I have an answer for you!
For those who don't use lemon for baking, you might ask... Why lemon butter cookies?
I love to bake with lemon due to its refreshing zesty taste and fragrance. Plus, I also like to make use of its acidic nature to create cakes and bakes with extra airy texture.
Something like...
lemon juice (acid) + baking soda (alkaline) = carbon dioxide gas = extra airy texture in bakes
YUMMMMM...
Well, it's lemon season now in Australia! Since we have a little dwarf lemon tree for the past 3 years that is starting to produce a good amount of lemons this year, I have road-tested several recipes and found THREE really good lemon butter cookies recipe that makes three very different types of delicious cookies...
Recipe One makes Crispy Lemon Butter Cookies.
Recipe Two makes Like-Shortbread Buttery Lemon Butter Cookies.
Recipe Three makes Thick Fluffy Soft Lemon Butter Cookies.
In fact, they are all considered the BEST based on the recipes that I have road-tested-and-tasted. And you choose any of them to be your personal best depending on what kind of lemon butter cookies that you like...
Do you like these CRISPY lemon butter cookies?
Or these BUTTERY Like-Shortbread Lemon Butter Cookies?
Or these THICK SOFT FLUFFY Lemon Butter Cookies?
Prior road-testing these lemon butter cookies, I have standardized and analysed the recipes meticulously. Even the slight difference in (1) the amount of egg and egg yolks added (2) the amount of sugar (3) the amount of flour added (4) baking duration and (5) with or without almond meal can make these cookies taste so vastly different.
My son said that he like the crispy cookies the most. My husband said "Anything." Hmmm... Me? I might sounded lame but I like ALL of these cookies! LOL! And this is why I have decided to share all these three recipes!
Recipe One:Made with more egg yolks, more caster sugar, less flour, with almond meal and longer baking duration, these lemon butter cookies are deliciously crispy!
The higher sugar content and longer baking duration has made the cookies...
distinctively deep golden brown and crispy!
YUM! This is why these are my son's favorite.
Recipe Two:
Made with egg yolk, less caster sugar and moderate baking duration, these lemon butter cookies taste more buttery than the other cookies!
These nicely golden brown cookies taste so buttery and fragrant!
They can be so addictive that the butter-loving me just can't stop munching them...
Recipe Three:
Made with whole egg, more caster sugar, slightly more flour and short baking duration, these pale-looking lemon butter cookies are soft, fluffy and comfortingly yummy!!!
Due to the shorter baking duration, these cookies are so moist and soft.
They taste like mini-lemon butter cakes.
Very nice!
Yes... You can do any of these additional steps if you like but I reckon these cookies are actually very nice on their own. Besides, I like to keep it simple so that I can judge the recipes accurately! See, I told you... I will have a firm answer for you!
Do you want to bake these cookies? They are extremely easy to bake! To help you to understand the baking concept better, I have included 3 different video to show how to bake these cookies. Enjoy!
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Here are the recipes.
Recipe One: Crispy Lemon Butter Cookies with almond meal that is modified from Food Network
Makes 12 medium cookies
60g unsalted butter, soften at room temperature50g caster sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla paste or extract
2 large egg yolks, about 17-18g each, at room temperature
finely grated zest from 1/2 large lemon or more if desired
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
75g (1/2 cup) all-purpose / plain flour
25g (1/4 cup) almond meal / finely ground almond
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
Recipe Two: Like-Shortbread Buttery Lemon Butter Cookies with less sugar that is modified from Epicurious
Makes 10 medium cookies
60g unsalted butter, soften at room temperature25g caster sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla paste or extract
1 large egg yolk, about 17-18g, at room temperature
finely grated zest from 1/2 large lemon or more if desired
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
100g (2/3 cup) all-purpose / plain flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
Recipe Three: Thick Fluffy Soft Lemon Butter Cookies that is modified from Modern Honey.
Makes 10-11 medium cookies
60g unsalted butter, soften at room temperature50g caster sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla paste or extract
1/2 large egg, about 25g, at room temperature
finely grated zest from 1/2 large lemon or more if desired
1 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
110g (3/4 cup) all-purpose / plain flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
For all recipes:
demerara or coarse white sugar, to sprinkle - optional and I didn't do it in order to keep our sugar intake as minimal as possible ^-^
Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F.
Line baking trays with baking papers.
Using a wooden spoon or an electric mixer with paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar for 1-2 mins or until combined and fluffy - Do not over-beat mixture! Add vanilla, egg (2 yolks for recipe one, 1 yolk for recipe two or half of a whole egg for recipe three), lemon zest and juice. Beat well until just combined. Due to the addition of the acidic lemon juice, it's ok if the mixture looks curdled.
Sift flour, almond meal (for recipe one only), baking powder, baking soda and salt into the butter mixture. For recipe one only, discard any coarsely ground almond that is trapped in the sieve. Use a spoon or spatula to mix until mixture is combined.
Scoop and arrange tablespoonful of dough onto the lined trays with about 3-4 cm apart. Please be aware that cookies from recipe one will spread quite a lot during baking. Use the back of a metal spoon to flatten the cookie dough slightly to about 1 cm thick. Top the cookie dough with a sprinkle of demerara or coarse white sugar if desired - optional and I didn't do it.
Bake for 18 mins or until golden brown and crispy for recipe one, 16 mins or until light golden brown and crumbly for recipe two, 9-10 mins for recipe three. IMPORTANT: Do not over-bake the cookies that are made with recipe three! Swap the trays around halfway through baking or until thoroughly baked at the base and edges. Baking duration may vary slightly due to the size of the cookies.
Allow cookies to cool slightly on the tray for about 10-15 mins, then transfer to racks to cool completely.
Serve and enjoy. Store any uneaten cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up 1 week.
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