I have to confess…
As much as I love making homemade cookies entirely from scratch (which is what I do about 95% of the time), on occasion I still seriously enjoy a good cake-mix cookie. I know…judge away… :) But hey – they’re simple, wonderfully fluffy, and can be mixed up in just three minutes. Definitely a nice back-up dessert, especially when you’re short on time!
One of my favorites, that is also most requested from friends, are these simple lemon cookies. They’re made with a basic cake mix recipe, but kicked up a notch with some fresh lemon juice and peel – yum. Feel free to roll them in sugar, glaze them (as explained in the tip below), or just cook and eat them plain. I guarantee they won’t last long. :)
Easy Lemon Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 (18.25 oz) package lemon cake mix
- 2 eggs
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
- juice of half a lemon (about 1 Tbsp.)
- zest of half a lemon (about 1 tsp.)
- 1/3 cup powdered sugar for decor (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
- Pour cake mix into a large bowl. Stir in eggs, oil, lemon juice and zest until well blended. Form dough into small balls (about 1 Tbsp.), and drop into a bowl of confectioners’ sugar. Roll them around until they’re lightly covered. Once sugared, place on a lightly-greased cookie sheet.
- Bake for 6 to 9 minutes in the preheated oven. The bottoms will be light brown, and the insides chewy.
- **To get a rounder, fluffier cookie, let the dough refrigerate at least 30 minutes. (You can also prepare the sugared balls of dough on the cookie sheet, and just refrigerate the sheet for about ten minutes for a similar effect.)
Notes
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
Ali’s Tip:
For a fun variation, I’ve also drizzled these with a lemon glaze (instead of rolling in the powdered sugar). Just whisk together about 1 Tbsp. lemon juice (or water) with 3/4 cup powdered sugar, and then drizzle it over the cookies after they have come out of the oven. Let sit for an hour or so for the glaze to firm up.
I’ve made these many times and each time my gang finishes them in one sitting. Super good and fast and easy.
Try adding some fresh rosemary in the mix for an interesting fresh twist. I’ve done this with lemon cupcakes, yum
Can these be made without the lemon juice and lemon zest and still taste yummy? I have the mix but no lemon and no way to go get one!
Look great have got to try.
Thanks, Dorothy, we hope you enjoy them!
For baking at high altitude would you just add extra flour as likely noted on cake box instructions?
Hi Jill! For high altitude baking, we love the King Arthur site as a helpful guide. You may want to increase the baking temp 15 to 25° and you may want to adjust the flour. If you’re at 3,500 feet, add 1 more tablespoon per recipe. For each additional 1,500 feet, add one more tablespoon. Same with the liquid. Increase by 1 to 2 tablespoons at 3,000 feet. Increase by 1 1/2 teaspoons for each additional 1,000 feet. We hope this helps!
Hi, I made these cookies last night and they were fabulous!! Thank you for sharing.
I do have one question, I followed the recipe exactly but my dough turned out very sticky and I was not able to form into balls
Instead I made drop cookies sprinkled the sugar on them, they turned out great. But what did I do wrong? Why couldn’t I form them into balls? Should I add flour?
Thanks for sharing, Jamilah — we’re so glad you still enjoyed them even though they were sticky and difficult to work with — we’re sorry about that! :( We’re not sure what could have gone wrong, but adding a bit of flour and/or letting the mixture chill in the fridge for a while (before working with them) would likely help in the future.
I tried this and they were really good no tje best but pretty good?! Thx please share more?!
We’re happy you enjoyed them, Mishael!
I am pretty sure these are the cookies my grandmother used to make when I was little. I have been looking for the recipe for years! I can’t wait to try this and see if they are as good as I remember!!!
Oh wonderful Lisa! We hope they’re like hers (or just as good)! :)
I made these cookies last night and everyone in my house loved them! They were so easy to make and are so yummy!
Thanks Birdie! We’re so happy they were a hit! :D
Who knew 2 oz of missing cake mix could make such a HUGE difference? My boxes come in 16.25 oz and didn’t think it would be a problem. It was so runny that I was ready to throw the whole thing out yesterday until I read Kim’s comment below that she just added powdered sugar until the batter was thickened. Worked like a charm and the cookies are fantastic!
Oh no! Well we’re happy they worked out after all, thanks for sharing!