Mini Lemon Cookies
These Mini Lemon Cookies are the perfect addition to a tea party, baby shower, or cookie giftbox. Each cookie is soft and filled with a light lemon flavor–from fresh lemon juice and zest! Dip the cookies into powdered sugar for something even more special. Try making a whole lineup of mini cookies with my recipes for Mini Chocolate Chip Cookies and Mini Peanut Butter Cookies!
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I’m often tempted by those convenient “snack packs” of cookies and crackers at the grocery store–until I remember how dry and flavorless it all is. Homemade always tastes so much better and with a simple recipe like this one, it doesn’t take much time either.
Anyone would be thrilled to have a handful of these adorable cookies packed into their lunchbox!
I’ve made this recipe with melted butter so it’s super quick to mix up. No need to bring out the electric mixer and spend time creaming the butter and sugar together.
Instead, you can mix everything together quickly, pop the dough in the fridge while you work on on other tasks, and then bake when you’re ready (I suggest at least 2 hours of chill time).
The lemon flavor comes from a single fresh lemon. Zest it and then juice it. The combination creates the perfect light lemon flavor.
This recipe is adapted from a much larger lemon cookie recipe–my Crumbl-size Lemonade Cookies (they are frosted and also delicious!).
My Favorite Scoop for Mini Cookies
To get those perfect mini scoops, I like to use a 1-teaspoon cookie scoop. If you don’t want to buy one, you can also use a 1-teaspoon size measuring spoon instead.
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Recipes by a Real Person in a Real Kitchen
In the age of AI-generated content, I want to share that I’ve personally created and tested my recipes. My recipes have been hypothesized, baked, taste-tested, and refined by a real human (me!). I only publish recipes I think are awesome.
An Easy Variation to Try
Each scoop of cookie dough is rolled in powdered sugar before baking.
You can also dip them in powdered sugar after baking too! Just grab some fresh powdered sugar (don’t reuse the stuff you rolled the raw cookie dough in) and carefully dip the warm baked cookies in the sugar.
You’ll need the cookies to still be warm for the sugar to stick, so I only wait about 5-10 minutes after they are out of the oven before I dip them.
How to Store or Make Ahead
Freeze cookies for up to 1-2 months or leave at room temperature in a sealed container for up to 2-3 days.
If you want to make the dough ahead of time, that works too. Store in the fridge up to 2 days before baking and then allow to sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes before you scoop it (so it’s not too hard to scoop).
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Mini Lemon Cookies
Ingredients
- 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (5 ounces)
- ¾ cup granulated sugar (5.25 ounces)
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (pro tip: zest the lemon FIRST and then juice it!)
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (7.5 ounces)
- ½ teaspoon lemon zest
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- extra powdered sugar (for rolling cookies in)
Instructions
- Add melted butter to a large bowl. Add the granulated sugar and whisk until the mixture is totally combined. Whisk in the egg and vanilla extract until combined and smooth, about 60 seconds. Whisk in the lemon juice.
- Add the flour, lemon zest, baking powder, and salt into the bowl with the other ingredients and use a spatula to fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined. Dough will be soft.
- Chill dough for 2 hours.
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350℉.
- Scoop 1 teaspoon size cookies (use a teaspoon measuring spoon or a mini scoop). Roll each cookie in powdered sugar and place on lined baking sheet about 1.5" apart. (Discard leftover powdered sugar after you’ve rolled all the cookies.)
- Bake at 350℉ for 7-9 minutes, or until puffed, set, and barely golden on edges. You may bake two sheets at a time, simply rotate the sheets from back to front and top to bottom halfway through the baking time.Allow cookies to cool.
- Variation: Coating the cookies after baking in sugar is a tasty (and pretty!) option as well. Allow the cookies to cool approximately 5 minutes. Gently place cookies in a shallow dish filled with fresh powdered sugar (1/2 cup or so). Don't reuse the sugar that you rolled the raw cookie dough in! Use a spoon to gently coat the cookies and then remove them onto a tray to finish cooling. Add more powdered sugar to the dish as needed.
