Lemon Poppy Seed Shortbread Cookies. Ideal for afternoon tea! Buttery sweet shortbread cookies flavoured with lemon zest and with crunchy little poppy seeds baked right in.
Lemon Poppy Seed Shortbread Cookies
Inspired by the Lemon Poppy Seed Loaf Cakes that I always enjoyed growing up, these Lemon Poppy Seed Shortbread Cookies would be equally at home at a fancy afternoon tea. Simple and dainty enough to be unpretentious, but fancy enough to be considered a special treat, especially with a little bit of Royal Icing piped on top.
Organic unwaxed lemons are always best for zesting in recipes like this one.
These cookies would also be terrific for gift giving this coming Holiday season. Make a big batch and package them up in clear cellophane bags tied with a pretty ribbon. Take them along to cookie exchanges, Christmas parties or as host gifts whenever you visit someone during the Holidays.
Lemon Poppy Sees Shortbread Cookies on cookie sheet ready for the oven.
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Lemon Poppy Seed Shortbread Cookies - ideal for afternoon tea! Buttery sweet shortbread cookies flavoured with lemon zest and with crunchy little poppyseeds baked right in.
Ingredients
- 1 cup butter at room temperature
- 1/2 cup icing sugar, powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- zest of 1 large lemon, finely minced
- 1/4 cup corn starch
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 tbsp poppy seeds
For the Royal Icing
- 1 small egg white
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- cup about a of icing sugar, powdered sugar
- Instructions
Instructions
- Cream together the butter and icing sugar very well until very smooth and creamy. No lumps of butter should be visible.
- Blend in the vanilla extract and lemon zest.
- Sift together the flour and corn starch.
- Blend slowly into the creamed mixture along with the poppy seeds until a soft dough forms.Form into a 1 inch thick flat disk, wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for a couple of hours at least.
- This dough will also last in the fridge for 3-4 days so that you can bake a few up at a time and enjoy them fresh from the oven if you like.To bake the cookies preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
- Roll the dough out to a little less than ¼ of an inch on a lightly floured surface. Use a 1 1/2 inch cookie cutter to cut out the cookies.
- Place the cookies on the parchment paper a half inch apart. Bake for 12 - 15 minutes or until they just start to turn brown at the edges.Let cool for 10 minutes on the pan before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.These cookies will freeze quite well for several weeks.
To make the Royal icing
- Start by adding the icing sugar to a small bowl and add the lemon juice.
- Add the egg white a tbsp at a time mixing until you get a very thick icing.
- If the icing gets too thick add a little more egg whit e or lemon juice. f it gets too thin add more icing sugar until you get the right consistency.
- Spread or pipe the frosting onto the cookies and let them sit out for several hours for the frosting to harden.
- Store in airtight containers.
Notes
I make these as quite small cookies but really you could make them larger if you like. I'd add a few minutes more baking time to them if using larger cookie cutters.
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Nutrition Information
Yield
24Serving Size
gAmount Per Serving Calories 133Saturated Fat 4gCholesterol 20mgSodium 70mgCarbohydrates 14gSugar 7gProtein 1g
Rock Recipes a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Our product recommendations are almost exclusively for those we currently use or have used in the past.
Roz
Tuesday 11th of September 2018
I am not great at cut out cookies. Can these be rolled into a log then slided and baked?
Barry C. Parsons
Wednesday 12th of September 2018
Should be fine if the dough is well chilled.
Barb
Saturday 4th of August 2018
I left the dough in the fridge for a couple of days because it's been a hot summer here on the Rock and I didn't want the oven running. They just came out of the oven and they are perfect. Baked in my hot oven for about 10 minutes. The recipe made a perfect dozen. They're kind of a variation on a lemon sour cream cake that I make in the summertime. But the poppy seeds really "kick these up a notch". Thanks, Barry.
Misty Welsh
Friday 2nd of December 2016
Just curious about the butter. Recipe calls for 1 cup (1 pound) butter. 1 cup is a half a pound. These cookies look delicious and I would love to make them correctly.
Barry C. Parsons
Sunday 4th of December 2016
Oops! I've corrected it now.