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If you’re craving New York Bakery-Style cookies, then you need to try these zesty thick and chewy vegan lemon cookies. We’re using cold vegan butter and baking at high temps to yield the most chewy, soft, and thick lemony sweet cookies- all without any lemon extract, nor eggs. And it’s EASY!

stacked vegan lemon cookies

You’re going to LOVE these bakery-style vegan lemon cookies:

You can skip the trip to New York just for cookies- these bakery-style lemon cookies really and truly have it all.

We’re talking thick, chewy, and perfectly zesty sweet with pools of melty dairy free white chocolate complementing every bite.

hand holding broken cookies

I based this recipe off of the ever-so-popular Levain Lemon White Chocolate Chip Cookies- and I can confirm with non-vegan taste testers telling me that this vegan version is even better.

You honestly could sell these vegan lemon cookies at a bakery. They’re just so easy to make and with a few key tricks (like using cold vegan butter and baking at a high temperature), you’ll be finding every reason to make these bakery-style lemon cookies. Well…along with my better than Tollhouse chocolate chip cookies!!

Why we’re using cold vegan butter:

Most cookie recipes call for room temperature butter, while many of my own cookie recipes call for melted butter (saves time in my opinion, and you still have to chill the dough so why not).

However, these copycat Levain lemon cookies call for cold butter. It’s been said on Instagram and TikTok that the famous New York bakery uses cold butter for all of their cookies. And they may be onto something.

sliced vegan butter

The colder temperature of the butter creates a more “biscuit” like cookie. Thick, super chewy, but somehow manages to maintain the cookie-like consistency we want (rather than a dry biscuit), I believe because of the ratios.

So while the colder butter is a little harder to work with using a hand mixer (just fine using a stand mixer!), the results are so worth it. The trip to the local bakery won’t even cross your mind knowing you can make these right at home!

Making the cookie dough:

For the full written instructions and ingredient measurements, see the bottom of this post in the recipe card. You can also hit the “jump to recipe” button at the top of this post! Here, we’ll go over a brief overview of the steps, along with providing visuals for a better understanding of the recipe.

I honestly find this cookie dough to be extremely easy to make. Bakery-style cookies are really just thicker cookies whose magic comes in the ratio of ingredients (though there are some key techniques that I’ll go over in the next section!).

Seeing as I’m giving you the recipe, you’ll be a bakery pro in no time. And people will be begging you for this vegan lemon cookie recipe!

Here are a few notes to keep in mind when making these vegan lemon cookies:

  • Don’t skip the rubbing of the sugar and lemon zest together: This helps to release the lemon oils in the zest, which adds to the lemon flavor. Meaning, we can skip lemon extract all together (which other cookie recipes add in). Don’t worry- these copycat Levain lemon cookies are plenty lemony.
  • You can use a stand mixer or a hand mixer: I find it’s a bit more work with the hand mixer, but either will do.
  • Don’t skip the chilling of the cookie dough: I get it. We’re using cold butter, so you should be able to bake these right away, right? Not if you want thick, super flavorful cookies. The longer the dough chills, the more the flavors all marinate together to produce a super yummy, bakery-worthy cookie. And you won’t even know it’s vegan!
  • You can use cornstarch or arrowroot starch: The reason for including either was to avoid having to ask you to use cake flour, which isn’t as common in the pantry (though great for my vegan vanilla cake!). Either will work here- but don’t skip it for that super soft & chewy texture!
  • Any dairy free yogurt will do: This is our vegan egg replacement. I like to use Forager Project Greek-style cashew milk yogurt at the moment, but this recipe also works with Kite Hill, So Delicious, and Cocojune.
cookie dough before being scooped
scooped cookie dough

Pro tips for thick, bakery-style lemon cookies:

