These pretty yellow morsels are my favorite Lemon Curd Cookies, and they are the best lemon cookies ever!
They’re fun and easy to make, with a lemon zest infused shortbread base, filled with sweet and tangy lemon curd, and topped with even more lemony goodness in the glaze!
If you’ve ever made classic jam thumbprint cookies, then you’re already familiar with how to make lemon curd cookies! If you’re new to this recipe, trust me, it’s simple!
Once you mix up the simple shortbread cookie dough, you’ll create a indentation in each cookie to fill with store-bought lemon curd filling.
Bake them up, let them cool, and then drizzle them with a generous amount of sweet-tart lemon sugar icing! It’s so easy, and the resulting cookies are spectacular.
Do you love lemon? Try these other recipes with lemon curd! My lemon meringue pie recipe will walk you through making the perfect lemon curd for pie, and the fluffiest meringue topping. Or, make a simple lemon tart topped with gorgeous fresh berries.
Quick and Easy Lemon Curd Cookies
- Simple Shortbread Cookie Dough – I love the buttery flavor and crispness of shortbread cookies, and I also love how few ingredients are needed to make them. Just like my chocolate shortbread bites and coconut shortbread cookies, this recipe doesn’t have any eggs or leaveners in it.
- A Familiar Favorite – Thumbprint cookies with icing of all varieties are a staple for Christmas and other holidays, and always a favorite.
- Tons of Zesty Lemon Flavor – There is lemon juice and/or zest in every component of this recipe. They are the most lemony cookies, and I love them that way!
Ingredients In Lemon Curd Thumbprints
Here’s what you need to make these delicious lemon cookies:
- Butter: Always choose unsalted butter when baking. Instead, we will add salt to the dough so that it’s perfectly seasoned. Let the butter sit out at room temperature until softened.
- Flour and Salt
- Sugar: Granulated sugar sweetens the cookie dough, and a bit of extra sugar is rolled onto the exterior of each cookie for extra crunch and a bit of sparkle.
- Vanilla Extract: Good quality vanilla extract is a must for the most delicious cookies.
- Lemon Curd: While you could fill these cookies with freshly made lemon curd, I think it’s much easier and just as delicious to use prepared lemon curd from the grocery store. Look for this near the jams and jellies.
- Lemon Zest: This is the secret to getting a lemony flavor throughout these lemon curd thumbprint cookies. Use a microplane to remove just the outer yellow part of one whole lemon.
- To Make the Lemon Glaze: You just need powdered sugar, freshly squeezed lemon juice (from the lemon you zested earlier), and a bit more vanilla.
Complete list of ingredients and amounts can be found in the recipe card below.
How To Make Lemon Curd Cookies
Get ready by preheating the oven to 350°F/180°C. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats and set aside.
- Mix the Dry Ingredients: In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour and salt.
- Mix the Wet Ingredients: In a large mixing bowl using an electric hand mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer, add the softened butter and ⅔ cup of granulated sugar. Cream until light and fluffy. This takes about 3 minutes.
- Combine to Make the Cookie Dough: Add the lemon zest and vanilla and stir to combine. Then add the flour, a bit at a time, and mix until incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl to mix everything together.
- Scoop and Roll: Place the rest of the sugar in a small bowl. Use a cookie scoop to scoop 1.5 tablespoon-sized dough balls, and roll each with your hands to smooth them. Roll each ball through the granulated sugar and place on sheet trays, leaving two inches between each cookie.
- Fill with Lemon Curd: Make indentations in the cookies using the end of a round wooden spoon or similar tool. The indentation should be about ⅔ of the way down into each ball. Don’t worry if the dough cracks on the edges; this is normal. Fill each cookie with a heaping teaspoon of lemon curd.
- Bake: Bake for 13-15 minutes or until the tops of the cookies look dry and the bottoms are lightly golden brown. Let the cookies cool on the tray for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before adding the glaze.
- Make the Glaze: To make the lemon glaze, mix together the lemon juice, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Adjust the consistency if needed by adding a bit more juice or sugar. It should be thick, but pourable.
- Glaze the Cookies: Glaze the cookies with the icing by dipping a fork into the glaze and drizzling it over the cookies while they are on the rack. Any excess will drip off. Give the glaze 15 minutes to set before serving or storing.
Tip!
Make sure that the cookies are completely cool before adding the glaze. If they aren’t, the glaze will just melt!
