Key Lime Cooler Cookies
These Key Lime Cooler Cookies are deliciously buttery, bursting with fresh key lime flavor, and rolled in powdered sugar. They keep for up to 2 weeks and are perfect for holiday baking!
My mom used to buy lime cooler cookies at the store when I was growing up. They were so light and refreshing, and they literally melted in my mouth!
Years ago I thought it would be fun to create a homemade version with fresh key limes, and these Key Lime Cooler Cookies were born.
These light and buttery cookies have fresh citrus flavor that offsets the coating of sweet powdered sugar just perfectly.
These cookies are very similar to my reader favorite Greek butter cookies, except that recipe includes a bit of almond flour and fresh Meyer lemon.
There are so many other similar versions of these cookies, including Russian tea cakes and Mexican wedding cookies by Love and Lemons.
This key lime cookie recipe holds a special place in my heart because I adore key limes. I fell in love with them years ago after I made my first key lime pie, and they’re wonderful in my key lime bars as well.
This recipe provides me with another way to enjoy one of my favorite varieties of citrus!
Table of contents
Why you’ll love this recipe
- Buttery and refreshing. Key lime cookies are light and buttery, bursting with the refreshing flavor of key limes, and they’re coated in powdered sugar.
- Easy to make. They require minimal ingredients, prep time, and they’re a great baking project for the kids.
- Perfect for holidays. These cookies are incredibly festive, making them perfect for the holidays. We like to make them for Easter, and they’re a great addition to a Christmas cookie box.
- Great for gift giving. These cookies are perfect for holiday gift giving because they keep for up to two weeks.
Recipe ingredients
There are just a few simple ingredients in these key lime cookies. They’re similar to snowball cookies, but the fresh key lime flavor sets them apart!
Ingredient notes
- Flour. You’ll need 3 cups of all purpose flour for these cookies.
- Butter. Be sure that the butter is softened to room temperature. If using salted butter, omit the 1/4 teaspoon of salt.
- Powdered sugar. The powdered sugar, also known as confectioner’s sugar, has a finer texture than granulated sugar, and also includes cornstarch. This texture lends a soft, melt-in-your-mouth consistency that granulated sugar simply can’t provide. The cookies are also rolled in powdered sugar when they’re still warm from the oven, which creates a snowy white coating and additional sweetness.
- Key limes. Fresh key lime juice and zest add a pop of fresh, tangy flavor that contrast perfectly with the buttery, sweet flavor of the cookies. I don’t recommend using bottled key lime juice because it just doesn’t have that fresh flavor. If key limes aren’t available, substitute with regular limes, lemons or your favorite citrus.
- Egg yolk. Cooler cookies, or snowball cookies, don’t always include egg yolk, so it’s really an optional ingredient. The lecithin in the egg yolk helps bind the dough together, making it easier to handle. The yolk also adds richness to the cookies.
- Baking powder. Provides leavening to the cookies.
- Salt. Helps balance out the flavors. If using salted butter, omit the additional salt.
How to make key lime cookies
These key lime cookies are incredibly easy to make, and are a great family baking project.
They take roughly 10-15 minutes of prep, then the dough is rolled into balls and baked. The fun part is rolling the warm baked cookies in powdered sugar!
Pro tip: Be sure that the butter is softened to room temperature prior to baking. To speed up the process, cut the butter into small chunks.
See the recipe card below for full instructions.
- Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl until incorporated.
- In a large bowl, cream the butter and 1 cup of powdered sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.
- On low speed, mix in the egg yolk, lime juice and zest until incorporated.
- Add the dry ingredients, mixing on low speed just until combined. The dough will be very crumbly. Using your hands, knead the dough gently until it comes together and forms a ball.
- Roll the dough into 1″ sized balls and place 1″ apart on the prepared baking sheets.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes, or until lightly golden brown. Check for doneness after 15 minutes, as oven temperatures do vary. Place the baking sheet on a wire rack. While the cookies are still warm, roll them in the remaining 2 cups of powdered sugar, and place back on the baking sheet to cool completely. Sift the remaining powdered sugar over the tops of the cookies.
Recipe FAQs
These cookies are essentially snowball cookies in that they are both made with butter, flour, powdered sugar and vanilla. The refreshing key lime flavor sets these cookies apart!
Key limes have a very distinct flavor profile. They have a more concentrated lime flavor than regular limes without being overwhelmingly sour.
Aside from that, they have a subtle sweetness that offsets the tart flavor, along with a strong floral aroma and flavor.
