These perfectly soft drop-style sugar cookies are made unbelievably dairy free and without eggs, yet have the most deliciously crisp outer edges with chewy middles. Different from my cut-out vegan sugar cookies, this drop-style version is quick and easy to make (no chilling required!) for your new favorite vegan Christmas cookie recipe!

stacked vegan sugar cookies

Don’t get me wrong. Cut-out sugar cookies are quintessential Christmas cookies, and absolutely deserve to be baked and decorated each year.

But when you’re assembling several cookie boxes for homemade holiday gifts, or trying to come up with one more quick and easy recipe for your holiday cookie exchange, you need a simple, hassle-free recipe.

Enter in these classic drop-style vegan sugar cookies. The dough is made in just 5 minutes, and you don’t even need to chill them (though you totally can to bake at a later date, so they’re fresh!).

baked vegan sugar cookies on a cooling rack

Plus, these vegan drop-style sugar cookies are iconically soft and chewy. We’re talking just the right amount of chewiness with crisp, lightly golden outer edges. Buttery sweet with vanilla and just slightly nutty from the almond extract.

As a vegan baking cookbook author, I’ve had a few cookies in my day, and these are basically, Christmas cookie heaven in a bite.

Leave them plain or roll them in decorative sugar or sprinkles, and bake!

And they pair SO well with my copycat Pillsbury vegan Christmas cookies, vegan shortbread, raspberry thumbprint cookies, and vegan Linzer cookies!

Simple ingredients:

  • Flour: You can use all purpose flour (plain flour outside of the U.S.) or gluten-free baking flour blend (one that contains xanthan gum!).
  • Sugar: Make sure it’s vegan-certified or organic!
  • Powdered sugar: This is my key secret ingredient to the most perfectly soft and chewy vegan sugar cookies. I learned this trick from my childhood best friend’s mom, who would always bake sugar cookies with us growing up (before I went vegan!). A little powdered sugar tenderizes the flour, creating that chewy texture.
  • Vegan butter: I recommend Miyoko’s vegan butter. It tastes nearly identical to traditional butter, and bakes just the same.
  • Dairy free yogurt: Another key secret ingredient to all of my vegan cookie recipes, and my favorite vegan egg substitute. It works way better than flax egg or even applesauce!
  • Vanilla extract
  • Almond extract
  • Cornstarch: This helps to achieve that super chewy cookie texture. You can also sub in arrowroot starch instead!
baked vegan drop-style sugar cookies

How is this recipe different from cut-out sugar cookies?

This is a great question! So this recipe is NOT to be confused with my classic vegan sugar cookie cut-outs. It’s actually an entirely different recipe, and I developed it not even using my original sugar cookie recipe.

I’d say these cookies are more closely related to a chocolate chip cookie, but without the light brown sugar.

It definitely cannot be rolled out, and is designed to be your go-to easy cookie recipe for all of your cookie baking and cookie box needs!

stacked and broken open sugar cookies

Key tips for how to make drop-style sugar cookies:

  • Make sure you’re using a kitchen scale: Like with all of my baking recipes, I really recommend using a kitchen scale over using cups. You’ll be less likely to over-measure the flour or under measure another ingredient
  • Use high quality ingredients: Ingredients matter a lot in baking, whether it’s for texture, appearance, or taste. Using high quality ingredients is key for the best tasting sugar cookies!
  • For thicker sugar cookies: Chill the cookie dough for 20 minutes for a thicker cookie!
  • Make them gluten free: If you’re in need of gluten free vegan sugar cookies, swap in King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free flour blend (it’s my go-to flour blend for gluten-free!).

Because these cookies are more like a chocolate chip cookie rather than a cut out cookie, your best bet is icing my cut-out vegan sugar cookies. The tops of these cookies won’t be smooth enough for icing.

However, you can also make these into sugar cookie bars, and use my vegan royal icing or vegan frosting to decorate!

stacked vegan sugar cookies

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!

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stacked vegan sugar cookies

Easy Vegan Drop-Style Sugar Cookies Recipe

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 6 reviews
  • Author: Britt Berlin
  • Prep Time: 5
  • Cook Time: 12
  • Total Time: 17 minutes
  • Yield: 20 1x
  • Category: Cookies
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan

Description

These perfectly soft drop-style sugar cookies are made unbelievably dairy free and without eggs, yet have the most deliciously crisp outer edges with chewy middles. Quick and easy to make (no chilling required!), these will be your favorite vegan Christmas cookie recipe ever!


Ingredients

Scale
  • 2 cup (250 g) all purpose flour or gluten free 1:1 baking flour , sifted and spoon & leveled*
  • 1 tbsp cornstarch
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp sea salt
  • 3/4 cup (170 g) unsalted vegan butter, melted and cooled to room temperature
  • 1/2 cup (100 g) organic granulated sugar
  • 1 cup (120 g) powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup (60 g) dairy free yogurt or unsweetened applesauce, room temperature
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp almond extract, optional

Instructions

  1. Prep: Preheat the oven to 350F, and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  2. Whisk the wet ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the melted vegan butter, sugar, powdered sugar, dairy free yogurt, vanilla extract, and optional almond extract. Then whisk in the cornstarch, baking powder, and sea salt.
  3. Fold in the dry ingredients: Add in the flour, and use a silicone spatula to fold JUST until the wet ingredients are incorporated into the dry ingredients.
  4. Optional chilling: For taller cookies that spread less, you can chill the dough for 10-20 minutes in the fridge.
  5. Scoop and bake: Use a medium cookie scoop, and scoop the cookie dough into 1.5 tbsp sized dough balls, spaced about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden.
  6. Serve and enjoy! Allow the cookies to cool for 10 minutes on the cookie sheet (which helps the bottoms firm up a bit more!), then serve and enjoy!

Notes

Gluten free: I recommend using King Arthur Measure for Measure gluten free baking flour for gluten free!

Cookie Guide: See my cookie guide for how to freeze and ship these cookies!