"The lemons grow like tumors, they are tiny suns infused with sour…" (Sleater-Kinney/"Jumpers"/from The Woods album)

There is something satisfying about lemon baked goods, no matter what form they take. Bright, intense flavor all from the same simple source — a lemon. I had never tried this very basic recipe before last week, but I found that it was successful and easy.

Chewy lemon cookies
Recipe
2 3/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
zest of one lemon
4 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup sugar for rolling the balls of cookie dough

Preheat oven to 350F

Sift dry ingredients together and set them aside.

Beat butter and sugar together, add egg, vanilla, lemon zest and lemon juice. Gradually blend the dry ingredients in. Roll dough into balls (with about a teaspoon of dough), roll them in sugar. Bake 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from pans to cool.