Meyer Lemon Ricotta Cookies

After a recent visit to my brother's house I brought home a bagful of delicious meyer lemons, one of my favorite citrus fruits.  The dilemma now was what to make with them.  I've done lemon bars and mini tarts numerous times so I was looking for something new.

I remembered seeing these lemon ricotta cookies on an episode of Giade De Laurentiis' Everyday Italian.  The addition of ricotta cheese to a cookie intrigued me enough to give the recipe a try. 

The cookies baked up flatter than I was hoping for but were still quite good.  Actually, the taste and shape of the baked rounds reminded me a little of whoopie pies.  The lemon glaze topping gave the cookies a hit of tart sweetness, perfect with a cup of tea.

Meyer Lemon Ricotta Cookies (adapted slightly from Giada de Laurentiis)

Cookies
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (you may want to add a little more for less flat cookies)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 (15-ounce) container whole milk ricotta cheese
3 tablespoons meyer lemon juice
1 meyer lemon, zested
1/4 teaspoon lemon extract

Glaze
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons meyer lemon juice
1 meyer lemon, zested

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In the large bowl combine the butter and the sugar. Using an electric mixer beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating until incorporated. Add the ricotta cheese, lemon juice, lemon zest and lemon extract. Beat to combine. Stir in the dry ingredients.

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Spoon the dough (about 2 tablespoons for each cookie) onto the baking sheets. Bake for 15 minutes, until slightly golden at the edges. Remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 20 minutes.

Glaze: Combine the powdered sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest in a small bowl and stir until smooth. Spoon about 1/2-teaspoon onto each cookie and use the back of the spoon to gently spread. Let the glaze harden for about 2 hours.