3 tbsp lemon zest (the entire recipe requires 3 lemons in total)
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
2 & 1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1 tsp lemon extract
Yellow food coloring (optional)
White chocolate chips or chunks (optional)
Ingredients – Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar (additional 1/2 cup for thicker glaze)
1 & 1/2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp vanilla extract
Directions
1) Zest the 3 lemons into a small bowl and set aside. Then in a separate bowl juice the three lemons and set aside. Be patient, this step will take time!
2) In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3) In a large bowl, beat together the softened butter, sugar, and lemon zest [3 tbsp] until light and fluffy.
4) Add the egg, lemon juice [2 tbsp], and lemon extract. Beat on medium speed until well combined, scraping the bowl down as needed while mixing. If you are adding food coloring to your cookies, mix it in at the end of this step.
5) Add the flour mixture to the wet mixture and beat on low speed until almost combined. Scrape down the bowl once more, and beat until just combined. Cover and chill the dough for 30 minutes (or longer if baking at a later time).
6) Once the dough is chilled, preheat the oven to 350oF and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll out dough balls the size of a golf ball for small cookies or slightly bigger for larger cookies, and add the dough balls to the sheet, making sure roughly an inch and a half of space exists around each cookie. If adding optional white chocolate, make sure to incorporate the chocolate into each dough ball while rolling, and top each ready ball with a few chocolate chips / chunks.
7) Bake for 10 minutes (small) / 12 minutes (large) or until the edges set and just start turning golden brown. Let the cookies cool completely on the pan before topping with glaze, about 45 minutes.
8) Make the glaze: In a medium bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, lemon juice [1 & 1/2 tbsp], and vanilla extract. Drizzle over the cooled cookies.
