LEMON PIE COOKIES

Delightful Lemon Pie Cookies made with buttery vanilla cookies topped with lemon pudding and whipped cream! It’s a lemon cream pie in cookie form!

These delightful treats offer the perfect balance of tangy lemon filling and buttery cookie crust, satisfying your sweet tooth without the need for plates and forks. These bite-sized desserts capture all the beloved flavors of traditional lemon pie while being much easier to serve at parties, pack in lunches, or enjoy as an on-the-go treat.

Recipe Notes

Just a few things you should know ahead of time:

• The lemon flavor in these cookies comes from the lemon pudding mix. You can amp up the lemon flavor by adding 1 TBSP lemon zest to the cookie dough and topping the cookies with additional zest.
• The dough can be made ahead and refrigerated for up to 2 days. Just let it sit at room temperature for 15-20 minutes before scooping.
• You can skip making the homemade whipped cream and use store bought Whipped Topping if you’d like.

Ingredients in Lemon Pie Cookies

BUTTER: You just need 1 stick, ½ cup salted butter and it needs to be softened. If you know the night before you want to make cookies, just set the cube of butter on the countertop. You can also put the cube in the microwave on defrost for 10-15 seconds.

SUGAR: I added 1 cup brown sugar to the cookie dough to add sweetness. You’ll also add just a small amount of sugar, ½ a tablespoon, to the homemade whipped cream.

EGG: 1 large egg binds the dough beautifully.

VANILLA: You’ll add 1 teaspoon vanilla extract to both the cookie dough and the whipped cream topping

FLOUR & LEAVENING: THe structure of the cookie dough comes from 1 ½ cups flour & 1 teaspoon baking powder.

LEMON PUDDING MIX: You’ll need ½ cup instant lemon pudding mix, which is the amount in a 3.4 oz box.

MILK: 1 cup whole milk is used to make the lemon pudding topping.

HEAVY WHIPPING CREAM: You’ll add ¼ cup heavy cream to the lemon pie pudding and 1 whole cup goes towards making the whipped cream added to the very top of the cookies.

Tips for Successful Lemon Pie Cookies

1. Don’t overmix the dough once the flour is added. Excessive mixing develops gluten, resulting in tough cookies instead of the tender, melt-in-your-mouth texture everyone loves.
2. Try using a cookie scoop for uniform sizing. This ensures even baking and creates a professional look for the finished cookies.
3. Let the cookies cool completely before adding the lemon filling. Warm cookies will cause the filling to melt and run off the sides.

Storing & Freezing Lemon Pie Cookies

Store cookies in a single layer in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. 

You can also freeze these cookies in a single layer for up to 2 months. To freeze lemon pie cookies, wait until they have completely cooled after baking. This prevents unwanted moisture from forming and making the cookies soggy.

Lemon Pie Cookies Recipe

Delightful Lemon Pie Cookies made with buttery vanilla cookies topped with lemon pudding and whipped cream! It’s a lemon cream pie in cookie form!

Print Pin Rate

Course: Cookies, Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Lemon Pie Cookies

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 12 minutes minutes

Total Time: 32 minutes minutes

Servings: 12

Author: Jessica & Nellie

Ingredients

• ½ cup salted butter softened
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder

Lemon Pudding Topping

• ½ cup instant lemon pudding mix a 3.4 oz box
• 1 cup whole milk
• ¼ cup heavy cream

Whipped Cream Topping

• 1 cup heavy cream
• ½ tablespoon white granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

• Add the butter and sugar to a large mixing bowl. Use an electric mixer to whisk the ingredients together for 3 minutes, until smooth and creamy.
• Add in the egg and vanilla extract. Mix again for a couple minutes, or until the mixture is smooth and the eggs are fully incorporated with the creamed butter.
• Whisk in the flour and baking powder. Make sure there are no pockets of dry or wet ingredients in your cookie dough. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let the cookie dough chill for 20 minutes and preheat the oven to 350°F.
• While the cookie dough is chilling, whisk together the milk and pudding mix until smooth. Whisk in the heavy cream. Cover and set it in the freezer.
• Scoop out 1 ½ tablespoon sized balls of cookie dough and roll them in your hands. Place the cookie dough balls on a baking sheet, leaving about 1-2 inches between each cookie to account for spreading. Bake for 12 minutes. Remove the cookies from the oven and use a teaspoon to create an indent in each cookie to hold the pudding mixture.
• Let your cookies cool completely to room temperature before filling them with a few spoonfuls of the pudding mixture.
• Use an electric mixer to whip the heavy cream, sugar and vanilla together until stiff peaks form, 3-5 minutes. Top each cookie with a star of whipped cream and lemon zest, if desired. Enjoy!

Notes

Store cookies in a single layer in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. 

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Can I add more Lemon Flavor to my Lemon Pie Cookies?

The lemon flavor in these cookies comes from the lemon pudding mix. You can amp up the lemon flavor by adding 1 TBSP lemon zest to the cookie dough and topping the cookies with additional zest. Another idea would be to add 1 tsp lemon extract to the cookie dough.

Where to Serve Lemon Pie Cookies

Do you need a reason to make these? I love them anytime! But they’re also perfect to make for birthdays, Mother’s Day, and for a Spring or Summer cookout like Memorial Day or Labor Day. They’re fantastic for any lemon lover!

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