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Lemon Cake Mix Cookies are soft, sweet and brimming with zesty flavor! Making perfect lemon crinkle cookies is easy with a boxed cake mix and a handful of ingredients.
I love the dusting of powdered sugar on top of these lemon cookies.
A batch of these delicious lemon cookies is just what you need to brighten a dreary day or even add more light to a sunny day!
SAVE THIS SAVE THIS EASY CAKE MIX COOKIE RECIPE TO YOUR FAVORITE PINTEREST BOARD!
Have you ever had cookies made with cake mix? It might sound weird, but the results speak for themselves. Making cookies from cake mix is one of the easiest ways to create perfectly soft, chewy, delicious cookies in all kinds of flavors.
Today’s Lemon Cake Mix Cookies are packed with puckery lemon flavor and lightly dusted with powdered sugar. If you love lemon bars and easy recipes, this one is definitely a must-try!
What do I need?
You only need 5 ingredients to make Lemon Crinkle Cookies!
Lemon Cake Mix – Cake mix has all the dry ingredients you would normally add separately in cookies made from scratch. You can use any brand of lemon cake mix!
Vegetable oil – This tenderizes the dough for moist, chewy cookies.
Eggs – Use medium to large eggs for best results.
Fresh lemon – This recipe uses both lemon juice and lemon zest for a powerful punch. The juice adds acidity to enhance the lemon flavors in the cake mix, while the zest elevates the flavors, aromas and texture of the cookies.
Powdered sugar – Sprinkle this over the cookies before baking to give them added sweetness and marvelous crackling tops!
Pro Tip: Zest your lemon before juicing it. Zesting helps soften the rind so the lemon will release more juice when squeezed. Do you refrigerate your lemons? I suggest letting them come at room temperature for easiest juicing and zesting.
Also, roll the lemon on the counter while pressing down with your hand before cutting it in half. You’ll be able to squeeze more juice out of it this way.
How to Make Cookies with Cake Mix
Making cookies from a cake mix is just as easy as making a cake with a mix!
STEP 1. Make the dough
Combine cake mix, oil and eggs in a mixing bowl. Blend in lemon juice and zest.
STEP 2. Chill the dough
Cover the bowl of dough with plastic wrap or foil. Refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes. You can even let it chill overnight! Preheat the oven to 350 before you take the dough out of the fridge.
NOTE: Changing refrigeration time on the dough will affect the outcome of this cookie. Keep refrigeration time as close to 30 minutes as possible.
STEP 3. Dust with powdered sugar
Roll the chilled dough into balls and place them on a baking sheet. Use a sifter to lightly dust the powdered sugar over each cookie.
STEP 4. Bake
Bake the cookies for about 12 minutes or until they appear set but not browned.
Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes. They’ll continue to set up to the perfect consistency with crinkly tops!
How do I store my lemon crinkle cookies?
You may store these cookies in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
Recipes with Cake Mix
As much as I love baking from scratch, sometimes you can’t beat the results you get when you start with a boxed mix. I love that it takes the guess work out of baking and that it’s so versatile.
My poke cake recipes always start with a box of cake mix, usually a white or yellow cake. This Lemon Marshmallow Poke Cake is another one to add to your list if you like sweet and tangy desserts. You’ll love this Key Lime Creme Poke Cake just as much.
Did you know you can use cake mix in ice cream recipes too? My family still talks about how amazing this Cake Batter Ice Cream turned out!
Check out all the fun ways to bake with cake mix I’ve shared on the blog!
- Strawberry Poke Cake
- Patriotic Poke Cake
- Easy Tiramisu Poke Cake
- Pineapple Rum Cake
- Red Velvet Cherry Dream Bars
- Easy Lemon Cake
Now that I know how easy and tasty it is to make cookies with cake mix, I might have to try some other cake mix cookie recipes soon too.
Lemon Recipes
I have a special place in my heart (and my stomach) for all kinds of lemon treats, as is well-documented here on the blog. There’s something about the pairing of sweet and tangy flavor and bright yellow color that makes me happy, even on “blah” days.
Here are some of my very favorite lemon recipes I know you’ll love too.
- Lemon Sugar Snaps
- Lemon Ricotta Pound Cake
- Lemon Crepes
- Blueberry Lemon Bread
- Copycat Chick-fil-A Frosted Lemonade Recipe
- Lemon Meringue Rice Krispie Treats
- No-Bake Lemon Cheesecake
- Lemon Poppy Seed Dutch Baby (aka German Pancake)
Cookie Recipes
After you fall in love with these lemon cookies, keep your apron on and make some of these other deliciously easy cookie recipes my family–and my blog readers–can’t get enough of.
- Peanut Butter Crinkle Cookies
- Whipped Shortbread Cookies
- Dark Chocolate Cherry Oatmeal Cookies
- Fluffernutter Cookies
- Lemon Sugar Snaps
- Vanilla Cut-Out Sugar Cookies
- Oreo Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Ginger Molasses Snickerdoodles
- Chai Snickerdoodles
- Chocolate Coconut Cookies
- Coconut Macadamia Sugar Cookies
- Oatmeal Butterscotch Cookies
Grab a fresh lemon and a box of cake mix to make the best ever Lemon Crinkle Cookies! The zesty aroma, tangy lemon flavor and crinkly powdered sugar tops keep everyone coming back for more.
Created by: Lynne Feifer
Lemon Cake Mix Cookies
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Prep Time 5 minutes minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes minutes
Total Time 47 minutes minutes
12 cookies
Lemon Cake Mix Cookies are soft, sweet and brimming with zesty flavor! Making perfect lemon crinkle cookies is easy with a boxed cake mix and a handful of ingredients.
Equipment
Baking Sheet
parchment paper
citrus zester
Cookie scoop
Mixer
sifter or fine sieve
cooling rack
Ingredients
- 15.25 ounces lemon cake mix
- ½ cup vegetable oil
- 2 medium-size eggs can substitute large eggs
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- ¼ cup powdered sugar
Instructions
In a large mixing bowl, add the box of lemon cake mix, ½ cup vegetable oil, and 2 eggs. Mix ingredients together using a hand or stand mixer on low just until combined.
Blend in the 2 tablespoons of lemon juice and 2 teaspoons lemon zest. Once combined, cover the the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate dough for at least a minimum of 30 minutes. See note.
Prepare a large baking sheet by lining it with a piece of parchment. Preheat oven to 350° F just before removing the dough from the refrigerator.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and using a cookie scoop or spoon to measure dough into balls about 2 inches. Place them about 1-inch apart on the prepared baking sheet.
Put the powdered sugar into a sifter or fine mesh sieve and lightly dust each cookie.
Bake for approximately 12 minutes or until set. Remove before they begin to brown. Cool on the baking sheet for about 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool for an additional 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
Changing refrigeration time on the dough will affect the outcome of this cookie. Keep refrigeration time as close to 30 minutes as possible.
Nutrition
Serving: 1cookie | Calories: 153kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 27mg | Sodium: 273mg | Potassium: 30mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 40IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 81mg | Iron: 1mg
