Copycat Panera Bread Lemon Drop Cookies Recipe
Soft, chewy lemon cookies Inspired by Panera's classic lemon drop cookies. These have a beautiful crinkled look from the powdered sugar and a light, slightly cakey texture. Add in white chocolate chips or leave them out as desired.
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup Unsalted Butter softened
- 1 1/2 cups Granulated sugar
- 2 whole Eggs room temperature
- 2 tsps Vanilla Extract
- 1 tsp Lemon extract
- 2 1/2 cups All-purpose Flour
- 1 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 tsp Salt
- 2 tbsp Fresh lemon juice about half of a lemon
- 2 tbsp Fresh lemon zest
- 1 cup White chocolate chips if desired*
- Powdered sugar for coating
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.
- In the bowl of a hand or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar for 4-5 minutes until light and fluffy. Add in the eggs, one at a time, lemon and vanilla extract, mix well.1 cup Unsalted Butter, 1 1/2 cups Granulated sugar, 2 whole Eggs, 1 tsp Lemon extract , 2 tsps Vanilla Extract
- In a small mixing bowl combine the flour, baking soda, lemon zest, and salt. With the mixer on low slowly add the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients and mix until fully incorporated. Mix in the lemon juice*. If desired, mix in white chocolate chips.2 1/2 cups All-purpose Flour, 1 tsp Baking Soda, 1 tsp Salt, 2 tbsp Fresh lemon juice , 2 tbsp Fresh lemon zest, 1 cup White chocolate chips
- Chill the dough for 25-30 minutes, or overnight if needed. If chilling overnight, allow the dough to come to room temperature before scooping. Once chilled, use a cookie scoop or measuring spoon to scoop 1 oz. scoops of dough. Coat in powdered sugar.Powdered sugar
- Arrange 2-3 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes until slightly golden brown, the cookies will still be very soft. Allow to cool 3-5 minutes on the cookie sheet before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
Notes
*Mixing in the lemon juice after the dry ingredients have been incorporated stops the butter from curdling.
*The classic Panera version of this cookie contains white chocolate chips, those can be added to the dough before scooping if desired. They do not have to be added.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookieCalories: 236kcalCarbohydrates: 33gProtein: 3gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0.4gCholesterol: 45mgSodium: 199mgPotassium: 73mgFiber: 1gSugar: 19gVitamin A: 343IUVitamin C: 0.02mgCalcium: 14mgIron: 1mg