Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies: Soft & Chewy
The Ultimate Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies Recipe
Have you ever imagined uniting the velvety tang of a classic cheesecake with the comforting softness of a home-baked cookie? What if we told you it was possible to bottle the bright, joyful flavours of spring in one perfect, bite-sized treat? Well, your culinary daydreams are about to come true! We are thrilled to share our guide for making the most exquisite Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies you’ll ever have the pleasure of tasting. These biscuits are a masterful blend of zesty lemon, rich cream cheese, and juicy, bursting blueberries. They are the ideal bake for a sunny afternoon, a get-together in the garden, or any time you fancy a truly special indulgence. Let’s head to the kitchen!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- A Sublime Flavour Combination: The harmony of flavours is simply divine. You experience the vibrant zest of lemon, the sweet burst from the blueberries, and the rich, tangy character of a traditional cheesecake, all encapsulated in a single cookie.
- Wonderfully Soft and Chewy: The inclusion of cream cheese in the dough sets these cookies apart. They boast an incredibly soft, almost pillowy centre with delicately crisp edges that just dissolve on the tongue.
- A Feast for the Eyes: With their beautiful golden edges, pale creamy centres, and vivid purple-blue flecks from the berries, these cookies are as delightful to look at as they are to eat. They are certain to wow your friends and family!
- Effortlessly Impressive: While they sound rather gourmet, the method is quite straightforward. We have carefully detailed each step to help bakers of every ability achieve perfect results, time after time. They are the quintessential Spring cookies to welcome in the season.
Ingredients
- 250g plain flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 115g unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 115g full-fat block cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 150g caster sugar
- 50g light brown soft sugar
- 1 large free-range egg, at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 large lemon, zest and juice
- 150g fresh or frozen blueberries
How to Bake Perfect Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies
Crafting these marvellous cookies is a delightful experience from beginning to end. Just follow our step-by-step instructions, and you’ll soon have a batch of the most delicious cookies you’ve ever tasted. Let’s get started!
Step 1: Prepare Your Ingredients and Equipment
First and foremost, organisation is the secret to a stress-free bake. Go ahead and line two large baking trays with baking parchment and put them to one side. In a medium bowl, sift and whisk together the plain flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, and salt. Combining your dry ingredients at this stage ensures they are distributed evenly through the dough, which is vital for a consistent texture and rise in every single cookie.
Step 2: Cream the Butter, Cream Cheese, and Sugars
In a large mixing bowl, or using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat together the softened butter and cream cheese at a medium speed until the mixture is completely smooth and creamy, which should take about two minutes. The cream cheese is the secret weapon that delivers that authentic cheesecake taste and incredible texture, making these the ultimate Lemon cream cheese cookies. Scrape down the bowl, then add both the caster and light brown sugars. Continue to beat for another 2-3 minutes, until the mixture becomes pale, light, and airy. This step whips air into the dough, contributing to a lighter final product.
Step 3: Add the Wet Ingredients
Keeping the mixer on a low speed, add the egg, vanilla extract, the zest from your lemon, and one tablespoon of its juice. Mix only until everything is just incorporated. It’s important not to over-beat the mixture here. The lemon zest provides that gorgeous, fresh aroma, while the juice adds a tangy sharpness that beautifully balances the richness of the other ingredients.
Step 4: Combine the Wet and Dry Mixtures
Now, gradually introduce the dry flour mixture to the wet ingredients, adding it in two or three parts. Mix on the lowest speed until the flour is nearly combined. You should stop mixing as soon as the main streaks of flour have disappeared. Overmixing can lead to gluten development, which can make your cookies tough rather than wonderfully soft and chewy.
Step 5: Fold in the Blueberries
It’s time for the hero of our Blueberry dessert! Using a spatula, gently fold the blueberries through the cookie dough. If you are using frozen blueberries, add them directly from the freezer without thawing to prevent their colour from bleeding too much. A gentle folding action is all that is needed to distribute them without crushing the delicate berries and turning the dough purple.
