In the video they used 3 big spoons of flour instead of 3 cups. Did I put too much flour?
Hi Elizabeth! The video is sped up so it only looks like 3 spoonfuls, but it is 3 cups. Did you measure the flour using the spoon and level method?
SOSOSOSOSO good!!! My 9 year old daughter made these with GF flour which means that I can eat them. This is where the trouble starts!!!
GF flour can be tricky – they turned out a little delicate and crumbly which means they are not lunchbox friendly. Oh well, the will have to stay at home with me…. what to do?!
Hi Nicole! What kind of gluten free flour did you use and how did you measure it?
What size cookie scoop?
I use a large cookie dough scoop. https://amzn.to/2JcS8vc
I made these today and they were outstanding! Added an extra tablespoon of lemon juice and white chocolate chips!
Hello! Would it be okay if i reduce the amount of sugar? I’m actually on a diet but I couldn’t handle the cravings. Please do let me know. Thank you~
This was a great cookie! I followed the recipe to the letter with the exception of adding a little lemon extract.
Followed the recipe exactly (except for the lemon zest, I didn’t measure—I zested two lemons and dumped it all in). I loved these so much!!! I gave them all away but keep thinking about making a batch for myself. Oh, when zesting the lemons I told myself I should try using Meyer Lemons next time. Or try it with lime for a margarita cookie. 🤷🏼♀️
Thank you for posting/sharing this great recipe!
I only want to make 1 dozen of these cookies. Do I just make them bigger or split the ingredients in half?
I would make them bigger 🤣
I chilled the dough over night. After putting the first pan in the oven, I continued rolling out the remaining dough and put it in the fridge until putting the next pan in. Cookies turned out perfect. I DID run short of lemon zest so had a lime and used the zest from that too – it worked out fine. I did add a little more than 2 T of lemon juice since I wanted lots of flavor. A wonderful, delicate cookie. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
These were a big hit. I backed off a bit on lemon zest and it still had plenty of lemon flavor. I’m egg allergic so I substituted egg with two tablespoons of Greek yogurt and a teaspoon of egg replacer powder. They were perfect. My family dubbed them the lemon doodle. Thanks
Hi! I tried them and I really love the soft texture of this cookies, te only problem is that they have also a soft lemon flavour.. how can I add more lemon flavour? If I add more juice I’d have to add more flour, is that way? Or the zest is the one that gives more flavour? Thanks!!
Hi Ana! You can add more lemon zest or try lemon extract for an extra lemon kick.
Soooo…..yummy!! I will definitely make again! I added “lemon-ginger sugar” to the 1/4 cup of sugar at the end to roll them in. Adding this to my cookie recipe collection for sure!
Made these cookies, they were delicious and moist!
Loved this recipe. Although I added a bit more zest and lemon juice to make the flavor really pop. I also made them like small little drops and called them lemon cookie drops. Delicious!!
That bread trick works👍 Not only for over-baked cookies, but also cookies past their prime. I put a slice
of white bread, enveloped in wax paper right in the container If the bread comes in direct contact with the cookie, it makes the cookie crumble. 👍 This lemon cookie recipe sounds wonderful, thank you.
I love this recipe and the cookies are delicious. I did all mixing with my KitchenAid mixer and the lemon flavor was consistent in every cookie I ate. My cookies are also dome shaped. Not an issue but I really wanted them flat like in the picture.
These are amazing, and my entire family is crazy about them, which is really saying something. There’s usually someone who doesn’t like something, even if everyone else does. These cookies have brought us together ☺️ Thank you SO MUCH for such an awesome recipe.
I just came across this recipe. I was wondering if you ever tried icing on top. Powdered sugar and lemon juice? I haven’t made these cookies yet, just wondering about the icing on top
Hi Nina! I haven’t added a glaze icing to these cookies, but I think it would be delicious! I would make the glaze thicker so it doesn’t all run off the cookies.
Do you think I could substitute the lemon juice and zest for lime juice and zest?? I’m thinking they’d turn out green-ish lol but not sure if the recipe would work…any opinions?
I think that’s an awesome idea!! Lime sugar cookies!
Can I just say the dough tastes amazing. The recipe is so easy and quick and the time of 30 mins in the fridge flew by. Highly recommend can’t wait to taste them.
Some of my cookies popped/ exploded. Do you know what I could have possibly done wrong?
