Lemon Crinkle Cookies made with fresh lemon zest and juice and a nice addition of brown sugar–these are soft and chewy and full of fresh lemon flavor!
When I first saw these cookies in the Best Ever Christmas Cookies magazine from America’s Test Kitchen, I knew I had to try them. Chocolate crinkle cookies are one of my absolute favorites, and these lemon cookies promised to deliver full-on lemon flavor with fresh lemon juice and zest.
Although these cookies look like the cake mix lemon crinkle cookies, these are so much better! I have nothing against cookies made from a cake mix—in fact, I have a chocolate chip cake mix cookie recipe on this website and I love it! Cake mix cookies are easy to make and perfect when you need cookies fast.
But I do think that cookies made from scratch taste the best, so unless I’m pressed for time I usually make homemade cookies. Of course, I also usually keep some of the break-and-bake cookies in my fridge for cookie emergencies!
Lemon Crinkle Cookies with Brown Sugar
I tweaked the ATK recipe a little by adding additional zest and juice, as well as a little more flour. And I swapped in brown sugar for the white sugar to add a little chewiness and more flavor, so these aren’t the bright yellow cookies that were in the magazine. But the taste is amazing!
I also used almond extract instead of vanilla just to give the cookies a slightly nutty flavor to complement the brown sugar. The resulting cookies were a little chewy and soft, with a whole lot of zesty lemon taste and subtle brown sugar flavor.
My family loves these cookies and I hope yours will too!
Lemon Crinkle Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 5 teaspoons grated lemon zest
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 cup light brown sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- ½ cup confectioner’s sugar
Instructions
- Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, and lemon zest in a bowl.
- In bowl of stand mixer, cream butter until light and fluffy. Add oil and cream together until well mixed.
- Add brown sugar and mix well. Add egg and egg yolk and mix for about 1 minute. Add almond extract and lemon juice.
- Add flour mixture and mix until just blended. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and place dough in refrigerator for one hour.
- Preheat oven to 350. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place confectioner’s sugar in a small bowl.
- Scoop 1 1/2 tablespoons dough and roll into balls, then roll in the confectioner’s sugar to coat. Place balls 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Bake until cracked and set on top but visibly moist, 10-12 minutes, rotating sheet halfway through baking. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
Nutrition
