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    Home » Recipes » Cookies & Brownies

    Published Jan 17, 2020 · Updated Apr 16, 2022 · by Tammy Spencer · This post may contain affiliate links.

    Glazed Lemon Shortbread Cookies

    Jump to Recipe Jump to Video

    These Lemon Shortbread Cookies can use Meyer lemons for a delicate flavor, or regular lemons for a sharper tang. Topped with a lemon glaze, they're a perfect balance of lemony, buttery delight in every bite!

    Lemon shortbread piled on a pink cake stand with lemons on a towel. this …
    Jump to:
    • Why this recipe works
    • What are Meyer lemons?
    • Baking with Meyer lemons
    • Recipe Ingredients
    • How to make lemon shortbread
    • Questions asked and answered
    • Pro Tip: Make shortbread bars
    • Lemon and butter come together deliciously
    • Related Recipes
    • Glazed Lemon Shortbread Cookies
    • Comments

    Why this recipe works

    • Add lemon juice and zest to a classic shortbread cookie recipe to add a bright flavor to a buttery cookie
    • Top with a lemon glaze to really bring the lemon zing

    Wintertime doesn’t have to be dull and dreary. Not when there are lemons about. That bright sunshine-y color and bold flavor drives away the winter blahs.

    Take buttery homemade shortbread cookies, and add in a lemon. The tart acidic component lemons bring balances out the buttery richness in the shortbread. Now you’re really talking about brightening your day!

    But wait, there’s more - you have a choice in the type of lemons you can use, especially this time of year. I’m talking about Meyer lemons.

    What are Meyer lemons?

    I remember as a girl my aunt had a lemon tree in her yard, and we would make lemonade from the fruit. I could never understand why that lemonade tasted less tart than I was used to. Turns out, that was a Meyer lemon tree.

    Meyer lemons are a cousin to regular lemons, just sweeter and less acidic. Brought to the US from China in the early 20th century, these lemons bring a more nuanced flavor than their usual counterparts. Think lemon tartness tempered with floral and bergamot notes.

    While regular lemons are available year-round, Meyer lemons only show up in the US from mid-Winter to early Spring.

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    Baking with Meyer lemons

    You can substitute Meyer lemons for regular lemons in your recipes calling for lemons and vice versa. Just remember to adjust to your desired sweetness and acidity when making changes. 

    One little Meyer lemon produces about three tablespoons of juice and one teaspoon of zest, plenty for your lemon shortbread recipe. I used a microplane grater and a citrus juicer to juice and zest citrus fruit.

    Collage of before and after juicing & zesting a lemon.
    A citrus juicer and microplane grater make quick work of juicing and zesting lemons

    Recipe Ingredients

    You'll need the following ingredients to make this lemon shortbread cookie recipe:

    lemon shortbread ingredients portioned into glass bowls.

    Ingredient Notes

    Butter: Because butter features prominently in a shortbread recipe, used the best butter available - the richer the butter, the better the flavor of the shortbread will be. To make sure the butter is softened (so that it can be easily creamed into the sugar), leave it out on the counter for about an hour.

    Lemon juice & zest: These lemon cookies add in both the juice and zest of one lemon to bring a zing to a traditional shortbread cookie recipe, plus they have a sweet lemon glaze that highlights the lemons' influence.

    Meyer lemons have a softer, less acidic flavor than regular lemons, and using them will temper their influence, giving you balance between the lemon and butter. If you want that sharper tang, by all means use regular lemons!

    See the recipe card for a full list of ingredients and measurements.

    How to make lemon shortbread

    The method for making a Lemon Shortbread cookie recipe is almost the same as regular shortbread since there's only two additional ingredients. You can also make these as lemon shortbread bars.

    Step 1: Make the cookie dough

    Cream the butter, sugar, and lemon zest together (photo 1).

    Butter, sugar, & lemon zest in a glass bowl from overhead.
    Creaming the butter, sugar, and zest

    Next, beat in the lemon juice and salt (photo 2).

    Adding lemon juice & salt to creamed butter & sugar.
    Adding lemon juice and salt to the dough

    Add in the flour and mix until just combined (photo 3). Don't overwork the dough so you don't develop the gluten structure too much.

    Adding flour to shortbread dough.
    Mixing in the flour to the dough

    Step 2: Portion & bake the dough

    Portion out the dough into two tablespoon-sized balls using a medium cookie scoop, then flatten the dough with a fork in a crosshatch pattern

    Chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes before baking. This allows the butter to firm up and keeps the cookies from spreading too much.

