Carla's Lemon Cardamon Wedding Cookies

I watch The Chew almost every day, and Carla Hall, one of the five (5) celebrity co-hosts, made this mouth-watering confection recently.  I knew I had to try them and they are fabulous!  I didn't feel the need to change a thing and made them exactly as written, so Carla gets all the credit.  The photos are mine, but the recipe is taken directly from The Chew website.

Ingredients

1 pound Unsalted Butter (room temperature)

1 cup Powdered Sugar

1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract

2 teaspoons Lemon Juice

2 teaspoons Lemon Zest

2 teaspoons Orange Zest

1 1/2 teaspoons Salt

1 1/2 cups Pistachios (ground) or 1 cup Walnuts (ground)

4 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour

2 teaspoons ground Cardamom

For the Lemon Sugar:

3 Lemons (zested)

2 cups Powdered Sugar

1 pound Unsalted Butter (room temperature)
1 cup Powdered Sugar
1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract
2 teaspoons Lemon Juice
2 teaspoons Lemon Zest
2 teaspoons Orange Zest
1 1/2 teaspoons Salt 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare baking sheets with parchment paper. Using an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the vanilla, lemon juice, zests and salt and beat until combined.

4 1/2 cups All-Purpose Flour
1 1/2 cups Pistachios (ground) or 1 cup Walnuts (ground)
2 teaspoons ground Cardamom 

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, ground nuts and cardamom until combined. Add the flour into the butter mixture in 3 additions, making sure not to over mix the dough.

Using a tablespoon or small ice cream scoop, portion out dough and roll into balls. The size of your cookie depends on the cupcake liner that you will present them in. Place the cookies about 1 1/2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes trying to avoid brown spots but making sure the top is just firm to the touch.

Meanwhile, place the lemon sugar in rimmed baking dish or pie plate.

Remove the cookies from the oven and allow to cool slightly. The cookie should still be warm when rolling in the lemon sugar. Roll the cookies to coat completely in the flavored sugar and allow to cool completely on a wire rack. Reserve the remaining lemon sugar.

When ready to serve or package roll them again in the lemon sugar to heavily coat. These cookies can be baked up to one month in advance and stored in the freezer in an air tight container. Before serving dredge in the lemon sugar to coat.

3 Lemons (zested)

For the Lemon Sugar: Prepare a baking sheet with waxed paper. Spread the lemon zest onto the prepared baking sheet trying to avoid clumps. Place the baking sheet in a cold oven and allow to sit overnight.

2 cups Powdered Sugar

The zest should be dry before combining with the sugar. Pulse zest and sugar together in a food processor until evenly distributed. Set aside until ready to roll the cookies. If making the cookies far in advance roll them in a plain powdered sugar and prepare the lemon sugar for the final coating.

See those flecks of pistachio nuts and lemon & orange zest!

These buttery balls of deliciousness melt in your mouth - and I'm not kidding!

Helpful Tips:
1. Prepare these cookies in advance and freeze them until you’re ready to serve.
2. Cardamom is similar to cinnamon, so you can substitute it if you need.
3. Don’t worry about overworking these cookies because there is enough butter and sugar to prevent them from becoming tough.
4. Toss the cookies in the powdered sugar while they’re still warm to make the sugar stick better.
5. Use dried lemon zest instead of fresh, which will cause your powdered sugar to clump because of the moisture.