If you were a fan of the Sunshine Lemon Cooler back in the day, you will want to make this copycat lemon cooler cookie recipe.
Crunchy lemon cookies blanketed in a sweet and tangy shower of sugar, these cookies are almost a dead ringer for the originals. All that’s missing is the green box!
As with most copycat recipes, these have a lot of ingredients to get the flavor as close to the original as possible. I will show you how to make these little sunshiny bites that I loved so much as a kid. And where possible, I will give you substitutions should you not want to purchase specialty ingredients. I get it!
If you like a copycat that isn’t just inspired by an original but attempts to duplicate it as faithfully as possible, you’re in the right place. You may also want to check out my copycat Little Debbie oatmeal creme pies.
For ease of browsing, you can find all my cookie recipes in one place. Thanks so much for visiting.
Let’s get to it!
See my lemon coolers recipe web story here.
These cookies are indeed seriously awesome! I made them yesterday. I cannot stop popping them in my mouth! They remind me of a childhood favorite.
Reader and Lemon Cooler Lover Allison
My parents were here yesterday. Mom said she could picture the green box as she was savoring them too.
Lemon Coolers Vs. Lemon Cookies
You may wonder, especially if you have never had one before, what makes lemon coolers different from regular lemon cookies.
Well, lemon cookies are generally soft, bakery-style cookies that may also have a lemon glaze or lemon icing. They are cake like and fairly delicate.
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A lemon cooler, on the other hand, is a small, crunchy, intensely lemony cookie that is coated in lemony powdered sugar.
The hit from the lemon is hard and fast, yet it recedes pretty quickly so that you can then enjoy another one. And another one!
Here’s what a cross-section of my guys look like so you can get an idea of the texture. Golden-brown around the edges and crunchy all the way through:
Do They Still Make Lemon Coolers?
The answer is a very, very sad, “No.”
Sunshine Bakery, started in the early 1900s in New York, made these lovely little zingy lemon cookies for decades.
Then Keebler bought them in the mid 1990s and stopped making Lemon Coolers. We were all sad.
At some point in the early 2010s, a small company called Niche Foods (also now out of business) began making them. I saw them at a Cracker Barrel once and was thrilled. Of course I bought some, and they tasted mostly like I’d remembered, although not quite as lemony.
Alas, the Niche Foods experiment didn’t last long, and they disappeared again, never to return apparently, at some point in 2011-2012 or so.
If you grew up eating lemon coolers straight out of the box and you miss them like I miss them, you’ll want to give this copycat a shot, friends.
Why Make This Lemon Cooler Cookie Recipe?
There are plenty of lemon cooler recipes out there on the Internet, and I am sure they are all quite tasty.
When I set out to make a copycat recipe, I try to get it as close to the original as possible, so that’s what I did here.
I found the ingredient list for the original Lemon Coolers cookies made by the Sunshine Bakery up until the late 1990s, and I worked from that recipe.
Here is the ingredient list and the ingredients I used to interpret them:
- Enriched flour: all-purpose flour
- Sugar: Granulated sugar and powdered sugar
- Dextrose: Powdered dextrose or “sugar snow” for the coating. This stuff doesn’t melt like regular powdered sugar does. It’s why powdered donuts stay white
- Vegetable Shortening: Crisco vegetable shortening
- Modified Corn Starch: Instant Clear Jel (modified cornstarch by another name)
- Eggs: 1 large egg
- Salt: kosher salt, ground a little finer in a mortar
- Leavening (Baking Soda, Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate): Baking soda and baking powder
- Artificial Color: Turmeric
- Citric Acid: Powdered lemon
- Oil of Lemon: Lemon extract, lemon zest
- Natural Lemon Flavor: Lemon juice
- Lecithin: An emulsifier present in egg yolk. I also expect there is lecithin in the little “bits” in original lemon coolers. I used mini lemon chips for the “bits”
- Potassium Citrate: A preservative, which I did not use, because these cookies are made to be eaten within just a few days
How to Make Them
This recipe is very easy to make. You don’t need a
Still, I’ll go over all the steps in this section including ingredient recommendations and substitutions.
You are free to jump straight to the recipe if you’re ready to bake.
Ingredients and Substitutions
Here’s what you’ll need to make this lemon cooler cookie recipe. I will provide substitutions where I can.
Note: Linked ingredients are affiliate links and will take you to a link for you to learn more and/or make a purchase.
