Now this vegan shortbread cookies are the bomb! You only need four ingredients to bake them and it’s a very simple recipe to follow. The shortbread tastes exactly the same as non-vegan shortbread cookies, it’s a brilliant cookie recipe and you can easily add variations such as rosewater or vegan melted chocolate.
It’s a great vegan cookie recipe if you’re just starting out and wanting to learn how to bake vegan. These shortbread cookies can be cut into any shape and decorated with chocolate or royal icing. These shortbread cookies keep for a few weeks in an airtight container and can be frozen for a few months.
Watch my youtube video for more shortbread tips and tricks for this recipe.
Easy Vegan Shortbread Cookies using 4 Ingredients
Total Time: 40 minutes
Yield: 24 small cookies 1x
Ingredients
Scale
- 250 grams vegan butter or margarine (1 cup at room temp)
- 80 grams icing or powdered sugar (a little more than 1/2 cup)
- 300 grams plain all purpose flour (2 1/3 cups + 1 tbs / plus extra)
- 1 tsp almond extract / flavouring
Instructions
- Pre-heat your oven to 175C / 350F and line 2 baking trays with baking paper.
- Using a mix master with a paddle attachment, beat butter on low to soften it for minute. Then add sifted powdered sugar and cream together for 2 minutes until light and fluffy. Scrap down the sides half way through.
- Add almond extract and beat on low for 30 seconds.
- Add sifted flour and beat on low. The mixture will start to come together as crumbs and then will form a soft delicate dough. If needed, add 1-2 tbs of water if it’s not coming together.
- Using your hands bring dough together into a ball. If it's super sticky and sticking to your fingers (see my video example) add a little extra flour. Place in the fridge for 30 mins to a few hours to help it firm up. I even leave mine over night sometimes.
- Roll dough out on bench about 5 mms or 1/2 cm thick and cut with cookie cutter.
- Place cookies on tray and bake for 23-25 minutes on the top rack of your oven. Check them at the 20 min mark. They will remain pale but go slightly brown on the bottom and around the edges.
Notes
See my super quick YouTube video for all my tips, tricks and variations with this recipe and how to get the perfect dough.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Category: Cookies, High Tea
Keywords: shortbread, vegan, vegan baking, vegan cookie
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Hi Sara
Thank you so much for all your recipes. I love your book the Vegan Cake Bible!
I normally use nuttlex as the butter/margarine in cookies but even with freezing I find the dough is still very soft. Just wondering if you can suggest another alternative that you can purchase from Coles or Woolworths? my local health food shops don’t stock a vegan butter.
Hi Kate, you could try doing half nuttlex and half veggie shortening mix…
I made them and I don’t know if I messed up with proportions (don’t have a scale) or what but I left them in the over for over 25′ and still look raw in the middle 🙁
★★★★★
Hey Bar
So sorry these didn’t work out for you. Not sure what happen. Did you pre heat your oven before baking?
made these sooo many times over Christmas, they are sooo good
Making them again now only this time putting choc chips in them
YUM!
★★★★★
Hey Steve
Thanks so much for letting me know!
Just made these for Christmas Day. OMG! They are AWESOME! Thanks so much for this recipe, I’ve been looking for a really good buttery, crumbley shortbread for ages. This takes the biscuit! (pun very much intended)
Definitely be my go to shortbread from now on
Thanks again and Merry Christmas
★★★★★
Hi, I am baking these as gifts for Christmas, but as I’m disabled and need support workers to help and I only have two hours twice a week to do this, I need to know how long they will last once baked/cooked. And I assume in an airtight container of some sort? Also I intend to change the almond extact for vanilla extract. And to do 3 different versions, depending on time.
One plain vanilla, one vanilla and chocolate chips and one chocolate and chocolate chips, with a hint of vanilla. And possibly some nuts if I have any leftover from the chocolate truffles I’m making. (All vegan) and again if I have time. Any help would be greatly appreciated. As the comment you left about them being OK for 1 to 2 weeks after someone else asked I was not sure if it referred to the dough or the baked cookies. Sorry. I’m in the autistic spectrum and need very specific details otherwise I get confused with all the different possibilities. Thanks.
Hi Alice
You can freeze these cookies once baked for about 3 to 4 weeks sealed in an airtight zip lock bag and in placed into an airtight container in the freezer.
Otherwise you can do the same actions – airtight bag and container in the fridge for 1 to 2 weeks.
Those flavour variations sound perfect.
Good luck!
Sara
Hi Sara, thinking to make these for our carers lunch ( parents / partners etc of our brain injury patients). Just wondering how long they would keep for?
Hey Diane
I freeze them for up to a month. You can keep them in the fridge for 1 to 2 weeks with no issues.
xox
Thank you so much Sara for all that you share with us home bakers💐
Not a problem, it’s my passion!
Okay. So your site is OUTTA SIGHT! The easy conversion and amount thing? THAT’S RAD!!! Thank you, and thank you for this yummy recipe!
Thank you Dara xoxox
sara, love your videos and can’t wait to try, however, i am so confused as you, across the pond, use different verbage than we use. i noticed that the great british baking show started using “fan” to describe convection and sometines *but not always) give the alternate for conventional times and temps. what if you can only adjust your oven by 5 degrees at a time? i don’t understand the difference between strong and regular flour. please help me understand, SOS
Hey Aimee, sorry it’s confusing.
F is for Degree fahrenheit
C is for Celsius fahrenheit
Here is a UK conversion chart. https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/conversion-guides
You want a moderate heated oven for these biscuits.
You want to use All Purpose Flour. This is called Plain Flour in Australia.
Does that help?
xox