Lemon Crinkle Cookies

Have you ever seen the first rays of the sun stream through the dark clouds after a heavy downpour? Have you ever caught the moment a crying child's face suddenly lights up with a smile? Have you felt the soothing warmth of the first sip of tea after rushing indoors from the bitter cold? Nothing compares to experiencing these heartwarming moments first-hand, but these Lemon Crinkle Cookies are a pretty good & ready-at-hand proxy - their sweet & tangy essence & radiant looks are sure to remind you of life's bright moments. Imbued with the tanginess of freshly squeezed lemon juice, covered with powdered sugar, chewy & tender on the inside and slighty crunchy on the outside, the Lemon Crinkle Cookies are oozing with scrumptious & zesty deliciousness. The first bite of these cookies will make your heart skip a pleasureable beat as you savor the pleasure of the light & airy cookie crumbling in your mouth to release a torrent of sweet & tangy flavors.

In these winter days, as the temperature drops and the days get shorter, these Lemon Crinkle Cookies add a little reminder of the warm & sunny summer to the holiday season cheer. In addition, preparing these cookies requires little effort - they are surprisingly quick and easy-to-make. So go ahead & bake a batch of them, & if anyone complains why you didn't make the chocolate cookies (they won't after they have tasted one of these), tell them "That's the way the cookie crinkles" :)

LEMON  CRINKLE  COOKIES  RECIPE

Makes 15-18 pcs.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup All-Purpose Flour

1/4 cup Unsalted Butter, softened

1 egg; at room temperature

1/3 cup granulated Sugar

1/4 tsp Pure Lemon Extract or Pure Vanilla Extract

2 tsp Lemon Zest

1 tbsp fresh Lemon Juice

1/8 tsp Salt

1/8 tsp Baking Powder

1/16 tsp Baking Soda

1/4 cup Powdered Sugar/Confectioner's Sugar; sifted

How to make Lemon Crinkle Cookies

1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
2. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Set aside.
3. Using a stand mixer/hand mixer, cream the butter and granulated sugar together until light and fluffy (takes about 3-4 minutes). Add the egg & mix until smooth.
4. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice and vanilla extract, and mix again until smooth. Scrape the sides of the bowl & mix again.
5. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the flour mixture, mixing until it is just incorporated. Scrape sides of bowl and mix again briefly.
6. Add the confectioners' sugar to a wide, shallow bowl. Scoop about a tablespoon of cookie dough & drop it in the confectioners' sugar and roll in the sugar until well-coated. Once coated, roll between your palms to form a ball. Transfer to the prepared baking sheets. Repeat process to form more balls, and place them about 2 inches apart on baking sheets. 
7. Bake for 10 minutes, or until the cookies have puffed and their surfaces have cracked. They'll still be fairly light in color. Remove from oven and cool cookies for about 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.
8. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.