Description
Soft, tangy, and wonderfully crackly, these Lemon Cloud Crinkle Cookies have a creamy centre and plenty of fresh lemon flavour. They’re the kind of cookie that looks fancy on the plate but is actually pretty easy to make once the dough has had a good chill.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 2 1/4 cups (270 g) all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp (about 8 g) baking powder
- 1 package (8 oz/226 g) cream cheese, softened
- 1/2 cup (1 stick/113 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 1/2 cups (300 g) granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp (12 g) freshly grated lemon zest, from about 2 large lemons
- 1 1/2 tbsp (22.5 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 tsp (5 ml) pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 tsp lemon oil, optional
- 1/8 tsp natural yellow gel based food colouring
- 1 tsp (5 g) kosher salt, or 3/4 tsp regular table salt
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 cup (120 g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted, for rolling and dusting
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together 2 1/4 cups (270 g) all-purpose flour and 2 tsp (about 8 g) baking powder until evenly combined.
- Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or a handheld electric mixer, beat 1 package (8 oz/226 g) softened cream cheese and 1/2 cup (1 stick/113 g) softened unsalted butter until smooth and creamy. Don’t worry if it takes a minute or two to get there.
- Add 1 1/2 cups (300 g) granulated sugar, 2 tbsp (12 g) freshly grated lemon zest, 1 1/2 tbsp (22.5 ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice, 1 tsp (5 ml) pure vanilla extract, 1/8 tsp lemon oil if using, 1/8 tsp natural yellow gel-based food colouring and 1 tsp (5 g) kosher salt, or 3/4 tsp regular table salt. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, scraping down the bowl as needed.
- Add 1 large egg and 1 large egg yolk and beat for 1 to 2 minutes until the mixture is creamy and well incorporated.
- With the mixer on low, gradually add the flour and baking powder mixture. Mix just until no dry flour remains. Don’t keep beating once the dough comes together or the cookies can turn out heavier than they should.
- The dough will be very soft and sticky. That’s normal. Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours, or overnight. If you skip this step, the dough will be much harder to scoop and the cookies are more likely to spread too much.
- When you’re ready to bake, heat the oven to 325⁰F (165⁰C) and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Keep the chilled dough in the refrigerator between batches if your kitchen is warm.
- Sift 1 cup (120 g) confectioners’ sugar into a small bowl.
- Scoop generous 1 tbsp portions of chilled dough, or use a 1 1/3 inch spring loaded cookie scoop. Keep the portions as even as you can so the cookies bake at the same rate.
- Roll each portion between your palms into a rounded ball, then roll it generously in 1 cup (120 g) confectioners’ sugar. Make sure the dough is well coated. The sugar coating is what gives Lemon Cloud Crinkle Cookies those lovely white cracks, so don’t be shy with it.
- Place the coated dough balls on the prepared baking sheets at least 2 inches apart.
- Bake at 325⁰F (165⁰C) for about 14 minutes, until the cookies have spread, puffed slightly and developed their crackled tops. They should still look soft in the centres. Don’t wait for them to look completely baked in the oven.
- Watch the edges closely. If they’re turning noticeably brown, the cookies have gone too far. The bottoms should be only very lightly browned.
- Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for at least 10 minutes. They’ll be delicate while hot, so give them time to firm up before moving them.
- Use a thin metal cookie spatula to carefully transfer the cookies to a wire rack and let them cool completely.
- Once completely cool, store Lemon Cloud Crinkle Cookies in an airtight container. If baking in batches, keep the remaining dough chilled until you’re ready to scoop and bake it.
Notes
Prepared, tried, and tested by Mona