Hi Cassandra! I have never heard of that happening or experienced that myself..
I’m looking for a lemon cookie recipe that turns out large (like 3″ in diameter), thick (maybe 3/8-1/2″ thick), chewy, crispy and lemony. Tall order, but do you think I’d find this with your recipe? Thank you.
Hi Paula! Tall and thick cookies depend on how much batter you use. So for taller, thicker cookies, make a larger cookie dough ball.
I love lemony desserts but my husband doesn’t yet I still decided to bake a batch of these cookies. I figured if he doesn’t like them, then I can have them all to myself. No such luck! He liked them. So these cookies do not flatten upon baking, I flattened them out to about 1/2 an inch. I tried a batch as per instructions to roll in sugar prior to baking however I decided to make a lemon glace and they came out even better
just wondering the calories on these little treats?
Just made these and love them. Do you think I can sub orange zest and orange juice for “orange” sugar cookies?
Yes, I think that would work great!
We love anything lemon. I was making these within an hour of finding the recipe. Dough seemed kind of dry and crumbly after an hour in the refrigerator. I really had to roll them a lot to get them to hold together. They didn’t look as nice as the picture. Putting the size scoop in the actual recipe would be helpful. I used a 1 Tbsp. scoop since the recipe didn’t specify. Baked them for 13 minutes, switching racks at 6 minutes. Saw the comments about using a 3 Tbsp. scoop after I made them. The cookies are good.
How well do the cookies freeze after they are bake? They look delicious.
Karen
Why would the tops of the cookies get sticky? Left them uncovered after they cooled before putting them in an airtight container. The sugar on top was sticky
Hi Luann! A really humid day can cause this to happen – even if you have the air on inside your house!
I made these tonight. I changed the sugar to coconut sugar. Refrigerated them for about 3 hrs. Rolled them in sugar but they didnt flatten! Also a little dry. Husband still liked them.
Hi Mary! The longer you refridgerate your cookie dough the firmer it will be so the cookies won’t flatten and they will stay more domed while baking.
Delicious! I made them with the boy I babysit because we love to bake together and try new things. They came out really good! We both loved them. Baked exactly as recipe stated! Only put in fridge for 45 minutes. I love lemon so this was a win for me.
These cookies were so good!! I added a little more lemon juice to the dough. I would also recommend making a lemon glaze to add on top, however they still taste great without it. They are so soft and chewy!
I have made these several times and always get requests to make more. I made a couple changes I use 1/4 cup of lemon juice, as I am crazy about lemon, add a little extra flour to compensate for the extra juice. Plus I also add chopped pecans. They turn out perfect every time. They are always gone in a flash.
does the ball need to be pressed down?
Nope!
My cookies are extremely flat. They look nothing like your photo. Brand new baking soda. It could be that the humidity today is 96 percent here in Florida. Or could it be that I added and extra tablespoon of fresh lemon juice? They taste good. Just look awful.
Hi Lynne! An extra tablespoon of lemon juice is a lot of additional liquid for cookies. Humidity also definitely affects baking! When there is extra moisture in the air, the baking time may need to be lengthened. High humidity can comes the butter to become too warm, causing the cookies to flatten and not hold their shape. Oh the joys of humidity and baking!
Do you think this recipe could be used for cut out shaped sugar cookies? Making for a holiday party!
Hi Emily! I haven’t personally tested this recipe using cookie cutters, so to be safe, I don’t think it would work. We have a recipe for cut out sugar cookies here: https://thefirstyearblog.com/cut-out-sugar-cookies/
So good and turned out great
Beth! Hi! I was searching for recipes to use lemons and Google brought me here. We live in Tucson now and have 4 lemon trees in our backyard that are overflowing right now so we’re making anything that has lemons in it. These were really simple to make and taste amazing! Tell Ryan I say hi. I hope your family is doing well. Thanks for coming up with such great recipes!
Jono!! That is so crazy google brought you here! I wish we had lemon trees! Hope all is well!
these cookies are so good!! I didnt have a silicone lined baking sheet so I ended up just spraying the pan w/ cooking oil and it turned out fine. also, I’m pretty sure I made smaller cookies than I was supposed to bc I got a whopping 47 cookies out of 1 batch of dough. they’re crispy on the outside and soft on the inside w/out being doughy, absolutely delicious <33
This is so good! I added 1 heaping table spoon of orange marmalade to the butter sugar mixture. And let the lemon zest and sugar rest overnight (to get more oils from the zest). I used a tablespoon to measure the cookies and baked for about 10 minutes. Thank you! I will make this again this season!
