Tender Lemon Almond Cookies

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These delightful Lemon Almond Cookies are soft, buttery and tender while slightly chewy in the middle with bright lemon and sweet almond flavor. They are inspired by traditional Italian lemon cookies with the addition of nuts to give them more texture and flavor. I love to make these over the holidays and they are great for dunking in coffee. If you enjoy lemon desserts, check out my Lemon Curd Crumb Cake and my Sour Cream Lemon Curd Cookies too!

lemon almond cookies on a plate with bite

WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS

Soft and chewy texture - these cookies are chewy with soft and tender centers.
Buttery lemon cookies - lots of lemon zest and lemon juice ensures that these cookies pack a punch with lots of buttery lemon flavor.
Easy to make - this is a simple recipe with basic ingredients that you likely have on hand.
Crunchy almond coating - I love the texture these have with sliced almonds all around which toast up as they bake.
Not too sweet - there's just the right amount of sugar to keep these soft, but not soo much that they are overly sweet.

lemon almond cookies piled up on baking sheet

INGREDIENTS FOR LEMON ALMOND COOKIES

All purpose flour - unbleached all-purpose flour works great for chewy cookies.
Unsalted butter - this recipe uses pure unsalted butter for the best flavor and tender texture. You can also use salted butter and then reduce the added salt.
Granulated sugar - simple granulated sugar keeps these cookies soft and chewy without interfering with the bright lemon flavor.
Eggs - one large egg will give these cookies structure and a soft texture, while one extra egg yolk makes them chewy and rich. It also deepens the yellow color without having to add food dye.

Pure vanilla extract - vanilla is an excellent back note to lemon. I like this Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla extract.
Lemon juice - the acidity will tenderize these cookies and add tart lemon flavor. Be sure to measure accurately though because too much moisture will make them spread far too much.
Lemon zest - use a full tablespoon from 1 large lemon or two small lemons for the most flavor and rub it into the sugar to extract the essential oils.
Almond meal - you can use almond flour or grind your own almonds very finely. I like to grind my own toasted almonds to make these cookies and it yields the best flavor.
Flaked almonds - they're also called sliced almonds and I use these to roll the dough in before baking. It gives them extra crunch and a beautiful appearance.

STEP BY STEP INSTRUCTIONS LEMON ALMOND COOKIES

STEP 1). Cream butter and sugar. Combine butter, sugar and lemon zest in large bowl and beat together to "cream" the ingredients with a wide rubber spatula for 1-2 minutes until pale and fluffy. You can also use an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. TIP: you can rub the lemon zest and sugar together between your fingertips to help release the natural oils in the lemon and infuse even more lemon flavor into the cookies.
STEP 2). Mix in egg. Add egg and mix until well incorporated. Mix in egg yolk, vanilla and almond extracts, then mix in lemon juice.
STEP 3). Blend dry ingredients. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl and whisk to blend evenly.
STEP 4). Combine wet and dry ingredients. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and fold them in gently. Before all of the dry ingredients are incorporated, add the ground almonds or almond meal and fold it in. It's ok if there are some streaks of almond - it creates a nice texture.
STEP 5). Chill the dough. Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dough for 1 hour.
STEP 6). Roll the cookie dough. Use a 1-oz cookie scoop to portion just over 1 oz balls of dough, or divide the dough into 20 equal portions and roll into smooth balls. Coarsely chop the sliced almonds and place them in a bowl. Roll each dough ball evenly in almonds then place onto prepared baking sheets, spacing them at least 2 inches apart.
STEP 7). Bake. Bake for 9-11 minutes until puffed and cracked on top, and still a bit soft in the middle. Do not over-bake. Transfer baking trays to a wire rack and let cookies cool for 2 minutes on the trays, then transfer individually to the rack to finish cooling.

