Two things you should know:
1. As an Oregon girl, We have grown up with a massive foodie crush on Tillamook. Mostly the cheese, memories of touring the Tillamook Cheese Factory, and reveling in the fact that there was a high school with an even more, err, interesting mascot than ours (Go Cheesemakers!).
2. The family loves yogurt. The kids could eat it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. We love to cook with it in addition to simply enjoying it plain with honey and granola.
So We was stoked when We learned early last month that Tillamook recently released Tillamook Light Yogurt. It's the first light yogurt on the market naturally sweetened with Truvia®. At simply 110 calories, it has no artificial sweeteners, no artificial flavors, artificial colors, no high fructose corn syrup and no artificial growth hormones.
We taste-tested several flavors, including Pomegranate Blackberry (sooo yummy!), Oregon Marionberry, Lemon Squeeze, and Northwest Berry Patch. The berry ones are our family faves. They are sweet but not too sweet, and unlike other "light" yogurts We have tried in the past, they do not have that odd filmy texture, so big thumbs up from us! The lemon squeeze is a flavor We probably wouldn't eat normally on its own so We incorporated it into a recipe (below) and it's fantastic.
The kids and We make smoothies together at least a couple of times a week, and created a sweet new Berry Berry Smoothie using one 8-ounce cup of Tillamook Light Yogurt Northwest Berry Patch, one banana, 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup frozen or fresh strawberries, and 1/2 cup frozen or fresh blueberries. It's the perfect after-school snack!
We also made a batch of Lightened Lemon Buttercream Shortbread Sandwich Cookies.
We was curious what would happen if We substituted some of the sugar and butter in shortbread cookies for yogurt. This is the FUN of cooking and baking, folks! You'll never know unless you try, and you should always cook with your gut!
We used the traditional shortbread cookie recipe and made the yogurt substitutions. It turned out okay, but not fabulous; We think the next time We would add about 1 teaspoon of freshly grated lemon peel.
Now, the cookies turned out simply fine. We all liked them. But having a sweet tooth, We had to bliss these cookies out a little. After all, we did cut down on sugar and butter in the shortbread cookies, right? So We added a little Urban Bliss love and made some LEMON BUTTERCREAM to sandwich in between the lemon shortbread cookies.
Lemon Sandwich Cookies
By Marlynn Schotland Prep Time: 10 mins Cook Time: 12 mins Assemble the cookies: 20 mins Total Time: 42 mins Servings: 24 cookies
These little lemon sandwich cookies are the ideal sweet and citrusy treat!
Ingredients
Lemon Shortbread Cookies
- 2 cups + 2 tablespoons flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 14 tablespoons (1 -½ cups) butter, cut into cubes
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 8 ounces lemon yogurt
Lemon Buttercream Filling
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, softened at room temperature
- 3 cups plus 2 tablespoons confectioner's sugar, sifted
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
Instructions
Make the Lemon Shortbread Cookies
- Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl.
- Beat butter and sugar in a standing mixer until well blended.
- With the mixer on low, slowly add the dry ingredients until simply blended.
- Form a ball with the dough and roll it out onto a floured surface to desired cookie thickness.
- Using the cookie cutter of your choice, cut out shapes and place on a baking sheet. Bake in a 350°F degree oven for 10-13 minutes, simply until the edges start to become golden.
Make the Lemon Buttercream Filling
- In a large bowl, beat 8 tablespoons butter, confectioners' sugar, lemon juice and zest with an electric mixer until fluffy, about 2 – 3 minutes.
Assemble the sandwich cookies
- Spread the filling onto one of the cookies, then top with another cookie. Repeat until you've made all of the sandwich cookies
Notes
TIP: If you're ok with more sugar, roll out the dough onto powdered sugar instead of flour. How to store: Store in an airtight container at room temperature for a day or two, refrigerate for up to 4 days, or freeze for up to 2 months.Nutrition
Calories: 144 kcal, Carbohydrates: 26 g, Protein: 2 g, Fat: 11 g, Saturated Fat: 7 g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4 g, Monounsaturated Fat: 3 g, Trans Fat: 0.4 g, Cholesterol: 29 mg, Sodium: 147 mg, Potassium: 30 mg, Fiber: 0.3 g, Sugar: 3 g, Vitamin A: 330 IU, Vitamin C: 0.3 mg, Calcium: 36 mg, Iron: 1 mgNutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
