This delicious Italian lemon cookies recipe (a.k.a. Italian lemon drop cookies or anginetti cookies) is “wow” delicious! They’re moist on the inside and have a lightly tangy lemon glaze. These lemon cookies are tasty anytime and a great addition to holiday cookie trays, especially for Christmas and Easter.
They’re easy-to-make and dipped in a tasty lemon glaze then topped with nonpareils. They’re not hard and dry like store bought cookies can be. This recipe is very similar to my most popular cookie recipe: Italian Anise Cookies.
Alternatively, you can coat them in powdered sugar, if you prefer, rather than the lemon glaze.
Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links which means, if you make a purchase, I’ll receive a small commission but, the price you pay is the same.
Italian Lemon Cookies Recipe
Coming from a 100% Italian parents who emigrated here from southern Italy (Naples area), I’m familiar with both authentic Italian cooking and Italian American cooking and baking.
Like my beloved mother R.I.P., I’m a lemon lover too.
These lemon cookies have the right amount of lemon flavor in my opinion but, you can adjust the lemon flavor simply by adjusting the amount of lemon juice and fresh lemon zest. Make them to your liking.
Italian cookies are treasured in Italian households both in America and in Italy. This Christmas tradition has been passed down through generations.
As I’ve mentioned above, these lemon cookies are great for holiday cookie trays, Easter (use pastel nonpareils), wedding and baby showers, graduations, christenings, communion parties or for other special occasions.
As a matter of fact, I took these cookies to a First Communion party and they were a hit. People said it was a delicious lemon cookie!
These traditional Italian cookies are so good, why wait until the holidays to make them? Lemon is great for spring and summer.
Lemon Extract
For this recipe, I suggest using fresh lemon juice and fresh lemon zest for the cookie dough and fresh lemon juice for the simple lemon glaze.
However, if you only have lemon extract on hand, you can use that instead. You’ll need a teaspoon of lemon extract for the cookie dough and another teaspoon for the icing.
By the way, you will NOT need vanilla extract for this recipe, which may come as a surprise.
Use extra lemon zest to put on the lemon icing for garnish if you wish.
These lemon cookies will have a somewhat moist cookie center (if not overbaked) and flavored with lemon in the cookie dough as well as the glaze.
You may also like
POPULAR>>> Easy Soft Italian Anise Cookies Recipe
Simple and Easy Italian Lemon Biscotti with Glaze Recipe
Easy and Soft Italian Lemon Amaretti Cookies Recipe
I took this recipe to Weekend Potluck.
Italian Lemon Cookie Ingredients
*The full, printable recipe is in the recipe card below.
*Amazon affiliate links are below.
- butter
- sugar
- Lemon juice and fresh lemon zest (or teaspoon lemon extract)
- eggs
- all purpose flour
- baking powder
- salt
Cookie Decorating Ingredients
- powdered sugar
- lemon juice or pure lemon extract
- milk
- rainbow nonpareils, red, white and green nonpareils or pastel nonpareils
Baking instructions are in the recipe card below.
Pro Baking Tips
- Measure ingredients accurately. The flour should not be heaping. Use a knife to spread off excess flour off of the measuring cup.
- Do not overbake your cookies. They may come out dry. Set a timer and monitor them.
- Use parchment paper on the cookie sheet or the bottom of the cookies will stick to the baking sheet even if you’ve greased it.
- Do not use liquid measuring cups for dry ingredients.
- Know your oven. Cookies on the top rack of the oven may brown faster than the bottom rack. Pull them out first and possibly before the other rack.
- Every time you open your oven, heat escapes. Don’t leave it open longer than you need to and add a little extra time (one-two minutes) for cookies to bake because the oven needs to reach the set temperature again.
- Storing your cookies properly– in air tight containers, keeps them fresher longer.
Decorating Tips
- Do not begin decorating the cookies until they’re at room temperature.
- Add the nonpareils to each cookie immediately after dipping in lemon icing before it hardens.
- Be sure to dip the tops of the cooled cookies into the lemon icing carefully.
- For easy clean up, put the decorated cookies on the parchment paper you used to bake them so you can discard the parchment paper after you transfer the cookies to their storage containers. Or decorate them on wax paper that you can lift and transfer to a big airtight container and separate them in two layers
- If you’re short on time, coat the cookies in powdered sugar instead of making the glaze. This is perfect for snowy looking cookies at Christmastime.