    Bake the cookies at 350˚F for 20 to 23 minutes or until the cookies' edges are lightly browned. Allow the cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking pan, then move them to a cooling rack to cool completely (photo 4).

    before and after baking lemon shortbread cookies
    Portion, chill, and bake the cookies

    Step 3: Glaze the cookies

    Adding a lemon glaze to your lemon shortbread recipe ups the flavor punch, and gives a pretty shine to these cookies. After all, who doesn't love glaze?

    Sift the powdered sugar into a small bowl. Mix two tablespoons of juice with the powdered sugar in a small bowl, adding more juice or powdered sugar as needed to achieve a drizzling consistency.

    When the cookies are completely cooled, move them back to a cooled baking pan. Drizzle the cookies with the glaze and let set for 15 minutes (photo 5).

    glazing lemon shortbread collage
    Glazing the cookies

    Storage and make-ahead instructions

    Storage instructions: Lemon Shortbread cookies can be kept in an airtight contain at room temperature for up to 3 days, or in the refrigerator for up to a week. You can also freeze the baked cookies (glazed or unglazed) for up to 3 months, placed in an airtight freezer container. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator or at room temperature.

    Make-ahead instructions: You can freeze the dough after portioning and flattening them. Lay them on a baking pan (I line the pan with waxed paper first) and place in the freezer until firm (about 45 minutes). Remove the now-frozen dough to a freezer-safe ziplock bag until ready to use. They'll keep for several months. To bake cookies from frozen, reduce the oven temperature to 325 °F and bake about 3 to 5 minutes longer than normal. Follow the instructions for cooling and glazing.

    Questions asked and answered

    Here are some questions that you might have...

    Can I use another citrus fruit instead of lemons?

    Sure! Try limes or oranges for a different take.

    How is shortbread different from other cookies?

    The main difference is that shortbread doesn't use leavening, like baking powder or baking soda. It relies on the high butter content to keep the cookie soft by shortening the gluten in the dough.

    Glazed lemon shortbread cookies on a baking pan.

    Pro Tip: Make shortbread bars

    You can make these shortbread cookies in the traditional bar form. Just press the dough into an 8- x 8-inch baking pan (for thicker bars) or a 9- x 9-inch baking pan (for thinner bars) that's been lined with parchment paper, leaving an overhang. Pierce the dough with a fork, then chill for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the dough is firm.

    Bake at 350°F for 25 to 30 minutes, then cut into bars while they're still warm in the pan. Let the bars cool in the pan, then use the overhang to remove them from the pan. Glaze if desired.

    Lemon and butter come together deliciously

    Using Meyer lemons lend a delicate flavor to these buttery lemon shortbread cookies, both in the dough and in the glaze. If you want that sharper tang, by all means use regular lemons.

    Lemon shortbread stacked on a pink cake stand.

    Either way, you’ll love how well the lemons and butter will complement each other, and that’s certain to brighten your day!

    Slainté! L’chaim! Cheers!

    Tammy

    Related Recipes

    Lemons, limes, and oranges can add brightness and maybe even a mouth-puckering tanginess to your desserts. Whether the recipe contains fresh squeezed juice or a citrus-flavored extract, you'll want to try some of these citrus recipes! Here are a few ideas to get you started:

    • Orange Cranberry Sauce in a glass bowl with tools and ingredients.
      Fresh Cranberry Sauce with Orange and Cinnamon
    • Orange Cranberry scone on white plate in foreground & stacked on blue plate in background.
      Glazed Orange Cranberry Scones
    • Lemon Sherbet scooped in blue bowl on green towel with strawberries & lemons.
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    • Treacle Tart sliced & plated on blue plate with tart on green plate on book & glass owl in background.
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    Tammy dressed in her culinary school chef's coat.

    I hope you like this recipe! Do you have any questions I can help with? Let me know! Or, if you made the recipe, I'd love for you to leave a comment and rating. Thanks!

    Comment or Rate Recipe
    Lemon shortbread piled on a pink cake stand with lemons on a towel.

    Glazed Lemon Shortbread Cookies

    Tammy Spencer
    These Lemon Shortbread Cookies contain Meyer lemons for a delicate flavor, or use regular lemons for a sharper tang. Topped with a lemon glaze, they're a perfect balance of lemony, buttery delight in every bite!
    4.55 from 11 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save Recipe Saved Recipe
    Prep Time 10 minutes mins
    Cook Time 23 minutes mins
    Cooling Time 15 minutes mins
    Total Time 48 minutes mins
    Course Dessert
    Cuisine American
    Servings 21 cookies
    Calories 140 kcal

