Girl Scout Lemonades Cookies (Easy Copycat Recipe)
These girl scout lemonade cookies are so good and easy to make at home! Delicious lemon flavor in a crunchy cookie!
Girl Scout cookie season in our house is serious business. My kids start the countdown in January, and every year the same conversation happens: “Can we get Lemonades? Please can we get Lemonades?” And as a Girl Scout leader, I feel like I should be more diplomatic about favorites — but honestly? Lemonades might be my favorite too.
The problem is that cookie season ends. The boxes disappear. And then we’re waiting another year for that crisp, buttery shortbread with the tangy lemon glaze on the bottom.
So I learned to make them at home. And this copycat recipe gets it right — same crisp texture, same punchy lemon flavor, same icing-on-the-bottom move that makes Lemonades different from every other lemon cookie out there. You can make these any time of year, for any occasion, and nobody will be waiting until January.
What ingredients do you need for these Girl Scout Lemonade Cookies?
Cookie Dough Ingredients
- 1 stick softened butter, unsalted
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup white granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 cups flour
Lemon Glaze Ingredients
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- Yellow food dye
How do you make it?
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees fahrenheit and prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper
- In a mixing bowl blend together the butter and salt for about a minute.
- Add the sugar and mix together and whisk again until combined.
- Add the egg and lemon juice to the mixture and mix once again.
- Measure the flour into the bowl and mix together until a dough forms. It shouldn’t be super stiff, but also should not be sticky at all. If it is, you can add an extra ¼ cup flour.
- Roll out the cookie dough on a clean floured surface to about ½ inch thick slab.
- Take your circle cookie cutter and cut out as many circles as you can.
- Place the cut out dough on the prepared baking sheet. Take away the excess and repeat the rolling out process to finish cutting out the rest of the cookies.
- Create a lemon cookie imprinted top using a paring knife and smaller cookie cutter. Create an additional inner circle by pressing the smaller cookie cutter into the dough circles about ¼ inch deep.
- Create the lemon wheel look with a paring knife by creating a vertical line straight in the center of each uncooked cookie, then a diagonal line ⅓ of the way to the left of the vertical line and another ⅓ way to the right of the vertical line.
- Lastly, create little slits within each of the 6 triangles close to the center of the lemon cookie to recreate the look of lemon seeds.
- Bake in the oven for 17-20 minutes or until the bottoms have slightly browned.
- While the cookies are in the oven, in another mixing bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar and lemon juice until a slightly thick glaze is formed.
- Add a few drops of lemon food dye and mix the glaze.
- Once the cookies have been removed from the oven, let them cool for about 10 minutes
- Dip the bottom of each lemon cookie into the lemon glaze, coating the lower half of the cookie completely.
- Let the excess glaze drip off and place back onto the parchment paper.
- Let the glaze harden on the cookie for about 30 minutes.
- Enjoy the cookies!
Getting the Lemon Flavor Right
The secret to real lemon flavor in a baked cookie is using both lemon juice and lemon zest together. Lemon juice alone loses a lot of its brightness in the oven — heat mellows it out. Zest carries the essential oils that give you that sharp, citrusy punch even after baking.
For this recipe, I use 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice in the dough plus the zest of one lemon (about 1 teaspoon). In the glaze, the lemon juice stays raw so the flavor comes through fully — that’s what gives the glaze its tang.
If you want to go even further, add ½ teaspoon of lemon extract to the dough alongside the juice and zest. The original Girl Scout Lemonades has a very forward lemon flavor, and extract gets you there.
These crisp, buttery cookies with a tangy lemon-flavored icing and inspiring messages are quickly becoming a new favorite for many. If you can’t get enough of these delicious cookies, try making them at home with this copycat recipe. These are the best girl scout cookie because it’s a crunchy cookie with a great lemon flavor.
FAQs
Yes — at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator before rolling, and another 15 minutes after you’ve cut and decorated the cookies. The dough has a lot of butter in it. Without chilling, it’ll be too soft to roll cleanly and the lemon design will blur in the oven. Don’t skip this step.
That’s exactly how the real Girl Scout Lemonades are made — icing on the flat bottom, decorated top facing up. It protects the lemon design and gives you that full hit of sweet-tart lemon the moment the cookie hits your tongue. It feels backwards but it’s correct.
You can, but fresh makes a noticeable difference especially in the glaze where the lemon juice isn’t cooked. Bottled juice has a flatter, slightly metallic taste. If fresh lemons aren’t available, bottled works — just know the lemon flavor will be milder.
Add more powdered sugar, one tablespoon at a time, until it coats the back of a spoon and drips slowly rather than running off. The glaze should be thick enough to set opaque — if it’s translucent when dry, it’s too thin.
Add lemon juice ½ teaspoon at a time until it loosens. Work quickly — the glaze can thicken as you go if it sits out.
Airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. The glaze acts as a slight seal and actually helps keep the cookies from going stale too quickly. Do not refrigerate — condensation will make the glaze sticky.
Yes — freeze the baked, unglazed cookies in a single layer, then transfer to a freezer bag for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature and glaze fresh before serving. Do not freeze glazed cookies (the glaze gets wet and sticky when thawed).
Yes. Make the dough, flatten into a disk, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate up to 3 days or freeze up to 1 month. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before rolling.
