These vegan sugar cookies totally blew my mind! I always thought of sugar cookies as pretty, but not all that tasty. But these were DELICIOUS! Whereas lots of sugar cookies are sweet but otherwise lacking in flavor and texture, these were soft, tender, and perfectly flavored with vanilla and a hint of almond. Let’s talk about how they’re made!
What You’ll Need
For the Cookies
Flour. I’ve only tested the recipe with all-purpose wheat flour, so I can’t guarantee results with anything else.Cornstarch.Baking powder.Salt.Vegan butter. I used Wegman’s brand plant-based butter for this recipe. Other brands you can try include Earth Balance and Miyoko’s.Sugar. Use organic granulated sugar to keep the recipe vegan.Vanilla extract.Almond extract. You can skip this if needed, but it really adds flavor to the cookies.Non-dairy milk. Anything unsweetened and unflavored will work. Try soy milk, rice milk, almond milk, or cashew milk.Powdered sugar. Again, use organic to keep the cookies vegan.
For the Frosting
Powdered sugar. Remember to use organic.Maple syrup. Feel free to substitute another liquid sweetener, such as agave.Almond extract. You can skip this or substitute with vanilla extract if needed.Non-dairy milk. Just use whatever variety you used for the cookies.
How to Make Vegan Sugar Cookies
The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make vegan sugar cookies. Scroll down if you’d prefer to skip right to the recipe!
Stir your dry ingredients together in a bowl: flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt.In a separate bowl, beat together your vegan butter (brought up to room temperature), sugar, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Beat everything for a full 2 minutes, until fluffy and creamy.Add the non-dairy milk.Continue beating everything until the milk is incorporated and the mixture is creamy again.
Now start adding the flour mixture to the butter mixture, just a bit at a time.Beat each addition of the flour mixture in before adding more, until you’ve got a thick dough.
Divide the dough in two, roll each half in a ball and wrap it in plastic. Place both halves in the fridge for an hour to an hour and a half. You want to chill the dough enough to firm it up, but you don’t want it rock solid.
Take one of your dough halves out of the fridge and roll it to about ¼ inch thick. Sprinkle everything with powdered sugar to avoid sticking — dough, countertop, and rolling pin. Be generous with this!Grab some cookie cutters and cut your dough into shapes. Fun!
Space your cutouts about an inch apart on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and bake them until they’re set, about 10 minutes for soft cookies. Transfer the baking sheet to a cooling rack for the cookies to cool when they’re done.
Stir your frosting ingredients together while the cookies bake. Adjust the amount of powdered sugar and milk to get just the right thickness — just spreadable, not too thick, and not too runny. Tint your frosting with food coloring if you’d like.
Pipe or spread the frosting on your cookies when they’re cool. Decorate your cookies with sprinkles, colored sugar, any other garnishes you like!
Can these cookies be made gluten-free? I’m not sure! The recipe might work with an all-purpose gluten-free flour blend, but I haven’t tried so I can’t say for sure.Shelf-life & storage: Vegan sugar cookies will keep in a sealed container or bag at room temperature for about 2 weeks, or in the freezer for about 3 months. Be sure the frosting is fully set, and separate layers of cookies with parchment paper.The more times your roll your dough, the tougher your cookies will be. So be efficient and cut them as close together as you can!Keeping your dough at the right temperature will make rolling and cutting easier, and it will prevent the cookies from spreading too much when they bake. Rewrap each dough ball in plastic and keep it in the fridge (or freezer if it warms up too much) between rollings.Not into frosting on cookies? Skip it! As an alternative, top your cookies with sprinkles or colored sugar before baking, or just leave them plain.
More Vegan Cookie Recipes
Vegan Oatmeal Raisin CookiesVegan Gingerbread CookiesVegan Peanut Butter CookiesVegan Chocolate Chip CookiesVegan Peanut Butter Blossoms
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