- Vegetable shortening: I used Crisco. You could also use an organic vegetable shortening such as Spectrum. You can use butter, but it will change the nature of the cookie quite a bit. Your cookies will be tasty, but they will no longer be lemon coolers, so you decide
- Sugar: Granulated or caster sugar, for sweetness, to keep the cookies from being too crunchy, and browning
- Powdered Sugar: I use equal parts, by weight, granulated and powdered sugar. Powdered sugar provides a finer texture than you’d get if just using granulated alone.
- Salt: Counteracts any bitterness from all the lemon going on in these cookies as well as helping to bring out all the flavor
- Lemon zest: Source of floral lemon oil
- Lemon juice: Source of sour lemon flavor
- Lemon extract: More lemony goodness
- Turmeric: I use the merest little bit for color. Probably less than 1/16 teaspoon. You can leave it out entirely, or you can also use a little yellow food color on the end of a toothpick. Even 1 whole drop would probably be too much
- Lemon Powder: This stuff looks like sugar or salt, and it’s made from whole lemons, peel, seeds, and all. So you get full, well-rounded, completely unsweetened lemon flavor. I used this in both the dough and in the sugar coating on the outside of the cookies. You could also use something like True Lemon, unsweetened lemonade mix, or citric acid, which will give you the “zing” without discernable lemon flavor
- Eggs: Just one adds a bit of richness to carry flavor, liquid to help dissolve sugar and salt, and structure to these cookies
- All-purpose flour: Provides the basic structure and crumb
- Instant Clear Jel: Instant Clear Jel (ICJ) is modified food starch, also called modified cornstarch. It’s the magic ingredient that allows instant pudding to thicken at room temperature. It adds a little bulk without extra gluten, keeping the cookies light-feeling. The cornstarch also binds water, so it prevents rapid staling. You can substitute with plain cornstarch, or consider using cake flour in place of all-purpose and icj
- Baking Powder: Assists in the rise or texture. These cookies shouldn’t puff much, if at all, so there is only a small amount of baking powder. But a tiny bit is nice here since it affects the texture of the cookie, keeping it from feeling like a cracker rather than a cookie
- Baking Soda: Leavener. There is not enough baking soda present to neutralize all the acid in the lemon elements, so the cookies are still nice and zingy!
- Lemon Chips: I bought these to approximate the little, lemony “bits” in the original Lemon Coolers. They are not at all tart, and they provide a sweet, lemony element. White baking chips are a fine substitute.
- Sugar Snow: Powdered Dextrose. If you live outside the US and cannot find it on Amazon, you may be able to find it at a confectionary site or one that caters to bakeries rather than home bakers. Sugar snow doesn’t melt into foods like powdered sugar does. It also doesn’t clump up or get sticky, and it’s slightly less sweet than powdered sugar (sucrose). Using powdered dextrose is the closest approximation to original lemon coolers, but you may substitute powdered sugar instead. You may have to roll your cookies in powdered sugar twice.
Procedure
These are very easy to make. In short:
- Mix shortening, sugar, powdered sugar, salt, lemon zest, lemon juice, lemon extract, turmeric, and lemon powder.
- Thoroughly stir in the egg.
- Mix flour, ICJ, baking powder, and baking soda together, then mix into the wet ingredients.
- Blend in the chips last.
Next, it’s time to portion and bake the cookies.
During testing, I scaled the batter at 19 grams, 12 grams, 8 grams, and 5 grams.
Believe it or not, 5 grams, or about a level 1/2 teaspoon measure, is the perfect size. The small size makes them very poppable, one-bite cookies, although 8 grams would work as well.
If scaling at 8 grams, you will be able to get about 35 cookies per half-sheet pan.
If scaling at 5 grams, you can get 48 cookies per tray, in 6 rows of 8. You will have to bake another 11 or so on a third sheet.
- Use a 1/2 teaspoon measure to scoop 5-gram balls of dough. If you don’t want to use your scale for this, just use level 1/2 teaspoons and then roll them into balls.
- Press each ball down slightly to flatten them just a bit.
- Bake at 325F for 15-17 minutes or until they are golden brown around the edges.
- Note the golden brown on the bottoms of the cookies. This is the color you’re going for to ensure that crunchy lemon cooler texture.
Jenni Says: You can certainly bake these for less time to have crisp-on-the-egdes, softer-in-the-middle cookies. They won’t be true copycats, but they’re your cookies and you may want to take them out of the oven at 12 minutes rather than 17. Your call.
