These little golden lemon poppyseed cookies are soft, rich, and downright irresistible.
I don't know about you, but lemon poppyseed is one of those flavor combinations that just seems to hit the spot every dang time. It's bright but comforting, sunshine-y but still totally Winter appropriate. It just is.
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These cookies are about as soft as cake, not too sweet, and bursting with bright, lemon-y goodness.
These beauties were inspired by my favorite pistachio almond cookies, which are also pillowy soft, insanely delicious, and totally worth checking out.
Ingredients
This lemon poppyseed cookie recipe only calls for 10 ingredients, and you can have them prepped in less than 15 minutes. So easy, so so good.
- lemon zest
- sugar
- butter
- egg
- sour cream
- vanilla extract
- cake flour
- baking powder
- salt
- poppyseeds
Instructions
- In a small bowl, use your fingertips to pinch and rub together 2 tablespoon of the sugar and the freshly grated lemon zest for 1-2 minutes; until the sugar is bright yellow. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer or the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter and remaining sugar 3-5 minutes on high speed, until peaks begin to form. Add egg, continue mixing on medium for 30 seconds - 1 minute, until fully incorporated. Add the sour cream, almond extract (if using), and the lemon sugar mixture. Mix on medium for about one minute.
- Add salt, baking powder and 1 cup of flour to the wet ingredients and gently fold until combined. Add the remaining flour and poppyseeds. Mix gently until just combined. Some light streaks and clumps of flour are okay. Cover and chill dough in the refrigerator for at least one hour, up to 24.
Tip: If you're noticing separation when mixing your eggs, lemon zest, butter and sugar, try mixing a little longer. Sometimes all you need is an additional 20-30 seconds before everything comes together. If you're still running into issues, check out my guide on creaming butter and sugar.
- While the dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 375º F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Using a medium size cookie scoop or heaping tablespoons, portion the dough out and roll into 1-2" balls with lightly floured hands. Press the dough down very slightly with fingertips.
- Bake cookie sheets one at a time for 8-10 minutes on the center rack to ensure even baking throughout. Cookies are done as soon as the very edges of the bottom begin to look golden, tops will still be a pale yellow.
- Cool on the baking sheet for 3-5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Serve and enjoy!
Top tip
Use your fingertips and take some time to pinch and rub your granulated sugar and lemon zest together. This will really pull out all of that delicious lemon oil and seriously amp up the flavor of your final cookie. I typically spend a full 1-2 minutes on this step.
Substitutions
These lemon cookies can be adapted in a couple different ways:
- Vanilla - instead of vanilla, try almond extract! Alternatively, amp up the lemon flavor with lemon extract.
- Sour Cream - if you don't have sour cream on hand, I recommend subbing for ricotta or softened cream cheese at a 1:1 ratio. Greek yogurt would work in a serious pinch, but you'll end up with a slightly different flavor and texture. Opt for full-fat.
Storage
Store - these cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days while still keeping their consistency.
Freeze - This cookie dough can be made in advance and frozen for up to three months! Just make sure to label and date your dough so you don't forget about it later.
Related
Looking for more desserts? Check these out:
Recipe
Lemon Poppyseed Cookies
Print RecipeIngredients
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 cup granulated sugar divided
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 egg
- ½ cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract W
- 1 + ¾ cup cake flour (228 g)
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon poppyseeds
Instructions
- In a small bowl, use your fingertips to pinch and rub together 2 tablespoon of the sugar and the freshly grated lemon zest for 1-2 minutes; until the sugar is bright yellow. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and remaining sugar 3-5 minutes on high speed, until peaks begin to form. Add egg, continue mixing on medium for 30 seconds - 1 minute, until fully incorporated. Add the sour cream, almond extract (if using), and the lemon sugar mixture. Mix on medium for about one minute.
- Add salt, baking powder and 1 cup of flour to the wet ingredients and gently fold until combined. Add the remaining flour and poppyseeds. Mix gently until just combined. Some light streaks and clumps of flour are okay. Cover and chill dough in the refrigerator for at least one hour, up to 24.
- While the dough is chilling, preheat the oven to 375º F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Using a medium size cookie scoop or heaping tablespoons, portion the dough out and roll into 1-2" balls with lightly floured hands. Press the dough down very slightly with fingertips.
- Bake cookie sheets one at a time for 8-10 minutes on the center rack to ensure even baking throughout. Cookies are done as soon as the very edges of the bottom begin to look golden, tops will still be a pale yellow.
- Cool on the baking sheet for 3-5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- These cookies are incredible with vanilla, but almond extract makes a delicious substitution in this recipe.
- I recommend sticking with full-fat sour cream for these cookies, low-fat will result in a different texture and flavor.
- Cake flour keeps these cookies puffy and light. All purpose won't work well in this recipe.
- Chill this cookie dough for at least an hour to prevent spreading, but you can chill this dough up to a full day without any issues.
- This cookie dough can be frozen for up to three months! Just make sure to thaw the dough in the fridge and bake with cold dough after thawing.
Nutrition
kitchenverve.com occasionally offers nutritional information for recipes on our site. This information is provided as a courtesy from online calculators and should be used only as an estimate. Although we attempt to provide the most accurate nutritional information possible, these figures will vary based on your chosen ingredients and cooking methods.
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