Lemon Crinkle Cookies
These lemon crinkle cookies are soft, chewy, and full of bright lemon flavor with a classic powdered sugar coating and crinkled tops.
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These cookies are one of my favorites to make every spring. They’re perfect for warm weather celebrations, Easter, and even Christmas!
Fresh lemon juice and lemon zest give them plenty of citrus flavor, and chilling the dough helps them stay thicker with soft centers as they bake.
I like these cookies because they don’t need much to taste amazing.
There’s no frosting, no filling, and nothing complicated about it. Just mix the dough, chill it, roll it in powdered sugar, and bake.
A couple quick things before you start
This dough is soft after mixing, so the chill time makes a big difference. After an hour in the refrigerator, it’s much easier to handle and coat in sugar.
I used a 2-tablespoon cookie scoop and got 20 cookies. That size gives them more of a bakery-style look with thicker, chewier centers.
How to make lemon crinkle cookies
The trick to getting a good crinkle
For lemon crinkle cookies, the two biggest things are chilled dough and a generous coating of powdered sugar.
If the dough is too warm, the cookies can spread too much. If the coating is too light, the tops won’t get a good contrast.
I don’t shake off the extra powdered sugar. I’d rather leave a thick coating on each dough ball and get a better crinkle once they bake.
Easy ways to tweak lemon cookies
A couple small changes put these cookies over the top:
- Add lemon extract: This gives the cookies a stronger lemon flavor without changing the texture.
- Skip the food coloring: The cookies still taste the same, so this is just for looks.
Storing leftover cookies
Store the baked cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. They stay soft best when they’re covered well.
If your kitchen runs warm or humid, you can refrigerate them, but I usually prefer the texture at room temperature.
You can also freeze the baked cookies after they’ve cooled completely. Layer them between sheets of parchment in a freezer-safe container, then thaw them on the counter before serving.
Additionally, you can freeze unbaked dough balls. I recommend letting them thaw instead of baking them from frozen. That way you can roll them in sugar without issue. To be honest, freezing the dough isn’t my favorite method.
Why didn’t my cookies crinkle?
Usually the dough needed more chill time, the powdered sugar coating was too light, or there was a little too much flour in the dough. Properly chilled dough and a thick coating of confectioners’ sugar usually give the best results.
How do I keep lemon crinkle cookies soft?
Bake them just until the edges are set and the centers still look slightly soft. They’ll continue to firm up on the pan as they cool, which helps keep the cookies soft and chewy instead of dry.
My Favorite Way to Serve These
If you’re baking these for a party, shower, or holiday tray, it helps to pair them with one or two other simple recipes.
My classic sugar cookies are another great cookie option. Or, my easy lemon cheesecake bars with a graham cracker crust would work great for another lemon dessert.
A pitcher of ginger lemonade makes an easy drink to serve alongside them.
How to Video
Ingredients
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 2 ½ drops yellow food coloring, optional
- 1 cup powdered sugar
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Instructions
- Beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes). Add in the egg, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla. Continue beating until on low speed until well combined.¾ cup granulated sugar½ cup unsalted butter1 large egg1 tablespoon lemon juice1 tablespoon lemon zest1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Add the flour, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and food coloring. Beat on low speed until no flour patches remain.2 cups all-purpose flour1 teaspoon baking powder½ teaspoon salt¼ teaspoon baking soda2 ½ drops yellow food coloring
- Scoop the dough into balls and place them on a small baking sheet lined with plastic wrap. Cover with more plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.
- When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F, and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Dip each ball into the powdered sugar. Heavily coat each ball with powdered sugar (don’t shake off the excess sugar), and place them on the prepared baking 2-inches apart.1 cup powdered sugar
- Bake for 8-12 minutes depending on size or until the edges are very lightly browned. The centers will still appear somewhat soft.
- Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
- Store the cookies in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Notes
- The serving size is 2 cookies. Actual calories will vary.
- I’ve made these cookies using a 1 tablespoon sized scoop and a 2 tablespoon sized scoop. Both work great! You’ll get different amounts of cookies per batch depending on what size you use. Larger cookies need to cook a couple minutes longer.
- For more lemon flavor, add more lemon zest.
- For flatter, less rounded cookies, press them down slightly prior to baking.
- The lemon flavor will be slightly stronger the day after the cookies are baked.
- I used Wilton’s food coloring gel in Buttercup yellow for the cookies in the photos.
- For extra lemon flavor add ¼ teaspoon lemon extract.
Nutrition
*Post text and photos updated 3/15/26. Recipe did not change.
I love making cookies from scratch and right now I am waiting for the dough to chill.I’m going to my sisters house for dinner and was asked to make dessert. We love the same foods so I knew we had all the ingredients. I tasted he dough and it was yummy. I cant wait to try them baked.
Hi, Deb!
John and I hope you enjoy the cookies! Thank you for the comment and for rating the recipe. Have a wonderful evening! 🙂
Really tender and flavorful cookie.
I was out of vanilla extract and used almond extract instead. Wonderful!
Thank you Izzy! The almond extract sounds really good. Thank you again for commenting and rating the recipe. Have a lovely day 🙂
This recipe was great, now I just need to find some other flavours I can use with this base recipe. I was so excited to taste them that I forgot to roll in the icing sugar but they were still very tasty and sweet enough. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you, Patty. We’re thrilled you liked the lemon crinkle cookies. Have a lovely day 🙂
I froze the dough for 2 days, and they turned out great, but without the crinkles. I made icing with powdered sugar and fresh lemon juice, and they were very tasty.
That sounds great Sue, we’re glad you liked the cookies. Have a great day!
Can this dough be refrigerated or even frozen to bake cookies at a later time?
Hi Laurie!
The dough should hold in the refrigerator for about 2 to 3 days, and should freeze for about 2 months. Have a wonderful day! 🙂
I made these for Christmas this year and they were delicious! Soft, not too sweet, and easy to make. I will definitely make these again. My husband and mom also enjoyed these. Thanks!
Good Morning Ashley, that’s wonderful! We’re thrilled you and your family loved the cookies. Thank you for coming back to comment on the recipe. Have a lovely day 🙂
They look delicious…can these be frozen?
Good Morning Elaine, that’s a great question! Absolutely, in fact you have 2 options. You can either freeze them after they’ve baked and cooled (they’ll hold for up to 2 months) or you can roll the dough into a log and freeze it (again, it should hold for up to 2 months). When thawed, the log will can be cut into perfect sized cookies and then baked. Hopefully, this information helps. Have a lovely day 🙂