AuthorHeather WallaceCategorycOOkiesDifficultyBeginnerMaggiano's Little Italy restaurant has these amazing little moon-shaped lemon cookies that are like a soft sugar cookie but bursting with flavor. We always overstuff ourselves when we eat there but somehow find room to savor the lemon cookies when we thought we couldn't eat anymore.
The restaurant is about an hour away from where we live so when we go we really enjoy it and tend to eat more than we should. But with this recipe, we can now enjoy a copycat of those delicious little cookies! Mine may not be moon-shaped, but they won't disappoint in flavor!
Zest one lemon to equal about 3 teaspoons and set aside.
If your lemon is small you may need to zest a second lemon.
In the bowl of an electric mixer beat 1 1/2 sticks of room temperature butter with 3/4 cup of sugar.
Add 2 large room temperature egg yolks, and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
Mix in 1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons of the reserved lemon zest (keeping 1 teaspoon for the glaze).
Sift together 2 cups of all-purpose flour and 1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt.
Gradually add flour and salt mixture to wet ingredients until combined.
Divide dough in half and form into logs that are about 1 1/4" in diameter.
Wrap the dough logs in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 Minutes.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Remove dough from plastic wrap and slice with a sharp knife into 3/8" pieces.
Bake for 15 Minutes to 18 Minutes or until slightly golden (do not overbake, these are supposed to be soft cookies).
Let cool for 5 Minutes on the cookie sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack.
Whisk together 1 cup of powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice, and your reserved 1 teaspoon of lemon zest in a small bowl.
Dip the top of each cooled cookie into the glaze and place onto parchment paper.
Ingredients
Directions
Zest one lemon to equal about 3 teaspoons and set aside.
If your lemon is small you may need to zest a second lemon.
In the bowl of an electric mixer beat 1 1/2 sticks of room temperature butter with 3/4 cup of sugar.
Add 2 large room temperature egg yolks, and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
Mix in 1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons of the reserved lemon zest (keeping 1 teaspoon for the glaze).
Sift together 2 cups of all-purpose flour and 1/4 teaspoon of kosher salt.
Gradually add flour and salt mixture to wet ingredients until combined.
Divide dough in half and form into logs that are about 1 1/4" in diameter.
Wrap the dough logs in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 Minutes.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Remove dough from plastic wrap and slice with a sharp knife into 3/8" pieces.
Bake for 15 Minutes to 18 Minutes or until slightly golden (do not overbake, these are supposed to be soft cookies).
Let cool for 5 Minutes on the cookie sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack.
Whisk together 1 cup of powdered sugar, 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice, and your reserved 1 teaspoon of lemon zest in a small bowl.
Dip the top of each cooled cookie into the glaze and place onto parchment paper.