Substitutions
- Use sprinkles or sugar crystals instead of nonpareils or omit them if you wish. This Wilton Holiday Mix contains both and I use it.
This Italian Lemon Cookies recipe is easy and delicious! They’re the perfect addition to your holiday cookie tray or make them for special occasions or just because.
Learn how to store, freeze and thaw cookies!
You may also like
Italian Lemon Amaretti Cookies Recipe
Easy and Chewy Italian Amaretti di Saronno Cookies Recipe
Traditional Italian Butter Cookies
Chocolate-Dipped Amaretto Biscotti
Easy Espresso Chocolate Chip Biscotti
See more COOKIE recipes.
I took this recipe to Weekend Potluck.
Italian Glazed Lemon Cookies
Ingredients
Lemon Cookie Dough
- 1/2 cup softened butter (one stick)
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice (substitute 1 1/2 tsp lemon extract )
- 1 tsp fresh lemon zest
- 2 large eggs
- 1/4 cup whole milk or half and half
- 2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp nonpareils (any color desired)
Lemon Glaze
- 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
- 1 1/2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 2 tbsp whole milk or half and half (or slightly more)
Instructions
- First, preheat oven to 325F.
- Next, cream butter: Add sugar and softened butter to a large mixing bowl and mix until combined.
- Then, add wet ingredients: lemon juice, lemon zest, eggs one at a time while mixing and milk.
- Next, add about 1/4 cup of flour at a time and mix until combined. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl.
- Then, add baking powder and salt and mix.
- Next, line two large cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Then, make cookie dough balls with one and a half tbsp or so of cookie dough and place them on the cookie sheets in three rows of four. There should be twelve cookies per baking sheet. These cookies do not spread out a lot. Place cookie dough two inches apart.
- Next, bake cookies at 325F for 10-14 minutes. The top of the cookies should not look wet. Insert a toothpick in the middle of some cookies to ensure cookies are fully baked. Toothpick should come out clean.
- Then, cool cookies for 10 minutes before decorating.
Lemon Glaze
- In a small mixing bowl add powdered sugar, lemon juice and milk and stir until smooth. You may need to add a little more milk if the mixture is too thick. It's easy to add to much milk. If this happens, add more powdered sugar one tsp at a time until the mixture is thicker.
Cookie Decoration
- First, dip the top of a cooled cookie into lemon glaze and twist cookie. The glaze will fall over the sides to cover the cookie after you put the nonpareils on it.
- Next, immediately use your fingers to sprinkle the nonpareils on top of the cookie before the glaze starts to dry.
Notes
Storage:
Store cookies in an air tight container in the refrigerator up to 5 days, as icing contains milk and is therefore perishable.Freezer:
While decorated cookies are on the baking/cookie sheets, place in the freezer for 15 minutes. Then, remove from cookie sheets and place in gallon freezer bags for up 6 months.Alternative to Lemon Glaze
Put 1/2 cup of powdered sugar in a gallon plastic zipper bag with 12 cookies, close tightly and shake the bag gently until they’re coated. Remove them and repeat until all the cookies are coated.Did You Make This Recipe?
If you made this recipe don’t forget to leave a review!
Thanks for the 5-star rating Paolo. I’m glad you liked them!
These are excellent. My kids ate them so fast. I had to be extra careful adding the exact amount of flour. My preference was baking an extra 3.5min. longer
Hi Maureen. I’m sorry yours didn’t turn out soft and a bit moist. Perhaps there was a bit too much flour? The lemon flavor should shine through both the glaze and the cookie.
very doughy
no flavor
very dry like biscuits
Hi Nancy. I see what happened. Before I added asjustable servings functionality to the recipe card, I had put in the amount for one batch in the instructions to make it easier for people to not have to scroll up and down between the ingredients and the instructions. When you doubled the batch, it was carrying through the one batch numbers in the instructions but, not in the ingredients where it was doubled (assuming you clicked on the 2 in adujustable servings). I’ve taken out the measurements in the instructions. I hope you loved the second batch and sorry for the confusion. Thanks for pointing it out to me.
I just made this recipe and it seems the ingredients are not the right amount of ingredients for 80 cookies. It calls for 4 eggs but yet in the recipe it only says to add 2 eggs? Now I have to make this all over again to add the additional two eggs.Recipe isn’t WRITTEN Correctly
Thanks Paul. I’m glad you liked them.
These are the best