Description
Delightful lemon curd thumbprint cookies bring sunshine to classic butter cookies with a zesty twist. Tangy citrus centers nestled in buttery rounds create a perfect balance of sweet and bright flavors you’ll crave with afternoon tea.
Ingredients
Scale
Lemon Curd:
Citrus and Main Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup (120 grams) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (60 milliliters) lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
Protein and Fat Ingredients:
- 4 large egg yolks, room temperature
- 3 tablespoons (45 grams) salted butter, sliced, room temperature
Cookies:
Dry Ingredients:
- 1 5/8 cups (205 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/3 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon lemon zest
Wet and Binding Ingredients:
- 1 large egg, room temperature
- 1 large egg yolk, room temperature
- 3 tablespoons (45 milliliters) vegetable oil
- 2 1/2 tablespoons (37.5 milliliters) lemon juice
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
Coating:
- 1/2 cup (60 grams) powdered sugar
Instructions
- Craft a silky mixture by whisking egg yolks, sugar, and lemon juice until uniformly blended in a glass bowl.
- Create a makeshift double boiler by positioning the bowl atop a pot with gently simmering water.
- Continuously stir the mixture with a wooden utensil, maintaining a consistent motion for approximately 10 minutes until the consistency transforms into a thick, custard-like texture.
- Carefully transfer the hot mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a clean container, eliminating any potential lumps.
- Incorporate softened butter and fragrant lemon zest, then allow the lemon curd to cool and set at room temperature.
- Prepare baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper and warming the oven to 350℉.
- Combine dry ingredients in a spacious mixing bowl, blending flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and lemon zest until evenly distributed.
- In a separate vessel, whisk together liquid components including egg, egg yolk, vegetable oil, lemon juice, and vanilla extract.
- Merge wet and dry ingredients, stirring until a cohesive dough forms.
- Utilize a cookie scoop to portion consistent dough balls, rolling each in powdered sugar.
- Arrange cookie spheres on prepared sheets, maintaining sufficient spacing between each.
- Bake for 12 minutes, watching for set edges while preserving a soft center.
- Immediately after removing from the oven, create delicate indentations using the rounded back of a measuring spoon.
- Generously fill each cookie depression with prepared lemon curd.
Notes
- Chill dough for 30 minutes before rolling to prevent sticky hands and ensure easier shaping.
- Use fresh lemon juice and zest for the most vibrant, bright citrus flavor in both cookie and curd.
- For gluten-free version, substitute all-purpose flour with almond or gluten-free blend, maintaining same measurement.
- Lemon curd can be prepared days ahead and stored in refrigerator, saving prep time on baking day.
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 12 minutes
- Category: Desserts, Snacks
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 24
- Calories: 137
- Sugar: 8 g
- Sodium: 37 mg
- Fat: 5 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 20 g
- Fiber: 0.5 g
- Protein: 2 g
- Cholesterol: 32 mg