These pillowy light lemon ricotta cookies are the perfect sweet treat for any occasion. They are easily transformed for any holiday with assorted sprinkles and are a great alternative to the rich, chocolate desserts that are often abundant at most holiday festivities. You can even keep some in the freezer in case of an unexpected guest!
I am a huge fan of these cookies because they are light and lemony. I have to stop myself from eating too many because of their convenient “2-bite size”. I’ve been known to easily throw down a dozen without realizing it. Luckily these don’t last long if anyone else is around. That’s why I need to pack some up and take them to a neighbor!
If you are feeling too lazy to make 5 batches of cookies, or you need them finished in a hurry… but you still want something light and tangy, try these coconut lime bars. Top them with sprinkles to make them festive!
However, these Lemon Ricotta cookies are worth the extra time commitment. They have the perfect amount of sweetness are so easy to make. You will want to make them over and over again.
Halloween, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, or a summer BBQ, these can be dressed up with some added pizzaz!
This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon affiliate, I may earn compensation when you click on the links at no additional cost to you.
I love to use nonpareils to top these cookies. Nonpareils are simply tiny, decorative sugar balls. They can be used to dress up these cookies for any occasion. Christmas, Halloween, fall, 4th of July… the options are practically endless!
Now put on a cute apron and let’s get baking!
How to Make Lemon Ricotta Cookies
Step 1: Grab your ingredients. I like to get everything out first, otherwise I end up frantically running to the store while my dog gets into all the stuff that I left unattended for 2 minutes. It’s just not worth it! Get all your ingredients out to make sure you have everything you need.
Ingredients and Substitutions:
The amount needed for each ingredient is in the full printable recipe at the bottom of the post.
- All purpose flour- Lately I’ve been using organic, unbleached all purpose flour in all my baking. This recipe is not finicky and will be fine with any all-purpose flour you have. In fact, bleached flour is great for cookies because it produces a fluffier, whiter product and helps the cookies hold together. Use whatever you have.
- Baking Powder- to help the dough spread up and out as they cook.
- Salt- If you use unsalted butter, you may want to add a half tsp. more of salt to your dry ingredients.
- Butter- I use salted butter, because I usually have that in my freezer from Costco. You can use unsalted butter.
- Granulated sugar- This gives it just the right amount of sweet.
- Eggs- These are necessary. I have not tried this with any kind of egg replacement. If you do, let me know how it goes.
- Lemon Zest- for the tang. I like to use a grater zester that makes the lemon zest really small for the cookie dough, and a peeler zester when using it as a decorative topping. Either will work, but you might want to cut them a little smaller if you use the peeler zester. You can also try 1/2 tsp. of lemon extract or a tablespoon of lemon juice for a light lemony touch if you find yourself without a lemon to zest… and for some odd reason you happen to have one of those other things.
- Ricotta Cheese- A 15 oz container is the perfect amount. This is what gives it the pillowy soft, cake like texture. Make sure to use the whole milk version. I. haven’t tried it with fresh ricotta, but the amount would be about 1 3/4 cups.
- Vanilla extract- I use pure vanilla extract. You can substitute vanilla paste or vanilla powder (use half the amount with this one).
Step 2: In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, and salt. Set this dry mixture aside.
Step 3: Using the paddle attachment of a stand mixer, cream together the butter, sugar, and lemon zest until it looks fluffy. Be sure to scrape down the sides and bottom to make sure you have mixed it all in.
Step 4: Now add the Ricotta cheese and vanilla. When you mix it together it will start to look kinda chunky and gross; a little bit like cottage cheese. Don’t worry, this is normal. It will all work itself out and will produce delicious, lemon ricotta goodness. Then add the eggs one at time.
Step 5: Now add the flour mixture a little bit at a time while mixing on low speed. Make sure to scrape down the sides and check the bottom during the entire process. I missed some on the bottom once. (The cookies still turned out delicious, but the “bottom of the bowl cookies” spread too much because they didn’t have enough of the flour mixed in enough. Once mixed, cover it with plastic wrap and put it into the refrigerator for a few hours to two days.
Step 6: WAIT… this is the hardest part. You want the dough to be adequately chilled.
Cooking the Lemon Ricotta Cookies
Step 1: Before you even remove the cookie dough from the refrigerator, preheat your oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit. Line your cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mat. I used both this time to show the difference in cooking time when using each one.
Step 2: Using a 1 Tbsp cookie scoop (seriously, this makes all the difference), drop dough onto the cookie sheet leaving room between each cookie. They do not spread much, but we don’t want them running together. I put about 14 on each sheet. You can take the time to roll them into a ball if you want a more perfect presentation. I’m too lazy for that! These come out just fine without having to touch the dough. Cook for 11-14 minutes.
This is my Nordic Ware Baking Sheet with a Silicone baking mat. This one takes a little bit longer to cook and doesn’t get as brown on the bottom. I had to cook this batch for 14 minutes. You can see that the cookies start to lightly brown on the bottom.