EXPERT BAKING TIPS

Use room temperature ingredients. Ensure that the butter and egg are at room temperature so that they blend evenly and maintain the air that you've built into the butter during the creaming step.
Rub the zest with sugar first. To extract the most flavor out of citrus zest when baking with lemon, orange or lime, zest the fruit over the sugar and rub it in with your fingertips or the back of a spoon. This technique is called "plating" in the food industry and it is used to make seasoning blends based on salt or sugar. What this does is extract and carry the citrus flavor all throughout the mixture. Sugar crystals are abrasive and pierce through the small cells in the zest so that the flavorful essential oils will coat the crystals. In this recipe, it results in a more intense lemon flavor that distributes evenly throughout the cookie dough.
Sift the dry ingredients. This is optional, but it will minimize the amount of mixing needed to combine the ingredients evenly so that you do not over-mix the cookie dough.
Chill the cookie dough sufficiently. This dough is a little sticky from the lemon juice so it needs time in the fridge for the flour to hydrate and for the butter to firm up. It will prevent them from spreading too much and also develop a more prominent lemon flavor.
Roll the dough into smooth balls so that the cookies bake evenly into nice round shapes.

RECIPE FAQ

Why did my lemon cookies spread too much?

If they spread too much then it could be that the dough wasn't chilled long enough or that there is too much moisture in your dough. To prevent this, make sure you measure the lemon juice and flour precisely. Too much liquid will make them spread and too little flour will also cause them to over-spread.

Can I add lemon extract to lemon almond cookies?

Yes, you can add ¼ teaspoon to ½ teaspoon lemon extract if you want to bump up the lemon flavor even more.

Can I use store-bought lemon juice?

I highly recommend freshly squeezed lemon juice for the best flavor. You'll need the zest anyway so there's no reason to use bottled lemon juice.

STORAGE AND FREEZING

How to store lemon almond cookies?

These cookies will keep well in an airtight container for 5 days at room temperature. After the third day, the will start to loose their moistness, but they are still great.

Can I freeze lemon almond cookies?

I recommend freezing the dough before rolling in almonds. You can wrap the chilled dough well in plastic in bulk, or portion the dough into balls and then place in a resealable freezer bag for storage up to 3 months.

Looking for more recipes with lemon? Try these:

More cookie recipes

If you love making cookies as much as I do, check out these recipes:

If you love baking with fruit, check out these recipes!

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Lemon Almond Cookies

Christina Marsigliese, Food Scientist MSc.

5 from 1 vote

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Servings 20 cookies

Ingredients

½ cup (113g) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
1 ½ tablespoon lemon zest from 2 small lemons or 1 ½ large lemons
1 large egg room temperature
1 large egg yolk room temperature
1 tablespoon (15ml) freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 teaspoon (5ml) pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon pure almond extract
1 ¾ cups (250g) all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
⅔ cup (70g) fine almond flour or almond meal
¾ cup flaked almonds for rolling

Instructions

Combine butter, sugar and lemon zest in large bowl and beat together to "cream" the ingredients with a wide rubber spatula for 1-2 minutes until pale and fluffy. You can also use an electric hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. TIP: you can rub the lemon zest and sugar together between your fingertips to help release the natural oils in the lemon and infuse even more lemon flavor into the cookies.
Add egg and mix until well incorporated. Mix in egg yolk, vanilla extract and almond extract, then mix in lemon juice.
Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl and whisk to blend evenly. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and fold them in gently. Before all of the dry ingredients are incorporated, add the ground almonds or almond meal and fold it in. It's ok if there are some streaks of almond - it creates a nice texture. Cover the bowl and refrigerate the dough for 1 hour.
When you are ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two large cookie sheets with parchment paper.
Use a 1-oz cookie scoop to portion just over 1 oz balls of dough, or divide the dough into 20 equal portions and roll into smooth balls. Coarsely chop the sliced almonds and place them in a bowl. Roll each dough ball evenly in almonds then place onto prepared baking sheets, spacing them at least 2 inches apart.
Bake for 9-11 minutes until puffed and cracked on top, and still a bit soft in the middle. Do not over-bake. Transfer baking trays to a wire rack and let cookies cool for 2 minutes on the trays, then transfer individually to the rack to finish cooling.