Recipe Tips
- Adding the Lemon Curd: I’m using the rounded end of a wooden spoon to make the circular spaces in these cookies. I stick it in and then move it around a bit to make the hole the right size for the filling. You can also use a rounded measuring teaspoon, or do it the old-fashioned way with your thumb!
- Try Other Flavors: This cookie recipe will work with any type of jam or preserves that you’d like to add. Try raspberry or blueberry jam next.
Storing Tips
These cookies will keep fresh in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week. You can also freeze them in an airtight container for up to three months.
Store them in a single layer or put wax paper between layers to keep them from sticking together.
Recipe FAQs
Why are my shortbread cookies dry and crumbly?
If the cookie dough seems crumbly, it’s likely that you’ve added too much flour to it. I suggest weighing your flour for the most accurate measurement. Otherwise, be sure to use the spoon and level method rather than scooping your measuring cup into the flour container.
Can I make this recipe with homemade lemon curd?
Absolutely! If you have a recipe for lemon curd that you love, it can be used in place of the store bought curd. The fresh lemon curd used in my Lemon Tart recipe is a great place to start.
Do cookies with lemon curd need to be refrigerated?
I do suggest refrigerating these cookies for food safety reasons. Lemon curd is made with dairy and eggs and does have the potential to spoil if stored at room temperature.
Lemon Curd Cookies are going to be your new favorite lemon dessert! They’re easy, fun, and delicious, what else is there? Don’t forget to pin this recipe so that you can find it later!
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
Lemon Curd Cookies
Equipment
- Cookie Sheets
- Parchment paper or Silicone Baking mats
- Electric Hand mixer or Stand mixer
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups (300 g) all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- 1 cup (225 g) unsalted butter softened
- ⅔ cup + 2 tablespoons (174 g) granulated sugar
- lemon zest from one lemon
- ¼ cup prepared lemon curd
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Glaze:
- 1 ¼ cup (155 g) powdered sugar
- 2-3 tablespoons lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F/180°C. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mats and set aside.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour and salt.
- In a large mixing bowl using an electric hand mixer, or in the bowl of a stand mixer, add the softened butter and ⅔ cup of granulated sugar. Cream until light and fluffy. This takes about 3 minutes.
- Add the lemon zest and vanilla and stir to combine. Then add the flour, a bit at a time, and mix until incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl to mix everything together.
- Place the rest of the sugar in a small bowl. Use a cookie scoop to scoop 1.5 tablespoon sized dough balls, and roll each with your hands to smooth them. Roll each ball through the granulated sugar and place on sheet trays, leaving two inches between each cookie.
- Make indentations in the cookies using the end of a round wooden spoon or similar tool. The indention should be about ⅔ of the way down into each ball. Don’t worry if the dough cracks on the edges; this is normal.
- Fill each cookie with a heaping teaspoon of lemon curd.
- Bake for 13-15 minutes or until the tops of the cookies look dry and the bottoms are lightly golden brown. Let the cookies cool on the tray for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before adding the glaze.
- To make the lemon glaze, mix together the lemon juice, powdered sugar and vanilla. Adjust the consistency if needed by adding a bit more juice or sugar. It should be thick, but pourable.
- Glaze the cookies with the icing by dipping a fork into the glaze and drizzling it over the cookies while they are on the rack. Any excess will drip off. Give the glaze 15 minutes to set before serving or storing.
Notes:
- Try Other Flavors: This cookie recipe will work with any jam or preserves that you’d like to add. Try raspberry or blueberry jam next.
- Storage: These cookies will keep fresh in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week. You can also freeze them in an airtight container for up to three months. Store them in a single layer or put wax paper between layers to keep them from sticking together.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
© Little Sunny Kitchen
Debra says
how do you make lemon curd?
Little Sunny Kitchen says
Hi Debra! I don’t have a recipe for lemon curd here yet, but this one is very good. Enjoy!
Meghan says
I tried doubling the recipe. You may want to just check it because for 50 cookies it said 2 cups of butter and in parentheses it said two sticks of butter. I’m pretty certain that one stick of butter is half a cup…. Probably just a hiccup in your write up.
Little Sunny Kitchen says
Thanks Meghan! You’re right, that comment in parenthesis won’t change when you double the recipe card. I’ve adjusted it for the future. I hope you enjoyed the cookies!
Elizabeth Gluck says
Loved these ! Dough was a little dry so I added some of the lemon juice to wet before shaping them into balls!
Little Sunny Kitchen says
Great tip! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe.