If you're like me and love the pucker of a good lemon, you're going to become obsessed with these Lemon Cake Mix Cookies. I’ve been on a cake mix baking journey lately. Figuring out how to keep my love of baking alive, while I'm in the thick of things with a busy family has been interesting. And this 4-ingredient cookie recipe has helped me keep baking despite the chaos of it all.
They're as easy to make as my red velvet cake mix cookies and my tangy lemon dump cake and best part ever the base of the recipe is the same—store-bought boxed cake mix. Cake mix recipes have saved me so many times over the past year, I should really write a book about it (😉hint, hint).
Save my lemon slice-and-bake cookies for a day you want to do some leisurely baking. When you are pressed for time (or when your kiddo tells you at 9pm that you need to bring cookies to school for a bake sale, class party, or just because the next day), this is the lemon cookie recipe for you to grab.
Ingredients
- Cake mix: Either a 15 or 16 oz box cake mix will work. I’m partial to Duncan Hines, but any brand you like will work. These cake mixes are a pantry staple in my home.
- Vegetable Oil: You can substitute for the same amount of butter. Or for a real pucker, use lemon butter instead.
- Eggs: I always use large eggs when baking.
- Lemon: You’ll use both the zest and the juice. Use a microplane to zest the outside of the lemon and then flip it over to catch the seeds while you squeeze the juice into a small bowl.
How to Make Lemon Cookies with Cake Mix
In a large mixing bowl, add the lemon cake mix, lemon juice, lemon zest, eggs and oil.
Stir until you can’t see any more dry cake mix. You don’t want to overmix.
Using a cookie scoop to make sure all your cookies are the same size, scoop the cookie dough onto your prepared baking tray, leaving about 2” between dough balls.
Bake for 8-10 minutes until you see cracks on the top of the cookies, being careful not to overbake them.
Remove from the baking tray to a cooling rack and once cool, enjoy!
Additions
- Lemon Drizzle: Mix up a glaze of powdered sugar, a splash of milk or water and lemon juice, or use only lemon just for a real pucker.
- Sugar Pearls: These little balls of sugar make a great decoration on the lemon cookie.
- Mini chocolate candies: Have a kiddo pick the yellow m&m's out of a bag of mini m&m's. Press them onto the cookies just before baking or immediately when they come out of the oven.
Variations
While lemon cookies from a cake mix are delicious on their own, I have 3 easy ways to dress them up for a sweet table, holiday cookie swap or for a teacher appreciation cookie tray.
- Lemon sandwich cookies: You’ll want to look for two cookies that are the same size. Then place a dollop of either vanilla buttercream or lemon butter cream in the middle of one cookie and top with the other one, pressing down slightly to distribute the filling well.
- Lemon Crinkle Cookies: Roll each cookie dough ball in powdered sugar before baking for a crinkle effect on the baked cookies.
- Mini Cookies: Use a mini cookie scoop or teaspoon measuring spoon to make mini cookies. Everything seems cuter when it’s tiny! The mini cookies can get the crinkle or sandwich cookie treatment as well.
Storage Tips
Store the lemon cookies in a zip top bag or air tight container on the counter for up to 4 days. If you have decorated them or made sandwich cookies, I suggest using wax paper or parchment paper to separate the layers in your container.
Freezing Instructions: You can either freeze the cookie dough balls before baking, or bake the cookies as directed and freeze them already baked. They will last in the freezer up to 2 months.
Other Super Simple Desserts
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Recipe
📖 Recipe
Easy Lemon Cake Mix Cookies (4-ingredients)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 box Lemon Cake Mix (I like Duncan Hines)
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup oil
- 1 lemon juice and zest
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350℉ and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the cake mix, the eggs and the oil. Stir until you can’t see any more dry cake mix. You don’t want to overmix.
- Using a cookie scoop to make sure all your cookies are the same size, scoop the cookie dough onto your prepared baking tray, leaving about 2” between dough balls.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes until you see cracks on the top of the cookies, being careful not to overbake them. Remove from the baking tray and let cool.
Notes
- To make lemon sandwich cookies you’ll need 1 tub of vanilla frosting for the filling.
- To make lemon crinkle cookies, you’ll need 1 cup of powdered sugar to roll the cookie dough in before baking
- Freezing Instructions: You can either freeze the cookie dough balls before baking, or bake the cookies as directed and freeze them already baked. They will last in the freezer up to 2 months.
Sabrina says
Is the temp listed somewhere here and I'm just missing it or is it really not there? Lol
Marni Katz says
Ooops! It wasn't there, but I just fixed it. It's 350 degrees F. Thanks for catching that!