Jumbo Lemon Easter Cookies are so soft and tangy, the lemon buttercream on top is especially delightful! The light pastel-colored frosting makes this lemon cookie perfect for this Spring holiday.
These lemon sugar cookies are sure to be a huge hit with the family and not just because of their massive size but because they are so tasty! This soft lemon cookie and the frosting both have just the right amount of zesty lemon flavor to create a light and refreshing taste in every bite, making these cookies a pretty amazing treat!
Frosted Lemon Cookies
These lemon sugar cookies with lemon buttercream frosting, are both made from scratch, but use simple steps and easy ingredients making them very user-friendly. The end results are a fabulously soft and buttery lemon cookie topped with a tangy-sweet buttercream that can only be described as “heavenly.” This cookie is a perfect recipe for the lemon lovers in your life! Also, if you happen to have a lemon tree that is baring fruit right now, this is the time to use them up!
Why you are going to love these cookies:
- One cookie is satisfying. While it can usually be hard to stop at “just one” cookie, these cookies are larger than life so one cookie can really satisfy that craving for sweets.
- No rolling pin or hassle. These cookies come together easily and without a lot of equipment. You don’t need to roll out the dough or cut shapes. Just mix together and roll into balls. They do require a little patience, but it’s worth it!
- They’re not overly sweet. While these lemon-frosted sugar cookies are a sweet treat, they aren’t overwhelmingly sweet. The lemon flavors we add really help to cut down on the sweetness by adding in just enough tangy goodness.
Lemon Easter Cookies Ingredients
For the Cookies, You will need:
Butter: You will need ½ cup (one stick) of softened unsalted butter for the cookie dough. This will make the cookies nice and rich in taste.
Brown sugar: Using ¾ cups of brown sugar will give us a chewy cookie edge and a great depth of flavor.
Granulated sugar: You will need ¼ cup of granulated sugar to help flatten the cookies out a bit.
Egg: Use 1 large egg to help bind the dough together well.
Vanilla extract: You will need 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract to help enhance the flavors in the dough.
Lemon juice: Use 1 tablespoon of lemon juice for added flavor and freshness.
Lemon zest: By adding in 1 tablespoon of lemon zest we can get a really fresh lemon flavor in every bite.
Flour: You will need 2 cups of all-purpose flour for the base of this cookie dough.
Salt: Use ½ teaspoon of salt to help bring out the flavors in these cookies and really make them shine. Salt is a natural flavor enhancer.
Baking powder: Adding in ½ teaspoon of baking powder will help the cookies to spread up and out as they bake resulting in a soft and thick cookie you will love.
For the Buttercream Frosting, You will need:
Butter: You will need 1 stick (½ cup) of softened butter for the frosting. This is what makes it taste rich and creamy.
Powdered sugar: Use 4-5 cups of powdered sugar for the frosting. The actual amount of sugar needed will vary based on the desired consistency of the frosting.
Lemon juice: You will need 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to give this frosting a wonderful lemon flavor.
Vanilla extract: Use 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract to help enhance the flavors in the frosting.
Sprinkles: To decorate your cookies you will want to use some festive and fun Easter-themed sprinkles.
Food coloring: Use pastel-colored food coloring to get the frosting to your desired hues.
How to Make Jumbo Lemon Easter Cookies
Wet Ingredients
Start by creaming together the butter and both sugars in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer until fluffy.
Then, add in and beat the egg, vanilla extract, lemon juice, and lemon zest until fully combined.
Dry Ingredients
Next, add in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix until just combined, do not overmix. The dough will be very crumbly.
Portion and Roll
Portion out the dough into 6 equal-sized pieces, these will be the jumbo cookie size.
Form each portion into a ball by pressing the dough together just until the dough comes together to form a ball.
Place onto a baking sheet and place into the fridge for at least 30 minutes to chill.
Bake
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F while the dough balls are chilling.
Once the dough has chilled, place them in the oven and bake the cookies for 15-18 minutes. The edges should look golden brown when finished.
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely.
Prepare Frosting
Whip the butter in a large mixing bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer, until fluffy.
Then, add in the powdered sugar and beat to combine.
Next, add in 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and the vanilla extract, continue to blend until combined.
Color the Buttercream
After that, divide the buttercream into 3 or 4 bowls and add food coloring to each one.
Blend together until you have achieved the colors you want.
Assemble Frosting Bag
Unroll a large 18-inch piece of plastic wrap. Spread each color of frosting in a line down the plastic wrap leaving a 3-4 inch space on each end. You should have about 3 or 4 lines of frosting, and it’s okay if they touch, just don’t place them on top of each other.
Grasp the top and bottom of the plastic wrap (where the blank spaces are) and roll the plastic closed. The frosting will now be rolled together and look like a log.
Twist both ends of the plastic wrap together to create a tootsie-roll-like package of frosting.
Insert the rolled frosting into a frosting piping bag. Pull it all the way down so that one end of the frosting meets the bottom of the bag where the frosting tip is. The other end will extend out of the bag from the wider end.
Decorate
Snip the plastic wrap off where it meets the frosting tip.
Press the frosting down into the tip and pipe the frosting onto your cookies.
Top each cookie with some Easter-colored sprinkles.
Serve and enjoy!
