Air Fryer Lemon Drop Cookies are sweet, tangy, sunny and bright! They are a great summer dessert for picnics, barbecues, and pool parties. Lemon Drop Cookies are a soft sugar cookie made with refreshing lemon juice and lemon extract. Add yellow food coloring for an extra pop of color! Made in 8 minutes using an egg bites mold, cookies in the air fryer form into super cute cookie balls.
Air Fryer Lemon Drop Cookies turn out soft all around, tangy, sweet, and refreshing. They are a fun summer dessert or baking project for kids and teenagers.
They are air fried in an egg bites mold, creating small cookie balls instead of the traditional flat cookie. I have this set of air fryer/instant pot accessories and I love it! This makes them a fun treat to pop into kids' lunch boxes, to take on road trips or summer vacations, or to bring to the office.
Lemon desserts should be enjoyed all spring and summer long. When you're done trying these cookies, make sure to check out this super simple lemon olive oil cake and strawberry lemonade bread.
Air fryer cookies are small batch approved— keep the dough in the fridge until ready to use and make just enough to fit in the egg bite mold at a time. This way you won't eat too many in too short of a time!
Because it doesn't take long to make them, pop a batch in the air fryer when you're ready for fresh cookies.There is also less cleanup involved than when oven baking cookies. With the air fryer, you are cleaning 1 silicone egg bite mold when finished. There is no scrubbing baking sheets or working with parchment paper!
And in the summer when it's hot, the air fryer won't heat up your entire kitchen.
In addition to making these sweet and refreshing lemon cookies, you can use the air fryer method to convert any of your oven-baked sugar cookies into air fried cookies.
Use this method to make Pink Sugar Cookies for Valentine's Day or Soft Sugar Cookies for Christmas. Or any of your favorite sugar cookies!
Yes! The whole reason you are here is to learn how to air fry cookies. There are 2 ways to air fry cookies— using parchment paper and using an egg bites mold.
Egg Bites Mold Method
When using an egg bite mold, cookies in the air fryer are baked into soft balls without one side being crispier than another. They take about 8 minutes with a 5 minute cooling period. With the egg bite mold, the cookies are easy to remove by simply popping them out.
The resulting cookie is a circle or oval shape that is perfectly soft all the way around. These lemon drop cookies are a type of soft sugar cookie that is best air fried in egg bite molds.
They have a nice round uniform presentation, making them cute for parties, picnics, or barbecues. They also make a fun treat to pop into kids' lunchboxes or take to the office.
Parchment Paper Method
Air frying cookies on a parchment-lined basket is tricky. The air flow tends to blow parchment paper around, bleeding the cookies into each other.
The parchment paper method also limits the amount of cookies you can bake at one time. Depending on the size of your air fryer, you may only be able to bake 2-4 cookies at a time. My Instant Pot Duo Crisp can only air fry 3 average size cookies at once.
They can also be difficult to remove from the parchment paper. You'll have to let them cool completely in the basket before attempting to transfer them to a plate. If you remove them too soon, you risk them falling apart.
Air fryer cookies are quite delicious, just as oven baked cookies are. The main difference is the texture. Air fryer cookies are more evenly baked so the entire outside is soft, as is the inside. This is opposite of oven baked cookies, which typically crisp up on the outside and the bottom.
Ingredients
In addition to traditional baking ingredients (sugar, butter, flour, baking powder/soda, salt), you need:
- Lemon extract. If you can't find it, add an extra tablespoon of lemon juice.
- Lemon juice. Fresh squeezed lemon juice tastes the best. For a more subdued lemon flavor, bottled lemon juice is fine to use.
- Yellow food coloring. Optional, and only adds bright yellow color to the cookies. Add as much or as little as you'd like.
💡 Tip: Your egg bite mold may have come with a cover. Do not use the cover when air frying cookies.
Step-By-Step Directions
- First, make the dough. In a large mixing bowl, cream the softened butter and sugar on medium speed until well combined. Add the lemon extract and eggs. Continue beating on medium until mixed and fluffy.
- Add the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Pour the lemon juice on top of the baking soda (it should fizzle). Beat on low until the flour is mostly incorporated into the batter. Switch the speed to medium and beat until batter is uniform and smooth.
- Add the milk and food coloring. Add as much food coloring until you get to the shade you like. Beat on medium until smooth.
- Chill the dough until ready to use. This can be anywhere from a couple hours to a couple days. For immediate use, put in the freezer for 30 minutes and then make the cookies.
💡 Tip: The dough can be stored in the fridge, covered, for up to 1 week before using. For longer storage, wrap in plastic and freeze for 2 months. Bring to room temperature on the counter.
Once the batter is ready, it's time to air fry!
- Spray an egg bite mold lightly with cooking oil. Add 2 tablespoons of dough (rolling to form a ball) to each hole and put the mold in the air fryer basket. Close the lid and set to 375° for 8 minutes. Note: if the dough sticks to your hands, lightly flour them.
- Once done, insert a toothpick into the center of 1 cookie. If too wet, add another minute.
- Remove the egg bite mold from the air fryer using a sling and let the cookies cool for 5 minutes before removing.
💡 Tip: Cookies can easily be removed from an egg bite mold by loosening 1 side with a butter knife. Then press up on the bottom of the mold and the cookie will pop out.
Storing
Counter: store lemon drop cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 days.
Freezer: freeze for up to 6 months in an airtight plastic bag.
I hope you've enjoyed this recipe! I'd love to hear how it turned out in the comments below.
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Recipe
Air Fryer Lemon Drop Cookies
Ingredients
- ½ cup butter, softened
- ¾ cup sugar
- 2 teaspoon lemon extract
- 1 egg
- 1 ½ cups flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 3 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 ½ tablespoon milk
- yellow food coloring (optional)
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, cream the softened butter and sugar on medium speed until well combined.
- Add the lemon extract and eggs. Continue beating on medium until mixed and fluffy.
- Add the flour, baking powder and baking soda. Pour the lemon juice on top of the baking soda (it should fizzle). Beat on low until the flour is mostly incorporated into the batter. Switch the speed to medium and beat until batter is uniform and smooth.
- Add the milk and food coloring if using until reaching your desired color. Beat on medium until smooth. Chill until ready to use. For immediate use, put in the freezer for 30 minutes.
- Spray an egg bite mold lightly with cooking oil. Roll 2 tablespoons of dough into a ball and put in each hole. Put the mold in the air fryer basket, close the lid and set to 375°F for 8 minutes. Press start.
- Once done, insert a toothpick into the center of 1 cookie. If too wet, add another minute. Remove egg bite mold using a sling and let cookies cool for 5 minutes before removing.
Mary Ann
Where do you get egg bite molds…could you make these without mold?
Kristina
You can find egg bite molds online on Amazon or in big chain stores like Target, Walmart and Kohls. Here is one option from Amazon. https://amzn.to/3F9CN5Y
And yes, you can make them without the molds too. Enjoy!
Faith Still
What a cute idea! I bet you could frost these and make cute cake pops too.
Freya
Oooh I’m seriously considering buying an air fryer and this is just another pro, that you can bake in it!
Nora
What a wonderful recipe, and pretty easy to make! Never made cookies with the air fryer! Have to try it out soon!
Addison
I love that you made these in the air fryer! I love anything lemon. So yummy!
Kim Guzman
I'm so glad to have stumbled on this recipe. I love lemon and I'm so intriguted to use the air fryer to make cookies. They look like they will melt in your mouth. Yum!