  • Use an ice cream scoop: I know, sounds a little enthusiastic, but trust me. Those bakery cookies you enjoy are 6 ounces each. That’s a lot of scoops with a medium cookie scoop.
  • Shape the cookies into tall mounds: Instead of cookie dough balls, shape the cookies into tall mounds. This helps the cookies spread round while still holding shape (i.e. not baking to flat pancakes). This is KEY for making thick bakery-style vegan lemon cookies!
  • Bake at a high temp: This sounds counterintuitive for cookies. Normally we bake at 350F, right? Not here. I’ve found 375F to be the sweet spot. You’ll also bake these cookies for a bit longer than your normal cookie too. Instead of the usual 12-14 minutes, we’re doing a whopping 18 minutes. They’re 6 ounce cookies, okay?!
broken open bakery cookies

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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 lemon cookies

Bakery-Style Vegan Lemon White Chocolate Cookies

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  • Author: Britt Berlin
  • Prep Time: 10
  • Chilling Time: 240
  • Cook Time: 18
  • Total Time: 4 hours 28 minutes
  • Yield: 7 large cookies 1x
  • Category: Cookies
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: American
  • Diet: Vegan
Print Recipe

Description

If you’re craving New York Bakery-Style cookies, then you need to try these zesty thick and chewy vegan lemon cookies. We’re using cold vegan butter and baking at high temps to yield the most chewy, soft, and thick lemony sweet cookies- all without any lemon extract, nor eggs. And it’s EASY!

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup (110 g) light brown sugar
  • 2 tbsp lemon zest
  • 1 cup (226 g) cold salted vegan butter, cubed
  • 1/3 cup (70 g) dairy free yogurt, cold
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 2 tbsp cornstarch
  • 1 tbsp vanilla extract
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp sea salt
  • 3 cups (375 g) all-purpose flour
  • 9 ounces vegan white chocolate chips

Instructions

  1. Prep: Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Measure out all ingredients. You can use a hand mixer and a large bowl or a stand mixer.
  2. Rub the sugar and lemon zest: In a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer, add in the sugar, brown sugar, and lemon zest. With clean hands, rub the lemon zest into the sugar to help release the lemon oils (this helps us avoid having to use lemon extract).
  3. Cream the butter: Once the sugar seems “wet,” add in the cubed vegan butter. Either with a hand mixer or with the paddle attachment of the stand mixer, cream the cold vegan butter into the sugar. Because the butter is cold, this will take 5-7 minutes. Cream until the butter is fluffy and mixed into the butter.
  4. Add in the remaining wet ingredients: Add in the dairy free yogurt, lemon juice, cornstarch, vanilla extract, baking soda, and sea salt, and mix again until combined.
  5. Mix in the flour: Add in the flour, and mix the flour into the wet ingredients on low speed until you reach a thick and consistent dough, about 1-2 minutes.
  6. Fold in the vegan white chocolate chips: Add in the vegan white chocolate chips and switch to a silicone spatula to fold in the chips until evenly distributed.
  7. Shape the cookie dough: If you’re going for bakery style, you’ll be scooping about 6 ounces of cookie dough per cookie. I use a large ice cream scoop and use about 1.5 scoops, but it’s best to measure using a scale to get the most even cookies. You will yield 7 6-ounce cookies. Once scooped, leave the cookie dough in tall mounds. This helps them remain thick while baking.
  8. Chill: Once scooped and shaped, cover the cookie dough with plastic wrap and chill the tray of cookie dough in the fridge for 4 hours, or overnight. To speed it up, you can also chill in the freezer for 1-2 hours, but the best flavor is with a longer chill in the fridge.
  9. When ready to bake: Preheat the oven to 375F.
  10. Bake: Space the cookies out onto two baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Space the cookies at least 2-3 inches apart. Bake the cookies on the middle rack (you may have to do one cookie sheet at a time) for 18 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown.
  11. Cool & enjoy: Allow the cookies to set on the baking sheet for 10 minutes after baking. This helps their bottoms firm up so you can pick them up. Then enjoy! Freeze any leftovers in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Equipment

Notes

Gluten free: I like King Arthur Measure-for-Measure gluten-free flour here.

Vegan white chocolate chips: I like Enjoy Life vegan white chocolate chips. You can also use vegan white chocolate bars- Polar-less is a great brand.

You can watch how I make them here!