Description
Bright, tender cookies with a soft lemon curd center that sings of spring.
Ingredients
Scale
- ½ cup (120 ml) fresh lemon juice (about 3 large lemons)
- 1 Tbsp lemon zest (from about 2 lemons)
- 4 large egg yolks
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- Pinch (⅛ tsp) salt
- ½ cup (112 g) unsalted butter, cold and cubed
- 2½ cups (313 g) all-purpose flour, spooned & leveled
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp fine salt
- 1 cup (224 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- 1 large egg yolk, room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
- Powdered sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- Combine lemon juice, lemon zest, egg yolks, sugar, and salt in a small saucepan.
- Cook over medium-low heat, whisking constantly until the mixture coats the back of a spoon, about 20–25 minutes.
- Remove from heat and whisk in cold cubed butter until smooth.
- Cover the curd with plastic wrap pressed to the surface and let cool completely.
- Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
- Cream softened butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy, about 2–3 minutes.
- Beat in the egg yolk, vanilla, and lemon zest.
- Fold in the dry ingredients until just combined.
- Chill the dough for 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350 °F (175 °C).
- Scoop dough into 1-inch balls and place on parchment-lined sheets about 2 inches apart.
- Use a ½ tsp to press a shallow well in the center of each ball.
- Bake about 10 minutes until edges are lightly golden.
- While still warm, fill each center with about 1 tsp of cooled lemon curd.
- Dust with powdered sugar if you like and let cool fully on the sheet.
Notes
Keep the curd on low heat and whisk without stopping. Chill the dough well so the cookies keep their shape.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cookie
- Calories: 150
- Sugar: 10g
- Sodium: 100mg
- Fat: 8g
- Saturated Fat: 5g
- Unsaturated Fat: 2g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 20g
- Fiber: 0g
- Protein: 2g
- Cholesterol: 25mg
Keywords: lemon cookies, lemon curd, spring dessert