Soft and Chewy Cut-Out Vegan Sugar Cookies – 6 Ingredients!
This post contains affiliate links. By clicking on a product link and making a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting The Banana Diaries!
These soft, buttery vegan sugar cookies easily come together with just 6 ingredients and bake into beautifully sweet, thick and chewy cut-out sugar cookies! Perfect for decorating or enjoying with a smear of buttercream frosting- this is a tried and true family favorite recipe!
Your new favorite vegan Christmas cookies
If ever there was a number one Christmas cookie, I truly think it would be these vegan sugar cookies (no shade to the other 100+ vegan cookie recipes I have on the site).
As a vegan baking cookbook author, I know that a perfect recipe comes with much testing and trial and error. Well, I’ve finally perfected the recipe to taste JUST like the sugar cookie cut outs you grew up with as a kid.
And if you’re short on time: Check out these quick and easy drop-style sugar cookies!
And they’re made with just 6 really straight forward ingredients: vegan butter, powdered sugar, dairy free yogurt (or applesauce), flour, vanilla extract and baking powder. That’s really it!
Great with either vegan buttercream or go all out with my favorite simple vegan royal icing too!
6 KEY Ingredients:
- Vegan butter: I personally like vegan butter (like Miyoko’s) over coconut oil because they spread JUST enough, whereas the coconut oil makes them a bit more crumbly and dense. The most important part is that you’re using room temperature butter– this helps the ingredients to emulsify more, and create that soft chew to the cookie!
- Powdered sugar: I’ve tried making sugar cookies with granulated sugar and powdered sugar, and powdered sugar just wins every time. It not only gives these sugar cookies a ridiculously yummy flavor that’s reminiscent of your grandma’s homemade cookies, but they’re also chewier thanks to the cornstarch. Just make sure your powdered sugar is certified vegan and/OR organic.
- Dairy free yogurt: this will replace eggs in traditional sugar cookies. You can also use applesauce or flax egg (just ground flaxseed with water), but in my tests, ground flaxseed makes the cookies not as chewy. The added fat from the yogurt goes a long way, and trust me, you won’t taste it!
- All purpose flour: I’ve only ever made these cookies with all-purpose flour or a gluten-free 1:1 baking flour blend (specifically King Arthur’s Measure-for-Measure gluten-free flour). Both work wonderfully!
- Baking powder: not baking soda. Baking powder will help give these sugar cookies a slightly puffy look and keep them from spreading.
Overview: How to make perfectly vegan sugar cookies:
Here’s how to make this easy vegan sugar cookie dough:
- Cream together the vegan butter and sugar: this is very similar to buttercream. You’ll also add in the vanilla extract and almond extract here, as well as the dairy free yogurt.
- Sift in the flours and baking powder: then you’ll use a rubber spatula- a silicone spatula is key! – to fold together the dry ingredients. This will take about 3-4 minutes. The rubber spatula makes it much easier to incorporate the flours into the creamed vegan butter.
- Chill the dough: form the dough into a disk and chill for 30 minutes.
Then we’ll cut out the sugar cookies:
- Roll out the dough: lightly flour a clean surface and rolling pin and roll the dough to be 1/4″ thick.
- Cut out the sugar cookies: you can use any sugar cookie cutters here!
- Transfer the sugar cookies to a baking sheet: I recommend using a super thin spatula to do this.
- Chill the cookies while the oven preheats.
- Bake the cookies! You’re looking for a lightly golden color around the edges.
Once the cookies are completely cool, we’ll move onto decorating them.
How to decorate with Vegan Royal Icing
This is my all time favorite part of the whole sugar cookie baking process: decorating the cookies.
But first, we need to make the vegan royal icing. This egg-free royal icing is super simple. All you need is:
- Aquafaba (or chickpea water)
- Powdered sugar
- Vegan food coloring
Next, you’ll simply add the aquafaba and powdered sugar to a bowl, and mix with a spoon or whip with a hand mixer until light and fluffy.
