There’s something about Glazed Lemon Cookies that immediately puts a smile on your face.
Arizona is famous for its citrus, so I constantly see citrus baked goods everywhere. But often they lack a citrusy punch or are overly sweetened to compensate for the acidity.
So, when I went to work on this recipe, I wanted to make sure the lemon cookies weren’t too sweet and were packed with all of the lemon flavor possible. After all, lemon is one of my favorite dessert flavors, second only to chocolate.
These cookies are full of bright, beautiful lemon flavor. The lemon glaze adds a touch of sweetness, along with even more wonderful lemonyness. They’re an absolute joy to eat! And, bonus: they’re crazy quick to make and don’t require a chill time, so they’re ready to serve in no time.
How to Make Glazed Lemon Cookies
What is the Texture of These Glazed Lemon Cookies?
My Glazed Lemon Cookies have soft, moist interiors with a slightly crisp exterior. These cookies are somewhere between my Soft & Chewy Sugar Cookies and a shortbread in texture. The glaze adds a little sweetness and a refreshing zip of lemon flavor that I just love. You can always enjoy these without the glaze, but I love the additional bright, citrusy-sweet layer the glaze gives these cookies.
Ingredients for Glazed Lemon Sugar Cookies:
- All-purpose flour – Measured correctly! If you add too much flour, you may end up with dense, hard cookies that don’t spread.
- Baking powder – Check out my Baking Soda vs. Baking Powder article to learn about the differences between the two and how to test for freshness.
- Salt – I prefer to use fine sea salt instead of table salt, but use whichever you have on hand. Learn more about types of salt here.
- Butter – Always use unsalted butter in baking. It’s important that your butter is at a cool room temperature. If your butter is too warm, your cookies can spread and puddle. Sticks of butter should give slightly when pressed but still hold their shape, about 67°F.
- Sugar – We use regular granulated sugar in these cookies to both sweeten and create a soft texture that lasts for days. Read more about sugar science here.
- Lemon zest – To give these cookies that delicious lemony flavor! You’ll need two very large lemons to zest, or three to four medium lemons. Grab an additional lemon if you wish to decorate your finished cookies with some extra zest (not necessary, but it looks so pretty).
- Egg – One egg, at room temperature. Be sure to use a large egg, about 56 grams in-shell.

Lemon Cookie Recipe Glaze Ingredients:
- Powdered sugar – Sifted or else you’ll have a lumpy glaze.
- Lemon juice – Heating lemon juice will greatly subdue its brightness so the key to unadulterated lemon flavor is using fresh lemon juice in this glaze.
- Additional lemon zest – This is optional, but it looks beautiful when you add a little fresh lemon zest on top of your glazed cookies before serving. Plus, it adds even more flavor!
Instructions for How to Make Glazed Lemon Cookies:
- Preheat oven.
- Mix the dry ingredients. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
- Cream the butter, sugar, and lemon zest. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter, sugar, and lemon zest on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy.
- Add in the egg. Beat in egg until well combined. Scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl.
- Combine the wet ingredients and the dry ingredients. On low speed, add the flour mixture and blend until just incorporated.
- Portion out and flatten the dough balls. Using a medium spring-loaded cookie scoop, drop 1 ½-tablespoon sized balls of cookie dough onto prepared baking sheets, spacing 2 inches apart. Roll each ball with your palms, then using your palm, gently flatten the dough to about 1/3-inch thick.
- Bake. Bake in preheated oven for 12-14 minutes or until cookies are just set and slightly golden brown at the edges. Cool cookies on their baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Make the glaze. In a medium bowl, whisk together powdered sugar and lemon juice until a very thick but pourable glaze forms.
- Glaze the cookies. Spoon each cooled cookie with the lemon glaze. Garnish with extra lemon zest, if desired.


Do I Need to Refrigerate This Dough Before Baking?
No! Unlike many cookie recipes, these delicious Glazed Lemon Cookies can be baked right away – no waiting required. In testing, Team HTH found no improvements in the baked, finished cookies after a 24-hour refrigerated period – so bake and enjoy right away.
