Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 1 cup butter, softened
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 2 large egg yolks
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 1/3 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 cup sanding sugar
- 1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries, washed and patted dry
- 1 large lemon, zested first and then juiced – keep the zest and juice separate
- 1 1/2 cups confectioner sugar
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 35o degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.
- In a mixing bowl, beat together the sugar and lemon zest to create lemon sugar. The sugar will turn pale yellow when done.
- Add the butter and beat to combine until light and fluffy.
- Next, add in the egg yolks and vanilla extract. Beat to combine.
- Add the flour and mix into the butter mixture until just combined. Don’t over mix.
- Portion into two-teaspoons and roll into balls. Roll each ball into the sanding sugar and place on the prepared baking sheet.
- Push a single cranberry into the center of the cookie.
- Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool on the baking sheet for 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the cookies to a cooling rack to finish cooling.
- Once cooled, place the confectioner’s sugar into a bowl and add about two teaspoons of lemon juice. Whisk to form a glaze.
- Transfer the mixture to a sealable sandwich bag and cut a small tip from one of the lower corners. Use the bag to drizzle the glaze over the cookies in a zigzag pattern. Once done, top with a sprinkling of sanding sugar. Allow glaze to firm up and harden before packaging cookies for storage.
Notes
I use a cookie scoop to make my life easier when rolling my cookies into balls.
Sanding sugar can be purchased online from Amazon. I use DecoPac Sanding Sugar.
You can use a piping bag in place of a sealable sandwich bag if preferred.
These may be frozen unbaked but will require a longer baking time. Glaze must be applied after baking.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Cookies