These soft and pillowy Lemon Crinkle Cookies are perfectly citrusy. With cream cheese and butter in the dough, they’re sure to be a new favorite.
These lemon crinkle cookies are my mom’s absolute favorite, so much so that she asks me to make them at nearly every opportunity. I’ve never written down the recipe until now, but I’m happy to immortalize it here so I can make my mom smile with her most-loved cookies any time I want.
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Ingredients
With the exception of lemon extract, which you may not readily have, these cookies only require a couple of very basic ingredients. Be sure to scroll all the way to the bottom for the full list of ingredients with measurements!
To make these lemon crinkle cookies, you’ll need…
- Lemon. Duh! Just one large lemon usually does the trick, but it’s best to have two or three on hand just in case they’re not particularly zesty or juicy.
- Lemon extract. Sounds like a niche ingredient, but you can find it at most well-stocked grocery stores right next to the vanilla extract. It adds a punch of hyper-concentrated lemony flavor, but be careful—it’s strong!
- Butter and cream cheese. There’s a reason these cookies are so good, and if I had to guess, it’s because there’s a whole stick of butter and a whole block of cream cheese in the dough. The result is a rich, buttery, ooey-gooey cookie that’s impossible to resist.
- Powdered sugar. Rolling the cookie dough in powdered sugar will give us that signature crinkle.
- Baking basics: Flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, eggs, and salt.
Instructions
This recipe employs one of my favorite techniques for working with citrus, which involves rubbing the zest into the sugar to bring out the oils. Don’t skip this step, as it unlocks a ton of super-lemony flavor! Be sure to scroll to the bottom for full instructions with cooking times.
Here’s how to make these lemon crinkle cookies:
- Rub together the lemon zest and sugar until the sugar turns yellow and your kitchen smells extra lemony. Then add the cream cheese and butter and beat together until combined.
- Add the rest of the wet ingredients, then mix in the dry ingredients until you get a thick dough.
- Chill the dough in the fridge for around an hour, then scoop into balls and roll in powdered sugar.
- Bake until lightly golden on the bottom. Transfer cookies to a wire cooling rack to cool completely before enjoying.
Substitutions and Variations
For a fun twist, try turning these into orange crinkle cookies! Just swap out the lemon zest and juice for orange zest and juice, and add orange extract instead of the lemon extract.
Make-Ahead and Storage Tips
These cookies keep well in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
If you’d like to make the dough ahead of time, you can chill it in the fridge overnight, then scoop and roll in powdered sugar when you’re ready to bake.
More citrusy baking recipes:
Cranberry Orange Shortbread Cookies
Orange Olive Oil Cake
Cranberry Meringue Pie
Did you make this recipe? If you loved it, please leave a ⭐5-star rating⭐ and/or leave a comment below the recipe card! And don’t forget to share a photo and tag me on Instagram, Facebook or TikTok — I love seeing you recreate my recipes.
PrintLemon Crinkle Cookies
These soft and pillowy Lemon Crinkle Cookies are perfectly citrusy. With cream cheese and butter in the dough, they’re sure to be a new favorite.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes + 1 hour chilling time
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Yield: 36 cookies 1x
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons lemon zest, from about 1 or 2 large lemons
- 1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice, from about ½ large lemon
- 2 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon lemon extract
- 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- ¾ cup powdered sugar, for rolling
Instructions
- Make the lemony sugar: In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the granulated sugar and lemon zest. Use your fingers to rub the zest into the sugar until the sugar is tinted yellow and smells wonderfully lemony.
- Add the wet ingredients: To the lemony sugar, add the softened butter and cream cheese. Beat together until smooth and creamy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs, lemon juice, and lemon extract and beat together until combined.
- Add the dry ingredients: Add the flour, salt, and baking powder and mix until just combined with no dry flour patches remaining.
- Chill: Cover the bowl with foil or plastic wrap and transfer to the fridge to chill for at least 30 minutes or up to 2 hours.
- Scoop and bake: Preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Scoop the dough into 2-Tablespoon portions and roll into balls. Roll each ball in powdered sugar before placing on the baking sheet 3 inches apart. Bake for 11-13 minutes, or until edges are set and cookies are light golden on the bottom.
- Cool and eat: Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
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