These are so good! I made a batch last night to send to some friends and I may have eaten about a half dozen. Oops! Definitely a keeper!
Has anyone made these and used an icing or a glaze…or even a royal icing?
Thank you for a great lemon recipe! Can’t wait to make. I have to watch my potassium intake and on the nutritional facts it has 25mg for potassium and 15 grams for sugar, is this per cookie? I normally use a small cookie scoop and always use less sugar, so I think the nutrition info will be less. I appreciate that you put all the nutritional info for all your recipes, some sites do not.
Yes, the nutritional facts is per cookie if 24 cookies are made.
A great light lemon flavor cookie. Super yummy… I had two lemons so I think I only go 2.5tbs of skin and the recipe called for 3tbs…. next time I’ll make sure to get three lemons. Only needed the juice of one; what the recipe called for 2tbs…..I like lemon so I think I’ll use more lemon juice next time. perhaps all three?
Made these for the first time and they are delicious! First sheet I didn’t flatten them and they came out some shaped so I used the spatula to flatten them right out of the oven. I decided for the rest to flatten them with the bottom of a glass with sugar on it. They helped make them look more like a cookie and bake evenly! Definitely a keeper recipe. My husband and I are obsessed lol
Should I use cold or room temp eggs? Thanks!
I’ve used both! If I’m in a pinch, I put the eggs in a warm bowl of water for a few minutes.
These are amazing, best cookie I’ve indulged in and we make alot of great cookies in the bakery I work in. Best of all my husband loves them!
I follow the recipe to the tee and each time they are the cookies I love to share with family and friends. Thank you
Jods
I LOVED THESE!!!! I am so pleased and will be following you from now on. Question: I want to add a tad more fresh lemon flavor. Should I add more juice or zest?
Zest! Adding more lemon juice will affect the consistency of the dough. You could also try adding lemon extract.
Hi! I love lemon anything. These sound delicious. The scoop you use, is it a regular scoop, or the smaller one? Recipe is not specific. Don’t want them too big or too small.
Hi Barbara! It’s a regular scoop – which they technically call medium size, holds 1.5 tablespoons. Here’s a link on amazon: https://amzn.to/3miAoyZ
would rolling in sugar before baking be too sweet?
Nope, not at all!
The cookies were good. I like lemon so added some zest to the sugar to roll the dough in. Mine, too, though remained in balls, tried flattening the next batch. They didn’t spread. I know someone else had this issue but didn’t see an answer.
Hi Susan! How did you measure the flour? What type of flour?
Great recipe. Moist and flavorful.
Thank you for sharing.
Absolutely delicious! They are soft and chewy with the perfect amount of crisp. These were a huge hit with my family! Thanks for the recipe!
Simple recipe to follow. Next time I will use more lemon juice or maybe replace the vanilla extract with lemon. They are soft and chewy on the inside and crispy on the outside. I will make again. They smelled great while cooking.
As there was left over lemon juice I mixed in some powdered sugar to make a frosting and drizzled a little on each cookie vs rolling in sugar. I did not frost all of them but no matter they are delicious and everyone loved them. Used a small scoop and had bite sized cookies. Fun! Thank you so much!
Can I double the recipe as is, or are there special measurements for a larger batch? Or should I make two separate single batches?
Also, these cookies are freaking amazing and everyone LOVES them when I bake them! So thank you for this wonderful recipe!
You can double it!
I used quite a bit more lemon juice and zest because I wanted a really lemony flavor. It turned out delicious except, the cookies were too chewy. The dough had been pretty sticky. Should I have added more flour and possibly more baking soda to compensate for the extra moisture?
If you want a deeper lemon flavor, add lemon extract or more lemon zest, but not lemon juice! Adding too much lemon juice will affect the chemistry of the cookies.
THE. BEST.LEMON.COOKIE.RECIPE.EVER!
I can’t stop eating them when I make them. They are light and just the right amount of sweetness and lemon. Perfect
Made these cookies today and after chilling they didn’t spread at all. I spooned the flour in and swiped the top as noted so any ideas what happened? At this point I’m probably going to have to make these a rolled out cutter dough
These cookies are super easy to make, and are so chewy and delicious!
