I wanted to make cookies for the 4th of July but was unsure what I wanted. The 4th of July holiday is the middle of summer, and nothing says summer more than lemons. I also needed red, white, and blue to make it official. I thought flags, stars, watermelon, picnics, and family fun were my associations to the 4th of July. Now, I just needed a cohesive idea to bring it all together.
My cookies will be the 4th of July Lemon Sugar Cookie, a rolled-out cookie using a star-shaped cookie cutter. I am icing them with lemon buttercream and adding red and blue sugar sprinkles to make them festive.
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Ingredients for Lemon Sugar Cookies
- Butter unsalted
- Sugar white
- Egg
- Lemon juice
- Lemon zest
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Kosher Salt
Ingredients for Lemon Buttercream Icing
- Powdered sugar
- Lemon juice
- Lemon zest
- Butter unsalted
- Heavy cream
- Blue and Red sugar for topping
Making Lemon Cookies
Lemon sugar cookies are a delightful twist on the classic sugar cookie, offering a burst of citrus flavor in every bite. These cookies are soft and buttery, with a light, refreshing taste that's perfect for the hot days of summer.
Prepping the Ingredients
I start by weighing or measuring the sugar into a bowl and then setting it aside. Next, I weigh or measure the flour into a separate bowl. I add the baking powder, baking soda, and salt to the flour. I then take a whisk and blend.
Next, I will zest and then juice all three lemons simultaneously for the cookies and the icing.
Mixing the Cookie Dough
Sugar cookies are pretty easy to make, so let's get started.
I cubed the butter into the mixer bowl. One of my butter sticks had sat out for much longer than the other. So, there was a color difference.
Cream the butter for a minute or two. You want it to look creamy with soft-looking peaks.
Add the sugar and mix for 3 to 5 minutes on a medium mixer speed.
Now is the time to add the egg, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Mix until blended.
I scrape down the bowl and turn the mixer onto a low speed. Add the flour mixture about a third at a time until incorporated. Add the cookie dough to a pastry mat or a counter and ensure all the flour mixture is mixed by kneading the cookie dough. You can sprinkle a little flour on the cookie dough if it is really sticky. Put it back in the mixer bowl and cover it loosely. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Roll and Bake
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C or 180°C) and line two cookie sheet pans with parchment paper. Now, you want to get your favorite rolling pin and pastry mat, or you can do it on the counter. A pastry mat sprinkled with flour makes getting the cutout cookies up and onto the cookie sheet pan easier.
I also like the bands on the end of the rolling pin, which are a helpful guide for an even rolled-out cookie dough. I am using the star cookie cutter 3 ¼" inches across from point to point. The bigger the star, the harder it is to add the icing without breaking the points off.
Take the cookie dough out of the fridge and flour your pastry mat. Grab a hardball-sized cookie dough section and flatten it out a little. Flour the top and your rolling pin and roll it out. Cut out as many stars as possible and keep rolling and cutting out stars until you can get 12 stars on a sheet pan.
Bake at 350°F (175°C or 180°C) for 6 or 7 minutes. They will look pale in color and not shiny on top. Leave them on the pan for a minute after pulling the cookie sheet pan from the oven, and then move the cookies to a cooling rack.
Make sure the cookies have completely cooled before starting the icing.
Making Lemon Buttercream Icing
I have been revising my older icing recipes by taking out the Crisco and making buttercream icing using butter. It does not get quite as hard as the Crisco version, but the buttercream spreads so well that I can overlook it being a little softer.
I add the butter, lemon juice, lemon zest, heavy cream, and powdered sugar to the mixer bowl. Start at a low mixer speed until the powdered sugar has been incorporated. Mix on a medium-high mixer speed for 3 to 5 minutes. Take a spatula and mix it. It should be smooth and creamy and, of course, have a lemon taste.
I spread the icing onto the top of each star cookie, then sprinkle the red and blue sugar on top of the icing. The kids love doing the sprinkles. The icing does not have to be perfect. Once the sprinkles are on, you look at the cookie as a whole 4th of July cookie.
Enjoy!
FAQ's
Sugar cookies can either be rolled out, scooped with a cookie scooper, or as a drop cookie. You can't go wrong, and as a home baker, you use what you have available.
I like giving my cookie dough time to rest and let the fat (butter) absorb the flour and become solid again. It helps to meld the flavors together.
Butter has a richer taste than margarine. Since there are not that many ingredients, there is nowhere to hide when it comes to taste. For me, sugar cookies need the taste of butter, but use margarine if that is all you have on hand.
Other Sugar Cookies
Recipe
4th of July Lemon Sugar Cookies - revising ingredients for icing
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Ingredients
COOKIE DOUGH
- 1 cup (227 g) Butter unsalted room temperature
- 1 cup (200 g) Sugar white
- 1 (1) Egg
- 2 Tablespoon (2 Tablespoon) Lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon (1 Tablespoon) Lemon zest
- 3 cups (375 g) All-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon (1.5 teaspoon) Baking powder
- ½ teaspoon (0.5 teaspoon) Baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher Salt
BUTTERCREAM LEMON ICING
- 3 cups (360 g) Powdered sugar
- ½ cup (113.5 g) Butter unsalted
- 1 ½ Tablespoon (1.5 Tablespoon) Lemon juice
- ½ Tablespoon (0.5 Tablespoon) Lemon zest
- 2 Tablespoon (2 Tablespoon) Heavy cream
- 6 Tablespoon (6 Tablespoon) Colored sugar I used red and blue
Instructions
COOKIE DOUGH
- You may need three lemons to get enough lemon juice and zest for the cookies and the icing. Juice and zest the lemons into two separate bowls and set aside. Weigh or measure the white sugar into a small bowl and set it aside. Next, weigh or measure the flour, baking powder, salt, and baking soda into a medium bowl, whisking to blend.
- Cube the butter into a mixer bowl and cream the butter for a minute. Now add the sugar, and beat for 2 to 4 minutes until light and fluffy. Stop and scrape down the sides. Add the egg, lemon juice, and lemon zest, blending until incorporated. Turn the mixer down and gradually add about ⅕ of the flour mixture at a time.
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C or 180°C) and line 2 cookie pans with parchment paper. I flour my pastry mat, take a hardball-size chunk of my cookie dough, and flatten it on the mat. I also sprinkle flour on top of the cookie dough. I use a rolling pin with thickness rings to roll out the dough to get an even thickness. Roll the cookie dough about ¼ of an inch thick dough.
- The star shape I used was 3 ¼ inches from point to point. Put the cutout cookies on the pan about 1 ½ inches apart; they do not spread much. Bake for 6 to 7 minutes. Pull them out when they are not shiny on the top anymore. If you see browning along the sides, your cookies could be overbaked. Leave them on the pan for a minute before moving to a cooling rack to finish. Make sure the cookies are completely cooled before starting the icing.
LEMON BUTTERCREAM ICING
- Combine powdered sugar, butter, heavy cream, lemon juice, and lemon zest into a mixer bowl and start your mixer on low until the powdered sugar becomes incorporated. Then, turn the speed up to a medium-high speed and mix until it is smooth (3 to 5 minutes). You want the icing thick enough to spread with a knife. Your decorating options are endless, so be creative. I choose to add red and blue colored sugar on top of my icing.
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NUTRITION DISCLAIMER
I am not a certified Dietitian or Nutritionist. The nutrition amounts given below are provided through a program and are only a guideline.
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