Lemon Sables – French Sugar Cookies

Mmm, these pretty little lemony cookies have a nice crispy bite to them, almost like a shortbread.  I usually look for cookie recipes that have some chocolate in them, but this is a nice fresh change from my usual, and they go great with a cup of tea.   I made them for a dessert to bring to a friend’s place, and they were a hit.  They are small enough to have just a little sweet bite after dinner, but those who wanted more sweet bites could have a few.

I got this recipe from Clotilde Dusoulier’s fabulous Chocolate and Zucchini cookbook.

What you need:

1 lemon

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon fleur de sel or kosher salt

7 tablespoons/ 3.5 ounces cold unsalted butter, diced

1 large egg yolk

1 cup icing sugar

What you do:

1. Zest about one tablespoon of lemon peel, making sure to only use the yellow skin, not the bitter white part underneath.

2. Rub the lemon zest into the sugar, then stir in the flour and salt.

3. Add the butter and mix it into the dry ingredients using a pastry blender or cool hands (if your hands are too hot they will melt the butter) until it looks like very coarse sand.  Add the egg yolk and stir with a fork until combined, and then knead the dough until it comes together. If you need to, you can add a little ice-cold water, one teaspoons at a time to help bring it together.

4. Divide the dough into two parts, then form it into logs about 3-4 cm in diameter.  Wrap the logs in plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 1/2 hour.

5. Preheat the oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Take one of the logs out of the freezer and slice about 1cm thick using a very sharp serrated knife.

6. Place the disks on the baking sheet, leaving a few centimeters’ space between them.  Bake for about 12 minutes, or until lightly golden on the edges.  Cool the cookies on a wire rack. You can bake both logs, or save one for baking fresh another time.  While these cookies do keep for a few days, they are best on days one and two.

7. Once the cookies are completely cool you can make the glaze by squeezing the lemons to get 3 tablespoons of juice.  Add the juice to a bowl with the icing sugar and whisk it until there are no lumps.  Glaze the cookies using a pastry brush or a teaspoon.  Let the glaze dry completely before serving.  Make sure to store them in an airtight container.