Lemon Sugar Cookie Bars are soft and chewy with lots of citrusy tang. They’re baked in a 13×9 inch dish which removes the hassle of forming individual cookies – just slice and enjoy!
Hello, friends! I hope everyone is well and finding the baking ingredients needed to make all the comfort foods required for these days of sheltering. Thankfully, I am now stocked up on flour, yeast, and the other essentials that keep me working and doing what I love.
Lately I’ve been craving the flavors of buttercream birthday cake, but I’ve been without the enthusiasm it takes to bake, fill, and frost an entire layer cake. Sugar cookie bars are a low lift stand-in with all of the nostalgic birthday flavors and lots of sprinkles! This recipe is a departure from the usual sugar cookie flavors of vanilla on vanilla (which is also delicious) and instead uses lots of lemon zest and fresh lemon juice to give these treats some zing!
The first order of business is to make lemon sugar for the cookie dough. Zest an entire lemon over a bowl of sugar and blend together with your fingertips. The citrus oils disperse through the sugar which uniformly flavors the dough.
Blended together, the cookie dough will be pale and crumbly. Squeeze a handful of crumbles in your palm – if the dough holds together then you’re on the right track!
Pat the dough evenly in a buttered dish. The dough will turn lightly golden at the edges as it bakes, but the middle should still remain pale – these are soft baked for a thick, chewy texture.
The buttercream is thick and fluffy, and so tangy with lemon zest and freshly squeezed juice – yum!
When the cookie portion is completely cool, spread the billowy frosting evenly over the surface.
Just look at that frosting to cookie ratio! I’d say that’s about 50/50, which is about right for buttercream lovers (me)!
This kind of baked good is cute, tasty, and practically made to be shared (in normal circumstances they are SO bake sale-worthy!). So, I’m eager to find a way to safely share baked goods like these with friends and family during this time, and with careful packaging and a doorstep delivery I believe it is possible. I have a little more research to do, and I hope to post my findings and methods here!
Stay well! xo
Yields 15 servings
Lemon cookie
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
Zest of one lemon (about 1 tablespoon)
2 1/2 cups (300g) all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter, softened
1 egg
1 tablespoon sour cream or plain yogurt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Lemon buttercream
1/2 cup (113g) unsalted butter, softened
4 cups (450g) powdered sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
Zest of one lemon (about 1 tablespoon)
Milk or cream, to thin
1/4 teaspoon yellow gel food color
Mixed pastel rainbow sprinkles
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 13×9-inch baking dish.
Combine the sugar and lemon zest in a medium bowl. Use your fingertips to blend the zest into the sugar until the zest is well dispersed and the sugar is fragrant with lemon.
In a separate mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Whisk to combine.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together butter and lemon sugar until creamy. Add the egg, sour cream, lemon juice, and extract. Beat to combine. Add the dry flour mixture and mix together on low speed until well incorporated but still crumbly. Press the mixture evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake for 15-17 minutes, or until the edges are slightly golden and the center is still pale. Cool completely before frosting.
For the frosting, cream the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer. Add about 1/3 of the confectioners’ sugar and beat until combined. Add the lemon juice and lemon zest; beat again. Mix in the remaining confectioners’ sugar, adding the milk or cream to thin the mixture to spreading consistency. Beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add gel food color and whip until a consistent bright yellow color is achieved.
Spread the frosting evenly over the cooled cookie in the pan. Cover with sprinkles if desired. Let stand until set, about 10-15 minutes, or chill in the refrigerator until the frosting is firm. Cut into squares before serving. Store cookies in an airtight container for optimal freshness.
