Lemon Poppy Seed Cookies for One

I went to a choir retreat last weekend, and the retreat center made the most delicious cookie just for me. This is my first attempt to replicate it—theirs was much more hearty, so I’ll keep trying. Nevertheless, I was pretty pleased with the delicate flavor of my own invention.

For the Cookie:

2 ½ TBLSP vegan butter

¼ cup granulated sugar

½ TBLSP applesauce

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice (about ¼ of a lemon’s worth)

¼ cup all-purpose flour

2 teaspoon lemon zest (about all of the zest from a small lemon)

1 teaspoon poppy seeds

For the Glaze:

6 TBLSP confectioner’s sugar

½ TBLSP lemon juice (or water)

Make the Cookie:

1. In a small bowl, combine the butter, sugar, applesauce, and lemon juice. It will get light and fluffy.
2. Add the flour, zest, and poppy seeds, stirring until just combined.
3. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours. (Or you could freeze it for 30 minutes.)
4. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
5. The dough will be very soft and very sticky.  Heavily flour a surface and your hands, and break off 1-inch balls from the main blob. Roll the balls between your hand and then press them, one at a time, into flat disks on the floured surface. You will probably need to flour both sides by flipping the little darlings over and pressing from the other side too.  The disks should be about 2-inches across and a little thicker than ¼-inch. 
6. Transfer the disks to the prepared baking sheet. You should get about 8 cookies. You can settle them close together if you don’t mind a square-ish result, or give them an inch or more between them if you want the little circles. They will spread a bit.
7. Bake for 12-14 minutes.  They should just be getting golden around the edges.
8. Cool for a few minutes on the cookie sheets, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Make the Glaze:

1. Put the confectioner’s sugar in a small bowl. You can sift it if you’re particular about lumps.
2. Add the lemon juice (or water) and whisk until it’s smooth. If it’s too thick, like frosting, add more liquid. If too thin and runny, add more sugar.
3. Drizzle glaze over the cooled cookies.

This recipe makes enough to share with a friend. You won’t want to, but you could do it.

Variations:

• This recipe works just fine with gluten-free flours, like almond meal.
• Try making a chocolate glaze with a little lemon tang by replacing one of the TBLSP of confectioner’s sugar with cocoa powder.
• You could make fewer, thicker cookies for a more substantial treat.