If you need to prep these cookies ahead of time, however, I have tips on that below.
Can I Double This Glazed Lemon Cookie Recipe?
Sure! Just be sure to double-check all your ingredients as you go, so you don’t accidentally add too much or too little of anything. I always use weight measurements when doubling a recipe for best results.
Can I Halve This Recipe?
Halving this recipe is easy and works well, but you’ll need to also divide the egg in half. To do this, crack the egg into a small bowl and beat well. Let it settle, then measure out two tablespoons for the recipe.
Can I Make This Recipe Into Glazed Lemon Cookie Bars?
Yes, and they’re delish! Line an 8×8-inch metal baking pan with parchment paper. Press dough evenly into the pan. Bake for 23-25 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden brown and the center is no longer wet. Cool in pan for 10 minutes before removing from parchment paper to a wire rack to cool completely. Once cooled, use a spatula to evenly coat the cookie bars with glaze (use 2 tablespoons lemon juice + 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar for a thick glaze that sets perfectly), then garnish with extra lemon zest. Let set for 30 minutes before slicing.
Should I Bake These Lemon Cookies on Parchment Paper or a Silicone Baking Mat?
I typically prefer to use parchment paper. Read more about the comparisons, and my side-by-side experiments here!
Whatever you do, never spray your baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray or grease them any other way when baking cookies. This will lead to too much browning and spread (hello, burnt cookie puddles).
The Lemons
I used two very large lemons to get the two tablespoons of zest needed to make these Glazed Lemon Cookies, plus an additional medium lemon to add the pretty zest to the tops. If you can only find smaller or medium-sized lemons, you will need more.
How to Get Bright, Fresh, Super Lemony Cookies:
- Don’t use bottled lemon juice: Some contain preservatives and the flavor just isn’t as fresh.
- Lemon extract?: I don’t find it necessary. The zest in the cookies and the fresh juice in the glaze provide plenty of lemony flavor.
- Food coloring?: Some recipes include yellow food coloring, but I don’t think that’s necessary here. These cookies are bright and cheerful all on their own.
- Smooth glaze: For an ultra-smooth glaze, remove the pulp by straining the lemon juice with a small fine mesh strainer.
- Helpful tools: This is the juicer I love, and this is the zester I love.
- Tip: Be sure to zest your lemons before juicing.

Can I Use A Different Citrus Instead?
Although we haven’t tried that ourselves, there’s no reason why orange, lime, or even grapefruit wouldn’t work in this recipe. Just note that it may take a little experimenting to get the flavor perfect, as other citrus fruits have differing levels of flavor, acidity, and sweetness, so it might not be a straight swap. If you give another citrus a try yourself, let us know how it goes in the comments below.
Why No Vanilla in These Cookies?
Most cookie recipes will include vanilla extract. However, I don’t find it necessary here since the punchy lemon flavor will overpower the vanilla flavor anyway. Try my Soft & Chewy Sugar Cookies if you’re looking for soft sugar cookies where vanilla is the star flavor!
Can I Make These Lemon Cookies Ahead of Time?
Yes! Although these soft lemon cookies don’t require a chill period before baking, they can definitely be prepped and portioned ahead of time. Store the dough balls in a zip-top bag or an airtight container for up to 3 days in the refrigerator before baking, cooling, and glazing. Freezing info below!
How to Store Glazed Lemon Cookies:
These Glazed Lemon Cookies store very well in an airtight container at room temperature for about 3 days. Be sure the glaze has completely dried before storing. If you live somewhere humid, you can place wax paper between each layer of cookies to prevent them from sticking to one another.
Can You Freeze Glazed Lemon Cookies?
I wouldn’t recommend freezing a baked, glazed cookie. The glaze will likely seep or get sticky and tacky after freezing and thawing. The portioned balls of dough can be stored in a zip-top bag or an airtight container for up to 2 months. Here are more tips for freezing cookie dough, and baking from frozen!
