About the Recipe
Preheat the oven to 180c (350f) and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Into a medium mixing bowl, add the softened butter, granulated sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, kosher salt, and vanilla extract. Mix with an electric hand mixer until well combined and creamy.
Add the flour, and baking powder, and mix until the mixture is smooth and creamy and there are no lumps of flour visible.
Using an ice cream or a cookie scooper, scoop out about 1 tablespoon of the cookie dough and roll them into balls.
Slightly flatten the cookies using your clean hands or a glass. Bake in a 180c (350f) preheated oven for 12-15 minutes.
Make a simple lemon glaze by mixing together in a small mixing bowl powder sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla extract.
Top each cookie with how much glaze you like! Top with more lemon zest and enjoy!
Ingredients
½ cup Butter room temp, unsalted
¼ cup Granulated sugar
1 teaspoon Lemon zest
1 tablespoon Lemon juice
⅓ teaspoon Kosher salt
½ teaspoon Vanilla extract
⅓ teaspoon Baking powder
1 cup Flour
Lemon glaze
1 cup Powdered sugar
2 tablespoon Lemon juice
1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 180c (350f) and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Into a medium mixing bowl, add the softened butter, granulated sugar, lemon juice, lemon zest, kosher salt, and vanilla extract. Mix with an electric hand mixer until well combined and creamy.
Add the flour, and baking powder, and mix until the mixture is smooth and creamy and there are no lumps of flour visible.
Using an ice cream or a cookie scooper, scoop out about 1 tablespoon of the cookie dough and roll them into balls.
Slightly flatten the cookies using your clean hands or a glass. Bake in a 180c (350f) preheated oven for 12-15 minutes.
Make a simple lemon glaze by mixing together in a small mixing bowl powder sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla extract.
Top each cookie with how much glaze you like! Top with more lemon zest and enjoy!
Notes
Use fresh lemons! To get the best lemon flavor, first, grate the lemons (only the outer layer and not the white layer) and then cut them open and juice them.
Don’t overmix the dough, you don’t want to develop the gluten in the flour. This step ensures you have moist cookies and not dense and dry cookies.
Use high-quality butter. The rich, buttery flavor is key in shortbread cookies. Choose unsalted, high-quality butter for the best taste.
Use a cookie scoop to scoop out the cookies, that way you will have even-sized cookies, it ensures that your cookies bake evenly.
Make sure that your butter is at room temperature. An hour or two before making these cookies, take the butter out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature. The butter should be soft to the touch. If your butter is too cold, it will be harder to mix and there will be lumps of butter in the dough.
Measure your flour correctly! When measuring your flour, avoid scooping it with a measuring cup. Instead, stir the flour with a spoon to create as many air pockets as possible, and spoon it into your measuring cup. Finally, level it with a back of a knife.
Line your sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone mat! This step helps the cookies to bake evenly, and it makes sure that your cookies release easily from the pan.
Glaze when cool. Let cookies cool completely before glazing to prevent it from melting away or making them soggy.