Lemony Stars (Vegan Lemon Shortbread Cookies)

I’ve not been so great about posting every day here on the old blogaroo this week. This week happens to be finals week, which I would have expected to be pretty uneventful since I’m neither taking classes nor teaching this quarter. But somehow the anxiety of finals week has made its way to me from the university. I’m in the midst of craziness of finishing up projects, getting organized for my research, attending graduations, and making plans for a research road trip. My dear friend Karen is graduating tomorrow (she is officially now a doctor of philosophy!) and I can’t wait to see her in her purple velvet poofy hat and robes. In any case, it’s been an especially busy week.

This is a recipe from the baby shower. These cookies are truly an ode to Eric. He loves shortbread and lemon-flavored things. It happens to be the same dough as the raspberry and apricot shortbread thumbprint cookies. These are delicate, sweet and slightly tart, and perfect tiny delightful bites. When I first tasted them, I declared, “these are lemony stars from heaven!”

The Recipe

Makes a lot of stars

For the cookies: 

1 cup vegan shortening (Earth Balance will do)

3/4 cup vegan powdered sugar (Wholesome Sweeteners is a great brand)

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

For the icing:

1/2 cup vegan powdered sugar

juice of 1 lemon

zest of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 350 F.

FOR THE COOKIES: Cream the butter and powdered sugar with electric mixer (or very well by hand). If the powdered sugar is clumpy, it helps to sift it first. Cream until smooth. Add vanilla and mix. Add flour and salt. Mix until it forms a uniform, soft dough. Roll out to 1/4-1/2 inch thick and, using a tiny star cookie cutter (or a knife), place on a greased or parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes. While the cookies are baking, make the icing.

FOR THE ICING: Sift the powdered sugar for the icing into a bowl, add lemon juice and zest, and stir until smooth and well mixed. Drizzle the icing over the cookies, making sure each one gets a nice little drizzle of icing. Let cool completely.