By using a hand mixer or an electric mixer, you’ll notice it really helps to prevent any clumps of powdered sugar and gives you a really smooth royal icing.
Finally, you’ll divide the royal icing into separate bowls if you’re using vegan food coloring. I recommend a gel vegan food coloring, such as the one that Whole Foods makes.
Remember that if you’re not using a bowl of royal icing right away, cover the bowl with a damp cloth to prevent it from hardening.
The biggest tip I have for decorating sugar cookies is don’t try to make them perfect.
We are not a professional bakery. We are humans trying to have some holiday fun and cheer. If you try to make them perfect, you’ll just not have fun decorating these, and it can be quite frustrating. And you’ll be surprised: when you’re not trying to make them perfect, these sugar cookies will actually come out looking really beautiful!
You can also spread a bit of homemade vegan frosting for an easy sugar cookie decoration that’s super fun and easy for kids as well.
Want to save this recipe for later? Add it to your favorite recipe board on Pinterest!
If you make this recipe, please be sure to leave a comment and a rating ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ below. This helps others to find the recipes! As always, I absolutely love to see your beautiful creations on Instagram and Pinterest, so be sure to tag me there as well!
Print
Soft and Chewy Cut-Out Vegan Sugar Cookies – 6 Ingredients!
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 12
- Total Time: 22 minutes
- Yield: 32 1x
- Category: Cookies
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
These soft and buttery vegan sugar cookies easily come together with a 6 ingredient simple cookie dough that bake into the perfectly sweet, thick and chewy cut-out cookies! Perfect for decorating or enjoying with a smear of buttercream frosting- this is a tried and true family favorite recipe!
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup (185 g) unsalted vegan butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cup (250 g) organic powdered sugar or coconut sugar*
- 1/3 cup (87 g) dairy free yogurt, room temperature
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp almond extract (optional, omit if nut-free)
- 2 1/2 cups (315 g) all purpose flour or gluten free 1:1 baking flour*
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/8 tsp sea salt (omit if using salted butter)
- 1 batch vegan royal icing
Instructions
- Mix: In a large bowl, cream together the vegan butter and powdered sugar with a hand mixer or stand mixer. Cream together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. It will seem very much like buttercream. Once the sugar is mixed with the vegan butter, add in the dairy free yogurt, vanilla extract and almond extract if desired. Mix again until incorporated.
- Fold: Sift in the flour, and baking powder, and use a rubber spatula to gently fold the flours into the creamed butter. This will take about 3-4 minutes to fully incorporate.
- Chill: Once the dough is made, form the dough into a flat disk and wrap with plastic wrap or parchment paper, and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes. While the dough is chilling, prepare a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Shape: Once chilled, lightly flour a clean surface as well as a rolling pin. Place the dough onto the floured surface. If the dough is not at all soft (i.e. it’s hard to touch), allow the dough to soften for 10 minutes. Then roll the dough out to be about 1/4″ thick. Use your desired cookie cutters and cut the cookie shapes into the dough. Remove any scraps and use a thin spatula to transfer the sugar cookies to the baking sheet. Repeat for the remaining dough, then chill the cookie sheet in the freezer for while the oven preheats.
- Bake: Preheat the oven to 350F. Once the oven is fully preheated, place the cookie sheet into the oven and bake the cookies for 12 minutes or until the edges are just beginning to turn lightly golden. Remove from the oven and allow the cookies to fully cool before making the vegan royal icing. There should be absolutely no warmth to the cookies.
- Make the royal icing according to the post instructions: Divide the royal icing into separate bowls if using vegan food coloring and add in the colors. Be sure to cover any bowl of icing that you’re not using with a damp paper towel. This prevents the royal icing from hardening. Mix the colors, and place the icing into a piping bag with tip. Decorate the cookies as desired.
- Set: Allow the cookies to set for 15 minutes, then enjoy!
