Lemon Cookie Cake

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This Lemon Cookie Cake is soft and chewy with a lovely light lemon flavor! Topped with a lemon buttercream, this is the perfect summer dessert!

Lemon Cookie Cake overhead view

Lemon Cookie Cake

So summer tv is pretty lousy, am I right? There’s just not much on, with the exception of wonderful guilty pleasures like ‘The Bachelorette’.

To make up for the lack of interesting things to watch recently, I finally jumped onboard the Downton Abbey train.

Hooked, I tell you! I finally finished the fourth season last night.

Honestly, I found the end of the fourth season to not be nearly as exciting as the ends of seasons two and three, but certainly less depressing than the end of season three.

When the hubs was out of town last weekend, I was constantly at war with myself over whether or not to bake or watch Downton Abbey. Most of the time I tried to multitask and do both.

Lemon Cookie Cake side view
Lemon Cookie Cake slice on a blue napkin

At one point, I won’t say what happened in case you haven’t watched it and don’t want to know what happens, I was crying over the loss of a pretty major character when the hubs called. He’d just left from visiting his family. His mom was crying as he left, as mom’s often do in our experience, and when I answered crying he was like ‘what is going on with all the crying?’ 🙂

If you haven’t seen it yet, you should totally catch up. I laugh, cry and everything in between. I am always thrilled when the grandmother comes on. I don’t think there’s ever a scene with her that I don’t laugh and want to rewind to see it again. I love her little comments. Always so perfect. I wish I was as clever as her. 🙂

Lemon Cookie Cake with a slice removed

It’s been a while since I shared my last cookie cake. I love the fun variations and alternatives to a regular cake. Plus, they are super easy to make! Even better than making cookies because you don’t have to make a bunch of balls and do multiple rounds of baking.

Customize Your Lemon Cookie Cake

The lemon flavor in this cookie comes from fresh lemon juice and lemon zest. I considered adding a lemon pudding mix, but decided against it. You totally could add it if you want, but I decided I wanted a little lighter lemon flavor.

And I added white chocolate chips, because I love them, but that would be optional too. It’ll be tasty either way.

Lemon Cookie Cake on a blue napkin
Lemon Cookie Cake slice overhead view

If you love lemon as much as I do, there’s no doubt that you’ll love this cookie cake. It’s fresh tasting and not overwhelming at all. Lemon cookie heaven!

Print
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Lemon Cookie Cake slice on wax paper
Recipe

Lemon Cookie Cake

  • Author: Lindsay
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 21 minutes
  • Total Time: 41 minutes
  • Yield: 12-15 Slices
  • Category: Dessert
  • Method: Oven
  • Cuisine: American

Description

This Lemon Cookie Cake is soft and chewy with a lovely light lemon flavor! Topped with a lemon buttercream, this is the perfect summer dessert!


Ingredients

LEMON COOKIE CAKE

  • 3/4 cup salted butter, room temperature
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3 tbsp lemon juice*
  • 1 tsp lemon zest
  • 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1/23/4 cup white chocolate chips

ICING

  • 3/4 cup butter
  • 3 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice*
* You’ll need a total of 3-4 lemons

Instructions

LEMON COOKIE CAKE:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare a 9 or 10 inch cake pan by placing parchment paper in the bottom of the pan and spraying the sides with a non stick spray.
2. Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes.
3. Mix in egg, vanilla extract. lemon juice and lemon zest.
4. With the mixer on low speed, add flour and baking soda.
5. Stir in white chocolate chips.
6. Spread the dough evenly into the cake pan. Bake for 21-23 minutes or until the edges are lightly golden. The center may still look a little undercooked but it will firm up and continue cooking as it cools.
7. Remove from oven and allow to cool until almost completely cool in the cake pan, then transfer to cooling rack.

ICING:

1. Beat the butter until smooth.
2. Slowly add 3 cups of powdered sugar. Mix until combined.
3. Add the lemon juice and lemon zest and mix until smooth.
4. Ice cooled cookie cake.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1 Slice
  • Calories: 413
  • Sugar: 38.1 g
  • Sodium: 171.5 mg
  • Fat: 21.7 g
  • Carbohydrates: 53.1 g
  • Protein: 3.1 g
  • Cholesterol: 63 mg

Filed Under:

Enjoy!

