Carla's Lemon Cookies
Submitted by kcandbob
Lemon roll-out cookies with sour cream in the dough for a tender crumb, brushed with lemon juice and sprinkled with sugar before baking. The bright citrusy cookie cutter staple for any holiday tray.
YIELD
24 servingsPREP
8 hrsCOOK
12 minREADY
8 hrsThese lemon cookies are a triple-citrus assault, with extract, zest, and a pre-bake juice brushing all working together. Sour cream in the dough keeps them tender instead of dry, and the overnight chill is what lets you cut clean shapes without the dough spreading or sticking.
The lemon-juice brush right before baking is the move that makes these special. The acid hits the sugar coating and creates a thin, slightly crackly glaze on the surface that picks up colored sugar beautifully without needing a separate icing step.
Rolling the dough only a quarter-inch thick is important. Thicker and they bake up more like sugar cookies than the crisp-tender citrus rounds these are meant to be.
Pro Tips
- The overnight rest is non-negotiable, the dough needs that long for the gluten to relax and the butter to firm up so it rolls cleanly.
- Work with one quarter of the dough at a time, keeping the rest in the fridge. Warm dough sticks to the rolling pin and tears.
- Brush with fresh-squeezed lemon juice, not bottled, the brightness is what these cookies are built around.
- Watch carefully at minute 10, lemon cookies go from pale and tender to overbaked and dry inside 60 seconds.
Variations
Ingredients
Directions
Sift flour with baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In large bowl of electric mixer, beat margarine, sugar and egg At low speed, beat in sour cream, lemon extract and grated lemon peel until smooth.
Gradually add flour mixture, beating until well combined. Form dough into a ball, wrap in foil and refrigerate overnight.
Divide dough into 4 parts. Refrigerate until ready to roll out. On floured surface roll dough, one part at a time, ¼ inch thick. Using a 2 to 3-inch cookie cutter or glass, cut out cookies. Use a spatula to carefully pick up and place cookies on a lightly greased cookie sheet 2 inches apart.
Lightly brush cookies with lemon juice and sprinkle with Use colored sugar for decorative look.
Bake in preheated 375-degree oven for 10 to 12 minutes until Do not overcook. Remove cookies to wire rack to cool completely. Complete baking using one part cookie dough at a time, greasing the pan each time.
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