Glazed Lemon Cookies

My dear friend and former co-worker Wendy simply adores these cookies. The first time I gave her one she took a bite and her eyes opened wide. The first thing she said was, "Wow, why are you still working here when you could be making these all the time!" She's probably right, but for now I refuse to give up my day job. Since Wendy first tasted these cookies I've switched jobs but I still share cookies with her whenever I can. One of my new co-workers, Sheryl, loves them just as much as Wendy (maybe even more).

These cookies are full of lemon flavor and remind me of springtime. The glaze is made with a tablespoon of cream cheese, two tablespoons of lemon juice, and 1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar. A simple concoction that elevates a good cookie to a fantastic cookie.

Try them for yourself and feel free to leave comments.

This recipe is from Cook's Illustrated's, March/April 2003 issue.

Glazed Lemon Cookies

3/4 cup sugar
2 T grated lemon zest plus 2 T juice from 2 lemons
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 t salt
1/4 t baking powder
12 T (1 1/2 sticks) cold, unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 large egg yolk
1/2 t vanilla extract

In a food processor fitted with a steel blade, process granulated sugar and lemon zest until sugar is damp and zest is incorporated, about 30 seconds.

Add flour, salt, and baking powder, pulsing to combine (about 10 one-second pulses). Scatter butter chunks over the mixture and pulse until dough resembles fine cornmeal (about 15 one-second pulses).

In a small bowl, beat together lemon juice, egg yolk, and vanilla with fork to combine. With machine running, add the mixture in a slow, steady stream (about 10 seconds) and continue processing until dough begins to form ball, 10 - 15 seconds longer.

Turn dough and any dry bits onto the counter and working quickly, gently knead the dough until it comes together and no dry bits remain. Shape dough into log about 10 inches long and 2 inches in diameter. Wrap dough in parchment paper (or wax paper) and twist ends to seal tightly. Chill dough until firm and cold, about 45 minutes in the freezer or 2 hours in the refrigerator.

To bake: Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Unwrap dough log and using a sharp knife, slice dough into rounds 3/8 thick. Place on baking sheets 1 inch apart and reshape into rounds if cookies loose shape. If dough gets too soft, place back in wrapper, close tightly and return to freezer for a few minutes.

Bake until edges are golden brown, about 14 to 16 minutes, rotating baking sheets from front to back and top to bottom halfway through baking. Cool cookies on baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring cookies to a wire rack to cool completely before glazing.

Glaze

1 T softened cream cheese, softened
2 T juice from 1 lemon
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Whisk cream cheese and lemon juice in medium nonreactive bowl until no lumps remain. Add powdered sugar and whisk until smooth.

Spoon a scant teaspoon of glaze onto each cookie and spread evenly with back of spoon, 1/8 inch from edge of each cookie.

Variation: Lime Glazed Cookies
Substitute lime zest and lime juice in equal proportions.

Cookie Press Review

These cookies are a hit with every single person who has ever tasted them in my presence. They're easy to prepare and the glaze is virtually fail proof.

Cookie press rating: 5 lemony cookies (out of five)

Lime-Glazed Coconut Snowballs

Whenever I ask friends and relatives what their favorite Christmas cookie is, I always hear Snowballs (or Russian Tea Cakes if you want to be hoitytoity) mentioned in the top three. When I saw this recipe for Lime-Glazed Snowballs, I figured I'd give them a try. After all it's March and holiday cookie season is just ten months away and I need to be ready with a few new cookies in the lineup. Could this be a contender? Time would tell.

This recipe is from The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook, or the "Red Bible" as I like to call it.

Cookie Dough

2 1/2 Cups All-Purpose Flour
3/4 Cup Superfine Sugar (grind up regular sugar in a food processor to make superfine sugar or just by a box)
1/4 t Salt
2 Sticks Unsalted Butter, softened and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 T Cream Cheese, Softened
2 t Vanilla Extract

Whisk flour, salt, and sugar together in a large mixing bowl. Beat butter into the flour mixture, one piece at a time, on medium-low speed. Continue to beat until the mixture looks crumbly and slightly wet, about 2 minutes longer. Beat in softened cream cheese and vanilla until the dough begins to hold together, forming large clumps.

Knead the dough in the bowl by hand a few times until it forms a large ball. Turn the dough out onto a clean counter top, divide into two equal pieces and form two discs, each approximately four inches wide. Chill for 20 to 30 minutes or longer.

Lime Glaze

While dough is chilling, whisk 2 tablespoons of lime juice and 1 tablespoon of cream cheese together in a bowl until smooth. Add confectioners' sugar and whisk until smooth. You may add more lime juice if needed to thin the glaze. Glaze should be thin enough to spread easily, but not too runny.

In a separate bowl, place 1 to 1 1/2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut (unsweetened coconut is more difficult to find, but health food stores carry it), chopped fine.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Using your hands, roll dough into 1-inch balls and place on parchment-lined baking sheets 1 1/2 inches apart. Bake until cookies are light brown, about 12 minutes, rotating pans from upper to lower shelf if baking two pans.

Let cookies cool on sheets for 3 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool.

When cookies are completely cool, dip tops in the glaze, scrape away excess, and dip into the coconut. Set cookies back on wire rack to cool. Glaze will set in about 20 minutes.

Cookie Press Review

Let me start by saying that these are nothing like traditional snowballs that are rolled in powdered sugar. These are quite different but delicious nonetheless. The dough is a delicate butter cookie with a fine crumb. The lime glaze offers a subtle citrus flavor without being overpowering. I'd like a bit more lime flavor now that I think about it. The coconut adds a nice texture and flavor as well.
Overall, these are very good cookies. They look like you slaved away in the kitchen for hours, but really you didn't. And best of all, they are bite size so you can eat them by the dozen. I had to stop myself. Really I did.

Cookie press rating: 4 cookies (out of five)