Iced Lemon Sugar Cookie Hearts - Baker by Nature (2024)

These sweet little lemon sugar cookies are shaped like a heart… making them perfect for lemon lovers! Made with lemon zest and lemon juice, they pack a ton of lemon flavor. No artificial lemon extract required!

Lemon Sugar Cookie Recipe

Love is in the air! Lemon love, that is!Lemon is one of the most popular flavors in the world, so I’m always looking for new ways to incorporate it into my baking. And today’s recipe for elevated sugar cookies might just be my favorite lemon recipe yet!

These cookie hearts are buttery and bursting with lemon flavor. And the lemon glaze is sweet, creamy, and adds even more luscious lemon flavor. A pop of yellow sugar on top adds pizzazz – and just a little crunch.

One of things I love most about these cookies? They’re so versatile! They’re fancy enough to be served at a bridal shower or dinner party. But also perfect for Valentine’s Day (make them with the kids!), Christmas, or anytime you’re craving lemon sugar cookies and want to make them extra cute!

Lemon Sugar Cookie Ingredients

• Unsalted Butter: Bring your butter to room temperature before you begin baking! In a pinch, you may use salted butter. Simply cut the called for salt in the recipe in half.
• Granulated Sugar: I do not recommend altering this ingredient. The sugar sweetens and stabilizes the dough. Even a subtle swap, like using brown sugar, would change this recipe quite a bit.
• Eggs: You’ll use a whole egg plus 2 egg yolks. Do not toss those egg whites! You can use them in another baking recipe, an omelet, or even freeze them.
• Lemons: Both zest and juice are used! Grab serval large, heavy lemons to ensure you have enough of both ingredient.
• All-purpose Flour: I cannot suggest a plant-based or gluten-free flour substitute at this time. For best results, weigh your flour on a digital scale or lightly spoon it into the measuring cup the level it off. Never pack the flour into the cup!
• Salt: Balances sweetness and enhances the other flavors in the recipe.
• Confectioners’ Sugar: For the smoothest icing possible, sift the sugar through a fine-mesh strainer before adding it to the glaze.
• Yellow Colored Sugar: Purely for decorative purposes! If you don’t want to use this, simply omit!

How to Make Lemon Sugar Cookies

1. Make the cookie dough! You’ll need a stand mixer fitted or a handheld electric mixer for this recipe. You won’t be able to beat the butter and sugar without it.
2. Knead the dough! Sprinkle a little extra flour on your work surface so it doesn’t stick.
3. Divide the dough! Use a large knife to divide the dough in half. Form each half into 6”-inch disc.Wrap each disc and then pop them in the fridge!

Jump to the recipe below for the full details

Chill the Dough

I know waiting it hard, but this dough MUST be chilled. For at least 3 hours, or up to 2 days.

When you’re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees (F). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper. Be sure to remove your dough from the fridge at least 20 minutes before you plan on rolling. Cold dough will crack!

Cutting, Bake, Decorate!

1. Roll out the Dough! You’ll need a sturdy rolling pin to roll out the dough. You want to keep rolling until the dough is about 1/4-inch in thickness.
2. Cut out the Hearts! Use your heart shaped cookie cutters to cut out as many cookies as you can.Don’t throw away your dough scraps! You can re-chill those then roll it out again.
3. Bake the cookies! Carefully transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes. If you want soft and chewy cookies, you can underbake by a minute.
4. Cool the cookies! Leave the cookies on the baking sheets for 15 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.
5. Decorate: Once the cookies are cool, glaze and decorate!

Equipment You’ll Need

• Heart Shaped Cookie Cutter: I prefer a 3-inch cookie cutter, but use what you have! You can also make multiple sizes from one batch, like we did! Just adjust the bake time as needed; small cookies will bake faster and large cookies will need a few more minutes.
• Parchment Paper: Line the baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent the bottoms burning and make cleanup a breeze! A silicone baking mat can also be used.
• Baking Sheets: Use lighter colored baking sheets to avoid overly dark cookies.
• Microplane: You’ll want to very finely grate the lemon zest, which requires a microplane or fine grater.
• Piping Bag and Piping Tip: To decorate the cookies! You’ll use the bag to outline the cookies first, then “flood” the center with the frosting. It’s super easy and forgiving!

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More Lemon Recipes:

• Lemon Glazed Lemon Bundt Cake
• Lemon Cake for a Crowd
• Lemon Pie Bars
• Lemon Crumb Muffins
• Lemon Cheesecake Bars

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