You can definitely substitute key limes with regular limes in these key lime cookies…the flavor will just vary slightly. You can also use lemon, Meyer lemon, orange or your favorite citrus.
I prefer to use egg yolks in these key lime cooler cookies as they add richness, and the lecithin in the yolks helps bind the dough together and make it easier to handle.
The egg yolks are completely optional however. If you have an egg allergy or simply prefer not to use them it is safe to omit them entirely. Just be aware the cookies will have a crumblier texture and the dough will not be as easy to handle.
For best results, do not substitute granulated sugar for powdered sugar in this recipe. The powdered sugar is finer in texture and includes cornstarch, which gives key lime cookies a softer, melt-in-your-mouth consistency.
The powdered sugar is also necessary for the signature coating of these cooler cookies. They just wouldn’t be the same without it.
Recipe notes
- Pro tip: Be sure that the butter is softened to room temperature prior to baking. To speed up the process, cut the butter into small chunks.
- Make sure your key limes are room temperature so that you get the maximum juice out of them! One 1 lb. bag of key limes normally yields 3/4 cup of juice. Freeze the rest for key lime pie.
- Substitute the key limes with any citrus! Regular limes, lemon, orange, blood orange and grapefruit are all great options.
- Store in an air tight container for up to 2 weeks.
More cookie recipes you’ll love:
- Carrot oatmeal cookies
- Chocolate dipped almond horn cookies
- Christmas sugar cookies
- Coconut macaroons
- Gingerbread cookies
- Greek almond cookies
Did you try this recipe? If so, be sure to leave a review below and tag me @flavorthemoments on Facebook and Instagram
Key Lime Cooler Cookies
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2 sticks unsalted butter softened
- 3 cups powdered sugar divided
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1/4 cup fresh key lime juice regular lime juice is ok
- 1 tablespoon key lime zest
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a small bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.3 cups all purpose flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt
- In a large bowl, cream the butter and 1 cup of powdered sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. On low speed, mix in the egg yolk, lime juice and zest until incorporated.2 sticks unsalted butter, 1 large egg yolk, 1/4 cup fresh key lime juice, 1 tablespoon key lime zest, 3 cups powdered sugar
- Add the dry ingredients, mixing on low speed just until combined. The dough will be very crumbly. Using your hands, knead the dough gently until it comes together and forms a ball.
- Roll the dough into 1″ sized balls and place 1″ apart on the prepared baking sheets.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes, or until lightly golden brown. Check for doneness after 15 minutes, as oven temperatures do vary.
- Place the baking sheet on a wire rack. While the cookies are still warm, roll them in the remaining 2 cups of powdered sugar until well coated, and place back on the baking sheet to cool completely. It's a good idea to sift any remaining powdered sugar over the tops of the cookies for storing. Enjoy!
Notes
- Pro tip: Make sure your key limes are room temperature so that you get the maximum juice out of them! One 1 lb. bag of key limes normally yields 3/4 cup of juice. Freeze the rest for key lime pie.
- Make sure your key limes are room temperature so that you get the maximum juice out of them! One 1 lb. bag of key limes normally yields 3/4 cup of juice. Freeze the rest for key lime pie.
- Substitute the key limes with any citrus! Regular limes, lemon, orange, blood orange and grapefruit are all great options.
- Store in an air tight container for up to 2 weeks.
Nutrition
Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.
**This recipe was originally published in March 2013. The photos have been updated to include step by step photos and the text has been modified to include more recipe information.
65 Comments on “Key Lime Cooler Cookies”
I don’t think I’ve ever had key lime cookies like this before – looks SO good!
I hope you get to try them Nicole!
Wow! So good! Thank you for such an awesome recipe. I wanted to make a different cookie than one of my usuals for my family and happened to have a bunch of limes on hand. I’m glad I went out on a limb and tried these. My whole family loves them. I’ll definitely be making them again because my ‘chocolate chip cookie lover’ of a husband said, “Yes! These are great, add them to the rotation of cookies!”
I did add a bit more zest than called for. I was also having trouble getting the powdered sugar coating to stick as it should have so I did read elsewhere that the trick is to roll them while still warm so the powder sugar melts to the cookie and then roll a second time once they cool. I did that and they came out like perfect little lime flavored snow balls. I hope that tip might help anyone else!
I’m so happy to hear that your family loved these Andi! Yes, they should be rolled when they are warm and I thought that info was in the recipe…I will add that! Thanks so much for your review. 🙂
The part about rolling while warm was included, but not the part about rolling it again a second time once cooled. Thanks so much!
Ah got it. Thanks!