- To fully set the cookies: Allow for 8 hours- this is standard for even royal icing made with egg whites. Store the cookies in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Notes
* coconut sugar will give these cookies a slightly tanner color. If you want traditional looking sugar cookies, use a vegan-friendly granulated sugar, such as Woodstock Organics
Flaxseed: You can swap in 2 tbsp ground flaxseed mixed with 1/3 cup water for a replacement for the applesauce/yogurt.
Looks AmaZing
Thank you!!
Do you have weight measurements for the ingredients?
Yes! If you click the toggle for “M” up in the top right corner of the ingredients, you can get the metric measurements 🙂
Hello,
I followed the recipe to the “T” and when I pulled the dough out of the fridge and transferred it to my clean surface the dough starting falling apart. I put in the freezer after salvaging some of dough to bake up as cookies. Didn’t work either. I am not sure how you made this without the dough falling apart.
Hi Anita! I’m so sorry to hear this! That definitely should not have happened. Did you happen to use the weighted measurements or did you use US cup?
Can I sub brown sugar in these? I was hoping to make a brown sugar cookie this year!
Thank you!
Hi Kristi! Absolutely!!
I have made some of your recipes, and they are delicious and easy! Thanks for posting them and sharing! Happy Holidays!
I am allergic to eggs, so having recipes that replace them quickly is a gift!
So happy to hear it!! thanks so much for trying them and for being here 🙂 Enjoy, and happy holidays!!
Hi Britt,
I was wondering if the applesauce/yogurt replaces eggs in this cookie recipe? If so, could I sub in an egg for the applesauce/yogurt 1:1? Thanks!
Hi Sonya! Yes it does! While I haven’t personally tried this, you certainly can give it a go- typically, 1 egg = 1/3 cup applesauce/dairy free yogurt!
Oh my goodness, thank you! We have had a sugar cookie tradition for three generations! Our grandson has dietary restrictions that challenged this tradition. However, your recipe has brought back our sugar cookie Christmas tradition. The ingredients came together and the dough was easy to roll out between lightly floured waxed paper! They turned out tender and delicious! We appreciate you!
This is so wonderful!! Oh I’m so happy to hear it 🙂 Thank you so much for trusting me with your ingredients!! Enjoy and happy holidays!! Thanks for being here 🙂
Hi there 🙂 just a head’s up, the “print” version of this recipe doesn’t match the web version exactly, there are some minor variations. When you click “print” it says 3/4 c sugar instead of 1 cup, and leaves off the sea salt step entirely. Most likely not a dramatic difference in the outcome, but I imagine the sugar quantity was updated for a reason, and should be ideally reflected correctly between both.
These cookies were delicious! Just made them for Valentine’s Day for my daughter’s family including a vegan, a gluten intolerant adult and two young kids. We all loved them! Simple recipe with a reasonable amount of every day ingredients! Made them without icing, but may try it next time.
Oh this is wonderful!! So so happy you loved them 🙂 Enjoy!! Thanks for the review!
What GF 1:1 flour do you recommend for these cookies? You usually reccomend King Arthur Measure for Measure, is that the best for these sugar cookies?
Hi Kelly! Yes, that’s the one!! Love that one here 🙂 Enjoy!
These looks amazing!
The recipe says applesauce / non dairy yogurt but the video you say and use flaxmeal. Does either one work? Looking forward to trying and decorating!
Hi Jennifer! Thanks so much for your question. You can follow the recipe card at the bottom of the page for the most up to date version of these yummy sugar cookies! 🙂
These turned out beautifully! They did not spread or lose their shape at all while baking.
My only comment is that I had to add a *lot* of extra flour to make the dough come together. I used all the weight measurements and chilled the dough for over two hours (rather than 30 minutes) but still the dough was just too soft and slick to do anything with. I probably added over 100g of extra flour. As a result, the cookies are a bit on the bland side, but nothing a bit of icing won’t fix!
Thank you for the recipe, I will definitely be trying again!
Oh I’m so sorry this happened! I’m wondering, did you use a gluten free flour blend? If so, which one? That might have resulted in a sticky dough if your blend didn’t contain xanthan gum!
