Easy Lemon Cream Cheese Cookies Recipe
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There’s nothing that can beat the flavor of a lemony cookie that tastes like summer. If you’re planning to whip up something sweet to treat yourself, or just need a little pick-me-up on a hard day, these lemon cream cheese cookies are the best!
What’s best is the fact that they take just 10 minutes of baking time, so you can make them in a big batch and store them for later too.
Ready to bake?? Here’s what you need to know before you do!
Can I Really Use Cream Cheese in Cookies?
Does adding cream cheese to your cookie dough feel like a bad idea? Well, it’s not! The combination of cream cheese and butter in this recipe is actually what gives the cookie the right texture and consistency, which will yield those pillowy-soft baked goodies that’ll make your kitchen smell great!
The butter helps intensify the flavors in the cookie. And the cream cheese works together with the butter to make the cookie dough more creamy and rich. Giving you a buttery tangy cookie you’ll love!
How Can I Make My Cookies Light & Airy?
The key to getting your lemon cream cheese cookies fluffy and airy lies in the mixing. While beating the cream cheese, sugar, and butter together, make sure the speed setting on your stand mixer is running on is at least medium.
Be sure to continue to beat the batter until the mixture turns fluffy. While the recipe tells you to do it for 2-3 minutes, it might take a bit longer for you, depending on the speed or strength of your mixer.
Underbeating the butter and sugar mixture can cause most cookies to turn out flat and dense. So always be sure to beat the fats and the sugars together first.
Remember to transfer the cookies to a wire rack and allow them to cool right after you get them out of the oven. Letting them stay in or on the baking tray for too long can cause them to overcook and turn out burnt and dense.
Why Do I Need to Chill the Cookie Dough?
If you’re wondering why you need to chill your cookie dough Just remember room temperature dough can spread and make gooey cookies. This cookie dough contains two ingredients (butter and cream cheese) which react quickly to heat.
Allowing them to chill for a while will help them retain their shape. And they won’t melt right after you put them into the oven.
You’ll be using softened butter for the recipe, which, on beating, will trap in the air. You’ll then allow the dough to chill and the butter to set, and then bake the cookies which will help them get that perfect fluffy texture you’re looking for.
Do I Really Need to Add Salt?
YES!
I know a lot of people think salt isn’t important, especially in a cookie recipe but it really is! Salt can really help take the flavors of your cookies up a notch. That’s exactly why you’ll find salt as an ingredient in most recipes for baked goodies-cakes, muffins, cookies- everything!
Adding salt to your lemon cream cheese cookies will really bring out those lemony flavors and make them sing.
Caution this lemon icing is TANGY!
If you prefer a lemon icing that’s not so tart use a little milk or water instead of pure lemon juice in the icing. It will make the icing less tart and lemony. But because you’re using a little lemon zest too it will still be lemony!
If you LOVE lemon flavor try my EASY Baked Sour Cream Doughnuts with Lemon Glaze OH SO DELISH!! Or these Beautiful Lemon Meringue Cookies from With Spice, they’re so fresh a beautiful! One more thought, try these Lemon Cake Mix Brownies for a fun and easy treat!!
Easy Lemon Cream Cheese Cookies Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup softened butter
- 4 ounces softened cream cheese
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar divided
- 1 TBSP Lemon Zest
- 1 egg
- 2 TBSP Lemon Juice
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
Icing
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 TBSP Lemon Zest
- 1-2 TBSP Lemon Juice OR Water
Instructions
- Cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugar until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes
- beat in the egg and the zest
- beat in the lemon juice
- in a separate bow stir the flour baking powder and salt together
- then stir into the butter mixture making sure it's well combined
- cover and chill the dough for at least 30 minutes
- when you're ready to bake preheat the oven to 350˚
- roll the dough in one inch balls, using the lefover sugar dip the bottom of a glass in in and then press the cookies dough down repeat as needed to flatten the balls
- bake 9-10 minutes until the cookies are set but not browned
- repeat with remaining dough
- when the cookies are cool make the icing
- zest the lemon into the powdered sugar
- add JUST enough water OR lemon juice to make a drizzle-able icing OR dunk your cookies in the icing
Nutrition
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