By Wendy Stoltz / Last Modified On January 15, 2023

Tender, soft, gluten-free lemon cookies are packed with bright lemon flavor and topped with a sweet and zesty lemon glaze.

In this post, we're covering what ingredients are used to make gluten-free lemon cookies, how to make gluten-free lemon cookies, tips for making them, and how to store gluten-free lemon cookies.

GLUTEN-FREE LEMON COOKIES RECIPE

These soft, chewy, gluten-free lemon cookies with the flavors of warm vanilla and tart lemon will be a new favorite for you.

There's something about this flavor combination that I find irresistible, and you may find me eating quite a few of these in one sitting! 

I call these lemon drizzle cookies because the lemonade-flavored icing is so beautifully drizzled on top of each cookie, making them as gorgeous as they are delicious. 

If you love lemon-flavored desserts, you should try my Gluten Free Lemon Bars, Gluten Free Lemon Bread, Gluten Free Lemon Cake, or Gluten Free Lemon Cupcakes. 

With some easy-to-find ingredients and just about an hour of your time, you'll have a platter of gluten-free lemon cookies that everyone in the family will love. 

INGREDIENTS IN GLUTEN-FREE LEMON COOKIES

Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour - I used Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Baking Flour in the blue bag. I find that this gives me the best cookie baking results. 

Baking Powder - Added to baked goods, baking powder creates air bubbles and rise in them.

Kosher Salt - A bit of salt is always welcome in sweet things, to give balance to the flavors. 

Granulated Sugar - A must for most cookie recipes, sugar is what makes things sweet. White sugar in cookies makes them crispy as well. 

Unsalted Butter - Leave your butter on the counter for a couple of hours to bring it to room temperature. I prefer unsalted butter in baked goods because then I can control the amount of salt in the recipe. 

Egg - One egg helps bind everything together. Use any type of large egg that you like. 

Lemon Juice - You'll need a bit more than 2 teaspoons of lemon juice for this recipe. Freshly squeezed is preferred. 

Lemon Zest- Before you juice your lemons, remove the outer yellow rind with a microplane grater. 

Pure Vanilla Extract - Vanilla goes so perfectly with the sweet lemon flavor of these cookies. 

Powdered Sugar - Mixed with lemon juice and zest, powdered sugar helps create the shiny, sweet glaze on these gluten free cookies. 

If you have any questions on how to make these gluten-free lemon cookies, please leave a comment below and I will get back to you.

HOW TO MAKE GLUTEN-FREE LEMON COOKIES 

1. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the gluten-free flour blend, baking powder, and kosher salt. Set aside. Then in a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and granulated sugar until light and fluffy. 
2. Add the egg, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla extract. Mix until combined.
3. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients.
4. Mix until combined and no more streaks of flour remain.
5. Scoop into 18 equal portions (about 1 oz. each), and roll into balls, about the size of ping pong balls. In a small bowl, mix together granulated sugar and lemon zest, then roll each ball into the sugar mixture and set on prepared baking sheets.
6. Bake as directed in the recipe card below until edges are set and the tops of the cookies are no longer shiny. Let cookies cool before glazing.
7. To make the glaze, combine powdered sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest in small bowl and stir until smooth. Drizzle the glaze over the cookies. 
8. Allow glaze to set before serving. 

These numbered steps match the numbered photos above and are for illustration purposes. For the complete list of ingredients and instructions for making gluten-free lemon cookies, please see the recipe below.

What Makes This Gluten-Free Lemon Cookies Recipe Special

• They are so light they melt on your tongue
• Rich, buttery taste
• Incredibly simple to make
• Requires no chilling before baking

TIPS TO MAKE THE BEST GLUTEN-FREE LEMON COOKIES

If you want a soft and chewy gluten-free lemon cookie, be sure not to overbake. These cookies will continue to cook a bit while they cool on the tray.

If you prefer crispy cookies, add two minutes to the bake time. 

Two lemons should be enough to get the amount of juice and zest for this recipe. If your lemons are small or dryer than usual, you may need more. 

To make your gluten-free lemon cookies extra lemony, add 1 teaspoon of good-quality lemon extract to the dough with the vanilla extract. 

What is the Best Flour Blend for Gluten Free Lemon Cookies?

I used Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Baking Flour in the blue bag for this gf lemon cookies recipe! You can also make your own gluten free flour blend. 

How to tell when gluten-free lemon cookies are done baking

You can easily tell if your gf lemon cookies are done baking if they are barely brown around the edges. Also, they should be done if they no longer glisten at all in the center. 

One of the ways to avoid over-baking is not to make them too thin because they will bake too quickly. Making sure your oven is not too hot is also a good way to prevent your cookies from burning and crumbling.

Do I have to chill this gluten-free lemon cookie dough?

No, you don't. You can start baking as soon as you mix all the ingredients!

Gluten-Free Lemon Cookies Substitutions

DAIRY-FREE LEMON COOKIES

You can use vegan butter or butter-flavored nonhydrogenated vegetable shortening. However, you will probably need to add more moisture because these variations have almost none. 

EGG-FREE LEMON COOKIES

You can replace the egg with aquafaba (the brine from a can of chickpeas). Beat it until foamy, and use about the same amount as the weight of one egg, which is around 25 grams. 

NUT-FREE LEMON COOKIES

If you can't tolerate nuts, you can use a flour blend made of gluten-free oat flour, sweet rice flour, and tapioca flour. 

HOW TO STORE GLUTEN-FREE LEMON COOKIES

These cookies will keep at room temperature in an airtight container for 2-3 days. If stacking them on top of each other, consider putting parchment paper in between each gluten-free lemon cookie so that they don't stick together. 