How to Decorate Cookies Without a Piping Bag
Using the plastic wrap trick helps to cut down on the frosting mess and keep the frosting within the piping bag, but if you don’t have a piping bag handy, you can also simply use a gallon-sized Ziploc bag. Just snip one bottom corner of the bag and it will work just fine. Alternatively, you can also just spread the frosting onto the cookies using a butter knife as well.
Jumbo Lemon Easter Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- ¼ cup white sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 TBSP lemon juice
- 1 TBSP lemon zest
- 2 cups flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
Topping
- 1 stick butter softened
- 4-5 cups powdered sugar
- 1 TBSP lemon juice
- 1 tsp vanilla
- Easter sprinkles
- Pastel food coloring
Instructions
- In a large bowl cream together the butter and both sugars with an electric mixer until fluffy. Beat in the egg, vanilla, lemon juice and lemon zest.
- Add in the flour, baking powder and salt. Mix until just combined. The dough will be very crumbly.
- Divide the dough into 6 equal portions. Form each portion into a ball, pressing just until the dough comes together. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Bake
- Meanwhile preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Once the dough has chilled, place them in the oven and bake the cookies for15-18 minutes. The edges should look golden brown when finished.
- Cool 5 minutes and then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
Prepare Frosting
- To make the lemon buttercream, use a hand mixer or stand mixer whip the butter until fluffy. Add in the powdered sugar and beat to combine. Add in about 1 TBSP lemon juice and the vanilla extract.
- Divide the buttercream into 3-4 bowls and color each one with pastel food coloring.
Assemble Frosting Bag
- Unroll a large piece of plastic wrap. (About 18″ long) Spread each color of frosting in a line down the plastic wrap, leaving 3-4″ on each end. You’ll end up with 3-4 horizontal lines of frosting. It’s OK if they touch, just don’t put them one on top of the other.
- Grasp the top and bottom of the horizontal edges of plastic wrap and roll them to close. Frosting will be rolled together now and that’s ok! Twist both edge pieces of plastic wrap together, so that you create a tootsie-roll like package of frosting.
- Insert the roll of frosting down into your piping bag. Pull it all the way down so that one end of your frosting roll meets the bottom, at the piping tip, and the other end extends out the back of the piping bag.
- Snip the plastic wrap off the roll where it meets the frosting tip. Press the frosting down into the tip and pipe frosting on cookies. Top with Easter colored sprinkles. Serve & enjoy!
How to Decorate Cookies Without a Piping Bag
- Using the plastic wrap trick helps to cut down on the frosting mess and keep the frosting within the piping bag, but if you don't have a piping bag handy, you can also simply use a gallon-sized Ziploc bag. Just snip one bottom corner of the bag and it will work just fine. Alternatively, you can also just spread the frosting onto the cookies using a butter knife as well.
Notes
Nutrition
How long are Lemon Buttercream Cookies good for?
These cookies can be kept stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days. To keep the cookies nice and chewy I recommend keeping them stored in the fridge.
Can I Freeze Lemon Sugar Cookies?
Yes, you can freeze these cookies! To do this, simply place your frosted cookies onto a baking sheet and freeze for about 2 hours until the frosting is solid. Then transfer to an airtight container with a piece of parchment paper or wax paper between the cookies. You can keep them frozen for up to 3 months.
How to Zest a Lemon
The easiest way to zest a lemon is to use a citrus zester. By rubbing the peel of a washed lemon along the grated edges we get tiny shredded pieces perfect for your baked goods and recipes. If you do not have a citrus zester you can use a vegetable peeler to remove the outermost layer of peel (not the white part under the colored peel). Then chop the peel into very tiny pieces, like minced garlic, and use as desired.
Do I Have To Chill My Cookie Dough?
Yes. When recipes request that you chill your cookie dough it’s usually for a good reason. A good reason is that the flavor gets a little longer to develop and make the cookies taste even more incredible but the biggest reason is because of the butter/fats in the dough.
By chilling the dough we allow the fats to solidify which means your cookies won’t spread out as much while baking so the texture turns out perfectly. This is especially important on warmer days or when your butter is warm or softened.
For more Easter Dessert Recipes check out these suggestions!
- EASTER PEEPS KRISPIE TREATS
- EASTER HOT CHOCOLATE BOMBS
- BEST CHERRY FLUFF
- EASTER BUNNY KITKAT CAKE
- CHOCOLATE NEST EASTER COOKIES
- EASTER EGG NESTS
- BROWN BUTTER CARROT CAKE
- MINI PAVLOVA RECIPE
- STRAWBERRIES AND CREAM PIE
- ORANGE CREAM FRUIT SALAD
- PEANUT BUTTER EASTER EGGS
These Jumbo Lemon Easter Cookies are a perfect pastel-colored treat to serve up this holiday. Made with a soft and tangy lemon cookie and topped with homemade lemon buttercream, these cookies are a perfect blend of Spring flavors in every bite.
Kathy says
Does the frosting harden so they can be packed in container to be brought to Easter dinner for dessert
Nicole says
If you let the cookies rest at room temperature for a while (like an hour or so) the frosting will develop a little hardening, making them easier for storage and transport but the frosting will not harden like royal icing would. I would recommend placing the cookies on a large platter and lightly putting plastic wrap over the top before placing the cookies in the fridge to chill before transporting them.