Lemon Crackle Cookies

 

Hello again and happy fall, y'all! I feel like the year has flown by.  Here we are almost all of the way through October.  Soon it'll be Thanksgiving and Christmas.  But here I am, still thinking it's summer time, running around in sundresses and baking lemon cookies instead of pumpkin bread.  I'm in total disbelief that it's Autumn.  Here in Raleigh we're only starting to see a few signs of the changing season; cool, crisp air in the evenings and a few crunchy leaves under our feet.  If I didn't go to the store and see bags of candy lining the aisles, I would have no idea Halloween was a little over a week away.

The past few months have been incredibly busy, sometimes I feel like I don't get to stop and relax.  But when I do get a little break, I usually can't stand it and have to keep busy.  So any extra downtime I have had lately has been devoted towards baking - mostly classic desserts and treats given away to new friends.

 My sweet tooth isn't raging anymore like it was for the past... well forever.  Maybe as I've gotten older my little taste buds have evolved and are going in a different direction.  Instead of a piece of cake I'd probably choose a steak.  The other day I had a few lemons left over from a pasta dish I made and used them towards a nice light, lemony crackle cookie.

Quite the beauties, aren't they?  They're pretty photogenic, but then again what cookies aren't?  Hello.  I took these pictures using my iPhone, which is good enough for me these days.  I actually sold my DSLR a few months ago (gotta pay those bills) so I don't have a camera anymore.

 Lemon Crackle Cookies

2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice + zest of one lemon
1 large egg
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar

In a medium sized bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  In a large mixing bowl, using a mixer on medium speed, beat together butter, granulated sugar and vanilla until creamy and well combined.  Beat in lemon juice and lemon zest until combined.  Beat in egg until well combined.  Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in flour mixture until just combined.

Chill dough in refrigerator for 1 hour or overnight.

Heat oven to 350 degrees F.  Roll 1 inch balls of dough into confectioners' sugar and place on cookie sheets, spacing about 1 1/2-inches apart.  Bake 10-12 minutes or until lightly golden in color. Side note-feel free to add a few drops of yellow food coloring into the dough.

Allow cookies to cool 2 minutes before transferring to wire racks.  Dust with confectioners' sugar.

Makes about 2 dozen cookies