Glazed Lemon Cookies

These Glazed Lemon Cookies are one of my all-time favorite cookies! And for good reason, there’s lemon zest in both the dough and the glaze, plus fresh lemon juice for a bite that is melt-in-your-mouth tender. Better yet, these lemony cookies are prepped and baked in less than 30 minutes.

Every time I make these Glazed Lemon Cookies I get RAVE reviews (I even won a cookie exchange with this recipe!). My husband, who usually turns up his nose at lemon bars or lemon meringue pie, is obsessed with these cookies; I have to fight him for these and it is always a sad day when the last one is gone.

The cookie itself is soft and sweet, with lemon zest mixed for extra citrus flavor. I use my special method of pressing down each ball of dough with the bottom of a cup dipped in sugar just before sliding the cookies into the oven to bake to give them a slight crackle on top. Once cooked, I spread over the glaze for the best iced lemon cookies ever.

Bring them to a party, enjoy them as an afternoon snack, or give them as a gift…I’ve done it all with these cookies. If you’re a lemon lover, be sure to check out some of our other reader favorites that feature this fun flavor like Lemon Poppy Seed Muffins, Lemon Meringue Pie Bars, or Fresh Lemon Ice Cream

Reader Review: “These have become my go-to cookie for any event. They are quick to make with simple ingredients and they absolutely melt in your mouth. So delicious they are one of my all time favorite cookies. Best of all, my kids aren’t fans of lemon flavored cookies so that means more cookies for mom & dad.” – Molly

Why You’ll Love this Recipe

• 7-ingredient cookie recipe. Does it get any easier? I think not! You’ll probably have most of the ingredients already in your pantry.
• The recipe doubles easily. It makes 12 delicious cookies, but if you need more, definitely make a double batch.
• My favorite recipe to gift. Once the icing has dried, stack them with little parchment paper squares in between and place them into a cellophane bag or box, it’s adorable!

Ingredients

• Butter: I always use salted butter for my baking. If you have unsalted already at home, add an extra pinch of salt. This brings out all the flavors.
• Sugar: Granulated sugar is in both the cookie dough and on the bottom of a glass to press down the balls of dough before baking. You will also need some powdered sugar for the glaze.
• Lemons: You will need 2-3 lemons for these cookies. Both the juice and zest are used to give these cookies a bright, completely natural burst of lemon flavor without resorting to lemon extract.
• Egg: One egg helps bind the cookie together.
• Flour: Regular all-purpose flour works just fine in this recipe.
• Baking soda & salt: A tiny bit of baking soda and salt give the right texture and keep the cookies from being bland.
• Vanilla extract: I love the combination of lemon and vanilla. I like to use my homemade vanilla extract when I’m baking.

Reader Review: “These are totally delicious lemon cookies and I don’t think I can stop with one. Love the glaze with lemon zest!” -Radha

How to make Glazed Lemon Cookies

1. Cream butter and sugar: These can be done with a hand mixer, but I typically use my stand mixer to cream the butter and sugar because they should mix on medium to medium-high speed for 2-3 minutes until creamy and light. Add the lemon zest, vanilla extract, and egg and mix again, scraping the bottom and sides of the bowl as needed.
2. Add flour, baking soda, and salt: Mix in the dry ingredients until combined, but try not to overwork the dough which can result in tough, dry cookies.

3. Shape cookies: Divide the dough into 12 evenly-sized balls. I like to use a medium cookie scoop to do this. Roll the dough into balls between the palms of your hands and arrange them on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicon baking mat.
4. Press down: Run the bottom of a glass under water, then press into a bowl of granulated sugar. Use the glass to press down the dough to flatten out slightly until the cookies are about 1/2-inch thick, pressing the glass into the sugar between each cookie.

5. Bake & glaze: Bake the cookies just until set and no longer shiny on top. Let them cool for 15 minutes or so before glazing with powdered sugar whisked together with lemon juice and lemon zest. You could dip the tops of each cookie or drizzle the glaze over the top using a ziploc bag with the corner snipped off. Let the glaze set before serving.

Expert Tips

• Try another other citrus. You can use this lemon cookie recipe to make glazed lime cookies instead. They are absolutely delicious! I haven’t tried oranges or grapefruit, but I’m guessing they would also work well.
• Always use fresh lemon zest and juice: Be sure to always zest your lemons before juicing them. If you don’t want the lemon zest in your glaze, go ahead and leave it out. I actually like the texture and visual interest it adds to the cookies. And always avoid pre-bottled lemon juice at all costs! It isn’t as vibrant in flavor.
• Don’t over-mix this dough. Since this dough recipe is a cross between a sugar cookie and a shortbread cookie, it’s super important to avoid mixing too much since it will create a dense and dry texture once baked.
• Allow the cookies to cool completely before glazing. This is key or else the glaze will melt all over the cookies and you won’t get pretty lemon drizzle cookies. After icing, make sure you let the cookies sit for some time too to let it set.
• A good trick for placing the glaze into the piping bag mess-free, is to insert your empty bag into a cup and fold the bag over the edges so that the bag stays open and your hands are free to pour the glaze into the bag.
• Place the cookies on a wire rack to completely cool and ice them on the rack too. This let’s any excess glaze easily drip off the sides of the cookies, leaving them with a bakery-style pretty presentation.

Storage

If you have leftover lemon cookies, lucky you! Place them in an airtight container for up to 4 days at room temperature.

Freeze the cookies in a single layer on a baking sheet for 2-3 hours, then transfer to a freezer-safe container for longer term storage. These cookies freeze well for about 3 months. To serve, just thaw on the counter overnight or microwave for 10-20 seconds.

