Deliciously chewy Lemon Cookies made using fresh juice and zest from real lemons. Drizzled with a two ingredient lemon glaze, these Lemon Cookies are the perfect afternoon treat.
Love lemon? 🍋
You’ll adore these lovely Lemon Cookies. With crispy edges and a buttery centre, these Easy Lemon Cookies are sure to become a firm family favourite.
Soft and chewy and bursting with lemon flavour, they’re a true delight.
When I set out to make Lemon Cookies from scratch I had no idea what I was in for. I wanted a cookie that was buttery and sweet, but not too thick and cakey.
The first couple of tries were far too spongy and lacked lemon flavour, but attempt number three was something special.
Simple. Sweet. Perfection.
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This recipe begins as most cookies do, with butter and sugar. Then there’s egg, flour and baking soda. Then comes a flavour hit, thanks to freshly squeezed lemon juice and freshly grated lemon zest. Hello lemony goodness!
Once the cookies are baked and cooled, it’s time for a simple two-ingredient lemon glaze, just like we do for my Lemon Ricotta Cookies and my easy Lemon Slice. This drippy icing brings out the lemon flavour of the cookies and adds a little sweet tang.
Thanks to these cookies, my Lemon Ricotta Cake and my Lemon Raspberry Cake, I’m literally obsessed with all things lemon at the moment.
Who would have thought fresh lemon could take a regular sugar cookie and transform it into something special?
All I know is you need these lovely cookies in your life 🍋
Did you make this recipe? Don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave a comment below. Hungry for more? Join me on Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter for more amazing recipe ideas.
Let’s Bake
Easy Lemon Cookies
Buttery lemon cookies with a fresh lemon glaze.
Ingredients
Lemon cookies
- 115 grams (1/2 cup or 1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 200 grams (1 cup) caster sugar or granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 245 grams (1 and 3/4 cup) plain flour or all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- Zest of 1 lemon, freshly grated
Lemon glaze
- 125 grams (1 cup) icing sugar or powdered sugar, sifted
- 3–4 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180 C (350 F) standard / 160 C (320 F) fan-forced. Line two baking trays with baking or parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, add butter and sugar. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until pale and creamy. Add vanilla and egg and beat again until combined.
- Sift in flour, baking soda and salt. Add lemon juice and zest. Beat briefly until soft cookie dough forms.
- Roll cookie dough into 16 balls, approximately 1.5 tablespoons of dough each, and bake for approximately 12 minutes or until golden on the edges. Carefully transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool completely.
- To make the lemon glaze, sift the icing sugar into a mixing bowl. Add lemon juice, one tablespoon at a time, and mix together with a fork. Keep adding a tablespoon of lemon juice until you reach your desired consistency. You want the glaze to be smooth, but thin enough to drizzle.
- Drizzle glaze over cookies. Leave for 10-15 minutes to set.
Notes
Lemon zest: For an even more lemon-y cookie, add the zest of 2 lemons instead of just one.
Cookies spreading: If you have had trouble with your cookies spreading in the past, bake one tester cookie first. If it spreads too much, consider chilling the dough for 1 hour before baking.
Nutrition Information
Serving Size: 1 cookie Calories: 193 Sugar: 20.4 g Sodium: 81.6 mg Fat: 6.3 g Carbohydrates: 32.5 g Protein: 2.1 g Cholesterol: 27.1 mg
Hi, I’m Jess! I’m a self-taught baker, recipe writer, creator of Sweetest Menu and the author of Something Sweet cookbook.
Lara says
Tastes good, but flat. I even frozen the cookie balls before baking. Wish they were smaller and taller.
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Lara, sorry to hear that! If you want a slightly thicker cookie, you could try adding a touch more flour or even even using cold butter next time. You could also try a little less lemon juice and more lemon zest.
Lois says
Has anybody tried adding some poppy seeds?
Gabriela says
Hi beautiful! My cookies doesnt spread, and in the oven they burn at the botton and at the top they keep like white, not brown 🙁 what can I do?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Gabriela, it sounds like you might need to do some investigating about your oven. I’d check the manual to ensure you are using the right setting for baking (I typically used the fan-forced setting for my baking). I’d also get hold of an oven thermometer to ensure your oven isn’t running too hot and cold – it’s suprising how off they can be.
Evelyn says
Very good!! So moist and crispy edges.
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed these Evelyn!
Maddy says
Their so good I made them and they were gone the next day
Jessica Holmes says
That’s brilliant!
Vonnie says
I’ve made these several times and they are great. However, I barely get 15 cookies…I allow approx. 38-42 grams each. Also, I use the zest of 2 lemons, but never add the juice otherwise I would have cookie slop instead of dough. Extra flour is needed when forming into balls. Can anyone help?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Vonnie, so glad you enjoy these even without the lemon juice. It’s definitely fine to leave it out. If you find it makes the dough too wet, you could try chilling the dough for an hour before scooping and rolling the dough. Or speed up the process by using the freezer! Hope that helps!
Amy says
Amazing. My 11 year old proclaimed them to be ‘next level, professional baker style’, so kudos to your wonderful recipe!
Jessica Holmes says
What lovely feedback Amy! Sounds like you nailed the bake!
Angela says
Can you halve the sugar ?
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Angela, it’s up to you! I think you could get away with 3/4 cup of sugar, but reducing it further will not only change the sweetness, but also the form and texture of the cookie.
B says
Wonderful recipe I use it often and find they are very delicious. I often add 200g of White Chocolate which makes it even better definitely recommend trying that out
Jessica Holmes says
That sounds like heaven! I’ll have to try that next time.
Liliana says
Delicious, they came out perfect on the first go. My daughter made them herself, so easy…we enjoyed them very much! Thank you for the recipe!
Jessica Holmes says
That makes me so happy Liliana! Thank you for your kind feedback.
Nama says
Incredible, super easy and tasty cookies, the best lemon cookies out there
Jessica Holmes says
I’m so glad you loved them Nama!
Velma Hines says
These are really easy to make, and they come out perfect. I greased my hands on the butter wrapper and made small balls with my hands. Taste great too!
Jessica Holmes says
Fabulous! Thanks Velma!
Mary Blacker says
This recipe has become my favourite to bake. It’s so easy to make and delicious every time. I just use a 1 1/2 Tbsp scoop. Nothing like using real lemons in a recipe. I have made it several times and my friends are asking for the recipe. Thank you!
Jessica Holmes says
How great is that! Thanks for sharing Mary!
Christine Robertson says
Fabulous cookies, really light and easy to make.
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed them Christine!
Kathbakes says
lovely and light cookies. I replaced the vanilla extract with lemon extract to enhance the lemon flavour. As others have commented the dough is quite sticky even after chilling. I worked in a little cornflour and it worked fine.
Jessica Holmes says
Thanks for the feedback Kath! So glad you enjoyed them.
Rosie says
How long do these stay fresh for? I would love to bake them as gifts to post but don’t know if they keep long enough…
Jessica Holmes says
Hi Rosie, what a lovely idea! These cookies will keep quite well for 3-4 days at room temperature.
Toni says
Delicious and everyone loved them.
Jessica Holmes says
So glad you enjoyed them Toni!
Cat says
Amazing! I make these all the time and they are sooooo good!
Jessica Holmes says
Love hearing that Cat!
Lulu says
Hi, these are amazing! Can the dough be frozen ?
Jessica Holmes says
Absolutely! You can roll them into balls and freeze them. Just take them out and leave them at room temperature for 15 minutes before baking as per instructions above.