Lemon Cream Pie Cookies

I realize I've spent a lot of time talking about the house and not posting recipes, so today I'm going to talk about these Lemon Cream Pie Cookies that I made on Wednesday. They were a big hit at work and people on Facebook seems to enjoy the picture so much, I just had to share it with ya'll. Plus, they are soooooo tasty! Each batch only makes about 20 cookies (or less) so make sure you double or triple the recipe! I will definitely be making these again soon.


A lemon shortbread cookie with cream cheese base filling in the center. YUM!

I first found this recipe on foodnetwork.com but I modified it to give it more of a lemon kick and to add more filling to each cookie.

Ingredients

2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, divided (1 cup and 1 1/2 cups), plus more for garnish
3 lemons for zesting and juicing
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

Directions

Beat the butter and 1 cup of the powdered sugar until smooth. Add 2 lemons worth of juice and 1 and 1/2 lemons worth of zest. On a low speed, add the flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until just incorporated. Turn the cookie dough out onto a board and roll it into a log. Will be very sticky. Try to wrap in plastic wrap and mold from there, or use wax paper to mold it. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 24 hours. I left it in the fridge for 2 days and it was fine (and easier to cut)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Remove log from the refrigerator and cut it into thin 1/4-inch thick discs. (I used a bread knife to do this). Arrange the discs on baking sheets, 1-inch apart, and bake until the edges are just golden, about 20 minutes. You may have to rotate them in the oven. Remove the cookies from the oven and transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.

Meanwhile, using stand mixer or hand mixer, mix cream cheese with the remaining 1 and 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar and 1/2 a lemon worth of juice and 1 lemon worth of zest.

Top half of the cookies with the cream cheese mixture and cover with another cookie to make a sandwich. Dust the top of the cookie sandwiches with confectioners' sugar and serve.

ENJOY!