The easiest way to make these cookies is to combine your dry ingredients in a medium sized bowl first. These would be the flour, sugar, and baking powder, and just a dash of salt. Mix to combine.

Melt your butter (it is easiest to mix that way) in a slightly larger bowl and combine the ricotta cheese and applesauce. Mix completely. Then add your milk, mixing everything together (for an even lower fat cookie, use 1%, 2% or skim milk!). Finally add your eggs and make sure everything is well combined.

Add dry mixture into the wet mixture very slowly, about 1/2 cup at a time, making sure everything is combining evenly. This will take some patience and some arm work, so move those guns!

When everything is combined, add the vanilla and the lemon extract (or juice) and add some zest (if you're using fresh lemons) to give it an extra kick.

Now grease your baking sheets with your favorite grease (Pam, butter, lard... whatever broils your brisket) and with rounded tablespoons, set your little creations about an inch and a half away from each other so they will rise evenly, and have enough room for the heat to circulate. Bake at 350°F for about 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown on the tops.

Mix, in a small bowl, your ingredients for your glaze. Make note above that you can do either vanilla glaze or lemon, or you can experiment and try both together!

When your cookies are out of the oven and cooled, drizzle the glaze on top. Let set.

Submitted by: Victoria Tauber - Philadelphia, PA