Lemon Cream Cheese Cookies

These soft cookies taste like lemony sugar cookies that always stay soft thanks to the addition of cream cheese.  How good does that sound?!? The glaze on top adds the perfect little sweetness creating a bright cakey cookie that's just totally delish!  This recipe make approximately 1.5-2 dozen (18-24 cookies), depending on the size of cookie.

Ingredients:

Cookies:

• 3 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 3 teaspoons lemon zest (I zest 3 medium sized lemons & that's usually the perfect amount)
• 2-4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (I like using more lemon juice (4 tablespoons) to get a really lemony flavor; 2 tablespoons gives you just a light hint of lemon)
• Powdered sugar

Glaze:

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 tablespoon heavy whipping cream

**Mix all ingredients for glaze in a bowl with a whisk or fork.  You can omit the lemon zest & juice if you'd like a more subtle vanilla flavor. 


Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
1. Mix together your dry ingredients (flour, baking powder & salt). Sift or mix well with a whisk.
2. Place butter and cream cheese in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed until creamy.

 

3. Mix in sugar.

4. Add in egg, lemon zest & lemon juice & mix well.

 

5. Reduce speed to low & add in your dry ingredients.

 

6. Shape your dough.  You can roll it out & cut them like sugar cookies (note: the dough is a little wetter than sugar cookies so grease your cookie cutter & surface).  Or you can roll them into balls, flatten with the bottom of a glass & use a small cookie cutter to create a shape.  Or you can roll some dough into a rope & coil it around itself.  Below are examples of each, before going in the oven.

 



7. Bake for approximately 10-12 minutes.  The size of your cookie will change your baking time.  Once cookies get golden edges & bottom they are set.

8. Drizzle glaze or dip the cookie in the glaze. Let dry on a wire rack for 30 min. Once set, sprinkle with powdered sugar. (pictured: finished spirals with glaze drizzled in seams & dusted with sugar)