I love anything that contains lemon and these are delicious! I varied the recipe a bit but using salted butter and about 1 Tablespoon lemon juice (I had some left over) to the cookie dough and they turned out great. These are dangerous to leave at my house as I will probably nibble on them until they are all gone, so I have shared several and they were voted unanimous YUMMY.
thank you for sharing
These Glazed Lemon Cookies are not only delicious but so easy to make! They are crispy on the outside and “cakey” inside and the glaze is a delight. So perfect for spring or any time for a citrus treat!
These are sunshine in cookie form! Such a bright, lemony flavor. Love them!
Beautiful.Gorgeous cookies and delish!
Great lemon punch! A super fast and easy recipe. Keep the glaze thick. Yummmm.
One of the easiest and fastest cookies to bake. Great lemon punch! Don’t skip the glaze. Keep it thick.
These were AMAZING!! I have to say, I did a taste test of the dough and it still wasn’t lemony enough for me (I swear I followed all of the recommendations!!). So I added an extra teaspoon of lemon zest and 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract and it was the perfect level of lemon. Alllllmost bordering on too sweet but still a 5/5. I have been doing the challenges for a few months now and this was easily my favorite!! Will DEFINITELY reach for this when a lemon dessert is needed.
Loved them, Tessa’s recipes are ALWAYS amazing!
These were so easy to make and so yummy too!
Loved these!
The cookies themselves are soft and the simple lemon icing is delightfully tart.. perfect for Springtime! These were quite the hit with my coworkers.
We made Lemon Bars and they are so good. It’s like a bite of springtime! Will definitely be making these again.
These were so easy to make and incredibly tasty! They’re the perfect summer cookie!
Super simple to make. Great lemon flavour!
I made these tonight and the recipe was so simple and the cookies are delicious. I like how they also aren’t overly sweet!
this was amazing and lemony fresh
These are delicious! Buttery and crisp cookies with a glaze that adds a lot of flavor but isn’t overpowering.
These cookies are such a nice treat! They’re sweet enough to satisfy me but also have just the right hint of lemon to balance and make it interesting. bonus: they’re super quick and easy! I ate a couple without the lemon glaze and they were still tasty
Yummy and easy! Lots of lemons in my backyard! Glaze was sticky when wet so I wish I had put something under my cooling racks to catch the drips so my counter wasn’t such a pain to clean. Took them to work and they were devoured!
These are the taste of summer. So fresh and light and they just melt in your mouth.
These were incredible! I love lemon desserts and these were easy to make and melt in your mouth. I love how few ingredients they take.
I made these for the May baking challenge. They are delicious. My preference is to dunk the cookies in the glaze even though they are slightly messier but it is more fun to do that vs spooning glaze onto the cookies.
I brought these cookies to a party and they were an absolute hit. Everyone loved them including the young kids!
It was delicious, I think the deficiencies in flavor/texture were from me being in a rush (I may have overworked the dough and I did not add zest as a garnish – which would have helped amp up the lemon flavor).
I definitely want to try again!
These cookies are soft, light and delicious with just the right amount of buttery chew. Made the glaze and it got a little too thing with the full amount of lemon juice but still tasted incredible. Would certainly make them again.
These cookies are so bright and Springy. You can do a lot with the glaze. They come together fast and no chill time needed. The texture is super soft and lovely.
Very simple to make, tender and yummy! Very refreshing.
Delicious cookies ! Very subtle when tasted them without the glazing and once glazed they are in perfect equilibrium. Would definitely make again !
Very tasty. Recipe is easy to follow. I used Meyer Lemons, and they were delicious. Would definitely make these again
Very tasty. Recipe is easy to follow. I used Meyer Lemons, and they were delicious.
Would definitely make these again.
This is a delicious lemon cookie, and the recipe is so easy. I will be making these again.
This was my first time making anything with Lemon and wow these were delicious! I had never made a glaze before and next time I will make it thicker so it doesn’t run off the cookie as much. But overall, so so yummy!
