Lemon Crinkle Cookies

Lemon Crinkle Cookies

1 1/2 cups sugar
zest of 2 lemons
2 sticks butter ( 1 cup ) at room temperature
2 large eggs
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 Tablespoons lemon extract
4-5 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 375°.

Blend together the sugar and the lemon zest to get the sugar infused with the lemon oil. Beat in the butter until it is creamed with the sugar. Add the eggs one at a time. Stir in the lemon juice and the lemon extract. Add your cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt.  Add flour, a little at a time, until the dough is no longer sticky and is thick enough to scoop into balls. You will use between 4 and 5 cups of all purpose flour. 

Scoop dough into balls and roll immediately in powdered sugar.  At this point you can either bake the cookies or place them on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and freeze them to bake later.

If baking immediately, bake for 8 to 9 minutes and check for doneness.  Baking without refrigerating or freezing the dough will cause the cookies to spread more and be thinner.

If baking from frozen, like we do, bake for 11 to 16 minutes. Watch the cookies closely so they do not over bake and become brown around the edges. Baking from frozen will keep the cookies from spreading too much and will result in a thicker cookie.