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    Home » Recipes » Baking

    Easy Lemon Biscuits Recipe

    Published: Mar 22, 2021 · Modified: May 16, 2024 by Beth Sachs · 15 Comments · This post may contain affiliate links.

    Jump to Recipe
    lemon biscuits pinterest image.

    These easy lemon biscuits are beautifully buttery and just perfect for afternoon tea with a pot of Earl Grey!

    Only a handful of ingredients are needed and just fifteen minutes in the oven (plus a little chilling time in the fridge) before you can tuck into these tasty bitesize lemon biscuits.

    A lemon biscuit broken in half to show texture.

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    These easy lemon cookies are a great bake to make with kids. My lot love creaming the butter and sugar together (and sneakily licking the spoon when I'm not looking!).

    They are perfectly sweet bitesize biscuits that the whole family will love!

    Jump to:
    • 🥘 Ingredients
    • 🔪 Instructions
    • 🍴 Serving suggestions
    • 📖 Variations
    • 🥡 Storage
    • 😋Related recipes
    • Recipe
    • 💬 Comments

    🥘 Ingredients

    Ingredients needed for lemon biscuits.
    • Lemons (zest and juice)
    • Butter
    • Caster Sugar
    • Egg
    • Plain Flour
    • Baking Powder

    🔪 Instructions

    The recipe card with ingredient quantities and detailed instructions can be found at the bottom of the post

    One: Preheat the oven to 190°c (170 fan/ 375F/ Gas 5) and line a large baking tray with baking paper.

    Two: Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

    Three: Beat in the egg, lemon zest and lemon juice.

    Four: Stir in the flour and baking powder and mix to form a dough. If the mixture is a little dry add a tablespoon of water and mix and continue to do this until a smooth dough forms.

    Top Tip: Bring the dough together with your hands to help form a smooth dough ball.

    Five: Cover the bowl with clingfilm and chill the dough in the fridge for 15 minutes.

    Six: Take tablespoons of the dough and roll into balls. Place on the baking sheet (you should get about 20 cookies). Flatten down slightly with the back of a spoon.

    Seven: Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Take out of the oven and flatten down again with the back of a spoon. These biscuits do not spread and are meant to be thick, round and bitesize.

    Eight: Once cool sift over the icing sugar and serve!

    Main steps for making lemon biscuits.

    🍴 Serving suggestions

    These lemon biscuits are lovely as part of an afternoon tea, or just as a bitesize sweet pick-me-up when your energy levels are flagging!

    📖 Variations

    • Use lime or orange instead of lemon.
    • Make a lemon drizzle icing by mixing icing sugar with lemon juice.
    • Dip half of each lemon biscuit in melted chocolate and allow to set on a baking tray.
    • Add a handful of chopped nuts to the dough for added crunch and texture. Pecan or hazelnuts would both work well.
    A tray of baked lemon biscuits.

    🥡 Storage

    The dough for these lemon butter biscuits can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge until ready to bake (the dough can be made up to 48 hours ahead).

    Once baked the biscuits will keep in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

    The biscuits can also be frozen for up to 3 months in a freezer safe container or freezer bag.

    😋Related recipes

    More delicious lemon recipes to try!

    • Lemon Blueberry Polenta Cake
    • Lemon Curd Tartlets
    • Lemon Curd Loaf Cake
    • Blackberry and Lemon Muffins
    • Lemon Drizzle Loaf

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    Recipe

    A lemon biscuit broken in half.
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    5 from 26 votes

    Easy Lemon Biscuits

    These easy lemon biscuits are beautifully buttery and just perfect for afternoon tea with a pot of earl grey!
    Course Cookie
    Cuisine British
    Prep Time 10 minutes minutes
    Cook Time 15 minutes minutes
    Chilling Time 15 minutes minutes
    Total Time 40 minutes minutes
    Servings 20
    Calories 98kcal
    Author Beth Sachs
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    Equipment

    • Kitchen Scales
    • Mixing Bowl
    • Wooden Spoon
    • Baking Sheets
    • Baking Paper

    Ingredients

    Metric - US Customary
    • 80 g Butter softened
    • 100 g Caster Sugar
    • 1 Egg
    • 2 Lemons zest from both and juice from one
    • 240 g Plain Flour
    • 2 teaspoon Baking Powder

    To decorate

    • 25 g Icing Sugar

    Instructions

    • Preheat the oven to 190°c (170 fan/ 375F/ Gas 5) and line a large baking tray with baking paper.
    • Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
    • Beat in the egg, lemon zest (from 2 lemons) and the lemon juice from just 1 of the lemons.
    • Stir in the flour and baking powder and mix to form a dough. If the mixture is a little dry add more lemon juice (from the second lemon) and mix and continue to do this until a smooth dough forms. Use your hands to bring the dough together in the bowl.
    • Cover the bowl with clingfilm and chill the dough in the fridge for 15 minutes.
    • Take tablespoons of the dough and roll into balls. Place on the baking sheet (you should get about 20 cookies). Flatten down slightly with the back of a spoon.
    • Bake in the oven for 15 minutes. Take out of the oven and flatten down again with the back of a spoon. These biscuits do not spread and are meant to be thick, round and bitesize.
    • Once cool sift over the icing sugar and serve!

