A soft batch sugar cookie recipe with an herbaceous twist! You won’t be able to stop eating these easy basil lime sugar cookies.
Blogging can be a pretty interesting thing. I originally wrote this post in February of 2012.
Back then, I was doing something called the Secret Recipe Club, where bloggers were assigned recipes from each other’s sites once per month, and we all cooked and posted about them.
Blogging was VERY different back in those days.
I’m not sure I had even heard the word influencer before.
The rise of social media has changed blogging in so many ways. The days of blog writing camaraderie like the Secret Recipe Club are a thing of the past. That’s not to say it’s not still a supportive community, it’s just that the support is shown in different ways now.
The cool part about all this is the fact that I have a bit of a written history to look back on. I love reading old posts, but I generally hate looking at the old photos, which is why I often re-do the photos like I did in this instance.
Soft Batch Basil Lime Sugar Cookies
This particular recipe came from a blog called Big Fat Baker. The recipe no longer exists on her site as far as I know, or I would absolutely be linking to it because THESE COOKIES ARE THE BEST EVER.
I loved this basil lime sugar cookie recipe so much from the first taste, that I claimed it as my signature cookie. Over the years I have made these dozens of times, brought them to countless parties, and have personally eaten my body weight worth.
Perfectly soft and puffy sugar cookies with a completely unexpected zesty, herbaceous flavor from the basil and lime.
They are my all time favorite.
Soft Batch Basil Lime Sugar Cookies
A lime sugar cookie recipe with an herbaceous twist! You won't be able to stop eating these easy basil and lime cookies.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- zest from one lime
- 3 tbsp very finely chopped fresh basil leaves
- 1 3/4 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
Instructions
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Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and line the cookie sheets with a silicone mat or parchment paper.
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In a stand mixer (or hand-held mixer) cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy.
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Mix in the egg, vanilla, zest, and basil. Mix together until fully combined.
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In a separate bowl sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Then mix into the butter mixture until combined.
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Scoop cookie dough using a 2" cookie scoop. Place dough balls about 1 inch apart on the cookie sheets.
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Bake 8 to 12 minutes, depending on the size of your cookies/oven.
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Allow to cool on a cooling rack for a few minutes
More Cookie Recipes From Scratch
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Fresh and Foodie says
Yum! What a cool and unique cookie recipe.
betsy says
so awesome. I’m totally obsessed
Devon Riesenberg says
Visiting from SITS 🙂 I’m also a fellow San Diego Mom Blogger !
These look absolutely divine! I love basil…
glad I found your site, can’t wait to read more 🙂
betsy says
Nice to meet you! I love meeting San Diego locals 🙂
dan says
I think you won me at “They actually taste kind of like margaritas to me.” I’ve already emailed the recipe to my baker 🙂
betsy says
you will not be disappointed 🙂
Kelley says
Looks good! Very interesting recipe.
Lisa~~ says
What a great flavor combination.
If you haven’t already, I’d love for you to check out my Group ‘A’ SRC entry: Crunchy Fudgy Heart Bites
Lisa~~
Cook Lisa Cook
Rebecca@A Dusting of Sugar says
How creative! I’ll definitely keep these in mind in the summer when we have an overabundance of basil.
betsy says
You’re going to love them!
Karen says
These sound SO good and since you said they reminded you of a ‘rita, I’m going to try them 🙂 Beautiful pics, too!
betsy says
Thank you!
Judee @ Gluten Free A-Z says
I am so intrigued with the flavors in these cookies. I gotta try them. Sounds really different..Margaritas? yum
betsy says
I was intrigued too, but happy to be completely blown away with how delish they are!
Erin @ WholesomeRD says
How refreshing! This reminds me of a basil lemon sorbet I had in Italy. I was reluctant at first but basil with citrus just work together! I’m definitely trying these! Thanks for sharing!!
betsy says
I think the original recipe called for lemon AND lime. I think I’ll have to give that a try at some point too! Thanks for stopping by 🙂
Julie says
Your photos are beautiful! I love the idea of basil and lime together. Stopping by from SRC!
betsy says
Thanks Julie! Nice to meet you
Miz Helen says
Hi Betsy,
I have had my eye on these cookies all day, and I couldn’t wait to come over and talk about them. I just love a different cookie and the Basil and Lime combination would just be perfect for The Cottage. Your presentation of this cookie is awesome! It is fun cooking with you in the SRC.
Miz Helen
SRC #7
betsy says
Thank you Miz Helen! i think they may be my new favorite cookie
Diane says
What is the SRC?
betsy says
Secret recipe club. It’s described in the body of the post
Foodiewife says
You have basil growing out of control? In February? I’m green with envy! This is such a unique cookie, and the combo sound fantastic! So nice to find you via SRC.
betsy says
I know right?! Just another bonus of SoCal living. Thanks for stopping by!
Em says
Lovely cookie. Slightly buttery, not too sweet, subtle lime and basil flavors melting together. A soft cookie with enjoyable slight crisp to outer edge. Will be keeping this in my repertoire.
Trisha says
Its really great to find such unique recipes that turn out to be a favorite. Great find at SRC!
Corina says
I love things that sound a little different and these are really unusual but sound delicious. I love basil and lime and am intrigued about how they would taste in a cookie.
