Lemon Cakes

Published Oct. 6, 2021

Lemon Cakes
Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Total Time
40 minutes, plus cooling
Rating
4(883)
Comments
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In the “A Song of Ice and Fire” book series (later known on television as “Game of Thrones”), George R.R. Martin devotes a lot of ink to lemon cakes, a favorite of the Lady of Winterfell Sansa Stark. The cakes have since become a pop culture totem for fans of the series. This recipe is inspired by a version found in “A Feast of Ice and Fire: The Official Game of Thrones Companion Cookbook” by Chelsea Monroe-Cassel and Sariann Lehrer. You don’t need to be a fan of “Game of Thrones” to love these cookielike treats, which are dense in texture, bright in flavor and boast a tart-sweet lemon glaze. The cakes are easy to throw together for a potluck or to satisfy a teatime craving. —Priya Krishna

Featured in: What Do Marvel Characters Eat? Pop-Culture Cookbooks Have Answers, and Rapt Audiences.

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Ingredients

Yield:About 32 cookies
  • 1⅔cups/226 grams all-purpose flour
  • ¾cup/170 grams granulated sugar
  • 6tablespoons/85 grams salted butter
  • 2lemons
  • 1large egg
  • 2large egg yolks
  • cup/41 grams confectioners’ sugar
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (32 servings)

77 calories; 3 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 1 gram monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 13 grams carbohydrates; 0 grams dietary fiber; 7 grams sugars; 1 gram protein; 20 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

  2. Step 2

    In a large bowl, combine the flour and granulated sugar. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender or two knives to form crumbs with some pebbly bits, then zest the lemons directly into the bowl. In another small bowl, combine the egg and egg yolks. Squeeze 1 tablespoon juice from a lemon and mix into the eggs. Pour the egg mixture into the flour mixture, and gently stir until the dough comes together.

  3. Step 3

    Roll the dough into 1-inch balls and space 2 inches apart on the prepared sheets. Bake, 1 sheet at a time, until the tops look just set and dry, 12 to 13 minutes. Cool completely on the sheets.

  4. Step 4

    Place the confectioners’ sugar in a small bowl. Squeeze 1½ teaspoons juice from a lemon, and stir into the confectioners’ sugar until smooth and the consistency of icing. Add more lemon juice if needed. Drizzle over the cooled cookies. Let stand until set.

Ratings

4 out of 5
883 user ratings
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Comments

Well, I've made them gluten-free and they turned out fine, for whatever that's worth. It's a fairly gloppy dough, and mine have never looked this pretty, but they taste good, so...

Added 2 Tsp of baking powder, made the cookies more cake like and airy and fluffy. So good!

Made with Meyer lemons from my tree. Added 1 tsp of baking powder and 1/4 tsp of salt because I was concerned that there was no leavening. Also my lemons are quite large so there is a LOT of zest and I added extra juice. DELICIOUS and light textured. A keeper.

These are sophisticated, but your lemons need to big (like mine were) to get the tons of zest, which make them lovely. These are a smart treat for folks who like lemon and a pretty yellow cookie. I followed recipe for first batch, but then baked them for 14 minutes going forward. Might try flattening them next time and making each cookie ball larger than inch. No way those in the pic were an inch. I’d say next time I’ll make them 3 inches and flatten them a bit before putting in oven.

These were good, but didn't blow me away.

can anyone offer insight on to why mine are “leaking” butter during cooking? tried my best to make the butter as crumbly as I could without a pastry slicer thing. I definitely did not yield 32.. got around half that but didn’t add to much butter so I’m quite confused.

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Credits

Adapted from “A Feast of Ice and Fire: The Official Game of Thrones Companion Cookbook” by Chelsea Monroe-Cassel and Sariann Lehrer (Bantam, 2012)..

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