Sourdough Lemon Cookies (Crinkle or Glazed!)

If you’ve been looking for the perfectly dense and soft-baked sourdough lemon cookie, the search is over. These cookies are pillowy and tender, and are bursting with zesty lemon! They also utilize your sourdough discard for a fluffy crumb that is impossible to resist! Best of all? You get to choose between two beloved varieties from just one dough. So whether you’re in the mood for a snowy crackled top of a lemon crinkle cookie, or whether you were looking for a glazed lemon cookie with extra-zesty icing, we’ve got you covered. Try this no-wait recipe today!

Two Ways: Sourdough Lemon Crinkle Cookies Vs. Iced Sourdough Lemon Cookies

The beauty of this recipe is in its versatility! Using one simple, zesty lemon sourdough cookie dough, you can create two entirely different dessert options. Because these cookies have a thick, cake-like crumb, they hold up beautifully when turned into crinkle cookies with the “crackled” tops, or pair perfectly with the bright, zesty drizzle on the glazed cookies.

Option 1: The Sourdough Lemon Crinkle Cookie

If you love the classic aesthetic of the crackly powdered sugar top, this one is for you. Before baking, the dough balls are rolled generously in powdered sugar. As they puff up in the oven, the surface expands and cracks, creating a beautiful texture on top.

Best for: Stacking on holiday cookie trays, gifting, and anyone who loves a sweeter cookie (because of the powdered sugar on the outside)

Option 2: The Glazed Sourdough Lemon Cookie

For those who want an extra punch of zesty citrus, the iced version is the way to go. These cookies are baked and cooled, and then finished with a generous amount of tart lemon glaze. The icing sets semi-firm, but stays tender in each bite (does not get hard), making these cookies feel like high-end bakery quality.

Best for: Easter baking, summer tea parties, and anyone who loves the lemoniest cookie with the tartest, zestiest flavor.

Essentials for the Perfect Sourdough Cookie

• Digital Kitchen Scale: In my kitchen, a digital scale is a non-negotiable! I have had this exact digital scale for years, and it has never failed me! Measuring by weight is the only foolproof way to ensure accuracy, especially for flour and sourdough starter which are often difficult to measure and can make or break the final texture of the cookies.
• Stand Mixer: A quality stand mixer is a game changer for sourdough cookies. It helps combine the thick dough with ease without over-mixing, which is key for a tender crumb!
• Large Cookie Scoop: Most of my sourdough cookie recipes are designed for making jumbo cookies. Using a large cookie scoop ensures that you get the bakery-style size with even baking every time!

Ingredients

Sourdough Lemon Cookie Ingredients

• 1 cup light brown sugar, packed (220g): Make sure you pack it tight! The right amount of sugar gives the cookies the perfect amount of spread while keeping them ultra soft and tender.
• 2 tbsp granulated sugar (25g): Including white sugar will help balance the moisture from the brown sugar, ensuring the cookies spread just the right amount.
• ½ cup salted butter, softened (113g): Aim for “dent soft” butter, meaning it will indent somewhat easily when the corner is pressed with your finger, but still offers some resistance and isn’t completely room temperature yet. The perfect softness can take anywhere from 30-60 minutes at room temperature. If you want to use unsalted butter, add ¼ tsp. additional salt to the recipe.
• ½ cup sourdough starter, active or discard, stirred down (150g): The sourdough starter can be active or discard starter! Be sure to stir the starter down before measuring. Or for best accuracy, measure by weight.
• 2 large egg yolks (40g): Having room temperature yolks is ideal, but cold yolks are fine too!
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon zest (4g): This is approximately the zest of 2 lemons. The lemon zest is vital in my opinion for creating the perfect lemon cookie! The flavor is bright and potent, and it pairs beautifully with the crackled or glazed toppings.
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (5g): Pure vanilla extract is best! Imitation vanilla often contains unnecessary additives.
• 1 tsp lemon extract(5g): Pure lemon extract is best for this recipe. It usually contains alcohol and pure lemon oil. This extract enhances the tart lemon flavors in the dough!
• ½ tsp salt (3g): I prefer to use sea salt, as iodized salt may add an unwanted flavor profile.
• 1½ cups all-purpose flour, scooped directly from bag (not spooned and leveled) (235g): The right amount of flour is important for getting that soft and tender crumb! However, it’s very difficult to accurately measure flour by volume. This is because it is all dependent on how you scoop it! For ease of measuring, I designed this volume measurement to simply be scooped directly out of the bag (not spooned and leveled). Pro Tip: For the best accuracy and best overall perfect cookie texture, you should measure flour by weight.
• 1 tsp baking soda (6g): Ensure you are using baking soda, NOT baking powder. They are not interchangeable and will affect the spread and texture of the cookie. Baking soda reacts with the acidic sourdough starter to puff up the dough and keep the cookies nice and thick when baked!

