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Iced Lemon Cookies

Rachael Ray

Recipe courtesy Nantucket Cookie Company

Show: $40 a DayEpisode: Nantucket

Rated: 3 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (31)

  • Cook Time:

    15 min

  • Level:

    Intermediate

  • Yield:

    3 dozen (1 1/2-inch) cookies

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Times:

Prep
30 min
Inactive Prep
1 hr 30 min
Cook
15 min
Total:
2 hr 15 min
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Ingredients

  • 4 cups sugar
  • 1/2 cup lemon zest, about 6 to 8 lemons
  • 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 cups (4 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes, chilled
  • 5 egg yolks
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup lemon juice
  • Lemon Icing, recipe follows

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a food processor work bowl, add sugar and lemon zest. Process until sugar and zest are well mixed, about 20 seconds. Scrape into a large mixing bowl. Reserve about 1/2 cup of lemon sugar in a separate bowl for later use.

Add flour, baking powder and salt into food processor and pulse briefly to mix. Add cold butter into food processor with flour mixture and process with short pulses until mixture resembles cornmeal and no large lumps of butter remain, about 10 pulses. Pour this mixture into the sugar and lemon mixture in the large mixing bowl and set aside.

In a medium bowl, mix egg yolks, vanilla extract and lemon juice together.

Using an electric mixer with a paddle attachment, pour in the lemon/sugar and flour/butter mixture and stir until combined, about 15 seconds. Then, while the mixer is still running, slowly add egg/lemon juice mixture and mix until well combined and dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 15 to 30 seconds.

Scrape the dough into a large bowl and refrigerate until cold, but not solid, about 30 minutes. Use an ice cream scoop to scoop the dough onto parchment-lined cookie sheets. Take the dough balls and roll the tops into the reserved lemon sugar. Use the bottom of a water glass to press the cookies flat, about 1/4-inch thick. Bake the cookies until slightly browned, about 15 minutes. Remove the parchment paper with the cookies from the tray to a cooling rack and cool completely, about 1 hour. Once the cookies have completely cooled, ice with Lemon Icing.

Lemon Icing:

1 pound (2 cups) confectioners' sugar

6 tablespoons lemon juice

In a medium bowl, whisk sugar and lemon juice together until smooth. Spoon onto cooled cookies, and spread evenly with the back of a spoon. Let stand on a cooling rack until the glaze is set, about 1 hour.

Yield: enough for 3 dozen cookies

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Read more Comments & Reviews (31)

Comments & Reviews

  • recipe Iced Lemon Cookies
    Allison Somerville, MA 07-17-2009

    Flag

    With little adjustments...best lemon cookie ever!

    Rated: 4 stars out of 5
    Yes, you'll have to adjust this one. I cut out one stick of butter and added about a half a cup of extra flour- but a little... more flour would make rolling the balls easier. I only zested three lemons (which squeezed is about the 3/4 cup of juice you need). I'm eating one right now with some iced tea and they are perfect!Read more
  • recipe Iced Lemon Cookies
    Paula Murrieta, CA 04-11-2009

    Flag

    Totally Nasty!

    Rated: 1 stars out of 5
    I should have saved myself the grief and read the reviews before trying this...I do not understand those who said they came... out perfect! I am a seasoned cookie baker and this was a total waste of the price of a piece of parchment paper(the darn things even stuck to the parchment)! I did like the strong lemon flavor however. I believe the recipe could be salvaged with the addition of more flour, adding some b.soda, & up the b.powder slightly. The frosting also desperately needs the addition of vanilla or almond extract. With a little more poof they could be really really good. Not good as it is tho!Read more
  • recipe Iced Lemon Cookies
    Scottee Sun City, AZ 03-25-2009

    Flag

    all of the good reviews are drunk

    Rated: 1 stars out of 5
    Not to be disrespectfull---but where have you ever seen any recipe instruct you to use 4 sticks of unsalted butter to 4 1/2... cups of flour. My wife questioned this at the beginning basically because it all would not fit in a normal food processor. The end result is nothing short of a greasy manhole cover. I would highly suggest that someone revisit this recipe and adjust it prior to causing someone to have a heart attack. Someone owes me for all of the ingredients that were waisted on this mess. I'm not mad Rachael---everyone makes mistakes.Read more
  • recipe Iced Lemon Cookies
    TINA Las Vegas, NV 12-05-2008

    Flag

    Flat, Greasy and chewy.

    Rated: 1 stars out of 5
    What a waste of 2 hours. The recipe bombs out from the beginning with the food processor mixing directions that do not work... unless you have a commercial food processor. The ice cream scoop cookies turned into 10" pancakes. After the first batch I made them marble sized balls. Two of the 3 cookie sheets burned after 10 minutes due to the fact the cookies are paper thin. The recipe makes closer to (100) - 1 1/2" cookies. Rachel Ray bombed out big time on this one. Read more
  • recipe Iced Lemon Cookies
    Cheryl Fairbury, IL 09-04-2007

    Flag

    Amazing cookies!!

    Rated: 5 stars out of 5
    I have been searching for this recipe since tasting a very similar cookie at a party several years ago. This is an AMAZING... cookie for lemon lovers, the sweet and sour flavor. You do need a large size food processor and some strong wrists to grate all the lemon zest, but they are so worth it. I will be making these for special occasions - I followed the recipe exactly and they turned out perfect. They are tender and moist and the lemon glaze really sets off the flavor. My husband loves them, too. The flavor is similar to the tried and true lemon bars with the crust, lemon filling and powdered sugar on top. I store the dough in the refrigerator and make them a few dozen at a time. If you make them them BIG with an ice cream scoop you'll get 2-3 dozen. I made some smaller, about 1" balls, and they were wonderful, too.Read more
  • recipe Iced Lemon Cookies
    RACHEL ALPHARETTA, GA 08-26-2007

    Flag

    TUMMY ACHE! OUCHY!

    Rated: 1 stars out of 5
    These are the worst cookies I've ever made. I was so excited about this recipe, but boy was I disappointed. This recipe... requires so much time, and a whole orchard of lemons! The recipe is not properly adjusted to household-sized scale. These cookies were ULTRA-SUPER-CALA-FRADJULISTIC-EXPIALADOCIOUS LEMONY!!! And SUGARY! And I MEAN it. I was squinting and wincing with every bite. Then I had the WORST STOMACH ACHE of my life. My advice? Don't walk... RUN! Run away from this recipe.Read more
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