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These Chewy Lemon Sugar Cookies are soft, perfectly chewy, and flavored with plenty of lemon zest and juice. Your family will love these bright sugar cookies!
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve made these Chewy Lemon Sugar Cookies in the past 10 years, but it’s been a lot.
I originally posted this recipe in 2010 after finding it on Rock Recipes and after 10+ years, I thought it was time to share them again with new photos and updated text.
These Chewy Lemon Cookies are simple to make and bursting with lemon flavor, which in my opinion makes them the perfect cookie for summer!
WHY I LOVE THIS COOKIE RECIPE
I love citrus in my desserts and baked goods.
Whether it’s lemon in Lemon Blueberry Bread and No-Bake Strawberry Lemonade Cheesecakes, orange in Orange Scones and Cranberry Orange Bundt Cake, or lime in Key Lime Pie Bars and Key Lime Pie Ice Cream…I love it all.
And I really, really love my Chewy Lime Sugar Cookies. So you know I had to try the recipe with lemon instead of lime.
And these cookies are so good! I might still prefer the lime version…but I’ll probably need to try them both again to decide for sure. You know, for science.
Now I love basically every type of sugar cookie. Decorated sugar cookies? Soft sugar cookies? Sure!
But there’s really something special about a crinkly, chewy sugar cookie. Especially one that has a bright lemony flavor.
I also love that you don’t have to let the dough chill before baking, because sometimes I just want cookies right now.
I had to give most of these cookies to a friend in order not to eat them all myself.
HOW TO MAKE THESE LEMON SUGAR COOKIES
To make these chewy cookies, you’ll need:
- 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Zest of one large lemon, finely grated or minced
- 4 tbsp fresh lemon juice
Yep, you’ll use the zest of a large lemon and ¼ cup of fresh lemon juice in these cookies. When we go for lemon flavor, we go hard.
Whisk together the dry ingredients in a bowl and set that aside.
Beat together the softened butter and the sugar until light and fluffy, then add in the egg, vanilla, lemon zest and lemon juice.
Once the wet ingredients are well combined, add in the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.
No chilling required! I like to use a medium cookie scoop to portion out the dough, then roll the dough into balls and roll them in some more granulated sugar.
Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes, until they are just set in the center and barely golden.
Let the cookies cool on the cookie sheet for a couple of minutes before moving them to a wire rack to cool completely.
CAN YOU FREEZE CHEWY LEMON SUGAR COOKIES?
I love freezing cookies. They’re one of the easiest baked goods to freeze.
If you want to freeze the dough before baking, check out my tutorial on how to freeze cookie dough. Just roll the dough balls in sugar just before baking, after you take them out of the freezer.
If you want to freeze the baked cookies, layer cooled cookies in a freezer-safe airtight container with parchment paper between the layers or place them in zip-top freezer bags.
Freeze for up to 3 months. They’ll thaw quickly at room temperature, so take them out a couple of hours before serving them at a party or grab a few whenever a cookie craving strikes.
Chewy Lemon Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 ½ cups granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- Zest of one large lemon finely grated or minced
- 4 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- ½ cup sugar for rolling cookies
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- Using a mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until smooth and very fluffy.
- Beat in egg, vanilla extract, lemon juice and lemon zest.
- Gradually blend in the dry ingredients.
- Roll rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into balls, and roll in sugar. Place on lined cookie sheets about 1 1/2 inches apart.
- Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until lightly browned.
- Let stand on cookie sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
My family really enjoys these cookies. We have made them twice and have enjoyed them so much that we have decided to make these for Christmas to share with the extended family this year.
That’s great to hear! Thanks so much for stopping in to let us know. Hope you have a great holiday season!
-Jamie
I loved this recipe! I rolled the cookie dough in sugar sprinkles to give them a cruch on the outside and everyone loved them! I can’t wait to try the lime coconut cookies too!
Thanks!
Katy-
I love this one too! Your idea for the sugar sprinkles is perfect! Have a great day and thanks so much for stopping by.
-Jamie
I made these today and they’re great. I also added 1/4 teaspoon of lemon extract in addition to everything else. They taste delicious! Mine did flatten. I will try with less baking soda next time. Thanks for the great recipe. It’s a keeper!
Kristina,
It’s wonderful to hear that you enjoyed the cookies! Thank you so much for stopping back to let us know about your experience making them and thank you for following MBA!
Jamie
These are AWESOME!!!
I think if you added 1/2tsp lemon extract, you might like these as much. As is, the recipe makes great teatime cookies! Thank you.
Thanks for the recipes — I tried the lime coconut cookies a while back and they were phenomenal! Had a taste for lemon sugar cookies this time around and found your site again. I’ll try this one for today, thanks!
Could I use lemon extract instead of lemon juice and zest? If so how much should I use of the extract?
Jenn-
Lemon extract does not have the acidity in it as actual lemon juice does. If you’re just concerned about the lemon flavor, you can use lemon extract; however, be mindful that extract is much stronger so you would use much less. Good luck and have a great day!
-Jamie
These cookies are fabulous! I baked half of the batter and froze the rest in the formed balls for cooking later when I want a quick treat and these turned out great too. I would recommend putting the batter in the fridge for about a half hour before baking to avoid the problem some were having with them flattening out too much.
Ally-
I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe! Thanks for stopping by and providing your feedback – have a great day!
-Jamie
Did you try any of the different ways to punch up the lemon flavor? If so, what worked? I was thinking that zesting some lemon peel and putting into your sugar before you made the cookies might help. Gonna try these for my Christmas round-up. Thanks for sharing.
AJ-
I think using some lemon zest in the sugar and mixing until fragrant is always an excellent way to incorporate a punch of lemon flavor! Good luck and have a great day!
-Jamie