Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Zest one whole lemon. In a large bowl, stir or rub the granulated sugar and lemon zest together until the sugar is moist and fragrant.
• Add the softened unsalted butter (2/3 cup) to the sugar mixture. Beat with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed.
• Add the eggs (2), 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, and 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract. Mix just until combined.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the all-purpose flour (2 cups) and baking powder (2 teaspoons).
• Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix on low speed or stir by hand until just combined. Do not overmix.
• Using a cookie scoop about 1 1/2 tablespoons in size, portion the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between each cookie.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 10–12 minutes, or until the bottoms of the cookies are golden.
• Remove the baking sheet from the oven and allow the cookies to rest on the sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer the cookies to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
• Once the cookies are completely cool, make the glaze: in a small bowl whisk together the sifted confectioners' sugar (1 1/4 cups), 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons milk until smooth.
• Spoon or pipe the glaze over the cooled cookies. If desired, immediately sprinkle with sparkling sugar.
• Let the glaze harden at room temperature before serving.