Soft and chewy lemon cookies with white chocolate chunks make for an unbelievably decadent cookie. They’re so easy to make and a guaranteed crowd-pleaser that everyone will love!
If you’ve followed me for any length of time, you know how much I love chocolate. And I mean love. It doesn’t matter if it’s milk, chocolate or white, I am a true chocoholic through and through. Whether I’m indulging in a piece of no-bake chocolate tart or eating a few fudgy chocolate cookies, I am pretty much indulging in chocolate in some form at all times.
When I was originally developing this recipe, I wasn’t planning on adding white chocolate to it. I thought I would create a simple chewy lemon cookie, but I just couldn’t help myself – lemon and white chocolate both have of a subtle, refreshing flavor, and they go together perfectly. So why not? And the truth is, these lemon white chocolate cookies are absolutely sensational. They’re soft, chewy, and delicate, with delicious lemon freshness and rich, creamy white chocolate pieces.
Let’s talk ingredients
There’s a few things to note about the ingredients in these lemon white chocolate chip cookies.
First, I use equal amounts granulated sugar and brown sugar (either light or dark will work). Brown sugar contains molasses which adds moisture and makes these cookies extra chewy and gives them a nice caramel. However, I didn’t want to use too much brown sugar because I didn’t want it to interfere with the lemon flavor. Using only granulated sugar for a more subtle flavor is also an option (the cookies will still be soft, but less chewy).
For a strong lemon flavor, I used 2 tablespoons of lemon zest. You can use 1 tablespoon if you prefer a more subtle flavor. In this recipe, I mix the zest together with the sugars, which helps bring out the lemon flavor.
I’ve added cornstarch to the recipe, which makes cookies extra soft. This ingredient is optional, but I strongly recommend adding it to your lemon white chocolate cookies if you want them extra tender and chewy!
How to make lemon white chocolate chip cookies
Here’s a step-by-step guide to making the perfect lemon white chocolate cookies.
- Sift together the dry ingredients. Including flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt.
- Combine the sugars and lemon zest. Place brown sugar, granulated sugar, and zest in a bowl and mix together.
- Cream butter and sugar. In a mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed for one minute until creamy. Add the sugar mixture and beat on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure the egg, butter, and sugar are completely emulsified.
- Pour in the dry ingredients and white chocolate chips. Add the flour mixture and mix just until combined, being careful not to overmix the dough. Fold in white chocolate chips.
- Chill. I highly recommend not skipping this step because it prevents the cookies from spreading too much while baking. Chill the cookie dough for at least an hour before baking.
- Bake. Drop rounded balls of dough onto a prepared baking sheet, the size of 1.5 tablespoons each (use an ice-cream scoop or heaping tablespoon). Bake for about 8 minutes at 350°F/180°C, until your cookies just begin to brown at the edges, but the center is still soft.
Tips for baking perfect lemon white chocolate cookies
-Don’t overmix your cookie dough. Doing so will produce tougher, denser cookies. To prevent this, only mix the ingredients just until they come together.
–Chill the cookie dough. To get to the perfect cookie texture, I highly recommend chilling the dough before baking. While you can certainly bake the cookies without chilling the dough, when the cookies rest in the fridge, the flour absorbs the liquids, which results in thicker cookies that don’t spread too much while baking.
-Underbake your cookies. Underbaking is my favorite trick for extra soft cookies. Take the cookies out of the oven as soon as the edges start to brown and are just starting to set. Wait for a few minutes until they cool down on the pan. If you prefer crispier cookies, bake the cookies 1-2 minutes longer.
More of my favorite soft and chewy cookie recipes
- Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies: The chewiest chocolate chip cookie you’ll ever try.
- Small Batch Chocolate Chip Cookies: For those late night cravings of ooey gooey chocolate chip cookies.
- Chewy Peanut Butter Cookies: Thick and chewy bakery-style peanut butter cookies.
- Soft Sugar Cookies: Super soft sugar cookies with a delicate vanilla flavor and texture.
- Chocolate Ginger Cookies: Soft and fudgy chocolate cookies made with real ginger.
- Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies Cake: Nutty browned butter adds a deep caramel flavor to this decadent cookie cake.
Lemon White Chocolate Chip Cookies
These lemon cookies are chewy and moist with loads of white chocolate chips!
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups (250g) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch (omit only if you must)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup (100g) granulated sugar
- ½ cup (100g) light or dark brown sugar
- 1-2 tablespoons lemon zest from 1-2 lemons (use 2 tablespoons for strong lemon flavor)
- ¾ cup (170g) butter, softened
- 1 large egg , at room temperature
- 1 cup (170g) white chocolate chips or chunks
Instructions
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In a medium bowl sift together flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
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In a medium bowl, mix together well granulated sugar, brown sugar and lemon zest. Set aside.
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In a mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed for one minute until creamy. Add sugar mixture and beat on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg. Add flour mixture and mix just until combined. Do not overmix. Fold in white chocolate chips.
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I highly recommend (i.e. this is not mandatory and this step can be skipped) chilling the dough for at least 1 hour (or up to 3 days). This step results in thicker cookies that won’t spread in the oven while baking.
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Preheat oven to 350°F/180°C degrees. Line pans with parchment paper.
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If the cookie dough is hard to handle after refrigerating, leave it on the counter for a few minutes.
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Drop rounded balls of dough onto prepared baking sheet, the size of 1.5 tablespoons each (use an ice-cream scoop or heaping tablespoon). Bake for about 8 minutes, until cookies just begin to brown at the edges, but the center is still soft. Cookies will appear undone but will continue to bake on the warm baking sheet. Leave to cool for 10 minutes or until the cookies are easy to transfer without breaking (that’s how soft they are!). Then gently transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
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Store cookies at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
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Cookies can be frozen for up to 2 months.