This batch was done on my cookie sheet that doesn’t have an edge. It’s easier to use parchment paper on because you can be a little off on the size. That’s perfect for lazy bakers like me. It only cooked for 11 minutes and got much browner on the bottom.
Step 3: Let them cool on the cookie sheet for about 2 minutes and then transfer them to a wire cooling rack while you make the icing.
Preparing the icing for Lemon Ricotta Cookies
Ingredients:
- Powdered sugar- I don’t sift it or anything, I just dump it into the bowl.
- Lemon Juice- I use the lemons that I zested. It’s a good idea to zest this lemon first so that you have some to top cookies with. You can also use the lemon juice that comes in the little lemon container at the grocery store or ReaLemon.
- Melted Butter- Melt this, but let it cool a little before putting it into the bowl.
- Vanilla Extract- You can use vanilla paste or powder here too.
- Almond Extract- Add a little extra for a more almondy flavor. You can also omit this if you don’t prefer it.
- Half and Half- Milk can be used instead if you don’t have half and half.
Step 1: Using the whisk attachment on your stand mixer, mix together powdered sugar, melted butter, the juice of one lemon, half and half, vanilla and almond extract. You want the thickness to be a little runny, but not as runny as a clear glaze. You can add more half and half until you get to the desired consistency.
Step 2: Lay out some wax paper. Dip the top of each cookie into the icing and lay down onto the wax paper. It will drip a little.
Step 3: Place the cookie onto the wax paper. Top with the decorative sprinkles or lemon zest quickly, before the icing starts to firm up.
Keep the cookies at room temperature until the icing sets. Store them in an airtight container and store them in the refrigerator. If you are layering them, make sure you put wax paper between them. They can stay in the refrigerator for up to four days… if they last that long. Alternatively, you can store them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Bring them to room temperature before serving (although I love them cold, straight from the fridge!).
Enjoy!
If you are finding that lemon in cookies is your jam, and feeling adventurous, try the best lemon cut-out sugar cookies I have ever had. They take some time, but they are always a hit!
Lemon Ricotta Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
For the cookies
- 3½ cups all purpose flour
- 2½ tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup salted butter (at room temperature) (2 sticks)
- 1¾ cups granulated sugar
- 1 tsp lemon zest (I use zest of 1 lemon)
- 15 oz container ricotta (whole milk)
- 1 Tbsp pure vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
For the icing
- 2½ cups powdered sugar
- 1 Tbsp butter (melted)
- 1 juice of one lemon (zest if to top cookies later)
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- ½ tsp almond extract
- 4 Tbsp half and half add more to get to consistancy
- nonpareil sprinkles for decorating cookies optional
Instructions
For the cookies
- In a medium mixing bowl, combine dry ingredients.3½ cups flour2½ tsp. baking powder½ tsp. saltSet aside.
- In your stand mixer, cream together with paddle attachment until light and fluffy2 sticks salted butter (at room temperature)1¾ cups granulated sugarZest of 1 lemonMake sure to scrape down the sides throughout the process to make sure everything is combined
- Mix in15 oz. container of ricotta 1 Tbsp vanilla extractIt will look kinda chunky and gross at this stage. This is how it should look!
- Add in the 2 eggs, one at a time.
- Add the flour mixture a little bit at a time while mixing on low speed. Be sure to scrape down the sides and bottom with a spatula to make sure it is well mixed.
- Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for a couple hours (up to 2 days).
after dough has been adequately chilled
- Preheat oven to 350℉
- Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone liner.
- Using a 1 tbsp. cookie scoop, drop onto cookie sheet leaving room between each cookie. They do not spread very much. I put about 14 on each sheet.
- Bake in preheated oven for 11-14 minutes. My lighter sheet with silicone needs 14. My darker sheet with parchment cooks in about 11-12 minutes. Cookies will be lightly browned on the bottom.
- Let cool on the cookie sheet for a couple minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Prepare icing
- In a mixing bowl, using a whisk attachment mix together all ingredients.2½ cups powdered sugar1 Tbsp. melted butterJuice of one lemon (zest it first if you want to use that to top cookies. It's my favorite to add a little tang)1 tsp. vanilla extract½ tsp. almond extract4 Tbsp. half and half (more if you want it runnier, but add it in later, 1 Tbsp at a time).
- Dip the top of each cookie into the icing and place on wax paper (some of them will drip). Sprinkle with nonpareil sprinkles or lemon zest quickly before icing firms up.
- Keep the cookies at room temperature until the icing sets. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Single layer is best, but I have layered them with wax paper when between each layer to save space.
Notes
Nutrition
If you baked these cookies, please leave a rating and a comment! We’d love to hear about it!
2 Comments
These are really to die for! I decided not to refrigerate the dough because I couldn’t wait that long to eat them and they were flat, but still mouth-wateringly deeeelicious! Thanks for sharing!
I’m so glad you like them! I love recipes like this that are hard to mess up. Enjoy!