Hi Brit… can this dough be frozen to use at another time? And/or how long could you keep the dough in the fridge before baking? Thanks so much!
I made these today with unicorn cookie cutters for my niece’s 5th birthday and they turned out great! My cookies needed to be baked an extra 6 minutes, but that’s likely because they were thicker than 1/4 inch (I didn’t measure). They taste great and are soft and chewy as described. I can’t wait to decorate them!
This is so wonderful!! So happy you loved them!! And happy 5th birthday to your niece 🙂 So fun!! Thank you for the review!
I was wondering what the difference between vegan yogurt and apple sauce. have you tried both? if so, what is the difference in consistency and any spreading from the original cookie cutter? thank you!
I have! So personally, I like yogurt more because it has more fat, lending to a chewier texture. It also seems to bind a bit more than applesauce (which will usually split a vegan butter and sugar mixture).
These are PERFECT. My entire family loves them and are so easy to make. I did freeze mine for a bit to get them harder for kids to work with but, they baked up so soft and didn’t spread at all!
So happy to hear it!! Thanks so much for the review 🙂 Enjoy!!
hi there,
would cookie stamps work with these cookies? thanks so much!
Yes absolutely!!
I made these with coconut sugar, regular butter and 1-to-1 gluten free flour! I added just a smidge of real maple syrup to get the dough to stick together better, and that put the flavor over the top. We loved them!
Omgsh YUM!! This is so wonderful ,thank you for the review!!
Can I make the dough the day before and refrigerate overnight?
Thanks!
Absolutely! I’ve done that a ton 🙂 Works great!
hey! do you think this recipe could work with silicon molds ?
thanks!
I’ve never tried! Personally, I’m not the biggest fan of silicone molds with baking, as I think it alters the taste a bit, but you can definitely try!
Great recipe! I used this and the gingerbread recipe for my yearly cookie bake with nieces and nephews. The dough is easy to make and easy to work. The cookies are tasty too! The kids loved baking and decorating! Thank you ❤️
I followed this recipe and used the gram measurements. My dough was so soft even after chilling that i couldn’t cut them out. Can you tell me the brands of butter and yogurt you used, maybe that has something to do with it.
Hi Becca! Hmm did you use a gluten free flour blend? If so, which type? If you used regular AP flour, then it should definitely have been rollable! I use either Kite Hill or Forager Project, I’ve tested it both ways. And for butter I use either Miyoko’s or Plant Crock!
Hi Brit! I’m going to make these later today and I’m wondering if it’s truly POWDERED sugar or coconut sugar? Those two don’t seem to be interchangeable?
Hi Madeleine! I truly use powdered sugar! Some coconut sugar is super powdery, but to make powdered sugar from coconut sugar, just pulse it in the food processor in 30 second intervals 🙂
Hello! I followed the recipe to a T and the mixture resembled hummus… any ideas? Thank you!
I’m wondering, did you do any ingredient swaps?
Are these still delicious if I bake and freeze for xmas?
So sorry we’re just getting to this!! Absolutely- I freeze mine all the time then enjoy 🙂
Hi! What brand of dairy free yogurt do you recommend?
I love forager project or kite hill here!
Hi! I’m looking forward to making these, but I was wondering if I could chill the pre-rolled dough overnight?
Hi Sabrina! Absolutely, it works great! 🙂
update with images and i wanted to take photos of the kids decorating their cookies but i was so pressed for time i didn’t even have time to take pictures of the snack tables. but it came out amazingly. i did the painting on them all by hand
Okay obsessed- OBSESSED!! This is so lovely!! Thank you so much for coming back to share!! They’re BEAUTIFUL!!
I used your recipe but added 1/2 tsp of cream of tarter and they turned out perfectly. I am so happy with this recipe and will use it again. 😋
This is AWESOME wow!! Thank you so much for the review! And I so have to try that cream of tartar addition!!