Lemon Cookies

These lemony cookies from the “Farm Journal Country Cookbook " are perfect with coffee or a cold glass of iced tea.  They are really shortbread cookies – they need a little time to ripen, overnight, lightly covered, so they stay crisp.  They are a good recipe to make a day ahead, and the rolls of dough freeze well.  The dough may need to set in the refrigerator a ½ hour or so before being sliced from frozen rolls.

Recipes like this benefit, as do cakes, from sifting the flour with the other dry ingredients.  It only takes minutes and you won’t have lumps of bitter baking powder or soda in your dough.  I don’t wash my sifter; I simply store it right in my large flour container, just like our mothers did.      

            Lemon Cookies

  1         cup  butter

     1/2   cup  sugar

  1         large  egg -- beaten

  2         cups  all purpose flour -- 8 1/2 oz

     1/2   teaspoon  baking powder

     1/8   teaspoon  salt

  1         tablespoon  lemon juice

     1/2   teaspoon  grated lemon peel

Cream together butter and sugar; add egg; mix well.

Sift together flour, baking powder and salt; combine with sugar mixture.  Add lemon juice and rind.

Form into rolls; wrap in waxed paper or pack into frozen juice cans; chill.

Slice very thin.  Bake on greased baking sheet in 375° oven 8-10 minutes (until  completely set and lightly browned on the edges.)

Makes 5-6 dozen

2011 Cost:  $1.75 or 35¢ per dozen.

  "5 dozen"

Per Serving: 35 Calories; 3g Fat (79.3% calories from fat); trace Protein; 2g Carbohydrate; trace Dietary Fiber; 12mg Cholesterol; 41mg Sodium.  Exchanges: 0 Lean Meat; 0 Fruit; 1/2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates.