Lemon White Chocolate Cookies

I finally did it.

I successfully melted white chocolate!

My last attempt ended with me yelling every obscenity under the sun alone in my kitchen. I think I know why it worked so well this time—I used white chocolate baking bars instead of white chocolate chips.

I read the back of the box and followed the instructions to a tee. Break the chocolate into pieces, place in a glass microwave-safe bowl, microwave for 30 seconds, and then stir. Microwave for another 30 seconds, then stir again. Repeat for 10 second intervals until chocolate is melted.

It turned out perfect and I had wonderfully melted white chocolate in about 1 minute and 20 seconds. It was such a stark difference from my thrice-seized white chocolate experience in July.

I also discovered that semolina flour in cookies is one of the most brilliant texture combinations on the planet. Semolina is a flour typically reserved for making pasta with, but the crumbly, almost cornbread like texture made these cookies to die for. 

I’m also a sucker for anything lemon-flavored, so this recipe was a must-make for myself. Try them topped with whatever nut you want, but keep the white chocolate & lemon combo!

Lemon White Chocolate Cookies

• Servings: 12
• Time: 40 mins
• Difficulty: Medium
• Print

A light, crumbly lemon cookie flavored with limoncello and topped with drizzled white chocolate & chopped pecans.

Ingredients

• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup semolina flour
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 12 TBS. unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 TBS. olive oil
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg yolk
• 3 TBS. limoncello
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• finely grated lemon zest and juice of 1 lemon
• 8 oz. white chocolate baking bar, broken into pieces
• 1/2 cup chopped nuts (pecans, walnuts, or pistachios)

Directions

1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, semolina flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
2. In a large mixer, beat the butter and sugar on low for 2 minutes or until creamy and fluffy. In another large bowl, whisk together the egg, egg yolk, limoncello, vanilla, olive oil, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Add lemon mixture to the creamed butter and set mixer to medium speed and beat until smooth.
3. Reduce mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture gradually. Beat until flour is just combined. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Scoop out about 1 TBS. of dough and roll with hands into 1/2″ thick logs. Continue with the rest of the dough. Arrange cookies about 2 inches apart on the baking sheets. Bake in batched until golden around the edges, about 18 minutes.
5. Let cookies cool for a few minutes on the baking sheets and then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
6. Meanwhile, melt the white chocolate according to package directions (30 second intervals in the microwave, usually). Drizzle white chocolate over cooled cookies and then sprinkle with chopped nuts. Let set at room temperature for about 15 minutes.

Step-By-Step Instructions

In a large bowl, sift together flour, semolina flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

In a large mixer set on low speed, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Meanwhile, in a large bowl, whisk together olive oil, egg, egg yolk, limoncello, vanilla, lemon zest and lemon juice. Add lemon mixture to the mixer and continue to beat on low until smooth. Add flour mixture and beat until just combined. Cover dough with plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Take a tablespoon of dough out and then roll with hands into a 1/2″ log. Continue with the rest of the dough.

Arrange cookies about 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake in batches until golden around the edges, about 18 minutes.

Let cookies cool for a few minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer to racks to cool completely. Meanwhile, melt the white chocolate bar according to package instructions (usually 30 second intervals in the microwave).

Drizzle melted white chocolate over cooled cookies and then top with chopped nuts. Let set at room temperature for about 15 minutes.