These Blueberry Lemon Cookies are made with lemon sugar cookie dough, rolled in lemon sugar, and baked with a quick homemade blueberry jam in the center. These cookies are irresistible – thick, soft, and full of fresh blueberry and lemon flavor!
Why you’ll love this recipe:
- Blueberry Jam – Adding blueberries to the cookie dough didn’t give enough blueberry flavor, and I found it to be a lackluster cookie. Adding blueberry jam to the center of the cookies in the thumbprint style adds more blueberry flavor and makes these the best blueberry lemon cookies.
- Lemon Sugar Cookies – This recipe makes a thick, soft, chewy cookie, full of fresh lemon flavor! I didn’t want the cookies to be cakey like muffin tops – these are true soft, sugar cookies!
- White Chocolate Drizzle – Drizzle these cookies with white chocolate for a polished look. This step is optional.
Ingredient Overview
- Butter – I always use salted butter, but use whichever you prefer.
- Blueberries – You can use these with fresh or frozen blueberries.
- Lemon – Be sure to use fresh lemon juice for the best flavor.
Ingredient Substitutions:
- Blueberry Jam – Use store bought blueberry preserves if you’re short on time.
- Dairy-Free Cookies – You can use sticks of dairy-free butter instead of regular butter.
How to Make this Recipe Step-by-Step:
Step 1: Make the blueberry sauce. Add blueberries and sugar to a pot, and cook until they begin to release their juices. Then, add a mixture of lemon juice, cornstarch, and water to thicken the sauce. Add extra whole blueberries at the end for a nice variety of texture! Once the sauce is done, transfer to a medium bowl to chill for at least 2 hours, or up to a few days.
Step 2: Mix up the cookie dough by creaming together butter and sugars in a large mixing bowl. Then add your wet ingredients – the eggs, vanilla, and fresh lemon juice and zest. Add the dry ingredients last. You’ll have a soft cookie dough. Form into balls and chill for at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours.
Step 3: Roll the chilled dough balls in sugar mixed with lemon zest for extra flavor! Make an indent in the cookies with the back of a teaspoon.
Step 4: Add 1-2 teaspoons of the chilled blueberry sauce to each cookie.
Step 5: Bake the cookies for 12-14 minutes. The cookies won’t look super fancy when they come out of the oven, but they certainly taste like a million bucks! If your cookies are a bit lopsided, use a round cutter to scoot them into a circle (optional).
Step 6: Let the cookies cool on a wire rack, and drizzle melted white chocolate chips over the tops of the cookies. Now for the best part – dig in!
Expert Success Tips:
- Scooping the Dough Balls: Chill the dough for 30 minutes before scooping, to make it easier.
- Cookie Dough Balls- Let the dough balls sit out for 10-15 minutes before doing this so that they don’t crack like crazy when you make the indent. If they do crack, that’s fine – your baked cookies just won’t look as perfectly round.
- Lemon Sugar – Be sure to rub the lemon zest into the sugar with your fingers before rolling the cookie dough balls.
- Too Much Jam – Add the amount of jam specified in the recipe card. If you add more, the jam can run out and make a mess.
- Lemon Flavor – Be sure to use real, fresh lemon juice instead of bottled lemon juice or lemon extract. These other things can have a less fresh taste.
Recipe Variations:
- Glaze – You can leave the white chocolate drizzle off and use a glaze instead, or serve them as is!
- Jam Flavors – You can use blueberry jam, or you can try another flavor like blackberry, strawberry, or raspberry.
Serving + Storing this Recipe:
Serve the cookies once they’ve cooled to your liking. Store cookies in an airtight container in the fridge for 5-7 days. Let soften a bit at room temperature before serving.
These are the perfect summer cookie! I know you’ll fall in love with these – they’re the perfect cookie.
