Bright Zesty Buttery Lemon Sugar Cookies (Printable)

Bright, zesty, and buttery sugar cookies with a refreshing lemon twist—perfect for any occasion.

# What's Needed:

→ Dry Ingredients

01 - 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
02 - 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
03 - 1/2 teaspoon salt

→ Wet Ingredients

04 - 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
05 - 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
06 - 2 tablespoons grated lemon zest (about 2 lemons)
07 - 1 large egg
08 - 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
09 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

→ For Rolling

10 - 1/4 cup granulated sugar

# How to Make It:

01 - Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
02 - In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
03 - In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.
04 - Beat in the lemon zest, egg, lemon juice, and vanilla extract until fully incorporated.
05 - Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, mixing just until combined.
06 - Scoop tablespoon-sized balls of dough and roll each in the extra sugar to coat.
07 - Place cookies 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets.
08 - Bake for 9-11 minutes, until edges are lightly golden and centers are just set.
09 - Allow cookies to cool on the sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

# Tips for Success:

01 -
  • The texture is crisp at the edges and chewy in the center, exactly how a sugar cookie should be
  • Fresh lemon zest makes these taste like they came from a bakery rather than your home kitchen
02 -
  • Overmixing the dough once the flour is added will make these cookies tough instead of tender
  • The cookies might look underbaked when you pull them out, but they continue cooking on the hot baking sheet
03 -
  • Use room temperature ingredients so everything incorporates smoothly and evenly
  • Scoop all the dough before rolling any in sugar to ensure uniform cookie sizes

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