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Lemon Raspberry Cookie Sandwiches
Lemon Raspberry Cookie Sandwich

Lemon White Chocolate Gooey Bars
Lemon White Chocolate Gooey Bars

No Bake Strawberry Lemon Cookie Pie
No Bake Strawberry Lemon Cookie Pie

Recipes from friends:
Lemon Strawberry Cookie Cups from Beyond Frosting
Creamy Lemon Pie Overload from The Noble Pig
Lemon Yogurt Cake from Yummy, Healthy, Easy
Lemon Cheesecake from Wine and Glue

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30 Comments
  1. Consuela

    This was a big hit at my son’s birthday party! I doubled the recipe, added a small box of lemon pudding mix, and increased the vanilla extract to about 1 heaping tablespoon (roughly doubled). The cookie was the entire cookie sheet and I cut out a shape for his birthday cake, and used the leftover to make circular cookies by using a cup as a cookie cutter. The cookie was really thick and soft. Also, I did not increase the cooking time and left it to cool on the pan. I saw comments saying that the cookie fell apart when they flipped it, so I just didn’t.

  2. SC

    Thank you, this recipe was amazing! For anyone wondering if this can be made gluten free, I subbed in Bob’s Red Mill 1:1 flour, and I was perfect.






  3. Jenice

    Thanks for posting the recipe! Yours looks amazing. I tried it but it was a complete flop. What’s the texture supposed to be like? I baked it for 22mins and it looked beautifully brown but after I turned it over after cooling, I found the center and the bottom were uncooked. 🙁 

    I put it back to bake longer for around 15mins more and it just wouldn’t cook more. 

    1. Lindsay

      It should be much like any other chewy cookie. When you say it had cooled – for how long? It should be COMPLETELY cool. That said, you could certainly bake it for longer. Once you remove it from the oven though and let it cool, it won’t cook any more if you put it back in the oven.

  4. Laura

    Hey there!  I love, love, love this lemon cookie cake!
    If I wanted to make it lemon-ier, would I just add the lemon pudding in?  Or would I substitute it for some of the sugar?
    Thanks for your help!  And your delicious recipes!  And your love of DOWNTON, which matches mine!

      1. Laura

        Tee hee hee!  And the idea was your own, so thank YOU!  I’m just wondering if I need to compensate by removing any other of the ingredients…?

      2. Lindsay

        Ha! You’re right! It’d been a while since I read the post .:) You wouldn’t need to remove anything. Just know that it’ll also make a softer/moister cookie, so you may need to be a little more gentle removing it from the cake pan.

  5. Alexis @ Upside Down Pear

    I’ve been really enjoying cookie cakes lately. A lemon flavored one sounds perfect for summer! I can’t wait to try this 🙂

  6. Tanya Schroeder

    Lindsay, this is such a good dessert! Sometimes you just want to sink your teeth into a thick, sweet cookie cake! The lemon makes this extra fabulous!

  7. Thalia @ butter and brioche

    yum.. another awesome recipe! thanks for sharing. love the flavour combinations. definitely a recipe i will be recreating. thanks for the inspiration!

  8. Dorothy @ Crazy for Crust

    Yes!! Lemon cookie cake. Just…yes. There’s so little on TV and so little my husband will watch, we are re-watching West Wing. 🙂

  9. Lindsey @ American Heritage Cooking

    So I’m kind of mad at you…WHY DIDN”T YOU CALL ME SO WE COULD WATCH D-ABBEY TOGETHER AND EAT THIS CAKE!!!!?!?! Obsessed and I recently just finished season 4 too, but I would have happily watched all the seasons again with you. 😀

    So this cookie cake looks amazing! I heart lemon and sugar cookies…together in giant cake form…well, that just sounds like bliss to me!

    1. lifeloveandsugar@gmail.com

      Ahh! I’m sorry! I kinda figured you’d have your husband in town for the 4th so it wouldn’t be the best time to kidnap you 😉

  10. Melanie @ Carmel Moments

    Loving lemon lately. (I love saying that.) 🙂
    This looks simply awesome!
    Pinning.
    Enjoy your weekend Lindsay!

  11. Mir

    Wow. This is probably the prettiest thing I will see all day! Thanks for posting a lemon recipe. Everyone’s on a berry kick, and I wanted some citrus!
    And Maggie Smith is hysterical. I rewind her scenes, too!

Lindsay
About Lindsay

I'm a wife and a mom to twin boys and a baby girl! And I've got a serious sweets addiction! Bring on the treats!

Scripture I’m Loving

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:28-29