Girl Scout Lemonades are delicious lemon shortbread cookies with tangy lemon icing. There’s no need to get cookies from the Girl Scouts when you can make these lemony cookies at home.
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What Makes These Cookies So Perfectly Lemony and Tasty?
Shortbread cookies can be a bit on the bland side. But these lemon-flavored shortbread cookies with tangy lemon-flavored icing are anything but boring. Enjoy these fresh-baked lemon Girl Scout-inspired cookies with a cup of tea for a real treat.
Why You Should Try This Recipe For Lemon Girl Scout Cookies.
Ah, Girl Scout Cookie season. These cookies are everywhere for a couple of months; then, they disappear for the rest of the year. How disappointing! But you can make these iconic shortbread cookies anytime you want with this copycat recipe.
Whether Girl Scout Lemonades are an old favorite or something you haven’t tried before, you’ll love these crispy cookies with a buttery taste and sweet tang of the lemon-flavored icing.
Ingredients For Girl Scout Cookies Lemonades
To make the shortbread cookies, you’ll need:
- All-purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Salt
- Unsalted butter
- Granulated sugar
- Lemon extract
- Egg
To prepare the lemon icing, you’ll need:
- Powdered sugar
- Lemon extract
- Water
- Yellow gel food coloring (optional)
How To Make Girl Scout Lemon Cookies
To prepare the dough for the shortbread cookies:
- Take the butter out of the fridge and allow it to come to about room temperature. Since it can take 30 or more minutes for the butter to soften, do this step well before you are ready to start baking the cookies.
- While waiting, you can sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt in a mixing bowl. Set the bowl aside for later.
- Place the softened butter and the granulated sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl. If you don’t have a stand mixer, use a hand mixer instead.
- Cream the butter and sugar using a paddle attachment or regular beaters of a hand mixer. Start at medium-low speed and slowly increase the speed until the butter is fluffy and lightens in color, about three to four minutes.
- Reduce the speed of the mixer to medium and add the egg and lemon extract. Continue mixing on medium speed until the butter mixture is smooth.
- If you have a dough hook attachment, you can switch to it, but a paddle attachment will work almost as well.
- While the mixer is still on, add half of the flour mixture. Once the flour mixture is incorporated fully, add the rest and mix until it reaches a dough-like consistency.
- Use a rubber spatula to scrape the dough from the mixer attachment and the sides of the bowl. Cover the cookie dough with plastic wrap and set aside.
To bake the cookies:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Line two cookie sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.
- Lightly flour a clean work surface and turn out the cookie dough.
- Form the dough into a rough rectangle with your hands, and then use a rolling pin to roll out the dough until it is about a third of an inch thick.
- Use a 2-inch diameter cookie cutter to punch out as many cookies as possible.
- You can use a cookie stamp to decorate each cookie if you want.
- Place the cookies on the prepared cookie sheets.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes.
- After baking, let the cookies cool on the baking sheet.
To make the icing and ice the cookies:
- Once the cookies are cool, use a fork to mix the powdered sugar, lemon extract, water, and yellow gel food coloring (if using) in a small bowl.
- The consistency of the icing needs to be thick enough that it won’t drip off the fork but is still spreadable. If the icing is too thin, you may need to add more powdered sugar. If it is too thick, add a few drops of water.
- Spread a tablespoon of icing on the bottom of each cookie.
- Place the iced cookies icing-side up on a wire rack for at least eight hours to allow the icing to set before storing.
Special Equipment You Will Need
A stand mixer or hand mixer with a paddle attachment is very helpful when creaming the butter. If you don’t have an electric mixer, you can use a wooden spatula or a flat whisk, but you will need a lot of arm strength or a couple of eager kitchen assistants.
You will also need a rolling pin, cookie sheets, a round 2-inch cookie cutter, and a wire rack. One or more cookie stamps are optional, but decorated Girl Scout lemon cookies are extra lovely.
How To Store Girl Scout Lemonades
Homemade cookies don’t last as long as store-bought ones, but that’s okay since they are so tasty they’ll likely be all gone long before they have a chance to go bad.
You can keep Lemonades in an airtight container on the counter for about 4 to 5 days. To extend the cookies’ shelf life a bit, try storing them with a sheet of wax paper between each layer. Doing this will allow air to circulate better.
You can freeze lemon Girl Scout cookies for up to three months in a freezer-safe container. Many people prefer eating Girl Scout cookies straight out of the freezer, but you can also thaw them on the countertop before serving.
More Girl Scout Cookie Recipes
- S’mores
- Samoas (Caramel Delites)
- Tagalongs (Peanut Butter Patties)
- Thin Mints
Favorite Cookie Recipes
Popular Lemon Desserts and Treats
- Chick Fil A Frosted Lemonade
- Italian Lemon Cream Cake
- Lemon Bars with Shortbread Crust
- Lemon Cream Cheese Pie
- Lemon Lush
Check out more of my easy cookie recipes and the best DIY recipes on CopyKat!
Girl Scout Lemonades
Ingredients
Cookies
- 2 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 sticks unsalted butter softened at room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon extract
- 1 large egg
Icing
- 2 cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon lemon extract
- 1 tablespoon water
- yellow gel food coloring
Instructions
Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt with a fork. Mix well and set aside.
- In a separate mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar using an electric hand or stand mixer. Mix until smooth and fully combined.
- Add egg and lemon extract. Mix again until smooth.
- Add flour mixture in, half at a time, and mix until fully combined and dough-like.
- Place cookie dough in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes before you roll out the cookie dough.
- Remove dough from the bowl and place it on a flat, lightly floured surface.
- Using your hands, flatten the dough pressing downward.
- Use a rolling pin to roll out the dough to about 1/4 to 3/8 inch thick.
- Using a 2-inch round cookie cutter, cut rounds from dough and place the cutouts on the prepared baking sheets at least 2 inches apart.
- Using a lemon cookie stamp or an inspirational phrase cookie stamp, create your pattern on the top of the cutouts. Press the stamp firmly into the dough until the indentations make it at least half way through.
- Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.
- When done, allow the cookies to cool completely on the pan before making the icing.
Icing
- In a small mixing bowl, combine the powdered sugar, lemon extract, water and about 2 inches of yellow gel food coloring. Mix with a fork until fully combined and smooth. It will be very thick at first.
- When the icing is at the perfect consistency, spoon out about 1 tablespoon onto the back (non-pressed side) of the cookie. Use your spoon to push the icing around so it naturally levels and covers the entire surface.
- Do this for each cookie, working one at a time.
- When all of your cookies are covered in icing, allow them to sit at room temperature for 6 hours or overnight so that the icing completely hardens before serving.
Celine
Do you think it would make a big difference if I used salted butter?
Stephanie Manley
No I do not think it will make a major difference.
Frank
These are one of my favorite Girl Scout cookies!
Sel Runn
THANK YOU, NICE RECIPE. BUT WHERE COULD I FIND A COOKIE STAMP? OR WHAT COOULD I USE TO GET A TYPE OF STAMP?
Stephanie Manley
Sure, you will want to get this stamp.