Lynne says
Where did you get such beautiful basil? Wow! I love anything lime so know I would love these cookies and basil is my favorite herb next to lemon verbena. Love your blog and thanks for commenting on mine!
ButterYum says
What an interesting recipe selection – really great photo! I’m pinning this recipe. If you haven’t had a chance, please stop by and visit my SRC post for Giant Chocolate Toffee Cookies
http://butteryum.blogspot.com/2012/02/giant-chocolate-toffee-cookies.html
🙂
ButterYum
Vivian thiele says
I have some basil in my fridge just calling out to me! I love trying out unusual cookies. They look so yummy!
Thanks for visiting my blog
Amy says
I made these cookies tonight, and they turned out wonderfully. I adapted them a bit, added a little lime juice and less basil. Seriously refreshing and a great start to a wonderful upcoming summer. Tasted almost like a mojito without the mint, very interesting.
Much enjoyed, thank you for sharing! I will be linking my blog post with my adapted version to yours so others can check out your creations as well.
Jen says
I made these a couple of weeks ago after harvesting some basil from my garden. Basil is ready to harvest again so I’m making another batch. I could not stop eating them! I’m plant based so I veganized these by using vegan butter and a flax egg. Found the mixture to be a bit dry due to the flax egg, but they baked up most and soft. This time, I’ll add a little lime juice to the batter to moisten it just a bit and give it a little more lime flavor. Looking forward to eating… All of them… Again!!!
Amy says
Hi there, these sound great! Wondering if I can make the ahead – does the dough freeze well or the baked cookies? Also wondering if you think they’d be good with white chocolate chips added? Thanks!
betsy says
I’ve never tried freezing either. Please let me know if you try and how it turns out!
Pamela S says
These are sooooo worth turning the oven on in the summer! Thank you for the recipe!
Emma says
Do you think these would be good with mint rather than basil?
betsy says
I think it would probably taste good, but it would lose the essence of the cookie.
Mary Kate henson says
Made these last night and they are delicious! Such a simple, easy to follow recipe. They came out puffy and soft, a real treat! I added about a tablespoon of lime juice, and a little extra flour to make up for the added liquid. I’ll be using this recipe many times over. Thank you for sharing!
Marilyn H says
I made these with Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-free 1 to 1 Baking Flour. I followed the recipe exactly as written, except for the gluten-free flour substitute. They were excellent!!! Thank you so much for this recipe.
betsy says
Awesome! I’m so glad you enjoyed them. They are a favorite in our house too
Lisa Laird says
Love these cookies! Just harvested my basil so was looking for something unique. I found it! I’ll be taking these to a luncheon next week. Can’t wait for the reviews. In one of the pictures it looks like you are sprinkling them with salt…sugar…? Do you recommend that? Thanks so much for the recipe!
betsy says
It was sugar. I sprinkle for a little crunch if I’m in the mood. I love the texture of these cookies so they’re great either way. Personal preference!
Emily says
I just tried these using lime basil and they are great! I look forward to trying them with regular basil to compare as well. Thanks!
betsy says
awesome! They are still my all time favorite. So glad you enjoyed them
betsy says
These cookies are everything you said they were and more. What an absolute delight! I have to say, I came across this recipe and did not think much of it at first but got a kick out of the blog name so I thought I’d give it a go! Baking isn’t ordinarily in my wheelhouse, but I’ve taken quite the liking to it whilst spending my days at home during this pandemic. Thank you for sharing this recipe… they’ve brought zest into our spring as the weather gets warmer after some rather long weeks inside. These are easily a new family favourite!
Sincerely,
betsy
Riss says
These were definitely good. No regrets that I made them. But the flavor is pretty mild. If you are thinking they’ll taste like a key lime pie or something, no. They taste primarily like a sugar cookie with a little bit of basil and lime in them. And I added the zest from 1.5 limes, plus a little lime juice and extra basil from my garden to perk them up. Cookies were fluffy and had a great consistency. I just expected a little more zing based on the description.
Susy says
You say to use a 2” cookie scoop. I know scoops have numbers for the size but I measured my biggest scoop and it was 2” across. Thought that was too big so divided cookies in half and cooked them. They were not as flat as the picture looked. They were very good
Rosie says
Totes delish! xoxo
Lila says
Yas, girl, they delish! best recipe EVER! SO GOOOOOD!!!!
Suzanne says
This looks so good! What a great combination of flavors!
Vanessa says
Thanks for sharing! Does it keep long?
Karen says
Was looking for something different to offer friends for dessert after lunch. It’s July and I’m on the East coast so my basil is very bushy. These yummy cookies with a scoop of strawberry sorbetto = in my mouth!!! Thanks!!
Clementine says
Was skeptical but boy o boy are these devine! My kiddo requested them again!
Thanks for sharing this recipe
Dolly says
Can I double the ingredients to make a double batch?
betsy says
yes!
Ella says
Would this work well with dried basil? We ended up with a basket of limes and these sound delicious, but I don’t want to go out and buy something if dried would work fine
betsy says
I’m sure you could but I don’t know what the measurement would be. A much smaller amount
Jennifer says
I used my lemon basil from the garden and they are great! Thinking about using my cinnamon basil next time!
J says
These sounded so good. I made them exactly according to the recipe. They did not spread and were mealy and dry.