raspberry cream filled lemon cookies

Have I mentioned my most recent desire to summit Mt. Everest?  True that, friends.  A little documentary-series that I'm devouring on Netflix has me convinced that I could hang... With a little prep work and a few less cookies, of course.  

Dang.  Nevermind.  I'll just set my sights on... Mt. Rainier?  

These special little sandwich cookies feature heaven's most perfect combination...lemon and raspberry. 

The cookies are made with a simple dough with added fresh lemon juice and zest and the filling is a buttercream with homemade raspberry preserves.  

Oh, you hear that?  It's just the angels singing.   Totally worth sacrificing my Mt. Everest peak moment and the accompanying black and frostbitten extremities.  Yeah, I'll stick with cookies.

Raspberry Cream Filled Lemon Cookies 

For cookies:

1 1/3 cups All-purpose flour
1/3 cup cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
10 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
2/3 cups powdered sugar
2 teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla

For filling:

6 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
2 tablespoons raspberry preserves
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper; Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment combine all the ingredients for the cookies. Mix on low speed until the dough just comes together, then increase the speed to medium for 30 seconds, or until the dough is smooth and clumping around the paddle.
3. Turn the dough out on a lightly floured surface and roll out the dough to 1/8-inch thick. Using a small round cookie or biscuit cutter, about 1-inch, cut out as many cookies as you can. Place the cookies on the lined baking sheets about 1/4-inch apart. Re-roll the scraps and cut additional cookies. Discard any remaining scraps.
4. Bake the cookies for 8-10 minutes, or until the bottom edge of the cookies is just turning golden brown and the centers of the cookies are slightly puffed. Cool the cookies completely on the pans.
5. To prepare filling, cream together the butter and raspberry preserves  in a medium bowl . Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and mix until smooth. If necessary add more powdered sugar a tablespoon at a time to stiffen the filling if it seems too loose. 
6. Once the cookies are cooled, spread 2 teaspoons of filling on half of the cookies. Top with a second cookie and gently press to spread the filling to the edges. Store the cookies in the refrigerator in an airtight container.