(Option A) For Lemon Crinkle Cookies:

• ½ cup powdered sugar (55g): This is for rolling each dough scoop in powdered sugar before baking! Coating the outside in powdered sugar before baking creates a beautiful snowy texture with a crackly top.

(Option B) For Glazed Lemon Cookies:

• 1½ tbsp salted butter, melted (21g): Using butter instead of milk is my secret ingredient for bakery-quality glazes! This is because it increases the fat content, which makes the icing set semi-firm while still remaining soft with each bite. No hard or brittle icing here! If you want to use unsalted butter, add the smallest pinch of additional salt to the recipe.
• 3 tbsp lemon juice fresh or bottled (42g): You can use fresh-squeezed lemon juice, or bottled lemon juice for this recipe. Fresh-squeezed has the best flavor though! And since you already need fresh lemon zest for the dough, you likely have a lemon on hand that you can get the juice from.
• ¾ tsp vanilla extract (4g): Pure vanilla extract is best! Imitation vanilla often contains unnecessary additives.
• Pinch salt: Just a tiny pinch of salt helps to cut through the sweetness of the glaze. I prefer to use sea salt, as iodized salt can add an unwanted flavor profile.
• 1½ cups powdered sugar (188g): Powdered sugar is necessary for creating the perfect texture in the icing. It cannot be substituted for granulated sugars.

How to Make Sourdough Lemon Cookies

Preheat Oven & Prep: Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

Cream the Butter & Sugar: Start by beating the brown sugar, granulated sugar, and softened butter together. This works best with an electric mixer (either handheld or a stand mixer). You are looking for more than just a mix here, you want the texture to change. It should look creamy, uniform, and slightly aerated. If you see chunks of butter, keep mixing! Optional Pro Tip: For the most intense lemon flavor, try rubbing the lemon zest into the granulated sugar with your fingers before creaming it with the butter, instead of adding it later in the recipe. This releases the essential oils and infuses the whole cookie with a more concentrated citrus aroma!

Add the Wet Ingredients: Add your sourdough starter, egg yolks, lemon zest (if you didn’t already rub it into the sugar!), vanilla extract, lemon extract, and salt. Beat until it becomes smooth and slightly frothy. Tip: Make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula to ensure the starter is fully incorporated! You should not see any chunks floating around by this point.

Incorporate the Dry Ingredients: Add your flour and sprinkle in the baking soda. Turn your mixer to low speed, and stir until just combined. Critical Step: Stop mixing when you still see a few tiny streaks of flour left. If you over-mix at this stage, you will accidentally over-develop the gluten and your cookies will be tough rather than soft and pillowy.

(Option A) For Crinkle Cookies: Place the ½ cup of powdered sugar on a small plate. Use a large cookie scoop to place a ball of dough in the middle of the powdered sugar. Gently roll it around with your hand to generously cover all sides with powdered sugar. Repeat with each scoop of dough, placing 6 powdered dough balls on your parchment-lined baking sheet, ensuring even spacing to allow for spreading. This recipe makes about 12 cookies total.

