Lemon Sugar Cookies

A hand holds a single soft, sugar-coated Lemon Sugar Cookie in focus, with more of these zesty treats cooling on a wire rack in the background.

5 from 26 votes

A chewy lemon sugar cookie with a bright citrus flavor. Made with fresh lemon juice, zest, and a touch of extract for a balanced flavor that comes through in every bite.

Prep Time15

Cook Time10

Chill Time30

Total Time55

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Lemon Sugar Cookies, Lemon Sugar Cookies Recipe

Servings: cookies

Calories: 125kcal

Author: Stephanie Keeping

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1¾ cups granulated sugar, divided (1½ cups in the cookie dough and ¼ cup to roll the cookies in before baking)
1 large whole egg, room temperature
1 large egg yolk, room temperature
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons fresh lemon zest
1 teaspoon lemon extract
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Sift together the all-purpose flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
To the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the unsalted butter and 1½ cups of the granulated sugar on medium speed for 2-3 minutes or until smooth and fluffy.
Place the remaining ¼ cup granulated sugar into a small bowl and set aside.
Reduce the speed to low and add the whole egg, egg yolk, lemon juice, lemon zest, lemon extract, and vanilla extract, mixing until all the ingredients are fully incorporated.
Stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl and paddle attachment as needed to ensure all the ingredients are well combined.
With the mixer on low, slowly add the dry ingredients to the bowl. Mix just until all the flour has been absorbed and no dry pockets remain. The dough will be thick and should form a rough ball when fully mixed.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate the cookie dough for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Line three large baking sheets (if you have them) with parchment paper and set aside.
Using a 1½ tablespoon-sized cookie scoop, scoop out a level amount of dough.
Roll the dough ball gently in the palm of your hand to create a smooth ball.
Roll the dough ball into the reserved ¼ cup granulated sugar to evenly coat all sides.
Place the sugar-coated cookie dough ball onto one of the prepared baking sheets.
Repeat with the remaining dough until all the cookies have been sugar-coated and placed onto the baking sheets. Each baking sheet should hold 12 cookies spaced approximately 1½ to 2 inches apart.
Keep the cookie sheets in the refrigerator until they are ready to bake.
Bake one sheet at a time in the center of the preheated oven for approximately 9-11 minutes or just until the centers are slightly puffy and set. They should have spread just enough to have a couple small cracks on the top and should not be brown around the edges. The cookies will flatten slightly as they cool and finish setting. Keep remaining dough refrigerated between batches to prevent spreading.
Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely at room temperature.
Repeat until all the cookies have been baked and cooled.

Video

Notes

If you only have one large baking sheet, you can scoop, roll, and sugar coat each of the cookie dough balls and place them all close together on a smaller parchment-lined baking sheet. You can then transfer the proper amount of cookie dough balls onto the larger baking sheet to bake them. If reusing the same baking sheet for each batch of cookies, be sure to allow the baking sheet to cool completely before adding a new batch of cookie dough balls.
For a milder lemon flavor, you can omit the lemon extract from the batter. I used it in this recipe to give these cookies a more intense lemon flavor.
If your cookies have spread on one side a little more than another, you can use the spoon trick to gently scoot the dough back into a circular shape. If doing this trick, you must do so in the first 20-30 seconds of the cookies coming out of the oven before they start to firm and set.

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