blueberry lime cream cheese cookies
Blueberries. Limes. Cream Cheese. Somehow they all come together to make a really, really, ridiculously delicious cookie.
As a self-confessed dessert lover/snob, it’s hard for me to go more than a few days without a homemade dessert in the house. At those times, I become desperate. I try to find solace in a mini Blizzard from Dairy Queen. Or in a square or two of dark chocolate. Or in a Girl Scout cookie I find lurking in the back of the freezer. I’m not proud of that moment in particular. But none are quite as satisfying to me as a homemade treat.
Such was the case last week when my inner dessert snob turned into a cookie monster and all I could think about were COOKIES. Not to say this isn’t fairly normal behavior for me, but I’m usually able to resist the call for a day or two (or a few hours… or a few minutes, it really depends). This time it was different, though — not only did I crave cookies, but I wanted cookies with a bright fruity, citrusy flavor. Preferably a cakey cookie, with a glaze. But not just any glaze — cream cheese glaze. YES. YESSSSS.
And then I went all mad scientist in the kitchen and came out with these blueberry lime cream cheese cookies. And my cravings were cured.
Continuing with the theme of my dessert snobbery, I’m not generally a fan of cakey cookies. You know the ones — they taste too fluffy, almost like someone injected them with air pockets so there was a higher air to cookie ratio, which is NOT OK. I like cake, and I like cookies, but I don’t like them mixed together (wait, no, I DO like them mixed together, but not in a texture way. Right. Moving on).
However, these cookies are different. The cake-iness is actually quite dense and buttery, but in a pleasantly soft way thanks to the cream cheese. They’re puffy and fluffy, for sure, but the decadent lime cream cheese glaze on top balances out the lightness of the cookie. I promise I’m still talking about a cookie here, and not a pillow. Although, a cookie pillow…
ANYWAY, the limes and the blueberries. Such a magical combination! There’s lime zest whipped into the dough, and a decent handful of dried blueberries are folded in (dried blueberries are worth the splurge, by the way, because fresh or frozen blueberries will streak the dough purple and the juices will affect the dough’s consistency). The tart-sweet balance paired with the creamy, tangy buttery-ness of the cookie is mindblowing. They’re the perfect cookie to celebrate the bold flavors of summer while also getting excited about fall baking season. For which you know my inner dessert snob and I are pumped.
These cookies would be great as a midday treat in your kiddos’ school lunchboxes or as a special after-school snack (the blueberries make them healthy, right?). And if you don’t have school-aged kiddos, I can attest these are just as great as a grownup’s midday treat or midnight snack. And I had two dozen cookies with which to prove it, so I know what I’m talking about. Ahem.
Blueberries. Limes. Cream Cheese. Bake them into a cookie and eat on repeat.
PrintBlueberry Lime Cream Cheese Cookies
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 50 mins
- Yield: 24 cookies 1x
Ingredients
For the cookies:
- 1 (8 oz) package cream cheese
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon lime zest
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 1/2 cups (8 ounces) dried blueberries
For the glaze:
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring cream cheese and sugar to a simmer. Stirring constantly, cook mixture 4 to 5 minutes until slightly thickened into a smooth paste. Remove from heat; set aside to cool completely.
- In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt until combined. In a separate large bowl using a hand mixer or in bowl of a stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat butter, powdered sugar and lime zest on medium speed 3 minutes until smooth and fluffy. Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add in cream cheese mixture and beat until well combined.
- Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and stir on low speed until just combined. Fold in dried blueberries until just incorporated.
- Roll cookie dough into 24 balls (about 2 tablespoons’ worth of dough each) and space evenly on prepared baking sheets. Bake 15 minutes until tops of cookies are set and bottoms of cookies are light golden brown. Immediately transfer cookies to cooling racks to cool completely.
- To make the glaze: In a medium bowl using a hand mixer, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, lime juice and salt on medium speed until smooth and combined. Add more powdered sugar or lime juice as needed to make a slightly thick but drippy glaze. Drizzle glaze evenly over fully cooled cookies. Let glaze set before serving.
Blueberry lime is one of my favorite combos! These look amazing!
These look amazing and am making them as we speak, but when do you add in the cream cheese/sugar mixture that is in the saucepan cooled off? I’m adding it to the butter/sugar/lime blend before the dry ingredients. Hopefully, that’s right. I didn’t see it in the instructions.
T E — Oh goodness, so sorry about that! I forgot to add that yes, the cream cheese mixture goes into the dough before the dry ingredients. Fixed it in the recipe — and hopefully your cookies turned out well!
Thank you for the update on the directions. Umm, can I just say – they could easily stand in for a full-size muffin, only a tad more indulgent! These are dangerously good!
This is one flavorful cookie! Love the ingredients you used. The lime sure adds a kick to the recipe. Thanks for sharing! ๐
– Regine
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Just made this cookie……its my new favorite…..so tasty.
Thanks so much, Jean! It’s one of my faves, too. ๐