These were easy and fun to make. I used limes since that is what I had and also we had just finished some other lemon cookies. I live in France and I served these at our church’s youth activity this afternoon and the teens ate almost all of them. So the recipe has to be good if it was well appreciated in the land of bakeries .
Easy to make, lemony and delicious. I an glad I went with yhe shorter baking time, the consistency was perfect! I put lemon zest on about half of yhe cookies.
Hi, Entering the challenge for the first time. Loved the recipe, the cookies tasted really good.
Delicious and easy! I’ll definitely make these again! I wasn’t able to get 25 cookies, even with measuring everything and using the suggested cookie scoop size
very good and easy too
This recipe was quick and easy to make and the cookies are delish! I love the buttery lemon taste! Great texture too!
Super easy although definitely took me more than 15 min bc I don’t have a cookie scoop. And glazing took a bit of time if it was gonna look nice!
Very lovely recipe! Turned out a bit dry but it was fine. Next day they were even better!
These are easy and delicious. I couldn’t wait to try them.
I love lemons so I was excited to try out this recipe! Fantastic lemon flavor in these cookies – really impressed at how refreshing these taste and how easy they were to make!
Love these cookies – they are just the perfect balance of crispy and light laced with lemon deliciousness!
The flavor on these are amazing! Not too sweet with a nice tart lemon kick in the glaze. So good and easy to make.
my 6 yo son doesn’t usually finish a cookie but on this one he had 2 straight cookies. he said its a both sour and sweet which he likes. texture is crispy on the edges and melts in your mouth like butter cookies. 🙂
Quick, easy, and delicious
I was amazed at how easy, quick and delicious these cookies are!!! I got up early, made the dough, baked and glazed them and brought them into work where they did not last long at all 🙂 Everyone loved them. They loved the texture of the cookie and the bright citrusy glaze.
I love lemon, but Cara Cara oranges were on my mind for this recipe. I also plan to make the lemon version in an 8” x 8” pan instead of cookies for a quick dessert.
The flavor of these orange cookies is delicate and fresh with just enough citrus to literally make your mouth water. Slightly crisp edges with a soft center. Yum! Can’t wait to try this with lemons!
Delicious soft & chewy cookie with the perfect balance of sweetness and lemony tartness. Warning: it is very difficult to eat just one!
I subbed out the lemon for grapefruit (the only citrus I had in the fridge), and they turned out great!
5 stars for the cookie texture and buttery flavor, but the lemon flavor was non-existent. Bummer because of the description saying how citrus cookies are usually lacking in lemon flavor and then this was too! The rest of the cookie was awesome.
Hi Lynn! I’m honestly surprised to hear that – we found that these truly packed a punch of flavor when we tested this recipe. Did you use fresh lemon juice and zest? Bottle juice just doesn’t bring as much flavor, unfortunately. Next time, feel free to add additional lemon zest, and you can even add a little lemon extract if you’re looking for even more lemon flavor!
These cookies are not complicated to make! My wife and friends love love them.
Very flavorful.. I just miss the weight measurements.. I will use Tessa’s chart next time I make these.
Hello! This recipe sounds delicious! Is this a cookie dough that could be frozen before baking like chocolate chip dough?
Hi Lauren! That should work! Check out our How to Freeze Cookie Dough article for more tips and instructions. Hope you enjoy your Lemon Cookies!
Hiii you mention baking powder and not soda may I know why?
Hi Grace! Baking powder and soda aren’t always used together in recipes, it really depends on what type of cookie and texture you’re trying to achieve! Check out our article about the difference between Baking Soda vs. Baking Powder. We wanted these cookies to be tender and soft 🙂 I hope that helps!
Delicious! Perfectly soft texture and melt-in-your-mouth glaze. So good!
Hooray!!
Dear Tessa,
the Lemon cookies were a success. I am glad to have found your recipes.
Cookies always put a smile on my face
It's not spring here but I think I'll make them anyway and just close my eyes when I eat them. They look really yummy. I love lemon cookies.
I love any dessert with lemon so these sound perfect!
So glad you liked the cookies! They are perfect for spring!