Description
Lemon Stars are delightful almond and lemon-flavored cookies featuring a buttery, crumbly base layered with homemade tangy lemon curd. These charming star-shaped biscuits are perfect for teatime or festive occasions, combining a tender almond cookie with a bright citrus filling dusted with icing sugar for a sweet finish.
Ingredients
Scale
For the Lemon Curd
- 1 lemon, zested and juiced
- 90g caster sugar
- 1 egg
- 60g unsalted butter, chopped
- ¼ tsp ground turmeric
For the Biscuit Dough
- 120g softened butter
- 120g caster sugar
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 150g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
- 150g ground almonds
- icing sugar, to decorate
- Star-shaped biscuit cutters (approximately 5cm and a smaller one for the centre)
Instructions
- Make the lemon curd: Put all the lemon curd ingredients into a saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly. Cook for about 5 minutes until the mixture thickens. To check readiness, dip a wooden spoon in the curd and gently blow on it; if a wave-like pattern forms, remove from heat. Strain the curd through a sieve into a bowl, then transfer to a sterilised jar and allow it to cool completely. It will thicken further as it cools.
- Prepare the biscuit dough: In a large bowl, cream the softened butter and caster sugar together until smooth. Add the egg yolks and vanilla extract, mixing well. Incorporate the plain flour, ground almonds, and a pinch of salt until it forms a smooth dough. Wrap the dough and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour to firm up.
- Roll and cut the biscuits: Preheat the oven to 170°C (150°C fan) or gas mark 3. Lightly flour your work surface and roll out the chilled dough to about 4mm thickness. Use the larger star-shaped cutter to stamp out stars. For half the biscuits, use the smaller star cutter to cut out a star-shaped hole in the center. Gently re-roll the excess dough, avoiding overworking it, and cut out additional biscuits as needed.
- Bake the biscuits: Place the cut biscuits on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes or until the edges turn golden. Once baked, leave the biscuits to cool completely on the baking sheets.
- Assemble the lemon stars: Spread a layer of cooled lemon curd onto the solid star biscuits. Place a star biscuit with the central hole on top of each, pressing gently to sandwich them together. Finally, dust the assembled lemon stars with icing sugar before serving.
- Storage: Store the lemon stars in an airtight container for up to three days to maintain freshness.
Notes
- Ensure the curd is completely cooled before spreading to prevent melting the biscuits.
- Use ground turmeric in the lemon curd to give a natural golden color without affecting flavor.
- Do not overwork the dough when re-rolling to keep the biscuits tender and crumbly.
- If you do not have star-shaped cutters, you can substitute with any small cookie cutter shapes.
- These biscuits keep best in an airtight container and are best enjoyed within three days.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: British
Keywords: lemon stars, lemon curd biscuits, star shaped cookies, almond cookies, citrus cookies, teatime treats, homemade lemon curd
