Lemon Cookies with Rose Frosting

Happy Valentine's Day, all you lovely Dash of Hang followers! I'm going to be honest with you. It's taken me quite some time to like Valentine's Day, even now I'm still not the biggest fan. It just seems like such a waste of time and effort. Plus the history of Valentine's Day is so dark and depressing. But then, I remind myself to stop being such a Debbie-downer and appreciate the good of Valentine's Day.

Just think, there's an entire day dedicated to loving each other. You are obligated to recognize and appreciate the most important people in your lives. I remember in grade school, we all had to bring valentines for everyone in the class. 1) To not single anyone out; 2) To show that everyone needs a little love in their life; 3) To feel that love ourselves so that we will be encouraged to spread love. Clearly I went to a school with very goodhearted people.

Somewhere along the way I forgot those lessons. It does not matter who is around me and whether or not I know them or like them, everyone deserves a little tender loving care. I apologize for the mush and gush. It's been a busy work week so far, and writing this post has reminded me that everything will work out with patience and kindness. For me, the best way to spread the love is to cook for others and fill their stomachs.

So I made some heart-shaped cookies to join in the festivities. I've been experimenting with lemon cookie recipes and wanted to give this one a try. Except I felt like something was missing to make it truly Valentines-esque. I stumbled across a photo on Pinterest of these ombre heart-shaped cookies, which looked absolutely adorable. Of course, I copied the aesthetics of it. However, something was still missing. I'm not a particular fan of vanilla frosting or just plain frosting period. So I decided to go out and grab some rose water to give a splash of romantic freshness to the frosting. The results are the softest, moist cookies with decadent frosting I've made in a long while.

INGREDIENTS:

• For cookies:

• 3 c. all-purpose flour

• 2 tsp baking powder

• 1 c sugar

• 1 c salted butter, cold and cubed

• 1 large egg

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 2-3 Tbsp lemon zest

• 3-4 Tbsp lemon juice

• For frosting:

• 3 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened

• 4 oz. cream cheese, cold

• 2 c. confectioner's sugar, sifted

• 1 Tbsp. rose water​

*1/2 tsp cornstarch at a time if frosting is too runny*

INSTRUCTIONS:

For cookies:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a small mixing bowl, combine flour and baking powder. Set aside.

2. In a large mixing bowl, work together sugar and lemon zest with your hands to release the flavor and oils of the lemon zest.

3. In an electric mixer bowl, cream butter until fluffy. Combine egg. vanilla, and lemon juice. Mix until fully incorporated and creamy.

4. Slowly add flour mixture on a low speed until well combined.

5. On a floured surface, knead dough until it comes together.

6. Roll dough to 1/4" thickness. Use cookie cutters for desired shape.

7. Freeze dough for approximately 5 minutes prior to baking.

8. Bake for 10-12 minutes.

For frosting:

1. In an electric mixer with paddle attachment, combine all frosting ingredients on a medium to high speed. Continue beating until completely incorporated. If the frosting gets too runny, add a bit of cornstarch at a time until it thickens up.

2. If you want to use food coloring, I frosted about 6 cookies with the base frosting. Added a drop of red food coloring, mixed the frosting, and frosted the next 6 cookies. I repeated this process of adding 1 drop of food color for every 6 cookies until all cookies were frosted. This will give you that ombre look.

#dessert #cookies