Lemon Butter Cookies

10 Reviews
ADD YOUR REVIEW
Photo: Beth Dreiling Hontzas; Styling: Buffy Hargett
Total Time
1 Hour 29 Mins
Yield
Makes about 4 dozen (2 1/4-inch) or 2 dozen (3 1/4-inch) cookies
February 2010
RECIPE BY Southern Living

Cut this lemon-flavored sugar cookie dough into heart shapes and decorate with icing and glaze for Valentine's Day treats.

Ingredients

  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • Parchment paper
  • Royal Icing
  • Colorful Glaze

How to Make It

Step 1

Preheat oven to 325°. Beat butter and zest at medium speed with a heavy-duty electric stand mixer until creamy. Gradually add sugar, beating well.

Step 2

Combine flour and salt; gradually add to butter mixture, beating until blended. Shape dough into a disc.

Step 3

Roll dough to 1/8-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface. Cut with a 2 1/4- or 3 1/4-inch heart-shaped cutter; place 1/2 inch apart on parchment paper-lined baking sheets. If desired, cut 1 or 2 holes at top of each cookie (to hang or thread ribbon through after baking).

Step 4

Bake at 325° for 12 to 14 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool on baking sheets 5 minutes. Transfer to wire racks; cool completely (about 20 minutes). Decorate as desired with Royal Icing and Colorful Glaze.

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Ratings & Reviews

seaside725's Review

aneill
December 12, 2012
I thought this was a lot of work for a so so cookie. I would rather go with a different butter cookie.

mamava's Review

Cookielover1
February 12, 2011
I followed the recipe exactly and was pretty happy with the results. THe cookies were crisp and buttery. Rolling the dough out was easy enough, just need to use enough flour to prevent sticking. I'm not a huge butter cookie fan in general, but I'll probably make these again sometime.

Cookielover1's Review

Gnl70123
February 12, 2011
How disappointing. I printed this recipe back in December because I couldn't wait to make them for Valentine's Day. It was a mess. The dough was not very easy to work with and the cookies spread while baking and that you couldn't see that it was supposed to be the shape of a heart. I'll be looking for another lemon butter cookie recipe.

StephinColorado's Review

baf1970
February 01, 2011
This is now my go to for shortbread cookies. I make them at Christmas using a tree shaped cutter and green sprinkles, at Valentines using a heart shaped cutter and red sprinkles - endless possibilites. They are very delicious and so easy to make!

Gnl70123's Review

mamava
May 01, 2010
I have tried multiple types of butter cookies and this is the first recipe that tastes great and is easy to decorate.

SAVmom's Review

almbhm
February 14, 2010
N/A

aneill's Review

StephinColorado
February 11, 2010
This is in response to almbhm from An Unknown Location. My daughter has a dairy allergy as well. I was wondering if you have tried Shedd's Willow Run margarine. It is sold at Publix. I have used it multiple times in cookie recipes with great results.

almbhm's Review

seaside725
February 10, 2010
first i have to say that i did not use real butter, so that could be why my cookies weren't perfect. I used the Organic Smart Balance spread (my son has a milk allergy, and this is 100% vegan). the dough was difficult to roll—not impossible, but not easy. the cookies aren't BAD, just not excellent. if i'm going to make cookies from scratch, i want them to be fantastic!

baf1970's Review

dtadlock
February 05, 2010
I made this cookie and my husband loved it. You have to use butter and not margarine, as I think the previous rater may have done. Take out when the baking time is finished and let rest on cookie sheet as indicated. They should not get brown. I made the glaze then used Wilton cookie icing for decorative writing and piping.

dtadlock's Review

SAVmom
January 24, 2010
The cookies tasted great, but they spead so badly during baking that they totally lost their shape and were so thin and brittle they were almost impossible to ice. Don't know what is wrong with the recipes, but my daughters were very disappointed in how they looked.