Zesty Lemon Shortbread Cookies
Serves 24
30 mins prep
15 mins cook
10 mins Chill Time
55 mins total
These lemon shortbread cookies are buttery, tender, zesty, tangy, and (optionally) filled with gooey lemon curd. They have a melt in your mouth texture. They're packed full of lemon flavor even without the lemon curd! The shortbread cookies come together very quickly and easily - and turn out super buttery and tender crisp. They’re dipped in a two ingredient lemon glaze and are the perfect holiday and summer cookie.
Cookies
Assembly
Cookies
In a large bowl, combine grated lemon zest from 2 lemons and sugar. Rub together with your fingers until fragrant and clumpy.
cup granulated sugar
lemons
In a large bowl or standmixer, combine butter, lemon zest sugar, and salt. Beat until light and creamy.
cup butter
tsp sea salt
Add lemon juice, egg yolk, and beat to combine.
tbsp lemon juice
large egg yolk
Sift flour right into the same bowl and fold until a crumbly dough forms.
cup all purpose flour
Dump dough out onto a clean work surface and press it together into a disc. Roll out the disc to ¼” thick with a rolling pin.
Cut out cookies. I used a round linzer cookie cutter with scalloped edges. Re-roll scraps as needed. If your cookie dough is sticking to the work surface or your rolling pin, roll out the dough between two sheets of parchment paper.
Use a metal spatula to help transfer the cut cookies onto a parchment lined baking sheet. You can place them right next to each other.
If you will be filling them with lemon curd, use a small cookie cutter or the linzer cookie cutter center to cut out the middles from half of the cookies.
Chill the cookies on the baking sheet in the freezer for 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 320°F (160°C).
Arrange the cookies on parchment lined baking sheets so there is at least 1 cm of space between the cookies. You don’t have to worry about the cookies spreading.
Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 15-18 minutes or until barely golden on the bottom. You don’t want the cookies to brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
Assembly
While the cookies cool, prepare the glaze by stirring together powdered sugar and lemon juice, adding a tablespoon of lemon juice at a time to get a thick glaze consistency.
cup powdered sugar
tbsp lemon juice
Dip the tops of the cookies into the glaze, lift up the cookie to allow the excess to drip off, and place right side up on the cooling rack. If you will be filling the cookies with lemon curd like I did, only dip the tops of the cookies with the middle cut out.
Use a piping bag or spoon to add lemon curd onto the bottoms of the whole cookies. Add the glazed cookie tops, press to attach, and serve!
lemon curd