While the cookies are baking, shake up your mixture of lemon powder and sugar snow or powdered sugar in a large plastic bag.
Once the cookies are done, let them sit on the cookie sheet for about a minute, and then use a spatula to transfer them to the bag of tart sugar. You can add the whole tray at once, or you can work in batches.
Seal the bag to prevent a sugar blizzard in your kitchen, and then shake the bag gently, rotating it to make sure to thoroughly coat all the cookies in sugar.
Remove them from the bag with a spider or with your hand, gently shaking off any excess sugar.
Jenni Says: If using powdered sugar, you may need to sugar the cookies twice to get a nice coat. Whether using powdered sugar or sugar snow, it will have a better chance of sticking to hot cookies rather than to cooled ones.
Equipment You May Need
Aside from the specialty ingredients, there’s not a lot of special equipment needed to make these lemon cookies.
I always bake cookies on half-sheet pans, and you’ll also need a couple of cooling racks.
I do like a spider to pull cookies out of the bag of sugar snow (or powdered sugar) and powdered lemon. It’s great for scooping the sugared cookies and shaking excess sugar back into the bag.
Great for pulling fried foods out of oil, and also really useful for scooping pieces of chicken out of breading or cookies out of a bag of powdered sugar. This OXO version is similar to the one I have, and I trust the OXO name and quality of their products.
Jenni Says: If your prefer not to use plastic, you can also sugar the cookies in a shallow dish or a paper bag.
Tips and Tricks for Success
No need to chill this dough or let it rest. You can scoop the dough right before baking.
If using a scale, cover the platform with plastic wrap or a piece of parchment or waxed paper. Don’t forget to zero your scale before portioning your dough.
Lemon Cooler Cookie Q & A
Yes, you don’t need to buy all the specialty ingredients if you don’t want to or cannot find them. If you look up in the “ingredients and substitutions” section, I recommend substitutes for all the specialty ingredients. You can also choose to leave out the chips, for example. At the end of the day, only you can decide whether accuracy or ease is the path you want to take. They’ll still be tasty, regardless. I promise.
Stored at room temperature, tightly sealed, these guys will stay nice and crunchy for a good five days or so. I doubt they will last that long, though.
Yes, you may even enjoy eating them frozen like some folks do with Thin Mint cookies. The cookies will keep in a tightly-sealed, freezer-safe container for 3 months or so.
Serving Suggestions
To get the true Lemon Cooler Eating Experience, empty out a box of cereal that has a bag in it.
Put your coolers in the bag in the box, and then eat them, one after the other. Repeat until all cookies are gone.
If you no longer have the metabolism of your youth, enjoy a handful with a cup of coffee or tea.
Or serve them as an accompaniment (dipper?) to creamy lemon ice cream.
Since this recipe makes 107 little cookies, you can even give 20 or so away to a friend. Or not.
I won’t judge you!
Note that the serving size is 5 cookies. I also will not tell if you eat more than that at a time.
Also, for Ultimate Lemon Goodness, sandwich two cookies together with some lemon curd. You will be in lemon heaven!
Other Cookie Recipes You May Enjoy
If you’re a fan of moreish cookies you can crunch one after the other, don’t miss my crispy cocoa cookies. They really are perfectly crispy, and they bake up nice and round and, well, perfect!
And if lemon is your love language, lemon bars are truly a must-make.
I also would be remiss if I didn’t put in a plug for my absolute favorite Christmas cookie, angel slices. They have a sable base, a sort-of gooey pecan and coconut filling, and are topped with a shatteringly thin, tart lemon glaze. They are magical, and I love them.
Questions?
A Note About Measurements
Don't let its small price and small size fool you. The Escali Primo is an accurate and easy-to-use food scale that I have used for years. It's easy to store, easy to use, has a tare function, and easily switches between grams and ounces/pounds for accurate measurements.
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Lemon Cooler Cookie Recipe
Ingredients
For the Sugar Coating
- 170 grams sugar snow or powdered sugar 6 oz or about 1 1/2 cups
- 1-1 ½ teaspoons powdered lemon or to taste
For the Dough
- 87 grams vegetable shortening 3 oz or a scant 1/2 cup
- 74 grams granulated sugar 2.6 oz or about 1/3 cup
- 74 grams powdered sugar 2.6 oz or a generous 1/2 cup
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt lightly crushed so it blends in better
- zest of 2 lemons 5-6 grams
- ½ teaspoon lemon extract
- 18 grams fresh lemon juice 0.6 oz or 4 teaspoons
- ⅜ teaspoon powdered lemon
- a very tiny pinch of turmeric optional, for color
- 1 large egg
- 172 grams all-purpose flour 6 oz or about 1 1/2 cups
- 10 grams instant clear jel or cornstarch 0.4 oz or about 1 Tablespoon
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 57 grams mini lemon baking chips or white baking chips 2 oz or 1/4 cup
Instructions
- Heat oven to 325F and place a rack in the center of the oven. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment.
