These cookies are moist and subtly sweet with that uplifting zing that lemons give. Sometimes I wonder, when I crave lemons, why lemons are so appealing when their juice alone is quite bitter and sour. But many of us love lemon-flavored food and drinks. There is something so bright and cleansing about lemon juice. When I was a young girl, I had a picture in my room of a basket of pretty lemons, and it said, “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” I have heard that quoted countless times since then, and other similar quotes as well. And yet, there is a lot to it. Lemon juice alone is not so easy to drink (except for maybe a few, like my husband), but when mixed with enough sugar, the resulting drink is one of the most refreshing I have ever tasted. The bittersweet quality gives lemonade more complexity and substance than a syrupy-sweet drink. The same goes for these cookies. They are sweet, but with a hint of powerful flavor from the lemon juice and rind. 
When difficult things happen to us, it is human nature to be drawn into sadness of it. We often feel like we are the only ones to experience such a difficulty. It is hard to take the high road and keep a philosophical viewpoint. Maybe that’s why symbols of making good out of bad are so powerful: lemonade out of lemons; the phoenix rising from the flames. Lemons are a beautiful, bright yellow color, and to me, symbolize the beautiful complexity and bittersweet aspect of life. 
This cookie recipe is easy and fairly quick to make. The cream cheese and bit of butter keep the cookies moist, and the sugar and lemon flavors balance each other nicely. Because the weather forecasters are calling for above-freezing temperatures next week, I took a couple of the photos in the snow and ice, since we may not have it much longer! With it being Friday, I am celebrating Fiesta Friday with the talented bloggers at The Novice Gardener, co-hosted this week by Caroline at Caroline’s Cooking and Elaine at Foodbod. I hope you all have a great weekend! 
Lemon Drop Cookies
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons of butter, at room temperature
- 1/2 cup of cream cheese, also at room temperature
- 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
- 2 eggs
- the grated rind of a lemon
- 1 cup of sugar
- 1 and 3/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- powdered sugar to sprinkle on top
Directions:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter, cream cheese, lemon juice, eggs, lemon rind, and sugar until smooth (you may use an electric mixer if you prefer, but it is not necessary if you stir vigorously!). Add the flour, baking soda, and salt and stir well until completely combined.
Drop the batter by rounded teaspoonfuls onto baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake in your preheated oven for about 10 minutes, or until the cookies are lightly golden/brown and firm to the touch. Cool on a wire rack. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Repeat until all the batter is used. Store the cookies in the refrigerator between layers of wax paper. Enjoy!
These look wonderful! Time to get out the cookie tray. Thanks –
Thank you, Mark!
Lovely cookies! I love lemons too … so very interested in these! 🙂
Thank you, Lili. Lemons add zest to everything!
This looks delish!
Thank you! Thank you for stopping by!
I just love lemon and these cookies look so good!!! 🙂
Thank you, Amy!
These cookies look just wonderful 🙂
Thank you so much! They brighten up the winter day here. 🙂
love that they are so small and delicate looking, great thing to serve with an espresso when your guests think they just cannot possibly eat anything else
Thank you! Yes, I also like that they are so light.
These look and sound great! I too am a fan of lemons – it used to be a treat for me as a child when we were in France to have ‘citron presee’ which is fresh squeezed lemon juice and they bring it to you with a little dish of sugar to add yourself. I used to always add as little as possible to enjoy the lemon flavor! Thanks for sharing with Fiesta Friday.
Thank you so much, Caroline. Thank you for co-hosting Fiesta Friday this week!
Oh, wow! These look lovely – my mouth is watering! 😀 Thanks for sharing!
Thank you, Jhuls!
I love lemon – it’s probably my favourite fruit flavour and I adore all lemony baked treats. These cookies look quite similar to ones that my grandmother used to make, only she used lemon essence (fake lemon flavour with a brilliantly bright yellow colour) and she also added currants. I might have to give your more contemporary recipe a go! And…I’m not sure why I’m not following you already…major oversight corrected 🙂
Thank you so much. Currants sound like they would be good in these cookies. I like that idea!!
Can breathe the beautiful aroma of lemons right from here.Wonderful cookies.
Thank you very much! I agree–the aroma of lemons is wonderful!