Even if your winter is a tab bit dreary, the brightness of citrus is sure to perk things up. It’s citrus season in Northern California which means it’s time to make friends with our neighbors and hope they share some delicious fruits from their yards. If you’ve strolled through Napa or Sonoma recently, you’ve probably seen the brightly colored trees in every corner. In fact, many local wineries grow their own citrus which you can enjoy on your visit.
This month’s recipe is celebrating lemons by creating these light, lemon icebox cookies. You can make the dough ahead, pop them in your freezer and bake them up anytime. When you are craving that little sweet something, these are the perfect thing to pop in the oven. Enjoy!
TOTAL TIME: 30 minutes + freezing time
Makes about 5 dozen cookies
Gather These Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
- 1 teaspoon coarse salt
- 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon lemon zest, plus 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into piece
- 2 large egg yolks
- ¼ cup granulated sugar, for rolling
Preparing the Dough
- Combine the flour, confectioners’ sugar, salt and lemon zest in a food processor. Pulse everything until combined.
- Once Combined add butter and continue to pulse until a sandy consistency.
- Add egg yolks and lemon juice and continue to pulse until dough forms and comes together.
- Turn dough out onto a clean counter ad divide in half. Roll each half into approximately 1 ½ in wide logs.
- Wrap in plastic and place in the freezer until firm, about 2 hours. (Can be stored up to 1 month in the freezer)
**Tip: If you only have wire rack space then place your plastic wrapped logs on a small sheet pan or tray in the freezer so they don’t take on the wire rack shape.
Ready to bake!
- Preheat your oven to 350⁰
- Using a pan with short side or a piece of parchment paper spread out granulated sugar.
- Roll your dough logs over the sugar to coat. (you may need to re-spread your sugar once or twice to be sure your dough is evenly coated)
- Cut your logs into ¼ inch thick slices and arrange them on parchment lined baking sheets about 1 inch apart.
- Bake about 15 minute or until your cookies are golden brown around the edges.
- Let sit on your pan for 2 minutes then transfer them to wire racks to cool.
Store cookies in a covered container at room temperature for up to 5 days (if they all haven’t been devoured by then).
A light white wine like Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, French Sancerre, or Chenin Blanc will pair perfectly with these treats. Just choose your favorite bottle from any Napa wineries or Sonoma wineries and enjoy!