When it comes to prepping ahead of time, you can make the cookie dough the day before and keep it in the fridge. I do recommend baking the cookies and making the glaze the day you plan to enjoy them just so their texture is perfect.

Freezing both the lemon cookie dough and the lemon glaze separately before baking works wonderfully. You can actually make the dough and freeze it for up to 2 months if you want to be able to have fresh baked lemon cookies any time (yes, please!). In this case, I recommend shaping and flattening the cookies, then freezing them just before baking. You can bake straight from frozen by just adding an additional minute or two to the bake time.

When it comes to freezing the lemon glaze, just store it in a resealable zip-tight bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Let it thaw on the counter and smoosh it around with your hands a bit to warm it up. You could also place the bag of glaze in a bowl of hot water for a few minutes so you can drizzle it over the cookies.

More Easy Cookie Recipes

• The BEST Soft & Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
• Raspberry Chocolate Chunk Cookies
• Chocolate Peanut Butter No Bake Cookies
• The Best Snickerdoodle Cookies Recipe
• Soft & Chewy Molasses Cookies

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Glazed Lemon Cookies

4.89 from 26 votes

Amy Nash

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 12 minutes mins

Total Time 22 minutes mins

Course Cookies

Cuisine American

Servings 12 cookies

These Glazed Lemon Cookies are one of my all-time favorite cookies! And for good reason, there's lemon zest in both the dough and the glaze, plus fresh lemon juice for a bite that is melt-in-your-mouth tender. Better yet, these lemony cookies are prepped and baked in less than 30 minutes.

Ingredients

  

123

Lemon cookie base

• ▢ 1 cup (227g) salted butter softened
• ▢ 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar + extra for cookie tops
• ▢ 1 large egg
• ▢ 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• ▢ 1 Tablespoon lemon zest
• ▢ 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• ▢ 2 1/4 cups (317g) all-purpose flour
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon salt

Lemon glaze

• ▢ 1 1/2 cups (180g) powdered sugar
• ▢ 1 Tablespoon lemon zest
• ▢ 2-3 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 375℉ (191℃). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• In a large bowl, combine the butter and sugar and beat on medium speed using a stand or hand mixer until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Add the egg, 1 tablespoon of lemon zest, 1 teaspoon of lemon juice and the vanilla, and beat until creamy, another minute or two.
  1 cup (227g) salted butter, ¾ cup (150g) granulated sugar, 1 large egg, 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice, 1 Tablespoon lemon zest, 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• Add the flour, baking powder and salt to the creamed mixture and mix on low speed until completely combined.
  2 ¼ cups (317g) all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt
• Divide the dough into 12 even-sized portions. I just use a spoon to roughly divide the dough into 4 sections in the bowl, then try to scoop three equal-sized scoops from each section so that I end up with 12 cookies that are the same size. Roll each section of dough into a ball and set on the parchment-lined cookie sheet, spaced evenly apart.
• Using the bottom of a glass cup, first get it a little wet by running it under water, and then dip it in granulated sugar. Use the sugar-coated bottom of the glass to press down gently on each ball of dough, flattening it slightly until they are about 3 inches in diameter. You don’t want the cookies super thin but they don’t spread much when baking so pressing them down helps them bake evenly.
• Bake for 12-14 minutes or just until the cookies look set, then remove from the oven and cool on the cookie sheet for 2 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.
• While the cookies are cooling, prepare the lemon glaze by combining the powdered sugar, lemon zest, and enough lemon juice to get a barely runny consistency. You don’t want it too runny or you will just have a super thin layer of glaze on top of the cookies, but you want it a little more runny than a frosting that you would spread. I add lemon juice just until the glaze starts to just barely drizzle off my mixing spoon when I hold it up over the bowl.
  1 ½ cups (180g) powdered sugar, 1 Tablespoon lemon zest, 2-3 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• Transfer the glaze to a Ziploc bag (I find that the freezer ones work better for this than the thin, sandwich variety), seal the bag, and snip off a small corner to create a piping bag. Pipe or drizzle the glaze over the cooled cookies on the wire rack in a zigzag motion, allowing some of the glaze to drip over the edges. Let the cookies stand just until the glaze is set before serving.

Notes

• This recipe is on page 267 of my cookbook, House of Nash Eats Everyday! 

Storage: 

• Place them in an airtight container for up to 4 days at room temperature.
• Freeze the cookies in a single layer on a baking sheet for 2-3 hours, then transfer to a freezer-safe container for longer term storage. These cookies freeze well for about 3 months. To serve, just thaw on the counter overnight or microwave for 10-20 seconds.
• You can actually make the dough and freeze it for up to 2 months. In this case, I recommend shaping and flattening the cookies, then freezing them just before baking. You can bake straight from frozen by just adding an additional minute or two to the bake time.
• To freeze the lemon glaze, just store it in a resealable zip-tight bag and freeze for up to 3 months. Let it thaw on the counter and smoosh it around with your hands a bit to warm it up. You could also place the bag of glaze in a bowl of hot water for a few minutes so you can drizzle it over the cookies.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 335kcal | Carbohydrates: 46g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 54mg | Sodium: 256mg | Potassium: 40mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 27g | Vitamin A: 493IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 22mg | Iron: 1mg

Tried this recipe? Show me on Instagram!Mention @HouseOfNashEats or tag #houseofnasheats!

This recipe was originally posted on November 2, 2016. It has been updated with new photos and additional helpful information on May 27, 2021. I’m including some of the photos from the original post for comparison’s sake!