Lemon and Poppy-Seed Crinkle Cookies

I can't seem to keep away from Emelia Jackson's book Some of my best friends are Cookies!  I decided to make these for Bookclub in September, as I wasn't going to be there in person.  My biscuits would have to be an excellent substitute :=)  Hehehe ...  

We have a wonderful children's bookshop (which also stocks books for adults) just up the road - The Quick Brown Fox, where we have our monthly bookclub.  We tend to read fiction, which is not big on my reading list (I go for non-fiction and crime usually), but everyone needs to expand their horizons sometimes, n'est-ce pas?   

crinkly, lemony, sugary deliciousness

Makes 35 small(er), or 25 large(er) ones:

ingredients:

125g./4.5 oz butter, softened (not melted)

210g./7.5 oz caster sugar

2 large eggs (about 66g./2.3 oz each)

1/2 tsp lemon extract, or vanilla extract   see Notes

Grated zest and juice of 2 lemons

350g./12 oz plain flour 

1.5 tsp baking powder

30g./1 oz poppy seeds

80g./2.75 oz white sugar

80g./2.75 oz icing sugar

one guess?  Yep lemons, my friends :=)

  aka all-purpose flour!

Method:

Use your stand mixer if you have one, or just good old electric beaters (as I did) to cream the butter and sugar together for a few minutes, till "light and fluffy", as Emelia says

Then you chuck in the eggs, extract, lemon zest and juice, and mix again till combined beautifully - yes it may look ghastly at this stage - all split and curdled - but carry on, my friends - all will improve

Now in go the flour, baking powder and poppy seeds - and mix gently till you have a soft dough

And now chill this in the fridge for at least 2 hours or overnight - I think I chilled mine for about 3 or so hours  (don't skip this bit!)

Your oven then goes on to 200C/390F to heat up

Grab 2 baking trays, and line with baking paper

Now you need 2 bowls (large enough to roll your dough balls in), white sugar in one, and caster sugar in the other

Emelia says to divide the dough into 25g./1 oz balls with a small cookie scoop  (I went off to the shops to buy one!  And I'm so glad!)

So each scoop gets rolled in the white sugar, then the icing sugar, and then ends up sitting nicely on your trays

The biscuits can take from 13 to 16 minutes, depending on the size (mine took about 16 mins.)

They will spread a bit, and look deliciously crinkly, and a wee bit moist in the centre

Let 'em cool on the trays for 10 minutes, then onto a wire rack till cooled right off

I took half of these up to the Quick Brown Fox, where they went down a treat apparently.  And they wanted the recipe - can't do better than that!

you'll never guess - hehehe ...

Notes:

Don't rush out to buy lemon extract for just half a teaspoon.  That's crazy town :=)  Just use vanilla extract, like I did

ingredients gathered

get thee zesting and juicing

looks curdled and disgusting but fear not - all will be well!

just chuck in the other ingredients

See?  Told you it'd be okay in the end :=)

start scooping and rolling and sugaring up

and onto the trays

you caught me out - I took a bite

cooling off nicely

Bookclub said they were delicious!

kind words from the bookshop ladies!