    Notes

    Variations:
    • Use lime or orange instead of lemon.
    • Make a lemon drizzle icing by mixing icing sugar with lemon juice.
    • Dip half of each lemon biscuit in melted chocolate and allow to set on a baking tray.
    • Add a handful of chopped nuts to the dough for added crunch and texture. Pecan or hazelnuts would both work well.
     
    Nutrition: The nutritional information provided is approximate and is calculated using online tools. Information can vary depending on various factors, but we have endeavoured to be as accurate as possible.
     
    Nutrition Facts
    Easy Lemon Biscuits
    Amount per Serving
    Calories
    98
    % Daily Value*
    Fat
     
    2
    g
    3
    %
    Saturated Fat
     
    1
    g
    6
    %
    Trans Fat
     
    1
    g
    Cholesterol
     
    8
    mg
    3
    %
    Sodium
     
    46
    mg
    2
    %
    Potassium
     
    34
    mg
    1
    %
    Carbohydrates
     
    18
    g
    6
    %
    Fiber
     
    1
    g
    4
    %
    Sugar
     
    7
    g
    8
    %
    Protein
     
    2
    g
    4
    %
    Vitamin A
     
    16
    IU
    0
    %
    Vitamin C
     
    6
    mg
    7
    %
    Calcium
     
    34
    mg
    3
    %
    Iron
     
    1
    mg
    6
    %
    * Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
    Tried this recipe?Snap a pic and tag @effortlessf00d on Instagram or Twitter

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Danielle Wolter

      March 22, 2021 at 10:56 am

      5 stars
      I am a sucker for lemon flavored anything. These were just incredible and had the perfect amount of lemony flavor!

      Reply
      • Ali

        August 17, 2023 at 8:25 am

        5 stars
        So easy! I added coconut... About half a cup?... And rolled in baking paper to chill, then sliced into neat little rounds. Cooked evenly... A generous layer of icing sugar... YUM! THANK YOU!!

        Reply
    2. Claudia Lamascolo

      March 22, 2021 at 11:15 am

      5 stars
      I can just imagine how delicious these biscuits are with lemon we love that fresh citrus test on the list of must trys!!

      Reply
    3. Allyssa

      March 22, 2021 at 11:47 am

      5 stars
      Thank you so much for this lemon biscuit! It's so easy and quick to do. I love it!

      Reply
    4. Laura

      March 22, 2021 at 11:57 am

      5 stars
      These are so good and I just love how light they turn out. They're perfect as an accompaniment for tea.

      Reply
    5. Natalie

      March 22, 2021 at 12:38 pm

      5 stars
      Simple yet so delicious. Perfect cookies to welcome Spring. I will definitely make this for my family. Thanks for idea!

      Reply
    6. Stear

      August 14, 2021 at 10:10 am

      5 stars
      Soooo easy to make, lovely flavour. A lovely cross between a biscuit and a bun.

      Reply
      • Mike

        November 13, 2022 at 7:53 am

        These are great, recipe is spot on, thanks.

        Reply
    7. P.Barnes

      March 03, 2022 at 4:33 pm

      5 stars
      Lovely light tasty buns

      Reply
    8. Anne

      April 20, 2022 at 5:52 am

      5 stars
      Recipe calls for 2 lemons but only 1 used in method ?????

      Reply
      • Beth Sachs

        April 20, 2022 at 8:09 am

        Hi Anne
        You need the zest of 2 lemons but the juice of only 1. I've re-written the method to make it a little clearer.

        Reply
    9. Yasmin

      September 03, 2023 at 2:43 pm

      5 stars
      These are great. I made them today and they turned out perfect. My kids loved them also.

      Reply
    10. Valerie

      September 15, 2023 at 12:09 pm

      5 stars
      These are simple and delicious 😋. I put lemon icing on the top.

      Reply
    11. Suzana

      January 02, 2024 at 10:59 pm

      I helped my 6 years old make this today and we all loved it!
      We used the warm juice of the second lemon with a bit of honey to drizzle over the cookies when still hot and it added a delicious extra sweet and zing! Lovely 🙂

      Reply
    12. Rae

      September 04, 2024 at 5:24 am

      5 stars
      Even though I messed up the ingredients,(realising my one lemon yielded a lot of juice and had to add extra flour,) the result was a flatter biscuit that still tasted great!

      Reply
    5 from 26 votes (14 ratings without comment)

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    Hi, I'm Beth!

    Mum of three (and two crazy dogs), living in Cornwall, UK. I love creating easy, delicious and fuss-free recipes, perfect for busy families, just like my own.

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