4th of July Lemon Sugar Cookies

5 from 1 vote

4th of July Lemon Sugar Cookies

Celebrate summer with these bright lemon sugar cookies! Soft, buttery, and bursting with lemon flavor. Perfect for 4th of July parties, picnics, and cookouts.

Prep Time20

Total Bake Time24

Chill30

Total Time1 24

Course: Cookies

Cuisine: American

Difficulty: Medium

Servings: cookies

Calories: 128kcal

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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