Is this a crunchy cookie like the coolers you buy in the tins, or is it a soft cookie? The picture looks very much like what I call snowballs that I make at Christmas, but they have no liquid or eggs in the dough and are crunchy.
These cookies are softer like traditional snowball cookies.
Fantastic!!! I just finished baking these cookies and they are just divine. They yielded exactly 36 cookies as stated. I won’t comment on the cooking time as I know my oven isn’t calibrated correctly. A Pinterest link led me to this page and a comment left on the Pinterest link was to try a key lime glaze. So I made half with the powdered sugar and half with the homemade key lime glaze. Both are excellent, but the key lime glaze is preferred by everyone in this house. I dipped the warm cookies in the glaze in the same way I did the powdered sugar. Thank you for such a great recipe, and give that key lime glaze a shot!!!
Thanks so much for all of your feedback and I’m so glad to hear that these were such a hit!
Very easy to put together. I also made lemon with this recipe. I froze most of the dough balls for later baking.
Thank you for sharing this. Delicious and fun!
Thank you for the rating Kathy and I’m glad you enjoyed the cookies!
Mine turned out really dry at 17 minutes. Not sure the time is correct.
Hi Cathy. All ovens vary, which is why I specify 15-20 minutes, or until light golden brown. I’m sorry yours turned out dry.
These sound delicious and I would love to make them togo along with our build your own taco board. BUT unfortuantely
My MIL cannot eat eggs, any suggestion for a substitution for the egg yolk in the recipe? Is it being used as a binder, leavening, or as fat content?
Thank you in advance.
Sincerely,
Charvi
Hello Charvi! The egg yolk is used as a binder. I haven’t tried it, but a flax egg may work? Combine 1 tablespoon of ground flaxseed meal and let stand for about 10 minutes and proceed as directed. This is my best guess as this is the method that many people use for egg replacement.
Can’t wait to try this recipe. I am lucky enough to have a Key Lime tree to make fresh juice. Ripe key limes are yellow, that’s how you know when to pick them. I am so pleased to have a new key lime recipe. Thank you!
You are very lucky and I hope you enjoy the recipe!
Hi,
I love anything lime, but the key lime is preferable. However, I went to the website to order a tub of the key lime cream center and it keeps telling me there is no match!
Help!
Hi Cyndy — I’m not sure what you mean by key lime cream center? I use fresh key lime and zest for this recipe.
When you keep them if you don’t give them out right away, do you put them in the fridge or store them at room temperature?
They may be stored at room temp for up to 2 weeks in an air tight container.
Hi! I came across your recipe and I’m thankful I did! My son wanted to take a key lime pie to his school principle for principle appreciation day. We talked about it and agreed he would take cookies IF I could put those flavors into a cookie, and your recipe fit the bill! I halved a batch and took them to work and they got rave reviews. Now I’ve made a full batch of dough and my question is, can I store the dough in the fridge tightly wrapped until later this week? Do you think the lime flavor will amplify if I do so? Any input is appreciated and thanks again for the recipe, it’s a keeper!
Hi Andrea! Thank you for the feedback — I’m so glad to hear that you love the cookies. 🙂 You can definitely store the dough in the fridge for a few days — just set out at room temp to soften it and bake as directed. I hope this helps and enjoy!
Has anyone had success making these gluten free?
Hi Tami — I’ve never tried it with this recipe but I’ve had great success with Bob’s Red Mill 1 to 1 Gluten-Free Flour in several of my quick bread and muffin recipes.
I am going to make 200 of these cookies for a beach wedding in October. Can I freeze them? I don’t want them to taste like they were frozen. I live in Texas but the wedding is in Alabama so, I’ll make them in Texas and take them to Alabama with me. That’s why I’m making them a week or two early.
Hi Karen! I’ve never frozen them, but normally the best thing to do is roll the dough into balls and freeze before baking. These cookies do keep for 2 weeks in tins cloaked in powdered sugar so that’s an option? I would do a test run with a small batch if you want to try freezing them, however, following the steps in this post: https://www.handletheheat.com/how-to-freeze-cookie-dough/ Hope this helps and I hope you enjoy the wedding!
There’s a little shop in Key West, off Caroline I believe, that sells these. I love them! These cookies are so much like them! I love the Keys and every year when Key Limes are is season I make pies! I’m adding this each year, too! Wonderful! Nothing can replace eating them in Key West but I’m gonna try!
I’ve never been to Key West but I would love to go…I’d be in key lime heaven! Thanks so much Stephanie and I’m glad you enjoy the cookies! 🙂