epicureantease

It’s December 2nd.  My Christmas tree is decorated with special ornaments collected over the years.  My Willow Tree nativity scene graces the top of my entertainment center. Red glittery candles shimmer on my mantel. Our (mine and my kitties! :)) stockings are hung with care.  Christmas lights are aglow on my patio.  It’s 75 degrees in Northern California…  What!?  This doesn’t feel much like “holiday season” weather!

I feel like I should be making Ginger Snap Cookies and sippin’ on hot chocolate.  But the weather calls for Lemon Icebox Cookies and Stewarts Orange’n Cream! 🙂

Don’t tell my mom I bought these lemons at the store! I’ll never hear the end of it! My parents have a HUGE lemon tree in their backyard that produces a massive amount of lemons for what feels like, year round. My mom is always pushing lemons and I’m always passing, until I see how expensive and small they are at the grocery store.  Sigh.

Lemon Icebox Cookies –

• 2 cups all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled)
• 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
• 1 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon lemon zest
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 2 large egg yolks
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar, for rolling

1.  In a food processor, pulse flour, confectioners’ sugar, salt, and lemon zest until combined. Add butter and process until sandy. Add egg yolks and lemon juice; pulse until dough comes together. Divide dough in half and form each into a 1 1/2-inch-wide log. Wrap in plastic and freeze until firm, about 2 hours (or up to 1 month).

Grated Lemon

Flour, confectioners' sugar, salt and lemon zest

Add butter. NOTE: my food processor is small. 😦 I added one cube of butter, mixed in with the flour mixture, then added the second cube.

Add egg and lemon juice! Poor lil' food processor getting a little full...

If you were surprised the cookie dough mixed up in this tiny thing, you're not the only one!

Divided dough in half and rolled into logs. This part was a bit of a challenge as the dough was sticky and the logs weren't very even.

2.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Spread granulated sugar on a piece of    parchment; roll logs over sugar to coat. Slice logs into 1/4-inch-thick slices and arrange, 1 inch apart, on two parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake until cookies are golden brown around edges, about 15 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool.

Using, Wilton White Sparkling Sugar, I poured the sugar in a pie plate for rolling.

Rolled in sugar

Sliced up

Ready for baking

Hot out of the oven

Cooled and ready to eat! 🙂