Description
These Lemon Crinkle Cookies are soft, tangy, and perfectly sweetened treats that feature a zesty lemon flavor with a delightful crinkled powdered sugar coating. Perfect for springtime or anytime you crave a bright and refreshing cookie, they have a tender texture and a beautiful crackled appearance.
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
Wet Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter (softened)
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 large egg
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
- 5-8 drops yellow food coloring (optional)
Coating
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar (aka icing sugar or confectioners sugar)
Instructions
- Mix Dry Ingredients: In a large bowl, combine the all purpose flour, baking soda, and salt. Stir together and set aside for later use.
- Cream Butter and Sugar: In the bowl of your stand mixer, beat the softened butter and 1 cup of sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy, which should take a couple of minutes.
- Add Wet Ingredients: To the creamed butter and sugar, add the egg, lemon juice, lemon zest, vanilla bean paste, and yellow food coloring if using. Mix everything together until fully incorporated.
- Combine with Dry Ingredients: Gradually add the dry flour mixture to the wet ingredients in the stand mixer bowl. Mix until just combined to form the cookie dough.
- Chill Dough: Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate the dough for 2 hours to firm up. This step helps prevent spreading during baking.
- Preheat Oven and Prepare Pans: Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and line two baking sheets with parchment paper to prepare for baking.
- Form Dough Balls: Use a small cookie scoop to portion out the dough, then roll each scoop into a ball. If the dough feels too soft, chill it briefly in the fridge or freezer to make it easier to handle and to prevent cookie spread.
- Coat Dough Balls: Roll each dough ball first in regular sugar, then in powdered sugar, coating them generously for the classic crinkle cookie appearance.
- Arrange and Bake: Place the coated dough balls on the prepared baking sheets about 2 inches apart to allow room for spreading. Bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes until the cookies have cracked and are set.
- Cool Cookies: Remove cookies from the oven and let them cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes. Then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely before serving or storing.
Notes
- Using yellow food coloring is optional but enhances the bright lemon color of the cookies.
- If the dough is too soft to handle, chill it more to prevent cookies from spreading too much during baking.
- Make sure to roll the dough balls thoroughly in both sugars for the signature crinkle effect.
- Store cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.
