Sunny citrus meets bright blueberry flavor in these soft and thick lemon blueberry cookies. Naturally flavored and colored, they’re made with real lemon and blueberries. There’s absolutely no artificial flavorings, extracts, or food coloring!
If you love the combination of fresh lemon and sweet berries, these soft lemon cookies with blueberry frosting are going to be your new favorite cookie. The cookies are soft and chewy, and they’re flavored with real lemon zest and juice for that unmistakably fresh citrus zing.
And on top? A naturally vibrant blueberry cream cheese frosting made with finely ground freeze-dried blueberries—no artificial colors or flavors to see here, folks!
Today’s lemon blueberry cookie recipe is like a fruity version of a Lofthouse-style soft frosted cookie, but with a little more chew, and not quite as cakey. When I first bit into one of the final test batch, my immediate thought was: this tastes like a cookie version of this reader-favorite lemon blueberry cake!!
Why You’ll Love These Lemon Blueberry Cookies
- Thick & soft texture: Thanks to a careful balance of butter, sugar, and a touch of cornstarch.
- Real lemon flavor: No extracts needed! Instead, we’re relying on fresh lemon zest and juice. Cream the butter and sugar together with the zest, so it has a chance to release its aromatic oils.
- Naturally colored frosting: Freeze-dried blueberries create a lovely lavender hue. You can add a little more for a vibrant purple and deeper blueberry flavor.
- Perfect for spring & summer baking: Bright, fresh, unexpected, and crowd-pleasing.
- Like a slice of lemon blueberry cake… in a cookie!
One reader, Nichole, commented: “I made these yesterday with my teenaged son, and they are nothing short of spectacular. My husband was skeptical when he got home, but after trying one, he said they rank among the best cookies that he’s ever had. We’re a family of raspberry lovers, too, so we already have plans to make a batch with raspberry frosting next! ★★★★★“
Another reader, Lizzie, commented: “These cookies are an absolute hit! The flavor combination is lovely. As a beginner baker, I followed your instructions exactly as written and I’m giving myself 5 stars as well. Yielded soft cookies with just a slight crunch at the edge. Thank you for your clear, well-written instructions. The lemon aroma is a wonderful bonus. ★★★★★“
Another reader, Rae, commented: “These were a hit! I made a buttercream frosting instead of cream cheese, but these turned out so soft and light. These are now a family favorite, and I’ll be forced to make them for every gathering in multiple variations. ★★★★★“
Recipe Testing Lemon Blueberry Cookies
I have several recipes for lemon cookies on my website, including lemon thumbprints, lemon crinkles, and lemon shortbread, to name a few.
For this new recipe, I had a vision in my head of what I wanted them to look like before I really knew what I wanted them to be. I knew I wanted a thick and soft lemon cookie with a pretty pastel blueberry frosting. Okay kitchen team, LET’S GO!
The winning lemon cookie recipe is adapted from my lemon ginger cookies, with a few key tweaks. We skipped the spices, added a touch of cornstarch for extra softness, increased the lemon zest, and added a bit more flour for thicker cookies.
And as for the blueberry frosting, it’s a spin on the strawberry cream cheese frosting from my favorite strawberry cake. If you’ve ever wondered if you can use other freeze-dried berries instead of strawberries for that frosting, the answer is a definitive YES! (But you may need to sift out some seeds.)
Here’s Why You Need These Exact Ingredients:
For the Lemon Cookies:
- Flour: All-purpose flour provides the structure.
- Cornstarch: A little cornstarch makes for extra-soft and tender cookies; it’s a key ingredient in these soft chocolate chip cookies, too.
- Baking Soda: Provides lift for thick cookies.
- Salt: A little salt balances the sweet and amplifies the lemon and vanilla flavors.
- Butter: Proper room-temperature butter is imperative for creaming the butter and sugar.
- Sugar: Granulated sugar sweetens the tart lemon, and helps the cookies spread.
- Lemon Zest + Juice: Zest for aroma and juice for tartness; we use both for maximum lemon flavor.
- Egg: One egg binds everything together and provides richness.
- Vanilla Extract: The background flavor sitting just behind the lemon.
For the Blueberry Frosting:
- Freeze-Dried Blueberries: Grind them and then sift out the seeds to get blueberry powder with intense flavor and natural color. Make sure to buy the super-lightweight ones labeled freeze-dried, not regular dried blueberries, which are chewy like raisins. We can usually find them in Target and Trader Joe’s. You can also find them online.
- Butter & Cream Cheese: Creamy base for the frosting. Use block-style cream cheese—save the spreadable kind in a tub for blueberry bagels.
