Easy Strawberry Lemonade Cookies with Lemon Zest

Sweet and refreshing, these Strawberry Lemonade Cookies are both sweet and tangy and are rolled into one cookie. Coated with infused lemon sugar, each bite of these chewy cookies is a tasty treat!

These Strawberry Lemonade Cookies are the perfect combination of sweet and zesty, ideal for any occasion.

Whether you're hosting a summer party or simply craving a sweet treat, these easy-to-make cookies are guaranteed to tantalize your taste buds!

One of the best parts about this recipe is how easy it is to make.

It's the perfect way to add more color to your dessert table for a party or to brighten up your holiday cookie trays with fun flavors.

With simple ingredients and straightforward steps, they're ready in less than 30 minutes.

For more colorful cookies, check out my two-tone Circus Animal Cookies, Fruity Pebbles Cookies with White Chocolate, Spring Flower Sugar Cookie Recipe, and these fun Unicorn Poop Cookies!

Ingredients for Strawberry Lemonade Cookies Recipe

Lemon Sugar Cookies

Wet Ingredients. Egg, Butter, Vegetable Oil, Lemon Extract or Lemon Emulsion, Yellow Food Coloring

Dry Ingredients. All-Purpose Flour, Granulated Sugar, Powdered Sugar, Baking Soda, Cream of Tartar, Lemon Zest

Infused Sugar

Dry Ingredients. Granulated Sugar, Lemon Zest

Strawberry Cookies

Wet Ingredients. Egg, Butter, Vegetable Oil, Strawberry Extract or Strawberry Emulsion, Pink Food Coloring

Dry Ingredients. All-Purpose Flour, Granulated Sugar, Powdered Sugar, Baking Soda, Cream of Tartar

How to Make Strawberry Lemon Cookies

Gather your ingredients, ensuring the butter and eggs are at room temperature before you begin mixing. Make each batch of cookies separately.

Prepare Infused Sugar

1. In a small bowl, combine ⅔ cup Granulated Sugar with 1 tablespoon of Lemon Zest. Stir to combine. Set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.

Lemon and Strawberry Cookie Dough

1. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the Butter and Granulated Sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. The mixture will be light and fluffy. Cream about 2–3 minutes.
2. Mix in the Egg and the Flavored Extract (strawberry for strawberry dough and lemon for lemon dough) and cream for 2–3 more minutes.
3. Add Vegetable Oil and Powdered Sugar. Cream on high speed for 2–3 minutes. The mixture will turn glossy and buttery.
4. Add the appropriate food coloring to the butter mixture before adding the dry ingredients.

5. Mix All-Purpose Flour, Baking Soda, and Cream of Tartar. Mix the ingredients just until they are combined. Do not over-mix.
6. Set one dough aside as you make the other.

Making Strawberry Lemonade Cookies

1. To make approximately 24 cookies, each cookie will need about 3 tablespoons of cookie dough in total. Scoop a tablespoon and a half of each cookie dough and roll it together.
2. Roll the lemon strawberry cookie dough in the infused lemon sugar mixture.

3. Spoon infused sugar over the cookie dough ball if needed to ensure it's fully coated.
4. Place it on a baking sheet, allowing 2 inches between the cookies.

5. Bake cookies at 350 degrees F for 8–10 minutes. Bake until the edges are set. Do not overbake. Optional: Once hot out of the oven, make each cookie into a perfect circle shape by moving a large circular cookie cutter in a circular motion, to mold the edges evenly.
6. Allow the cookies to cool for a minute before moving them to a cooling rack.

FAQs

Storage & Freezing

Storage: Once the cookies have completely cooled to room temperature, place them in an airtight container on the counter for up to 5 days. Cookies are best enjoyed within 2-3 days of being freshly baked.

Freezing: Cookies can be stored in a sealed container and frozen for up to 3 months. Place parchment paper between each cookie to prevent them from sticking together.