HOW TO FREEZE LEMON GLUTEN FREE COOKIES

These cookies freeze very well! For best results, freeze the cookies after baking, but before glazing. Place on a baking sheet and freeze for one hour.

Then, place in a freezer container for storage. Allow to thaw before glazing and serving. 

You can freeze the cookies after glazing using the same method, but the glaze will become a bit sticky after thawing and won't have the hard icing exterior.

Why Do My GF Lemon Cookies Spread Too Much?

It might have happened because: 

• The butter you used was too soft: If the butter was too soft when you mixed it with sugar, your dough became too soft and therefore spread too much
• You didn't add enough flour: Always measure your gluten-free flour by weight!
• The baking sheet was too warm: I always recommend placing gf lemon cookie dough on a baking sheet that is room temperature or cool, never warm

Why Was My GF Lemon Cookie Dough Too Sticky To Handle?

Again, if your butter was too soft, your dough might have been too soft as well and difficult to handle. But don't worry, here's a simple solution. Place the dough in the fridge for 20 minutes to firm it up a bit and add some sugar. 

Why My Gluten-Free Lemon Cookies Didn't Spread Enough?

Here are a few reasons: 

• You used the wrong flour brand: Using different brands of gluten-free flour lead to different results. That's why I always recommend sticking to Bob's Red Mill.
• You added too much flour: And I can't stress this enough - always measure flour by weight. If you measure by volume, lightly scoop the measuring cup, and then scrape the top flat with a knife. 
• You chilled the dough before baking: There's no need to chill your gf lemon cookie dough before baking. If you bake the dough straight from the freezer, it won't spread enough. 

MORE GLUTEN-FREE COOKIES

Gluten Free Blondies - Chewy, gooey, and loaded with sweet white chocolate chips, Gluten-Free Blondies are an easy to make dessert that everyone loves.

Gluten Free Shortbread Cookies - You can enjoy these cookies year-round, although we tend to increase our batches for the holidays. These gluten-free cookies make great gifts. They are a sturdy, crispy, cut-out cookie made with only 5 simple to find ingredients.

Gluten Free Monster Cookies - Monster cookies are super colorful and full to make. They are almost what you'd call a kitchen sink cookie, in my opinion. Soft baked and oh-so delicious, these Gluten-Free Monster Cookies will disappear in no time. This recipe is simple to make and you can add in your favorite cookie add-ins.

Gluten Free Oatmeal Cookies - You can add raisins or chocolate chips to this gluten free cookie recipe, or both! Crunchy and chewy, these Gluten-Free Oatmeal Cookies will disappear in no time. This recipe is simple to make and doesn't use any expensive ingredients or labor-intensive steps.

Did you make this Gluten Free Lemon Cookies Recipe? Please leave a comment below letting me know what you thought.

Continue to Content

Yield: 18 cookies

Gluten-Free Lemon Cookies

Print

Tender, soft gluten free lemon cookies are packed with bright lemon flavor and topped with a sweet and zesty lemon glaze. 

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Cooling/Setting Time 30 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes

Ingredients

For The Cookies

• 1 ½ cups gluten-free all-purpose flour (I used Bob's Red Mill 1-to-1 Gluten-Free Baking Flour)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ¾ cups granulated sugar
• ½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon lemon zest
• ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For Rolling

• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest

For The Glaze

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon lemon zest

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line to baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the gluten-free flour blend, baking powder, and kosher salt. Set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and granulated sugar, for 1-2 minutes or until light and fluffy.
4. Add the egg, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla extract. Mix until combined.
5. Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined and no more streaks of flour remain.
6. Scoop into 18 equal portions (about 1 oz. each), and roll into balls, about the size of ping pong balls.
7. In a small bowl, combine granulated sugar and lemon zest. Roll the dough balls into the sugar mixture and set on the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between each ball.
8. Bake at 350F for 7-8 minutes, until edges are set and the top of the cookies are no longer shiny. Do not overbake - the cookies will continue baking a few minutes on the pan after it is removed from the oven.
9. Let cool for 10-15 minutes before glazing.
10. To make the glaze, combine powdered sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest in a small bowl and stir until smooth. The glaze should be on the thicker side, but still easy to drizzle.
11. Drizzle the glaze over the lemon cookies and allow to set.

Notes

• If you would like your cookies to be extra lemon flavored, you can add a good quality pure lemon extract to this
  recipe. I suggest 1 teaspoon.
• You will need 2 lemons for this recipe to get the amount of juice and zest needed in the ingredients list.
• It is key not to overbake these cookies to get a soft and chewy texture. If you like a crispy cookie, you can add 2 minutes to the bake time.
• These cookies will keep at room temperature for 2-3 days. You can freeze them for longer storage. Place on a baking sheet and freeze for 1 hour. Then, wrap them in a freezer safe container for storage. Allow to thaw at room temperature before serving. It’s best to freeze before glazing the cookies, but you can freeze after glazing as well if you wish. The glaze will become a bit sticky after thawing and not have that hard exterior, but still delicious!

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases. They never cost you extra.

• 
  Watkins All Natural Original Gourmet Baking Vanilla, with Pure Vanilla Extract, 11 ounces Bottle, 1 Count (Packaging May Vary)
• 
  Microplane Classic Zester Grater, Black
• 
  Bobs Red Mill, Baking Flour 1 To 1 Gluten Free, 22 Ounce

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

6

Serving Size:

3 cookies
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 466Total Fat: 16gSaturated Fat: 10gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 72mgSodium: 356mgCarbohydrates: 77gFiber: 1gSugar: 52gProtein: 5g

This nutrition info is based on the exact ingredients and brands that I used a the time. It may not be 100% accurate. Please check your ingredients nutrition labels.