Whether you call them Lemonades, Lemon-Ups or even lemon wedge cookies, these tangy lemon-flavored cookies are the perfect treat for any time of year. By making them at home using this copycat recipe, you can enjoy them even when it’s not Girl Scout cookie season.
The Lemon Design
This is the part that looks intimidating but is actually easier than it sounds. Here’s what you’re creating: a circle cookie with a smaller circle pressed inside it, and six lines radiating from center to inner circle to look like a lemon wheel cross-section.
Here’s how to do it clearly:
What you need: One large round cookie cutter (about 2½ inches) and one smaller round cutter (about 1½ inches) — or use the cap of a spice jar. A paring knife or toothpick for the lines.
Step by step:
Cut your large circle as usual.
Press the smaller cutter gently into the center of each unbaked cookie — about ¼ inch deep. Don’t cut through. You’re just making an indent.
Inside that inner circle, use a paring knife or toothpick to draw one line straight down the center (12 o’clock to 6 o’clock).
Draw two more lines at angles to make 6 equal triangles — like cutting a pie into 6 slices.
In each triangle near the center point, make one small short slit to suggest a lemon seed.
One important note: chill your cut cookies for 15 minutes in the refrigerator before baking. This keeps the lines sharp and prevents the design from puffing and blurring in the oven.
With this copycat recipe and a little bit of time in the kitchen, you can enjoy your favorite Girl Scout cookie flavors all year round.
What other girl scout recipes should you try?
If you are looking for more fun cookie recipes be sure to check out this comprehensive list! The Best Cookie Recipes For Year Round Baking!
Girl Scout Lemonades Cookies (Easy Copycat Recipe)
Now you can make you favorite lemonade girl scout cookies right at home with this easy recipe!
Ingredients
- Cookie Dough
- 1 stick softened butter, unsalted
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup white granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 cups flour
- Lemon Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- Yellow food dye
Instructions
Make the Dough
- Start by beating the softened butter and salt together in a large mixing bowl for about a minute — you just want them combined before anything else goes in. Add the sugar and beat again until the mixture looks light and a little fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and lemon juice and mix until fully incorporated.
- Add the lemon zest now if you're using it (and I really recommend you do — it makes a huge difference in how much lemon flavor comes through after baking).
- Add the flour and mix on low until a soft dough forms. It should hold together cleanly and not stick to your hands. If it feels sticky at all, add flour a tablespoon at a time until it comes together. Don't overmix once the flour is in — just go until it's combined.
- Flatten the dough into a disk, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. This step matters — the butter needs to firm back up so you can roll the dough cleanly and get sharp edges on your cookies.
Cut and Decorate
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Lightly flour a clean surface and roll the dough out to about ½ inch thick. Use your large round cookie cutter (about 2½ inches) to cut as many circles as you can. Transfer them to the prepared baking sheet, then gather the scraps, re-roll, and cut again until the dough is used up.
- Now for the lemon design. Press your smaller round cutter (about 1½ inches — a spice jar cap works perfectly) into the center of each cookie about ¼ inch deep. Don't cut through, just create an indent. Then use a paring knife or toothpick to draw one line straight through the center of the inner circle from top to bottom, and two angled lines to divide it into 6 equal triangles — like slicing a tiny pie into 6 pieces. In each triangle near the center point, press one small short slit to suggest a lemon seed.
- Once all your cookies are decorated, slide the baking sheet into the refrigerator for 15 minutes. This keeps the design sharp in the oven and prevents the edges from spreading.
Bake
Bake at 350°F for 17–20 minutes, until the bottoms are lightly golden. These are shortbread-style cookies — they should feel set and dry on top when done, not soft. Let them cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool completely. At least 30 minutes — don't rush this part. If the cookies are even slightly warm when you dip them, the glaze absorbs instead of coating.
Make the Glaze
While the cookies cool, whisk together the powdered sugar and lemon juice until smooth. You're looking for a glaze that coats the back of a spoon and drips off slowly — thick enough to set opaque white, not so thin it runs right off. If it's too thin, add powdered sugar one tablespoon at a time. If it's too thick to dip smoothly, add lemon juice ½ teaspoon at a time.
Add 1–2 drops of yellow gel food coloring and whisk until the color is evenly distributed. Start with one drop — you want a pale, soft yellow, not bright.
Glaze and Set
Here's the move that makes these taste like the real thing: you're glazing the flat bottom of each cookie, not the decorated top. Hold the cookie decorated-side up, dip the flat bottom into the glaze, let the excess drip off for a few seconds, and place it back on the parchment paper glaze-side down.
Let the glaze harden completely before stacking or storing — about 30 minutes at room temperature. The glaze will go from shiny to matte when it's set.
Notes
1 teaspoon of lemon extract can be substituted for the lemon juice in the cookie dough recipe
Nutrition Information
Yield
8Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 364Total Fat 13gSaturated Fat 8gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 5gCholesterol 54mgSodium 160mgCarbohydrates 58gFiber 1gSugar 31gProtein 5g
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Hi! I’m Nellie. I am an entrepreneur, a busy mama of 3 and a wife to my high school sweetheart. I have been sharing content for over 12 years about how to cook easy recipes, workout tips and free printables that make life a little bit easier. I have been featured in places like Yahoo, Buzzfeed, What To Expect, Mediavine, Niche Pursuits, HuffPost, BabyCenter, Mom 2.0, Mommy Nearest, Parade, Care.com, and more!
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