- Mix sugar snow or powdered sugar and lemon powder together in a large zip-top bag. Set aside for later.
- In a large bowl, use a silicone spatula or wooden spoon to thoroughly combine the shortening, sugar, powdered sugar, salt, lemon extract, lemon juice, lemon zest, powdered lemon, and turmeric.
- Mix in the egg very well.
- In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, instant clear jel, baking powder, and baking soda.
- Dump the dry ingredients into the bowl and blend until everything is evenly mixed and no loose flour remains.
- Add the lemon chips and mix in evenly.
- Scale the dough at 5 grams per cookie, and then roll between your palms gently to make little balls.
- Place them on one parchment-lined pan in 6 rows of 8 for 48 cookies per pan.
- Bake the first pan while you portion the dough for the second.
- Bake for 8 minutes, and then rotate the pan 180 degrees, and bake for another 8-9 minutes, or until the cookies are golden brown around the edges and on the bottoms. This took 17 minutes in my oven. Start checking at around 12-13 minutes.
- Allow cookies to sit on the pan for about 1 minute, and then use a spatula to transfer them to the bag of tart sugar. Shake gently to coat each cookie completely. The cookies should still be hot-but-not-fragile when you add them to the bag. This ensures the sugar will stick to the cookies as well as possible.
- Remove from the sugar and shake off the excess. Allow the cookies to cool completely before storing them in an airtight container.
- Repeat with the remainder of the dough. Note you will need to reuse the first baking sheet to bake the last bit of dough. You can reuse the parchment, also.
Did You Make Any Changes?
Notes
Half-Batch Amounts
makes about 53 5-gram cookies- 43 grams (1.5 oz) vegetable shortening
- 37 grams (1.3 oz) granulated sugar
- 37 grams 1.3 oz or) powdered sugar
- 3/8 teaspoon kosher salt (lightly crushed so it blends in better)
- zest of 1 lemons (2-3 grams)
- 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract
- 9 grams (0.3 oz or 2 teaspoons) fresh lemon juice
- scant 1/4 teaspoon powdered lemon
- a very tiny pinch of turmeric, optional, for color
- 1/2 large egg (23 grams of beaten egg)
- 86 grams (3 oz or about 3/4 cups) all-purpose flour
- 5 grams (0.2 oz or about 1 1/2 teaspoons) instant clear jel or cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 28 grams (1 oz or 2 Tablespoons) mini lemon baking chips or white baking chips
Lemon Cooler Q & A
Are there any optional ingredients in these cookies?
Yes, you don’t need to buy all the specialty ingredients if you don’t want to or cannot find them. If you look up in the “ingredients and substitutions” section, I recommend substitutes for all the specialty ingredients. You can also choose to leave out the chips, for example. At the end of the day, only you can decide whether accuracy or ease is the path you want to take. They’ll still be tasty, regardless. I promise.How long will these cookies keep?
Stored at room temperature, tightly sealed, these guys will stay nice and crunchy for a good five days or so. I doubt they will last that long, though.Can I freeze lemon coolers?
Yes, you may even enjoy eating them frozen like some folks do with Thin Mint cookies. The cookies will keep in a tightly-sealed, freezer-safe container for 3 months or so.Nutrition
Hi, y’all! I hope you’ve enjoyed this post and hopefully also learned a thing or two.
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Thanks so much for spending some time with me today.
I hope you enjoy lemon coolers, friends. They’ll make you feel like a kid again!
Take care, and have a lovely day.
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These cookies are seriously awesome. I cannot stop popping them in my mouth! The lemon flavor develops more as they sit. They remind me of a childhood favorite. Lemon coolers were one of my favorites as a kid. My mom loved them too. So I shared these with my parents. Mom said she could picture the green box as she was savoring these gems.
Thanks for a great recipe!
Absolute delicious! A real treat for Easter baskets I’ll be making!
Oh, wonderful, Susan! I really hope you enjoy them. Would love to hear what you think after you make them. 🙂