These lemon curd cookies are made with a shortbread thumbprint cookie and filled with homemade lemon curd.
This shortbread with lemon curd cookies is made with chewy lemon sugar cookies and is filled with light and bright lemon curd. Eventually, they are topped with powdered sugar for a beautiful look.
If you like summery desserts as we do, try out our lemon poppy seed muffins, lemonade bundt cake, lemon cooler cookies, lemon tart, and lemon curd cake.
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Why this recipe works
- Lemon- these cookies are made with fresh lemon juice and lemon zest.
- No chill- one of my favorite parts about this recipe is that this recipe is a no-chill recipe! So there is no need to chill the cookie dough.
- Simple- this recipe is made with simple ingredients that you can find in any grocery store.
- Lemon curd- these cookies are filled with luscious and zesty lemon curd.
- These cookies are perfect for summer and will light up your day!
Ingredients
Before you start to make this lemon curd thumbprint cookies recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the cooking process will go smoothly and easily.
Full measurements are in the recipe card below.
Butter- use unsalted butter for this recipe. Only butter will work for this recipe, no margarine, and no coconut oil. Margarine has a weird taste and can ruin the flavor of these delicious cookies.
Eggs- you will need 1 egg for this cookie dough. Make sure that your eggs are at room temperature.
Vanilla extract- adds extra flavor.
Powder sugar- you will need powder sugar for this recipe. you don’t have to buy powder sugar, you can simply make it at home by blending granulated sugar in a blender or food processor.
Lemon zest- you will need 1 teaspoon of lemon zest. We recommend zesting the lemon first and then juicing it.
Flour– we used all-purpose flour for this recipe. cake flour will work great as well.
Baking powder – baking powder helps the cookies rise and spread. Make sure that your baking powder isn’t expired. Don’t replace the baking powder with baking soda!
Kosher salt- you will need about ½ teaspoon of kosher salt for this recipe.
For the lemon curd filling
Lemon juice- use fresh lemon juice for this recipe. Fresh lemon will give you the best result. We don't recommend using store-bought lemon juice. This will make the flavor pop!
Lemon zest- you will need ½ teaspoon of lemon zest. We recommend zesting the lemon first and then juicing it.
Granulated sugar– we like to use granulated sugar, also the most common sugar used in baking. Caster sugar will work great as well.
Butter- make sure that your butter is unsalted.
Kosher salt- you will need about a pinch of kosher salt for this filling.
Eggs and egg yolks- you will need eggs and egg yolks for this recipe. Make sure that your eggs are at room temperature.
Instructions
Into a medium mixing bowl, add the room temperature butter, lemon zest, powdered sugar, kosher salt, and vanilla extract, and cream it with an electric hand mixer until creamy and smooth.
Add the egg and mix it until well combined.
Add the flour and baking powder to the butter mixture and mix with a spatula until just combined and there are no flour pockets visible.
Cover the dough bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest in the fridge for at least an hour. We let the dough rest in the fridge overnight but it’s not a must.
Using an ice cream scooper, scoop out about 1 tablespoon of the cookie dough and roll them into balls. Using your thumb or a teaspoon, make indents on each cookie.
Bake the cookies in a 180c (350f) preheated oven for 10 minutes. Don't overbake these cookies so they will stay soft!
When you take the cookies out of the oven, immediately reshape the cookies using a spoon or your thumb.
Make the lemon curd
Put all of the ingredients in a saucepan and cook it over medium-low heat whisking constantly.
Once the butter melt, the consistency of the mixture will be thin, don't increase the heat. Keep whisking until the mixture thickens for about 5 minutes.
When the mixture thickens, transfer it to a fine-mesh strainer set over and bowl and strain the mixture from any unnecessary lumps. This will give you a perfect and smooth curd.
Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let the mixture cool for about 20-30 minutes.
Top the cookies with powdered sugar and then spoon about 1 teaspoon of the lemon curd on the cookie. Serve and enjoy!
Expert Tips
- Use room temperature ingredients. It is important that you use room-temperature ingredients like eggs and butter. This step ensures that your mixture mixes into a homogenous mixture and bakes perfectly. you don’t want to place cold batter into the oven.
- Don’t overmix the batter, you don’t want to develop the gluten in the flour. This step ensures you have moist cookies and not dense and dry cookies.
- Constantly whisk while making the curd! It is really important if you want to get a smooth and silky curd.
- Don't let the lemon curd come to a boil! This will cook the eggs and leave you with scrambled eggs. Make sure that the lemon curd mixture cooks over medium-low heat.
- Make sure that your butter is at room temperature. An hour or two before making these cookies, take the butter out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature. The butter should be soft to the touch. If your butter is too cold, it will be harder to mix and there will be lumps of butter in the dough.
- Measure your flour correctly! When measuring your flour, avoid scooping it with a measuring cup. Instead, stir the flour with a spoon to create as many air pockets as possible, and spoon it into your measuring cup. Finally, level it with a back of a knife.
- Line your sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone mat! This step helps the cookies to bake evenly, and it makes sure that your cookies release easily from the pan.
- Before you start to make this recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the cooking process will go smoothly and easily.
- Chill the dough! This step is crucial and prevents the cookies to spread out too much and being able to roll the dough without it sticking to the surface. After making the cookie dough, cover the dough with plastic wrap and chill the dough in the fridge for at least a few hours.
Faq's
We use all-purpose flour for this recipe, self-rising flour, and cake flour will work great as well.