More of the Best Cookies to Bake:
- Bakery-Style Peanut Butter Chip Chocolate Cookies
- Bakery-Style Monster Cookies
- Key Lime Slice and Bake Cookies
- Peanut Butter & Jelly Thumbprint Cookies
- Funfetti Cake Batter Cookies
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Lemon Blueberry Thumbprint Cookies
Ingredients
For the Blueberry Sauce
- 2 cups frozen blueberries, plus 1/2 cup more Do not thaw
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tsp cornstarch
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp warm water
For the Lemon Sugar Cookie Dough
- 1 cup salted butter, softened at room temperature 16 tbsp or 226 grams
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 large eggs
- 1 large lemon, zested
- 3 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 and 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
For Rolling Dough Balls:
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 1 large lemon, zested
For Serving:
- 3 ounces white chocolate optional
Instructions
- Make the Blueberry Sauce: Add the 2 cups frozen blueberries and the sugar to a medium pot over medium heat. Cook, stirring, for 3 minutes so the berries begin to release their juices. (Cook for 1 additional minute if using fresh blueberries.)Add the cornstarch, lemon juice, and warm water to a small bowl and stir until the cornstarch dissolves. Add this to the berries, and bring to a heavy simmer over medium-high heat, then continue simmering over medium heat, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of blueberries, and cook for 2-3 minutes more, until thick enough that the blueberries hold for a second when you drag a wooden spoon through the pot (like you're parting the red sea). It should feel like a jammy sauce and shouldn't feel thin and runny. If it's thin, bring it back to a simmer and cook for a few more minutes until this texture is reached. Pop this in a bowl to chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours or up to 24 hours. If chilling longer than 2 hours, cover the bowl once it's not piping hot anymore. Alternative: You can also use a jar of store-bought blueberry jam if you want a few less steps in this recipe!
- Make the Cookie Dough: In a large bowl, cream the softened butter with an electric mixer on high speed. Add the sugars to the butter mixture and mix until creamed together with the butter, about 1 minute. Add the vanilla and eggs and mix until just combined. Add the lemon juice and zest, and mix until just incorporated. Add the dry ingredients last, and mix until a dough forms.
- Chill the Dough: This dough needs a bit of a longer chill time so that it can contain the blueberry sauce when it bakes. I recommend pre-scooping your dough balls – thoroughly chilled dough is hard to scoop. (You can chill about 30 minutes first to make it a bit easier, though.)Scoop the dough into balls that are 60-65 grams with a medium cookie scoop (about 2 and 1/2 tbsp), and place in an airtight container to chill for at least 2 hours, or up to 24 hours.
- Assemble the Cookies: Preheat your oven to 350° F. Once the cookies are chilled, mix the sugar and lemon zest together in a small bowl, rubbing the zest into the sugar with your fingers until it's well mixed. Roll the dough balls generously in this mixture, then place on a parchment paper or silicone baking mat lined sheet pan. (I can fit about 6 on a sheet). Use the back of a tablespoon measuring spoon to press an indent into each cookie, and fill with 1-2 tsp of the blueberry jam. Note: If you chilled the dough overnight, let it sit out for 10-15 minutes on your counter before beginning this step, so the balls don't crack like crazy when you make the thumbprint indent.
- Bake: Bake the cookies for 12 minutes if you only chilled the dough for 2-4 hours, and if you chilled it overnight, you'll need to bake for 14-15 minutes. The edges should appear and feel set when the cookies are done, and if you carefully lift up a cookie with a slotted cookie flipper, you shouldn't be able to see any wet dough spots on the bottom of the cookie. When they come out, if the cookies aren't perfectly round anymore you can use a round cutter to scoot them into place. If you don't have one, they'll be fine either way. Let cookies cool on the baking sheet about 10-15 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely before decorating and serving.
- Serve + Store: Drizzle cooled cookies with white chocolate or eat them as is. They're delicious either way. Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temp for 1-2 days, and after that I recommend refrigerating. Let cookies come back to room temp a bit before serving.
- Glaze: You can make a tangy lemon glaze to top these cookies in place of the white chocolate. Add 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp powdered sugar to a small bowl with a little bit of lemon juice, milk, and a splash of vanilla. Adjust until you have desired taste and consistency. Drizzle over the cookies.
Notes
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