Lemon Lime Shortbread
on Dec 12, 2016, Updated Jun 24, 2023
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These bright and fresh lemon lime shortbread cookies are flavored with citrus zest and are dipped in icing with citrus juice.
I love to bake, but it’s only on special occasions when I get fancy with frosting, sprinkles and other decorations.
Zero-effort bar and drop cookies that look even more appealing when they are lopsided, bumpy and cracked are my preference.
Those imperfections give them character and make it impossible to just have one.
Since it’s the holiday season, I figured I should bake more formal cookies that required being cut out and iced.
The result was lemon lime shortbread topped with citrus-spiked icing.
Like classic shortbread, they were crumbly, but the lemon and lime cut through all that butter giving the cookies a zippy bite.
I shared this cookie as part of a virtual cookie exchange organized by The Modern Proper. You can find a full list of cookies here. #calmandbrightcookienight
Lemon Lime Shortbread
Ingredients
- For cookies
- 8 ounces unsalted butter at room temperature
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 lemon (zest and juice) plus more zest for decorating
- 1 lime (zest and juice) plus more zest for decorating
- 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour plus more for dusting
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- For icing
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 cup confectioners' sugar
Instructions
- Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar together on low until just combined, about 30 seconds, followed by the yolk, lemon zest and lime zest. Beat in the flour, cornstarch and salt on low until just combined. The dough should still be crumbly. Flatten the dough into a disk, wrap it in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes until firm.
- On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough until it is 1/4 inch thick. Use a cookie cutter to cut out shapes. Chill the unbaked cookies in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F. Bake the cookies on an ungreased sheet pan for 30 minutes until they are just baked through, but the tops have not browned.
- Let the cookies cool completely. To make the icing, whisk together the lemon juice, lime juice and confectioners' sugar. If the icing seems too thin, add a little more sugar. If it is too thick, add more juice. Dip or drizzle to the cookies with icing and sprinkle with zest. Give the icing time to harden and set.
- Store in an airtight container.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Happy to find you 🙂 These are combined with interesting ingredients and are definitely on my to do list. Have a healthy and prosperous 2017.!
I’m making these cookies right now and I just realized the recipe calls for 1/2 cup of cornstarch. Is that measurement correct? I’m used to using 1/2 tsp in a recipe but I’ve never seen 1/2 cup (except for in homemade playdough) and I just wanted to be sure.
Thank you.
Yes, it is 1/2 cup cornstarch for the recipe.
Hello! I’m looking to make this recipe this weekend.
I don’t feel like I see the measurements for the ingredients in the glaze. Am I just missing it?
Thank you so much!
I just added them to the recipe card. Thanks for letting me know.