(Option B) For Glazed Cookies: Use a large cookie scoop to place 6 generous portions of dough onto your parchment-lined baking sheet. Ensure even spacing between each to allow for spreading. This recipe makes about 12 cookies total.

Bake: Place your pan of cookies in the oven. Bake for 12–16 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through baking. You’ll know they are done when the edges look set, and the center looks mostly set but still soft. They will continue to set up as they cool!

Cool On Baking Sheet: Let the cookies sit on the hot baking sheet for right around 7 minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack. This is a crucial step for ensuring that the cookies set up completely. If you try to move them too soon, they will fall apart.

Make the Lemon Glaze (For Option B): Make sure cookies are completely cool before glazing. In a small bowl, whisk all glaze ingredients until smooth. Immediately drizzle over cookies. This recipe makes a generous amount of glaze, so feel free to be heavy-handed with this! This tart icing perfectly balances the sweetness of the soft-baked cookie dough.

Storage: Once completely cool, you can store cookies in an airtight container or bag for up to 5 days at room temperature. Pro Tip: To ensure they stay fresh the longest, place a slice of bread in the container with the cookies. The cookies will absorb moisture from the bread (the bread will become rock hard!), keeping your cookies soft and pillowy for longer.

Substitutions & Variations

• If you prefer a sweeter cookie instead of a tart cookie but still want the glazed top, you can make a vanilla glaze instead of the lemon glaze. Simply substitute whole milk in place of the lemon juice, and follow the directions as usual!
• Substitute dark brown sugar for light brown sugar if necessary.
• If using unsalted butter in the dough, add an additional ¼ tsp salt.
• Active sourdough starter can be used! Just stir it down before measuring, or for best accuracy measure by weight.
• Want to try a different fruit flavor? If you’re looking for a cookie that has fruit but without the tart citrus flavor, then try my Sourdough Banana Pudding Cookie recipe.

Can I freeze lemon sourdough cookie dough?

Absolutely! For best results, follow this flash-freezing method:

1. Scoop dough into balls and place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet (they can be close together but not touching).
2. Place the sheet in the freezer for about 1 hour, or until the dough balls are firm to the touch.
3. Transfer dough balls into a gallon freezer bag, where they can be stored in the freezer for up to 2-3 months!

Pro Tip: Double the recipe to intentionally freeze an extra batch! This provides you with a ready-to-bake dough for when that sweet tooth hits. You can even bake just a few at a time for a quick, no-prep dessert.

Tips to Bake Lemon Sourdough Cookie Dough From Frozen:

• Thaw Slightly: Allow dough to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes before baking. This helps the centers to bake through without the edges over-browning. Baking from cold may require an additional 1-2 minutes of baking time.
• For Crinkle Cookies: Wait until just before baking to roll each dough ball in the powdered sugar. It would create a sticky mess and an unwanted texture if the dough balls were rolled in powdered sugar prior to freezing.
• For Glazed Cookies: Bake and cool the frozen cookies as directed, then make the glaze fresh. Do not freeze glaze, as it will become grainy and ruin the texture once thawed.

How to Make Long-Fermented Lemon Sourdough Cookies

To long-ferment the dough for more flavor, gut health, and nutritional benefits, follow these simple directions:

1. Prepare: Follow the recipe directions to make the lemon cookie dough.
2. Ferment: Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, or transfer to an airtight container. Refrigerate for 1-3 days. Note: After the first day, longer fermentation increases the health benefits, but it also intensifies the tangy sourdough flavor.
3. Bake: The dough temperature will significantly affect the final texture of your cookies.
   • For Balanced Cakiness (Preferred): About 1 hour before baking, remove the dough from the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature. This will yield a texture result that is similar to freshly-made dough.
   • For Thicker, Cake-Like Cookies: If you’re in a pinch, you may bake the dough straight from the fridge. The cookies will not spread as much as freshly made dough, and will result in a thicker, more cakey consistency, which can also work well with these lemon sourdough cookies.
4. A Note For Crinkle Cookies: Roll dough in powdered sugar immediately before baking. Do not roll in sugar before fermentation.

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