My wife and I have been making this lime meltaway cookies recipe for about 20 years. They are a small, satisfying cookie that will give you a sweet ending to your holiday meal. The lime meltaway cookies can be made ahead of time. They only take about 25 minutes to mix and about 8 minutes to bake. The dough needs to cool for at least an hour, but can be used the next day. The lime meltaway cookies are a Christmas cookie that is requested by my family every year. I am sure they will become a family favorite of yours!
Zesting and juicing the limes
I have learned the hard way that it is best to zest before juicing the limes. It does seem obvious, but if you are in a rush you may end up juicing before zesting.
Combining the ingredients for the lime meltaway cookies
The first step is to cream the butter with 1/3 of the powdered sugar. While the butter is creaming, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, and salt in an appropriate bowl. When the butter is creamed, add the vanilla, lime juice, and lime zest. Mix until combined. Add the flour, corn starch, and salt. The mixture will then come together as a smooth dough. Split the dough into two even pieces. Roll each dough into 1 1/2 inch logs and chill for at least an hour and up to two days.
Slicing and baking the dough
When the dough is chilled, slice the dough into 1/4 inch cookies. 1/4 inch square dowels work as a great guide for this. You should be able to get about 70 cookies out of both logs. Place the cookies about one inch apart on a lined baking sheet. Bake the cookies for about 15 minutes at 350 degrees F. The cookies should start to brown slightly on the edges when they are done
The smell of the lime meltaway cookies baking will bring the holidays home. However, these cookies are wonderful year round!
Another make ahead cookie I have is the pecan shortbread cookie!
Please visit my cookies page for more ideas!
Ingredients
- 1½ sticks of room temperature unsalted butter
- 1 cup of powdered sugar divided
- Zest of two limes
- 2 tablespoons of lime juice
- 1 tablespoon of vanilla extract
- 1 ¾ cups of flour
- 2 tablespoons of cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon of sea salt
Instructions
- Cream butter and ⅓ of the powdered sugar with a hand mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
- Add lime juice, lime zest, and vanilla. Mix until combined.
- In an appropriately sized bowl, mix together flour, corn starch, and salt.
- Add flour mixture to butter mixture and mix on slow speed until combined.
- Roll dough into two 1 ½ inch logs. Wrap in parchment paper and refrigerate for at least an hour.
- When dough is chilled, cut dough into ¼ inch thick rounds.
- Place rounds on a parchment lined baking sheet one inch apart.
- Bake at 350 degrees F for 8-10 minutes or until just golden brown.
- After baking, let cookies cool for 15 minutes on a wire rack.
- The rest of the powdered sugar can be sprinkled on. The other option is to place the powdered sugar in a plastic bag and add the cookies. Shake carefully not to break the cookies.