    Equipment

    • 2 half sheet baking pans
    • Silpat silicone mat or parchment paper
    • stand mixer with paddle attachment or hand mixer
    • medium cookie scoop (2 tablespoons)
    • sifter
    Prevent your screen from going dark while cooking

    Ingredients
     
     

    For the cookies

    • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
    • ½ cup granulated sugar
    • 1 teaspoon lemon zest, from 1 lemon, see Recipe Notes
    • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
    • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
    • 2 cups all-purpose flour

    For the glaze

    • 1 to 2 tablespoons lemon juice
    • ½ cup powdered sugar, sifted, plus more as needed

    Instructions
     

    • Preheat oven to 350 °F. Line two half sheet baking pans with a Silpat silicone mat or parchment paper.
    • Make the cookies: In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment (or in a large bowl using a hand mixer), cream the butter, sugar, and zest together until light and fluffy.
    • Beat in the lemon juice and salt. Add in the flour and mix until just combined.
    • Portion out the dough into 2-tablespoon balls using a medium cookie scoop. Flatten the dough with a fork in a crosshatch pattern, then chill in the refrigerator for 20 minutes before baking. Chilling the cookies before baking firms up the butter and keeps the cookies from spreading too much.
    • Bake for 20 to 23 minutes or until the cookies' edges are lightly browned. Allow the cookies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking pan, then move them to a cooling rack to cool completely.
    • Make the glaze: sift the powdered sugar into a small bowl. Mix two tablespoons of juice with the powdered sugar in a small bowl, adding more juice or powdered sugar as needed to achieve a drizzling consistency.
    • When the cookies are completely cooled, move them back to a cooled baking pan. Drizzle the cookies with the glaze and let set for 15 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
    • Storage instructions: Lemon Shortbread cookies can be kept in an airtight contain at room temperature for up to 3 days, or in the refrigerator for up to a week. You can also freeze the baked cookies (glazed or unglazed) for up to 3 months, placed in an airtight freezer container. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator or at room temperature.
    • Make-ahead instructions: You can freeze the dough after portioning and flattening them. Lay them on a baking pan (I line the pan with waxed paper first) and place in the freezer until firm (about 45 minutes). Remove the now-frozen dough to a freezer-safe ziplock bag until ready to use. They'll keep for several months. To bake cookies from frozen, reduce the oven temperature to 325 °F and bake about 3 to 5 minutes longer than normal. Follow the instructions for cooling and glazing.

    Notes

    Meyer lemons have a softer, less acidic flavor than regular lemons, and using them will temper their influence, giving you balance between the lemon and butter. If you want that sharper tang, by all means use regular lemons!
    To make Lemon Shortbread bars, press the dough into an 8- x 8-inch baking pan (for thicker bars) or a 9- x 9-inch baking pan (for thinner bars) that's been lined with parchment paper, leaving an overhang. Pierce the dough with a fork, then chill for 20 to 30 minutes, or until the dough is firm. Bake at 350°F for 25 to 30 minutes, then cut into bars while they're still warm in the pan. Let the bars cool in the pan, then use the overhang to remove them from the pan.

    Your Notes

    Click here to add your own private notes

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1 cookieCalories: 140 kcalCarbohydrates: 14 gProtein: 1 gFat: 9 gSaturated Fat: 6 gCholesterol: 23 mgSodium: 57 mgPotassium: 15 mgFiber: 1 gSugar: 5 gVitamin A: 270 IUVitamin C: 1 mgCalcium: 4 mgIron: 1 mg
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      Recipe Rating




    1. Shira says

      January 17, 2020 at 12:17 pm

      5 stars
      So tasty!! Loved the video and seeing your process!

      Reply
      • scotchscones says

        January 17, 2020 at 12:34 pm

        I'm so glad you enjoyed them, both the cookies and the video!

        Reply
    2. Ella says

      January 19, 2020 at 11:55 am

      5 stars
      Delicious, they look so light and fresh!

      Reply
    3. Laurilyn Frasier says

      February 11, 2020 at 8:23 am

      5 stars
      Hi Tammy, these are great and I made them for Burns Night. I am going to try the sour dough recipes the one with rosemary sounds really good.

      Until we meet up at the games!

      Slante!

      Laurilyn

      Reply
      • scotchscones says

        February 11, 2020 at 9:50 am

        I'm glad you enjoyed them, Laurilyn! I hope you'll let me know how the sourdough focaccia goes for you. See you at the Games!

        Reply

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    Hi, I'm Tammy! My fascination with baking comes from my love of science and the magic of bringing together ingredients to produce something yummy. Coupling that with my appreciation of scotches and bourbons, I love to bake stuff, jot down my whisky tasting notes, and share my experiences with you!

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