- Confectioners’ Sugar: Sweetens, thickens, and stabilizes.
- Lemon Juice, Vanilla, + Salt: Round out and enhance the blueberry flavor.
Success Tips for the Best Lemon Blueberry Cookies
- Don’t skip chilling the dough: This prevents spreading and improves texture.
- Use fresh lemon zest: It provides much more flavor than juice alone. Remember to zest the lemons first, before slicing and juicing—much easier than the other way around!
- Measure flour correctly: Weigh or spoon and level your flour to avoid dense cookies.
- Bake on light-colored (silver) baking sheets: Dark metal pans conduct heat faster and can cause the cookies to over-brown on the bottom. I always use and recommend these half sheet pans lined with silicone baking mats or parchment for cookies.
Blueberry Cream Cheese Frosting
Fresh blueberries can end up curdling your frosting, so you need freeze-dried blueberries to make the best blueberry cream cheese frosting. We do the same with freeze-dried strawberries when making strawberry buttercream.
After you grind them and sift out the seeds, freeze-dried berries make the perfect flavorful “dust” to make a blueberry frosting without any artificial flavoring. They deliver the most intense (and natural) blueberry flavor while, at the same time, do not alter the texture of the actual frosting. And they turn it a naturally pretty purple color, too!
This blueberry cream cheese frosting would taste incredible on so many other baked goods, too. Try it on lemon blueberry cupcakes, lemon cupcakes, or blueberry cream cupcakes!
I can usually find them at major grocery stores in the dried fruit section and at Target and Trader Joe’s. You can also order them online, but tend to be much more expensive that way.
Yes, you can skip the cream cheese in the blueberry frosting to make blueberry buttercream. Replace with just 4 Tablespoons (57g) of softened butter, bringing the total amount of butter you need to 3/4 cup (170g).
Yes, you can replace the freeze-dried blueberries with freeze-dried strawberries.
Lemon Blueberry Cookies
- Prep Time: 3 hours (includes chilling)
- Cook Time: 13 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 30 minutes
- Yield: 18-20 cookies
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Soft, thick lemon cookies flavored with real lemon zest and juice, topped with naturally colored blueberry cream cheese frosting. For best results, don’t skip chilling the dough and be sure to use freeze-dried blueberries (not simply “dried”) for the frosting.
Ingredients
Lemon Cookies
- 1 and 3/4 cups (219g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon zest
- 1 large egg, at room temperature
- 1 Tablespoon (15g/ml) fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Blueberry Frosting
- 1/2 cup (about 15g) freeze-dried blueberries*
- 1/2 cup (8 Tbsp; 113g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 4 ounces (113g) full-fat block-style cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 2 and 1/2 cups (300g) confectioners’ sugar
- 1 Tablespoon (15g/ml) fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- pinch of salt, to taste
- optional: lemon slices and fresh blueberries for garnish
Instructions
- Make the cookies: In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and salt together. Set aside.
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, sugar, and lemon zest together on medium-high speed until creamed, about 3 minutes. (Here’s a helpful tutorial if you need guidance on how to cream butter and sugar.) Add the egg, lemon juice, and vanilla extract and beat on medium-high speed until combined, about 1 minute. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and beat again as needed to combine. The mixture will look curdled; that’s ok.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix on low speed until combined. Dough will be thick and sticky. Cover and chill cookie dough in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours (and up to 3 days).
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. If the dough has chilled for longer than 2 hours, let it sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes.
- Scoop dough, about 1.5 Tablespoons (30g) of dough each, and roll into balls. Arrange cookies 3 inches apart on the baking sheets.
- Bake for 11–13 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges. The centers will look very soft and slightly underbaked. That’s key for a soft texture. Do not over-bake.
- Remove from the oven and allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Make the blueberry frosting: Using a food processor or blender, process the freeze-dried blueberries into a powdery crumb. Sift it through a fine mesh sieve to rid larger seeds/pieces. You should have about 2 Tbsp, or around 10g, of blueberry powder.
- In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese on medium-high speed until creamy and combined, about 2 minutes. Add confectioners’ sugar, blueberry powder, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then gradually increase to high speed and beat for 2 minutes. Taste. Add a pinch of salt if frosting is too sweet.
- Spread or pipe frosting on cooled cookies. I used a small offset spatula on the pictured cookies. Garnish with a lemon slice and a fresh blueberry just before serving, if desired.
