Blue Ribbon Group Triple Lemon Citrus Cookies
Made with Meyer lemons in three parts—lemon curd, cookie, and icing—these Triple Lemon Citrus Cookies are immensely bright and flavorful! You will delight in their fresh and rich taste.
Bursting with Lemony Flavor
Fresh lemon juice and zest go into each part of these Triple Lemon Citrus Cookies. The cookie portion itself is super simple to make. It bursts with lemony goodness, even before you add the lemon icing and lemon curd on top.
The dough ingredients include both butter and coconut oil, which together, give the cookie a light but not overly delicate texture. You use vanilla bean paste and a tish of salt in the dough also, so the cookie’s lemon essence blooms with every bite. If you do not have access to vanilla bean paste or whole vanilla beans to scrape out the paste, use a pure extract instead. Chilling the dough a short time makes it easier to roll out.
Lovely Limoncello Liqueur
Limoncello goes into the curd. If you’re like me and don’t normally have that lovely Italian liqueur around, buy the tiny sized bottles (like those served on airplanes). I try to keep some on hand for recipes like this, or for when a craving comes on. on. Any time I smell or taste limoncello, I daydream of sitting in a flower garden in Italy, sipping a glass of it while sunbeams and the liqueur warm me inside and out. In fact, the scent of lemon itself is enough to fill me with sunshine.
Make Ahead, Make Extra
Last tips: I like to make the lemon curd ahead of time…and usually in a double batch. As a result, I have extra to use in other ways and I don’t feel rushed waiting for the mixture to cook and thicken. If you don’t want to take on homemade from scratch lemon curd at this time, there are jar/pre-made options like Dickenson’s and other, available in most grocery stores.
Recipe credit goes to Rozanne Gooding who won with them at the San Diego County Fair (2013).
I hope you make these citrus sweet treats soon…and enjoy them as much as I do.
-Cyndi
Triple Lemon Citrus Cookies
Homemade Lemon Curd
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1/2 cup fresh Meyer lemon juice
2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
2 tablespoons limoncello liqueur
Lemon Cookie Dough
1/2 cup butter, softened
2 tablespoons coconut oil, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
3 tablespoons fresh Meyer lemon juice
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon real vanilla bean paste
Lemon Icing
3 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/8 cup fresh Meyer lemon juice
2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
- Make lemon curd. In small saucepan over medium heat, whisk butter and sugar just until smooth, then add eggs. While whisking constantly, cook until mixture thickens. Stir in lemon juice, zest, and liqueur. Chill in refrigerator 30 or more minutes.
- Make cookie dough. In medium or large bowl, combine butter, coconut oil, sugar, and egg. Mix until smooth. Stir in lemon juice and zest. Add the pre-mixed dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, and salt) and vanilla bean paste. Mix on low until fully blended. Shape into disk, wrap in plastic, then refrigerate 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, combine icing ingredients, mix and set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Roll out dough onto lightly floured surface until about 1/8-th inch thick. If too firm, let it warm at room temperature a few minutes. You might need to lightly flour the top of dough also. Use just enough flour so dough doesn’t stick to your hands or surface. Cut out in preferred shapes and place on parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Bake 8-10 minutes or until edges just start to brown. Cool completely. Decorate cookies as desired with the icing and lemon curd.
