Soft Lemon Cookies
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These soft lemon cookies are full of lemony goodness! Made with fresh lemon juice and lemon zest, these citrus cookies have a soft and chewy texture. They’re made in one bowl and ready in 20 minutes!
These chewy lemon cookies are based off of my delightful lemon cheesecake cookies! Just like those cookies, these soft lemon cookies pack a punch thanks to lemon juice and lemon zest.
You can easily make these lemon cookies dairy free and gluten free, so they’re the perfect cookie to make if you have food allergies!
Why You’ll Love My Soft Lemon Cookies
- You can make these lemon cookies from scratch in just 20 minutes!
- You only need 10 simple ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry.
- The cookies use natural lemon flavor from real lemon zest and lemon juice, so they are packed with lemoney goodness!
- These chewy lemon cookies are extra soft – not cakey or crispy!
- I’ve developed this recipe so it doesn’t need any dough chilling, meaning you get cookies in the oven and ready to eat asap.
Ingredients Needed
- Butter: you can use regular butter or vegan butter if you’re dairy free.
- Flour: I’ve tested this recipe with all purpose flour, but feel free to use gluten free 1-1 all purpose baking flour if you’re gluten intolerant.
- Lemon Juice: you can use store bought lemon juice if you prefer, but since you’re zesting lemons for these lemon cookies anyway, you can just use the juice from the lemons!
- Sugar: we’re using a combination of granulated sugar and light brown sugar. Using both will give us a soft and chewy texture with a slight crunch on the edges.
Step by Step Instructions
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 350°Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a stand mixer or in a large bowl with a handheld mixer, combine the butter with the granulated sugar and light brown sugar until light and fluffy. Stop the mixer and add the lemon zest and mix again.
Step 2: Add the egg, lemon juice, and vanilla extract, mixing until well combined. Stir in the flour, salt and baking soda. As soon as there are no more streaks of flour, stop mixing!
Step 3: Using a medium cookie scoop or a tablespoon, scoop out 1.5 tablespoons of cookie dough and place on the prepared baking sheet.
Repeat with the remaining cookie dough. Bake the lemon cookies for 8-10 minutes, the edges should have just set and the tops will remain a pale color.
Expert Tips
- Make sure you use a food scale to measure your flour! Or if you’re using a measuring cup, use the scoop and level method. Adding too much flour to these lemon cookies will make them dry and crunchy, instead of the soft lemon cookie you’re looking for!
- I recommend under-baking these cookies rather than over-baking. Under-baking the cookies will give you a softer cookie that will stay soft for days. Remove the cookies from the oven when the edges are set but the tops still look soft.
- Use a medium cookie scoop if you want all your cookies to be the same size and shape!
Storage Instructions
I recommend storing these cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4-5 days.
To freeze, place the cooled cookies in a freezer safe ziploc bag and freeze for up to 2 months. Let the cookies thaw at room temperature before enjoying.
More Lemon Recipes You’ll Love
If you make this recipe, let me know how it went in the comments below, I’d love to hear from you! You can also tag me on Instagram or Facebook so I can check it out!
Soft Lemon Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup (210 g) butter, softened, regular or vegan
- ¾ cup (150 g) granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (50 g) light brown sugar
- 2½ Tablespoons lemon zest, (around 2 lemons)
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ Tablespoon lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2¾ cup (343 g) all-purpose flour
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a stand mixer or in a large bowl with a handheld mixer, combine the butter with the granulated sugar and light brown sugar until light and fluffy. Stop the mixer and add the lemon zest and mix again.
- Add the egg, lemon juice, and vanilla extract, mixing until well combined. Stir in the flour, salt and baking soda. As soon as there are no more streaks of flour, stop mixing!
- Using a medium cookie scoop or a tablespoon, scoop out 1.5 tablespoons of cookie dough and place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining cookie dough.
- Bake the lemon cookies for 8-10 minutes, the edges should have just set and the tops will remain a pale color. Let cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes then transfer to a cooling rack.
Equipment
Video
Notes
The calorie information provided for this recipe is an estimate. The accuracy of the calories listed is not guaranteed.
Thank you for the recipe. In your tips, you said to use a kitchen scale for accurate measurements. However, you didn’t include the grams for any of your measurements. Can you provide those please?
Hi Carina! You can find metric measurements on the recipe card, just click the metric tab next to the Ingredients heading and it’ll switch to grams from US customary.
Delicious! Love the flavor and texture of these cookies!
Hi Catherine! Thank you for your kind review 😊
Very good lemon cookie. I added dried blueberries to the dough. They came out great. Next time I would flatten the dough scoops slightly before baking and sprinkle with coarse sanding sugar. Great recipe!
Hi Karen! Love your idea to add blueberries! Thank you for your review 🤗
I would like to know can you freeze the uncooked dough
Hi Carla, yes you can freeze the uncooked dough! Scoop the dough onto a lined baking sheet and put in freezer until frozen. Then transfer frozen dough to ziplock and freeze up to 3 months. Add an extra 2-3 minutes in the oven if baking from frozen.
Is it salted or unsalted butter? I’m excited to try these for Thanksgiving!
I’ve tested these with both! It’s a matter of preference but I prefer my desserts to be less sweet so I like salted. If you like them to be on the sweeter side, you can use unsalted!
You made my day i finally found something without xanthan gum thanks 🙏😄
So happy you loved the recipe!
Any substitute for egg?
You can use one flax egg!