Wednesday, August 3, 2011

Lemon Pecan Cookies

Although I do prefer to bake from my own ingredients, I'm not above grabbing a cake mix when I need a fast treat or dessert. I especially appreciate the convenience when there is a sale at the grocery store and the boxed cakes mixes are going for a dollar or less. This is a tart cookie with a nice lemon flavor.

Summer Lemon Cookies

1 box lemon cake mix
2 eggs
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon lemon extract
1 tablespoon freshly grated lemon zest
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans or walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl and mix with a spoon not a mixer. Drop dough in walnut-sized balls on the vegetable oil sprayed baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes but keep an eye on your first batch to judge the heat of your oven. When they exit the oven, remove the cookies to a cooling rack.

Icing

1 cup powdered sugar
Enough fresh lemon juice to form a spreadable icing

Drizzle the icing over the cookies before they are completely cool.

Ideas . . .
No time for an icing? Put some powdered sugar in a small mesh strainer and powder them lightly.
Most any cake mix will produce a good cookie, just adjust the flavorings and add-ins.

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