Step 6: The Crucial Chilling Step
This is arguably the most vital stage for achieving that perfect, thick, and chewy cookie. Cover your bowl with cling film and place the dough in the refrigerator for at least two hours, though overnight is even better. Chilling solidifies the fats (butter and cream cheese), which stops the cookies from spreading out too much while baking. It also gives the flavours time to meld and intensify, resulting in a much tastier cookie.
Step 7: Scoop and Bake
When you are ready to bake, preheat your oven to 180°C (160°C Fan/Gas Mark 4). Use a medium ice-cream scoop or two spoons to form balls of dough (roughly two tablespoons each) and arrange them on your prepared trays. Make sure to leave a good amount of space between them to allow for some spreading. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the edges are a light golden-brown and the centres appear set but remain soft. They may look a touch underbaked in the middle, but they will finish cooking on the hot tray once removed from the oven.
Step 8: Cool and Enjoy!
Let the cookies cool on their baking trays for 5-10 minutes before gently moving them to a wire rack to cool down completely. This brief rest on the tray is crucial, as it allows them to firm up properly. Once they have cooled, they are ready to be enjoyed!
Top Tips for the Best Fruity Cheesecake Cookies
To guarantee your baking session is a complete triumph, we have put together a few of our favourite professional tips. These small adjustments can elevate your cookies from great to truly spectacular.
Room Temperature Ingredients are Non-Negotiable
For a beautifully smooth and well-blended dough, it is essential that your butter, cream cheese, and egg are all at room temperature. Cold ingredients resist mixing and can create a lumpy batter. As the baking connoisseurs at King Arthur Baking note, room temperature ingredients create an emulsion that traps air, resulting in exceptionally fluffy baked goods. The cream cheese adds the signature tang we also adore in our luscious Peach Crumb Cheesecake.
Don’t Skimp on the Chilling Time
We know it’s tempting to speed things up, but we urge you not to skip this step! Chilling gives these cookies their fantastic structure and stops them from melting into flat, greasy discs in the oven. A properly chilled dough yields thicker, chewier cookies with a more pronounced flavour. If you’re a devoted fan of zesty citrus treats, you will absolutely love our delightful Creamy Lemon Truffles.
Consider a Simple Lemon Glaze
If you wish to take your cookies to the next level, a simple lemon glaze makes for a wonderful finishing touch. After the cookies have cooled completely, just whisk 100g of icing sugar with 1-2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice until you achieve a smooth, drizzly consistency. Drizzle this over your cookies and let it set. This adds an extra burst of lemon and a truly professional finish.
FAQ
A Bite of Sunshine in Every Cookie
So there you have it—our complete recipe for the most wonderful Lemon Blueberry Cheesecake Cookies you will ever have the pleasure of baking. They are the perfect taste of a bright, cheerful day, brimming with creamy, zesty, and fruity notes that will delight your senses. They offer both the comfort of a classic cookie and the refreshing tang of a dessert, making them an exceptionally special treat.
What are you waiting for? It is time to preheat that oven, assemble your ingredients, and let the glorious scent of baking fill your home. We are confident this recipe will earn a permanent place in your baking collection. Please do leave a comment below to tell us how you got on, and be sure to share this recipe with anyone who deserves a little taste of sunshine!
Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 250g plain flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
- ¼ tsp salt
- 115g unsalted butter, softened
- 115g full-fat block cream cheese, softened
- 150g caster sugar
- 50g light brown soft sugar
- 1 large free-range egg
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 large lemon, zest and 1 tbsp juice
- 150g fresh or frozen blueberries
Instructions
- Prep: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, and salt. Line two large baking trays with baking parchment.
- Cream Wet Ingredients: In a large bowl, beat the softened butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the caster and light brown sugars and beat for 2-3 minutes until pale and fluffy. Beat in the egg, vanilla, lemon zest, and 1 tbsp lemon juice until just combined.
- Combine & Chill: Gradually mix the dry ingredients into the wet mixture on low speed until just combined. Gently fold in the blueberries. Cover the dough and chill for at least 2 hours (or overnight).
- Bake: Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C Fan). Scoop 2-tablespoon-sized balls of dough onto the prepared trays, leaving space between them. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the edges are golden and the centres are set but soft.
- Cool: Let the cookies cool on the trays for 5-10 minutes before moving them to a wire rack to cool completely.