Its become a favorite recipe of ours. Guests love them too! Just try eating only one!
Haven’t made this yet. Just found recipe. However, it sounds AMAZING! I’m excited to make later this week. I love lemon so I’ll try this way and if not lemony enough I’ll add a little more juice or zest. Mmmm THANKS!!!
Could I make these gluten free?
I’ve made them gluten free using King Arthur’s All Purpose GF flour and they turned out great!
SOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSO GOOD! So yummy, zesty, lemony…
These are delicious! I followed the recipe exactly as printed with perfect results. I prefer a slightly underbaked cookie which resulted in a flatter chewier cookie. Excuse me while I go eat more cookies…..
In the process of making them, so far so good. What size cookie scoop did you use? Based on the expected quantity I used a 2 Tbs scoop..
My scoop is about 1.5 tablespoons, but I usually overfill it, so likely 2 tbsp.
Could you roll these in powdered sugar 🤔 like you do with Russian wedding cookies ?
If you give it a try, report back!
Very light and lemony. I used half the recommended sugar and they were perfect.
Trued them multiple times and no family and friends did not love it! It is perfect!!!!!!
Best recipe EVER!!!
My 17 year old son absolutely loved these! He likes chewy with a crispy bottom. He said it is the best cookie he has ever had. Thank you for sharing it with me.
I made these with lime and a hatch chili powder. They were a hit. I put a little green gel food coloring to brighten them up. I added the chili powder to the sugar to roll the cookies in the same as you would with a cinnamon/sugar mix. Turned out amazing.
Turned out very good! Froze half the dough and enjoyed them over the course of several weeks. Great texture, fluffy and light but a little chewy. Just perfect. They remind me of a sugar cookie with a lemon zing to them.
There is too much flour for the cookies to spread out as they did in the picture. Mine came out puffy.
The most accurate way to measure flour is to use a kitchen scale, weighing it in grams.
If you don’t have a kitchen scale, follow this method.
• Aerate the flour with a whisk or spoon. Flour becomes heavy and compact as it sits. Aerating is the same as fluffing the flour, but not the same as sifting it. Do not sift the flour unless the recipe specifically calls for it.
• Use a spoon to sprinkle the flour into the measuring cup. Do not tap the cup against the counter, as this will compact the flour.
• Use the back of a butter knife to level off the excess.
This tastes great! The second bite is better than the first for me, more of a lemony flavor. Crunchy edge- chewy center. If anything I would change -it would be to either add a little lemon extract to the mix also or more lemon juice for a little more flavor. I will be planting Meyer lemon trees this fall so I will try making them with those also. I can hardly wait!
Added blueberry to mine and I am so happy with how they came out! My first time making sugar cookies!!
I have made these several times and my son who is a lemon freak absolutely loves them. The last 2 times, I didn’t have time it the energy to make them. He made them and they turned out just Ike the previous batch. We (my son and I) like to make a glaze to put on them. Juice 2 lemons and use some of the pulp and mix with powdered sugar until it is the consistency of donut glaze. When the cookies are cooled, put a glaze over the top using a small spoon to drop and spread over the cookie. If you want more glaze let it dry between layers. I usually do 2 layers of glaze. They taste like they came from a bakery! My son found some strawberry extract in the pantry and thought it might be good to add it to the some of the glaze and have strawberry/lemon cookies. I will comment to let you know how they turned out. To the ones who are concerned about the cookies coming out of the oven not flat, I take a light plastic spatula and lightly tap on top of the cookie as soon as they come out of the oven to flatten them out. They are so much easier to glaze when they are flat.
Loved these cookies! I made with lime zest/juice instead of lemon, and I had to beat my wet ingredients by hand rather than using a hand mixer, but both of those changes worked out fine. I was worried that the zest would give a strange texture to these cookies that I wouldn’t like, but I really didn’t even notice the zest. Just noticed the flavor, which was fabulous!
Heyy!! I was wondering if the cookies had to be refrigerated after making them
After you make the dough, it needs to be refrigerated for 30-60 minutes before baking. After you bake the cookies, you don’t need to refrigerate them.
I made these today because I have lots of lemons.
An easy recipe to follow and put together. They are delicious and will be made lots at this time of year