These Pink Lemonade Sugar Cookies make a tasty afternoon snack and are soft, chewy and super easy to make.
Nothing says Summer like a glass of ice cold pink lemonade. Pair that flavor with soft and chewy sugar cookies and you get a deliciously sweet treat with a little bit of a tang.
As a kid I LOVED pink lemonade. It didn’t seem as tart or maybe they just added more sugar. I really don’t know, but I loved the pink color in any event! I even made a homemade Strawberry Lemonade a few years back.
I’ve been wanting to experiment with a recipe for these Pink Lemonade Sugar Cookies for years, but never got around to it.
It was something that I’d remember when it was snowing outside in January. Bad timing! This time, I left out my sugar cookie recipe from when I baked for Christmas, wrote some notes on it and kept it in my “to make” folder. I wasn’t going to forget them this year for sure!
When I finally made these lemon cookies I don’t know why it took so long because they were just as good as I envisioned them to be.
But then again I LOVE anything lemon! This batch makes approximately 36 cookies and bake in about 10 minutes. They’re a simple cookie, but I love that about this recipe.
I’m not a big fan of icing, glazes or gooey-ness so I just sprinkled a little confectioners sugar on top, but honestly they didn’t need it as they are sweet enough as-is.
Equipment
- stand mixer with paddle attachment (or large bowl with an electric handheld mixer)
- measuring cup and spoon set
- 3-baking sheets
- parchment paper
- 1 tablespoon cookie scoop
- cooling rack
Ingredients Needed
For this recipe you’ll need the following ingredients:
Softened Unsalted Butter
Confectioners Sugar: Also known as 10x sugar or powdered sugar. I also used a bit sprinkled on top of the cookies once they were cooled.
Egg: I always use large sized eggs.
Vanilla Extract: You can also substitute lemon extract if you want these cookies to be even more lemony.
Lemon Juice: I used fresh squeezed, but you can use the lemon juice in a bottle.
All Purpose Flour
Baking Soda: I repeat…BAKING SODA not baking powder; there is a difference and the cookies will not turn out properly.
Cream of Tartar
Red Food Coloring: This helps give the cookies a pink hue, but does not contribute the the flavor in any way so you can omit altogether.
How do you make Pink Lemonade Sugar Cookies?
In a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together on high until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla extract and lemon juice; then blend until smooth. Next, add the food coloring and blend until the mixture turns pink.
Add the flour, baking soda and cream of tarter; then mix until the dough forms into a ball. Remove the dough, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to overnight.
When you’ re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line three baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop out the dough using the cookie scoop, leaving 2-inches in between. You should get 12 cookies per baking sheet. Repeat for all.
Place the pans into the oven and cook 10-12 minutes until the centers are puffed up and the edges are light brown. Remove from the oven, allow to rest 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to finish cooling completely.
If your oven only fits two pans at a time, keep the third pan in the refrigerator until you’re ready to bake.
Storage
Once the cookies are cooled, place them in an airtight container and store at room temperature for up to 7 days. You can also place them in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 1 month.
VISIT THE RECIPE INDEX TO SEARCH FOR MORE RECIPES BY CATEGORY.
More Lemon Dessert Recipes
- Lemon Olive Oil Cakes
- No Bake Limoncello Pie
- Lush Cake
- Oreo Lemon Drops
- Lemon Blondies
- Lemon Cream Cheese Poundcake
- Rosemary Lemon Ricotta Cookies
SIGN UP FOR MY WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AND RECEIVE A FREE EBOOK!
Pink Lemonade Sugar Cookies
Equipment
- Stand Mixer with Paddle Attachment (or large bowl with an electric handheld mixer)
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter (softened to room temperature)
- 2 cups confectioner's sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 4 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 1/3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 3-5 drops red food coloring (optional; only for color)
Instructions
- In a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar together on high; then add the eggs, vanilla extract and lemon juice and blend until smooth.
- Next, add the food coloring and blend until the mixture turns pink.
- Add the flour, baking soda and cream of tarter; then mix until the dough forms into a ball. Remove the dough, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to overnight.
- When you' re ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line three baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Scoop out the dough using the cookie scoop, leaving 2-inches in between each cookie. (You should get 12 cookies per baking sheet). Repeat for all pans.
- Place the pans into the oven and cook 10-12 minutes until the centers are puffed up and the edges are light brown.
- Remove from the oven, allow to rest 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to finish cooling completely; then sprinkle with confectioners sugar.
Leave a Reply