Substitutions & Variations

• Vegetable Oil. You can use canola oil or melted coconut oil instead of vegetable oil if you need a substitute.
• Food Coloring. Used for aesthetic purposes. It's optional and can be omitted without affecting the taste.
• Try other flavor and color combinations. You can use any kind of food coloring and flavored extracts for these cookies, so match them to your favorite flavor preference or even to your event! The food coloring doesn't have to match the extract used, but it can enhance the whole experience! Try mint and strawberry extract with green and red food coloring for the holidays.
• Add-ins. Add in some crushed nuts, like almonds or pecans, for extra flavor and texture, or some white chocolate chips for extra sweetness!

Pro Tips

What makes a good cookie? Does it have a soft center and crispy edges, and is it chewy? Each of these makes a great-quality cookie. To make perfect cookies every time, here are some pro tips.

Weighing Ingredients.

Baking is a science, and adding too much or too little of any of the ingredients will alter the recipe. Weighing and measuring dry ingredients properly makes a world of difference. Investing in a kitchen scale is ideal. When a kitchen scale is not available, make sure to stir and lift ingredients before scooping them into a measuring cup.

	Volume	Ounces	Grams
All Purpose Flour	1 Cup	4½ Ounces	120 Grams
Bread Flour	1 Cup	4½ Ounces	120 Grams
Granulated Sugar	1 Cup	7 Ounces	200 Grams
Brown Sugar	1 Cup	7½ Ounces	213 Grams
Confectionary Sugar	1 Cup	4 Ounces	113 Grams

Mixer.

I always use my stand mixer to make cookies, as it's the easiest and most efficient way to make them. If you have a stand mixer, you can use the large bowl that comes with it and the paddle attachment for the best results. You can use a large bowl with an electric mixer or hand mixer if you don't have a stand mixer for the same results. Otherwise, a wooden spoon and some elbow grease go a long way!

Yield.

Using a cookie scoop keeps each ball of cookie dough the same size, which is essential for ensuring even baking. This recipe makes approximately 24 cookies using a size #24 Cookie Scoop (3 tablespoons of cookie dough). You can make larger cookies using two scoops of cookie dough or mini cookies using a smaller cookie scoop. Bear in mind that the cooking time will vary for different sizes of cookies.

Crisp Edges. 

The secret to getting crisp edges and soft centers at the same time is to bake your cookies in a preheated, hot oven for a shorter amount of time. The longer you cook your cookies, the harder they will be. It's always best to underbake cookies than overbake them. 

Baking Time.

Every oven heats a little differently. I recommend doing a test batch of 1-3 cookies to test the baking time for a perfectly baked cookie before baking the remaining dough.

Cookies.

Cookies are perfectly baked when the edges are set and the centers are no longer glossy.

Cooling Rack.

Allow the cookies to cool on the baking sheet for a minute or two before moving them to a cooling rack to cool completely.

• Kitchen Scale. I use this for accuracy in measuring, and it's a lifesaver when it comes to consistent baking.
• Wire Rack for cooling cookies. I like to have at least two cooling racks.
• Mixing Bowls. A Large Mixing Bowl for mixing ingredients and small and medium mixing bowls for other ingredients
• Cookie Sheet. Most recipes will take two batches to bake. It's great to have multiple baking sheets available.
• Parchment Paper or Silicone Baking Mat. Line the Cookie Sheet with parchment paper for easy cleanup and to prevent sticking.
• Cookie Scoop. A small #60 Cookie Scoop or a Medium Cookie Scoop #50 are great choices for uniform drops of cookie dough.
• Storage Container. An Airtight Container to store cookies or a Ziploc bag works great too.
• Additional supplies. Measuring Cups and Measuring Spoons along with a silicone spatula, are all helpful.

To find out more, check out my Pro Tips Guide for making the best cookies every time!

Have you tried this Strawberry Lemon Cookie recipe?

Let me know what you think of this recipe! Tag @bestcookierecipes on social media so I can see how great your cookies turned out! I would also love to read your comments below. Let me know what you think of these cookies. It really does help!

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