- Store unfrosted cookies tightly covered at room temperature for up to 1 week. Store frosted cookies tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: For the cookies: You can make the cookie dough ahead and chill in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Cookie dough balls freeze well for up to 3 months. Bake frozen cookie dough balls for an extra minute, no need to thaw. Read my tips and tricks on how to freeze cookie dough. Baked (unfrosted) cookies freeze well for up to 3 months. For the frosting: Use immediately or cover tightly and store for up to 1 week in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer. After freezing, thaw in the refrigerator then beat the frosting on medium speed for a few seconds so it’s creamy again. After thawing or refrigerating, beating in a splash of heavy cream or milk will help thin the frosting out again, if needed. (It stiffens in the refrigerator.)
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Citrus Zester | Citrus Juicer | Glass Mixing Bowl | Whisk | Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Medium Cookie Scoop | Cooling Rack | Food Processor | Fine Mesh Sieve | Small Offset Spatula
- Where to Buy Freeze-Dried Blueberries: I always find them in my regular grocery store in the aisle with the dried fruit. Target, Whole Foods, and Trader Joe’s carry them, and I’ve also found them in some health food stores. You can also find them online, but they tend to be much more expensive that way. Do not use the chewy/gummy dried blueberries. You need FREEZE-dried berries, which grind into a powder. If you can’t find them, try the raspberry frosting from my lemon raspberry cupcakes but swap out the raspberry jam for blueberry jam.
- Can I Skip The Cream Cheese in the Frosting? Yes, you can skip the cream cheese in the blueberry frosting to make blueberry buttercream. Replace with just 4 Tablespoons (57g) of softened butter, bringing the total amount of butter you need to 3/4 cup (170g).
- Can I Use Freeze-Dried Strawberries Instead? Yes, for strawberry frosting, you can replace the freeze-dried blueberries with freeze-dried strawberries.
Reader Comments and Reviews
I am about to make these cookies for a third time in a week because they are INCREDIBLE. I do suggest leaving the icing off until you are about to eat them because the cookies seem to hold up better that way. Storing them in a sealed container with a terracotta disc kept them soft like they were fresh out the oven for a few days until they were gone! I will say the amount of icing I made was significant (2 batches) and I have a lot left over. Tastes great with animal crackers!
Hi! I was wondering, about how many lemons do you need for 1 tablespoon of lemon juice? Also, is the blueberry flavor in the frosting strong or is it more subtle?
Hi Adelyn, 1 lemon is enough for the juice. The blueberry flavor is subtle, but you can add more sifted powder if you’d like, which will also make the color a bit more saturated too.
I went to a couple stores to buy freeze dried blueberries, and there were none! So I bought some freeze dried raspberries instead, and the cookies were still delicious!
These are amazing, so light and refreshing treat! The whole family loved them as they were perfect to kick off our start of spring!
These were a hit! I made a buttercream frosting instead of cream cheese BUT these turned out so soft and light. These are now a family favorite and I’ll be forced to make them for every gathering in multiple variations (any berry, pomegranate, peach, simple royal icing etc.)
I made these over the weekend and they were delicious! I must confess that I made an alternate frosting using blackberry jam which was a great substitute for the blueberry frosting.
Sounds delicious, Joyce! So glad you loved these.
these were delicious!!! made for an easter party and EVERYONE was obsessed. i went a bit overboard with the freeze dried blueberries to the frosting so the icing was a much deeper purple, but flavor was excellent. 10/10!
These were delicious! I’m wondering what other flavorings the cookies themselves could be made with? Almond comes to mind – any guesses how much extra t one would use?!
Hi Makayla, this recipe was adapted from our Lemon Ginger Cookies – another great flavor combination! We haven’t tested adding almond, but a small amount of almond extract would be lovely with the lemon. Let us know if you try!
I made these yesterday and they were so good! I ended up being too lazy to run out to the store for more lemons. I instead used the zest from one tiny, miserable looking lemon I had in the fridge, as well as around 3 tsp of Nielsen-Massey Lemon Paste. Due to the paste, I added about additional 1 tbsp of flour to the dough. They still came out with the softness and lemon taste I was looking forward to. I will definitely be making these again. The frosting was also incredible. Just the right amount of sweetness and blueberry! Thanks so much for sharing, Sally!
I also wanted to add that, due to me not having any lemons, I used bottled lemon juice. I am sure they would have come out even better had I used fresh lemon juice, but for those of you who want to make these, but don’t want to run out to the store, I still think they have a wonderful lemon taste!
I made these and they are delicious and very pretty. Only issue is I could have made 1/4 of the icing and still had a lot. There is way more icing than cookie. I love every single recipe I have ever made from this site including this one. Next time only change I’ll make is to make less icing.
How do these travel? I want to make them for a party this weekend but I need to drive like an hour away.
Hi Michael, the frosting does not harden, but you could travel with them in a flat layer. They would be just fine for that amount of time.
