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Key Lime Cookies

Soft, thick key lime cookies made with cream cheese and fresh lime zest for a crumb that genuinely tastes of key lime after baking — finished with a two-ingredient key lime glaze for the sharpest citrus hit.
Print Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
10 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Calories: 195
Ingredients Method Notes

Ingredients
  

  • 225 g 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 115 g 4 oz full-fat block cream cheese, room temperature
  • 300 g 1½ cups granulated sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 tbsp fresh key lime juice or regular lime juice
  • 2 tbsp key lime zest from about 10–12 key limes
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 360 g 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tbsp cornstarch
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp fine sea salt
  • Key Lime Glaze
  • 180 g 1½ cups powdered sugar, sifted
  • 3 –4 tbsp fresh key lime juice
  • 1 tbsp key lime zest plus extra for garnish

Method
 

  1. Zest and juice all limes before starting. Measure 2 tbsp zest + 2 tbsp juice for the dough; 1 tbsp zest + 3–4 tbsp juice for the glaze. Set aside.
  2. Beat butter and cream cheese on medium for 1 minute. Add sugar and beat on medium-high for 3 to 4 minutes until pale and fluffy.
  3. Add eggs one at a time, beating 30 seconds after each. Add lime juice, lime zest, and vanilla; mix until just combined. The mixture may look briefly curdled — keep mixing and it will smooth out.
  4. Whisk flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl. Add to butter mixture in two additions, folding on low just until no flour streaks remain.
  5. Scoop into 2-tablespoon balls, place on a tray, cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour minimum.
  6. Preheat oven to 175°C / 350°F. Place chilled balls on parchment-lined baking sheets 5cm apart. Bake 10 to 11 minutes — edges just set, centers slightly underdone. Cool on the pan 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.
  7. While cookies cool, whisk sifted powdered sugar, key lime juice, and zest until smooth and pourable. Once cookies are fully cool (30 minutes minimum), spoon glaze over each. Press extra zest into the wet glaze. Allow to set 20 minutes before stacking.

Notes

Zest before juicing — you cannot zest a squeezed lime. Use zest immediately.
• Regular Persian limes work in place of key limes — use 4 to 5 limes for the same volume.
• Do not freeze glazed cookies — freeze unglazed and apply fresh glaze after thawing.
• For extra lime flavor, increase zest in the dough to 3 tablespoons.
• Pull cookies at 10 minutes — they finish on the pan and will over-bake if left longer.
Cal: ~195Fat: 9gCarbs: 28gSugar: 18gProtein: 2g