These cookies will last for up to 4 days stored in the fridge in an airtight container.
If your dough is too sticky, there are a few possible reasons for that, you may have used butter that is too warm when making the cookie dough. Your butter should be at room temperature and it should be soft to the touch.
The second reason is that you didn’t let the dough chill in the fridge for long enough. Chilling the cookie dough is super important. It will make it easier to work with the dough, and it will prevent it from spreading in the oven.
Storing
Store these cookies in the fridge. Lemon curd needs to be refrigerated. Make sure that you store them in an airtight container so they won't dry out.
Freezing
Freezing these thumbprint cookies with lemon curd is very easy. Simply cover it with a plastic wrap tightly (a few layers) and transfer it into an airtight freezer-friendly container and freeze it for up to 2 months.
Thaw in the fridge overnight or at room temperature for about an hour.
Substitutions
Dairy-free - If you are dairy-free, replace the butter with vegan butter or plant-based butter. Do not use margarine. It will change the flavor of these cookies and leave a weird taste.
Gluten-free - if you want to make this recipe gluten-free, simply replace the flour with gluten-free flour.
Variations
White chocolate- add mini white chocolate chips to the cookie dough for a delicious white chocolate flavor.
Glaze- make a simple lemon glaze and glaze these cookies instead of coating them with powdered sugar.
Lemon zest- add even more lemon zest for a stronger lemon flavor and aroma.
More cookies recipes
Oreo cheesecake cookies- These oreo cheesecake cookies are made with cream cheese and lots of Oreos! You will need only 7 ingredients to make this recipe!
Nutella cookies- These Nutella cookies are chocolate cookies that are made with Nutella inside the cookie dough and topped with dollops of melted Nutella.
Brownie cookies- These brownie cookies are rich, fudgy, and full of chocolate flavor. These have a crackly top and a fudgy center that tastes just like a brownie!
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📖 Recipe
Lemon Curd Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 cup Flour
- ½ teaspoon Baking powder
- ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon Lemon zest
- 180 g Butter softened
- 1 cup Powder sugar
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
- 1 Egg large
Lemon curd
- ⅓ cup Lemon juice fresh
- 1 tablespoon Lemon zest
- ⅔ cup Granulated sugar
- 80 g Butter
- ¼ teaspoon Kosher salt
- 1 Egg large
- 3 Egg yolks large
Instructions
Make the cookie dough
- Into a medium mixing bowl, add the room temperature butter, lemon zest, powder sugar, kosher salt, and vanilla extract, and cream it with an electric hand mixer until creamy and smooth.
- Add the egg and mix it until well combined.
- Add the flour and baking powder to the butter mixture and mix with a spatula until just combined and there are no flour pockets visible.
- Cover the dough bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rest in the fridge for at least an hour. We let the dough rest in the fridge overnight but it’s not a must.
- Using an ice cream scooper, scoop out about 1 tablespoon of the cookie dough and roll them into balls. Using your thumb or a teaspoon, make indents on each cookie.
- Bake the cookies in a 180c (350f) preheated oven for 10 minutes. Don't overbake these cookies so they will stay soft!
- When you take the cookies out of the oven, immediately reshape the cookies using a spoon or your thumb.
Make the lemon curd
- Put all of the ingredients in a saucepan and cook it over medium-low heat whisking constantly.
- Once the butter melt, the consistency of the mixture will be thin, dont increase the heat. Keep whisking until the mixture thickens for about 5 minutes.
- When the mixture thickens, transfer it to a fine-mesh strainer set over and bowl and strain the mixture from any unnecessary lumps. This will give you a perfect and smooth curd.
- Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let the mixture cool for about 20-30 minutes.
Assembly
- Top the cookies with powder sugar and then spoon about 1 teaspoon of the lemon curd on the cookie. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Use room temperature ingredients. It is important that you use room-temperature ingredients like eggs and butter. This step ensures that your mixture mixes into a homogenous mixture and bakes perfectly. you don’t want to place cold batter into the oven.
- Don’t overmix the batter, you don’t want to develop the gluten in the flour. This step ensures you have moist cookies and not dense and dry cookies.
- Constantly whisk while making the curd! It is really important if you want to get a smooth and silky curd.
- Dont let the lemon curd come to a boil! This will cook the eggs and leave you with scrambled eggs. Make sure that the lemon curd mixture cooks over medium-low heat.
- Make sure that your butter is at room temperature. An hour or two before making these cookies, take the butter out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature. The butter should be soft to the touch. If your butter is too cold, it will be harder to mix and there will be lumps of butter in the dough.
- Measure your flour correctly! When measuring your flour, avoid scooping it with a measuring cup. Instead, stir the flour with a spoon to create as many air pockets as possible, and spoon it into your measuring cup. Finally, level it with a back of a knife.
- Line your sheet pan with parchment paper or a silicone mat! This step helps the cookies to bake evenly, and it makes sure that your cookies release easily from the pan.
- Before you start to make this recipe, measure and prepare your ingredients so the cooking process will go smoothly and easily.
- Chill the dough! This step is crucial and prevents the cookies to spread out too much and being able to roll the dough without it sticking to the surface. After making the cookie dough, cover the dough with plastic wrap and chill the dough in the fridge for at least a few hours.
Mark
Thanks for your blog, nice to read. Do not stop.
Marta
I just made them. They are super delicious!!!! I love them
RichandDelish
I'm so glad you liked them! Thank you for your comment!