When Life Gives You Lemons

Make Lemony Slice-and-Bake Cookies!

I'm not going to lie, I was a wee bit nervous when I made the dough for these cookies last night. It seemed so dry with only 4 egg yolks and 1 tsp of vanilla as the only liquids. I sort of set myself up for failure, only to be pleasantly surprised when they turned out well this morning!

I used to get reeeally angry when I would mess something up in the kitchen. Like, fuming mad and wanting to strangle something angry. I think this blog has helped me in that area. I've had the opportunity to try a lot of new and different recipes and have experienced a lot more successes and a few more failures. I think I'm becoming a little more....well rounded in the kitchen, and more low key about the results.

Lemony Slice-and-Bake Cookies


You will need:

• 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temp
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tbsp finely grated lemon zest
• 1 tsp vanilla extract 
• 4 large egg yolks

For the icing:

• 1 1/4 cups confectioners sugar
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• food coloring (optional)
• sanding sugar (optional)

Whisk flour, and salt in a medium bowl. Using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat butter, sugar, lemon zest and vanilla in a large bowl, occasionally scraping down the sides, until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg yolks; beat just to blend. Reduce speed to low; add the flour mixture and beat, occasionally scraping down the sides, just to blend. 

Divide dough in half; roll each half into a 10"-long log about 1 3/4" in diameter on a lightly floured surface. Wrap in plastic and chill until firm, about 1 hour. Do Ahead: Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep chilled.

Arrange racks in lower and upper thirds of oven; preheat to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Unwrap 1 dough log. Using a sharp knife, cut log into 1/4"-thick rounds. Transfer to prepared baking sheets, 1" apart.

Bake until cookies are firm and golden brown around the edges, 16-18 minutes. I baked for 9 minutes, rotated the sheets, and baked for 9 more. Let cool for 1 minute, then transfer to wire racks and let cool completely. Repeat with remaining dough log. Makes about 50 cookies.

To make the icing, whisk sugar and 2 tbsp lemon juice in a small bowl. Add coloring, if desired. Spread or drizzle the icing over cookies. Decorate as desired. Let stand until icing sets, about 10 minutes.

I spread the icing, but I think next time I would drizzle it. It has a very strong lemon flavor, and is a bit tart, which is good but too much can be over powering. The cookies are also delicious by themselves warm, right out of the oven!

Source : Bon Appetit magazine