Frozen Lemonade Cookies

I love lemon-flavored desserts, and I love lemonade, so this Frozen Lemonade Cookies recipe is my dream come true! Not to mention that it’s got a great time-saving element in its use of frozen lemonade concentrate. Keep a canister or two of frozen lemonade concentrate in the freezer and you can whip up these little treats whenever you’d like.

You really can use your favorite concentrated lemonade in this recipe. I do find some are sweeter and some are more tart, so experiment a bit to decide which flavor you like best. I found an organic brand that is a bit more tart, which I think really works well for these cookies. In fact, I like them so tart that I sometimes add a bit of lemon juice to the lemonade just to make it more tart and lemony! If you prefer yours sweeter, just use a lemonade brand you like and make the recipe as directed and you should be happy with your results.

Sifting flour.

When I bake, I nearly always sift my flour. I find it helps create a smoother batter and gives me the best results in the final product. Sometimes I get a bit lazy about it, though! Especially when I’m just throwing together some chocolate cookies on a lazy Saturday afternoon. But with this recipe, sifting is a critical step, so don’t skip it! I also find it helps the baking soda to incorporate evenly if I sift it with the flour and then I throw in the salt too, just to save time.

Another crucial thing to keep in mind with this recipe is that the butter and sugar mixture should be very well creamed together before the dry ingredients and lemonade are added. It’s also very important that you use softened butter, but be sure not to use butter that’s fully melted. Melted butter will result in dough that is too wet for the cookies to set and bake properly.

Frozen Lemonade Cookies

3 from 184 votes

Ingredients

  • 3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

  • 6 ounces frozen lemonade concentrate, thawed, divided

  • 1 cup butter

  • 1 cup granulated sugar

  • 2 eggs

  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

  • 1 teaspoon baking soda

  • 1 teaspoon salt

  • 2 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar

  • 2 tablespoons (optional) lemon zest

Directions

  • Grease cookie sheet pan. Preheat oven to 350° F (175° C).
  • In large mixing bowl, beat butter and 1 cup sugar until creamed together. Add vanilla and eggs; incorporate well.
  • Sift flour, salt, and baking soda together in separate bowl. Add dry ingredient mixture gradually into butter mixture.
  • Add 1/2 cup (4 oz) lemonade concentrate to bowl; mix well. Refrigerate dough for 30 minutes.
  • Drop 12 rounded teaspoons of chilled dough onto prepared cookie sheet.
  • To make glaze: whisk remaining 1/4 cup (2 oz) lemonade concentrate with 2 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar and (optional) lemon zest. Set aside.
  • Bake in preheated oven 10-14 minutes. Cookies should be lightly browned, don’t allow to scorch on bottom. Remove cookies to wire cooling rack.
  • Brush glaze over cookies once cool.

Notes

  • Be sure not to use softened, but not melted, butter. With melted butter, dough may be too wet.
  • Lemonade concentrate must be fully thawed for recipe to work.
  • For a more tart lemony flavor, add 2-3 tablespoons of lemon juice with the lemonade concentrate.

I love a glazed cookie. This recipe has a sweet lemonade glaze that is easy to throw together and really gives the finished cookies a beautiful flavor and final presentation. It’s also the step that makes the cookies taste like lemonade and not just lemons.

Fresh lemon zest.

While it’s absolutely lovely without, I think this glaze really shines with a bit of added lemon zest. Not only does the lemon zest give a visual indication that the cookies are full of delicious lemony flavor, I think it gives the lemon flavor of the lemonade glaze a bit more depth. The zest is absolutely optional, however. I prefer to use fresh lemon zest. Generally, I use a microplane and grate the zest off the peel of a whole, well-rinsed lemon. Be sure when zesting not to go too deeply into the white pith as the flavor can become bitter.

2 thoughts on “Frozen Lemonade Cookies”

Leave a Comment