Lemon Cream Cheese Crinkle Cookies
Citrus-packed lemon cream cheese crinkle cookies combine the tangy flavors of cream cheese and fresh lemon! The crinkle texture adds a delicious layer of sweetness to these not-too-sweet treats! They're a popular cookie year-round; equally perfect for potlucks in the summer and Christmas gifting during the holidays, too!
Servings: 30 cookies
Calories: 150kcal
Prep 20 minutes
Cooking 12 minutes
Chilling Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 32 minutes
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Ingredients
- 8 oz cream cheese (softened, at room temperature)
- ½ cup butter (softened, at room temperature)
- 2 cups sugar (divided into 1½ cups and ½ cup portions)
- 3 tablespoon lemon zest (zest from 3 large lemons - reserve 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice)
- 3 tablespoon lemon juice (freshly squeezed, reserved from above)
- 2 teaspoon cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg (at room temperature, beaten)
- yellow gel food coloring (optional)
- 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup confectioners sugar
(Note: 2x or 3x only changes the ingredient list)
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Instructions
Mix The Cookie Dough
- Cream 8 oz cream cheese and ½ cup butter until creamy and smooth, add 2 cups sugar, and beat until creamy and light.
- Add the 3 tablespoon lemon zest, reserved 3 tablespoon lemon juice, 2 teaspoon cornstarch, ½ teaspoon baking soda, and ½ teaspoon salt, and beat until thoroughly combined.
- Add the optional yellow gel food coloring and the beaten 1 large egg and mix until light and creamy.
- Add the 2¼ cups all-purpose flour and mix in on a low speed until all of the flour is incorporated. The cookie dough will be somewhat crumbly but very sticky.
Chill Dough Then Prep
- Refrigerate to chill for at least an hour.
- Preheat oven to 325°F (162°C/Gas Mark 3) and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
Portion & Roll In Sugars
- Remove the chilled dough and use a spoon or scoop to scoop out generous tablespoon-sized amounts of the dough, rolling it in your palms to round each scoop into a ball.
- Use shallow, rimmed plates, dishes, or bowls for the ½ cup portions of white sugar (reserved from the 2 cups sugar) and ½ cup confectioners sugar.
- Roll each dough ball in the granulated white sugar, then confectioners sugar, and place on the baking sheets about 2 inches apart.
Bake & Cool
- Bake at 325°F (162°C/Gas Mark 3) for 12-14 minutes, or until the bottoms of the cookies are just lightly browned; do not over-bake.
- Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Notes
This recipe yields approximately 30 cookies. The nutritional information is calculated for one individual cookie.
Notes:
- Use quality ingredients for the best cookies! High-fat butter like Kerrygold, Challenge, Tillamook, Vermont Creamery, Cabot, Plugra, or Westgold are great choices. Philadelphia and Tillamook are two of my favorite cream cheese brands for the creamiest texture.
- Fresh lemon juice is best; you will need the lemons for zesting, but bottled lemon juice can be used in a pinch. I would suggest adding some lemon extract in this case.
- Properly zesting your lemons will prevent any bitter taste from the pith. Make sure that you only zest the outer yellow section of the peel.
- Chilling is key to getting good crinkles on your cookies, as is generously coating them in powdered sugar. See my ultimate guide to crinkle cookies for more great tips!
- Don't overbake the cookies; they will be dry and not perfectly gooey. Once the edges are set, you can remove them from your oven. Cookies continue baking on the baking sheets if left in place as in this recipe.
- Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days and refrigerated for up to 4-5 days.
- Freeze in single layers on a baking sheet, then transfer them into a freezer storage container. Place parchment paper sheets between layers to prevent breaking cookies. These crinkle cookies freeze well for up to 2-3 months. Thaw at room temperature when ready to serve.
Nutrition
Calories: 150kcal (8%) | Carbohydrates: 23g (8%) | Protein: 2g (4%) | Fat: 6g (9%) | Saturated Fat: 4g (25%) | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 22mg (7%) | Sodium: 108mg (5%) | Potassium: 26mg (1%) | Fiber: 0.3g (1%) | Sugar: 16g (18%) | Vitamin A: 206IU (4%) | Vitamin C: 1mg (1%) | Calcium: 12mg (1%) | Iron: 0.5mg (3%)
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