Lemon Crinkle Cookies with Poppy Seeds

The Recipe: Who else knows that some times, often even, only a lemon cookie will do? I've been looking for "my" lemon cookie recipe for a few years now but finally, I've found it! Lemon Crinkle Cookies are so bright and lemony, really charged with lemon flavor. And they have that much-coveted chewy texture too. Join me in Lemon Heaven, anyone?

The Conversation: Why we love to bake: instant gratification.

PS Who wants the recipe for Lemon Frozen Yogurt too? It's a good one!

Instant gratification. That’s why I l-o-v-e to bake. Cookies and cakes. Brownies and bars. Pancakes and pudding.

But supper? Supper takes effort. Planning, even perseverance. Answers to pesky questions like, What’s in the fridge to build on? Is the meat is thawed? What’s the vegetable? Is there salad?

Seven stinkin’ days a week.

I get it, I do, why cooks create a regular recipe rotation. Monday Meatloaf. Tuesday Tacos. Wednesday Wings. Thursday Thai. Friday Fish. Saturday Steak. Sunday Seafood. (Kitchen word dancing!) The same tried and true and much-appreciated family recipes again and again. No risk! No disappointment!

But baking? It’s sheer spontaneity. Check, you’ll see. Doesn’t even a small pantry have the ingredients to make Lemon Crinkle Cookies, no grocery run required? The one uncommon ingredient is poppy seeds but no matter, they’re nice here but not necessary.

ALANNA’s TIPS Don’t overlook rolling the raw cookie dough in powdered sugar, it’s what gives Lemon Crinkle Cookies that distinctive crinkle! Yep, experience talkin’. The poppy seeds add much to the appearance but aren’t otherwise essential. Vanilla adds a sweet undertone but to really boost the flavor watch for a thick, intensely flavored syrup from LorAnn called “baking emulsion”. Remember the much-loved and now much-missed Vanilla Paste from Trader Joe’s? It’s like that except in lemon, banana and other flavors. I pick up odd bottles at HomeGoods and TJMaxx but LorAnn emulsions are sold on Amazon too.

Kitchen Parade is written by second-generation food columnist Alanna Kellogg and features fresh, seasonal dishes for every-day healthful eating and occasional indulgences. Do you have a favorite lemon recipe that other Kitchen Parade readers might like? Just send me a quick e-mail via recipes@kitchen-parade.com. How to print a Kitchen Parade recipe. Never miss a recipe! If you like this recipe, sign up for a free e-mail subscription. If you like Kitchen Parade, you're sure to like my food blog about vegetable recipes, too, A Veggie Venture. Follow Kitchen Parade on Facebook!

LEMON CRINKLE COOKIES with POPPYSEEDS

Hands-on time: 15 minutes to mix
Chill time: 4 hours or overnight
Roll & bake time: 30 minutes
Time to table: 6 hours
Makes 4 dozen small cookies

• 1/2 cup (1 stick/4oz/113g) salted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup (200g) sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• Zest of a lemon
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice (no skimping, really)

• 1-1/2 cups flour, fluffed to aerate before measuring or 190g
• 1 tablespoon poppy seeds
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon table salt

• 1/2 cup (100g) powdered sugar, for rolling

MIX With an electric mixer in a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until thick and creamy. Add egg, vanilla, lemon zest and lemon juice. Scrape the side of the bowl and mix again for just a sec.

In a bowl, stir together flour, poppy seeds, baking powder, baking soda and salt with a fork. Add to butter mixture, mix until well combined.

CHILL Form dough into one or two rounds, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 4 hours or overnight.

BAKE Heat oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Form balls about 1” in diameter (12g by weight for uniform, evenly baked cookies) and roll in powdered sugar. Arrange the cookies on the baking sheet, leaving plenty of space between for spreading.

For chewy cookies, bake for 10 minutes until bottoms are just turning gold; for crisp cookies, bake for 13 until bottoms are golden. Remove from oven and let cool before moving.

Wonderful to serve with lemon sorbet or lemon frozen yogurt.

NUTRITION INFORMATION Per Cookie Without/With Poppy Seeds: 53/54 Calories; 2g Tot Fat; 1g Sat Fat; 9mg Cholesterol; 33mg Sodium; 8g Carb; 0g Fiber; 5g Sugar; 1g Protein. WEIGHT WATCHERS Old Points 1, PointsPlus 1 (but PointsPlus people, careful, 2 cookies add up to 3 points)

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