Lemon Ricotta Cookies
These Italian Lemon Ricotta Cookies are little pillows of soft, melt-in-your-mouth lemon flavor that have an amazing cake-like texture. It's the perfect dessert for lemon lovers and cookie monsters!
Servings: 48 cookies
Equipment
- hand mixer if you don't have a stand mixer
Ingredients
For the Cookies
- ½ cup unsalted butter softened (see notes)
- 1¾ cups granulated sugar
- 2 eggs at room temperature
- 1 15-ounce container whole milk ricotta cheese
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice from 1-1½ lemons
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon zest from 1 lemon
- 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
For the Glaze
- 1¼ cup powdered sugar sifted
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon zest from 1 lemon
- sprinkles for decorating (optional)
Instructions
Make the Cookies
- Line two 11x17-inch baking sheets with parchment paper. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Beat the butter and the sugar on medium speed with a stand or hand mixer until it's light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
- Add the eggs one at a time, mixing between additions until well incorporated. Add the ricotta cheese, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Beat to combine.
- Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl, then sift the mixture into the bowl of the wet ingredients and stir until incorporated. Tightly cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes and up to overnight.
- Scoop the dough (about 1 heaping tablespoon for each cookie) onto the baking sheets. Bake for 12-14 minutes, until cooked through but still pale (do not overbake!). Remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on a cooling rack for about 15 minutes. Repeat the process with the remaining dough.
Make the Glaze
- For the glaze, combine the powdered sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest in a small bowl and whisk until smooth. Dip each cooled cookie in the small bowl of lemon glaze. You can also spoon the glaze on top of the cookie with the back of a spoon.
- Let the glaze harden for about 2 hours at room temperature. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Use whole-milk ricotta. Choose ricotta that is creamy but not overly watery for the best texture.
- Use room-temperature ingredients. They incorporate more evenly and help create a smooth cookie dough.
- Chill the dough. This helps prevent the cookies from spreading too much in the oven.
- Don't overbake. The cookies should remain pale with just lightly golden edges so they stay soft and cake-like.
- Let the glaze set. Allow the lemon glaze to harden completely before stacking or storing the cookies.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 80kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.1g | Cholesterol: 5mg | Sodium: 60mg | Potassium: 11mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 59IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 7mg | Iron: 0.3mg