Just had to try these when I saw the recipe… They are delicious! I followed the recipe exactly & chose to leave out the cream cheese in the frosting. My cookies were “rounder” than the ones in the picture, but they came out great. Worth the effort!
Could I roll out and cut these to make Easter egg shaped cookies?
Hi Abbie! No, the dough is too sticky to roll out. You may enjoy these lemon shortbread cookies instead. Feel free to top with the blueberry frosting!
These cookies are an absolute hit! The flavor combination is lovely. As a beginner baker, I followed your instructions exactly as written and I’m giving myself 5 stars as well. Yielded exactly 20 soft cookies with just a slight crunch at the edge. Thank you for your clear, well written instructions. The lemon aroma is wonderful bonus.
Has anyone tried to veganize these? (I planned to make them for an easter egg hunt on Sunday, and just remembered a vegan is attending)
Hi Becca, we have not tested a vegan version of these cookies. Let us know if you try anything!
Hi! Can I use brown butter for the frosting and/or the cookie? I love brown butter and saw you had a recipe for brown butter cream cheese frosting just wasn’t sure if quantities of anything would be different or how it would work with the lemon and blueberry together.
Thank you!!
Hi Bailey! While we do love the nutty flavor of brown butter, I don’t think it would be the best combination with the fresh flavors in these lemon blueberry cookies. You can certainly give it a try if you wish! Here’s our guide to browning butter.
Hi Sally, do you have a recipe for a blueberry glaze for the cookies, instead of frosting? I can’t use cream cheese for my cottage license.
Hi Becca, you can make a vanilla icing and add the freeze-dried (and sifted) blueberry powder. Maybe a splash of lemon juice, too!
Hi Sally! For the cookie, you mentioned that after taking it out of the oven, “The centers will look very soft and slightly underbaked”. I’m currently pregnant and cannot eat underbaked dough; do you know if it will only look underbaked, or is it actually underbaked? If I want to make it fully baked for safety reasons, how much longer do you recommend putting it in the oven? Thank you!
Hi Riri, it will just look underbaked. Don’t worry, they’ll be baked through!
Will the frosting harden enough to stack them?
Hi Dawn, this frosting stays pretty soft.
Hi everyone, well I made a batch of these cookies. Omgosh, kept eating the frosting Cookies are delish, we had in patio with ice tea. Their delish. Highly recommend u make them
Keepers!
I made these yesterday with my teenaged son and they are nothing short of spectacular. My husband was skeptical when he got home, but after trying one he said they rank among the best cookies he’s ever had. We’re a family of raspberry lovers too so we already have plans to make a batch with raspberry frosting next!
Hi Sally! How did you frost the cookies in the pictures?
With a small offset spatula! You can see it in the corner of one of the step by step photos above.
You mention in the body of the post that you can increase the amount of freeze-dried blueberries in the frosting for a more intense blueberry flavor. The packages at Target are 2 Oz, roughly four times the 15 grams called for in the recipe. Would it be okay to use the entire 2-Oz package in one recipe? Our family loves blueberries, and I want to make these for Easter!
Yes, you can! The color will be more of a magenta hue. The flavor will be strong!
I was wondering this too. The recipe is 15g or 1/2 cup. The Target bag is 56 grams which is 4 times that or 2 cups….?
can I use applesauce for an egg free version?
Can I use dried blueberries instead of freezer dried blueberries?
Hi Sylvia, no, dried blueberries are too gummy and won’t make the powder necessary here. Freeze dried blueberries are crucial!
Thanks so much! Will bake these for Easter!
I have homemade blueberry extract if I subbed the vanilla with that would it be too blueberry?
I wouldn’t think so. Let me know how it turns out!
Are these anything like those loft house cookies you get from grocery store bakeries? I hate to ask that. I personally dislike those cookies but my girls love those more than most any cookie I make except maybe the peppermint mocha white chocolate dipped ones and the cake batter choc chip cookies. They also like lemon so this could be a win. But I’m also wondering if there is a lot of tang in the frosting?
Hi Wendy, they are similarly soft, but obviously have that fresh, homemade taste and texture.
How do the cookies hold up without any frosting? Or maybe with a lemon or vanilla glaze?
Hi Yael, you can skip the frosting for plain lemon cookies. They’re soft and have a wonderful flavor.
I did this today- made the perfect simple cookie!
I also used Gluten Free flour and they tasted delicious.
Can I make the lemon cookie without frosting ?
Hi Katryn, absolutely, you can omit the frosting if desired.
How can I adjust this frosting recipe to do about 2 dozen cupcakes piped?
Hi Cassie, you can double the frosting and that should be enough.