Delicious, buttery shortbread biscuits that are so easy to make. Too easy, in fact. Ice them, add flavourings or just enjoy them exactly as they are!
It’s always too tempting to quickly whip up a batch of these to have “just a few” to nibble on and inevitably eat the entire lot to yourself… because it’s impossible to have “just a few”.
How to make the perfect Vegan Shortbread Cookies
- Use a good-tasting vegan butter – I recommend Naturli or Earth Balance Buttery, if you want that classic buttery flavour.
- Cream the fat and sugar well – The first step of the recipe is to cream the vegan spread with the sugar and it’s an important one.
The longer you can mix them together for, the better.
I usually aim for about 5 minutes but you can increase that for up to 10 minutes if you have a stand mixer. - Chill the dough – This part is important for a couple of reasons.
First, so that the dough becomes workable and doesn’t lose its shape.
Second, so the fat firms up and doesn’t melt too quickly in the oven. This part really affects the overall texture and shape.
Extra Tip: You can try chilling the dough twice, for the perfect outcome. Once before you cut out your shapes and then again after the shapes are cut. - Bake at a lower temperature – As mentioned above, we don’t want the vegan butter to melt too quickly in the oven, resulting in misshapen and tough cookies.
I recommend 160 C (320 F) or 140 C Fan. However, you may need to increase the temperature, depending on your oven.
Decoration
I like to just cut into circle shapes and dust with some icing sugar but you can cut these into any shapes, just making sure they are not too thick or thin.
For the classic shortbread look, you can also poke holes into the top, with a fork. This actually helps the cookies bake more evenly too!
And if you want to go the full hog and decorate these with icing, I recommend my vegan royal icing which is easy to pipe and has the perfect finish.
Flavourings
Chocolate shortbread – Add 20g of cocoa and reduce the flour to 270g (thank you to Katy for sharing this tip)
Lemon – Add 2 tablespoons finely-grated lemon zest to the dough.
Lavender – Add 1 ½ teaspoons dried lavender to the dough.
Chocolate Chip – See my recipe here.
Pair this shortbread with…
Vegan Strawberry Shortbread Ice Cream
📖 Recipe
Vegan Shortbread
The perfect buttery vegan shortbread cookies, great for Christmas or to give as gifts. Really easy to whip up and can be shaped or decorated to your choosing.
Ingredients
- 200 g / 7 oz dairy-free butter, I used Vitalite
- 1 tsp vanilla paste
- 100 g / 3.5 oz caster sugar
- 300 g / 10.5 oz plain flour, sifted
Instructions
- Cream the butter, vanilla and sugar together. Stir in the flour and mix into a dough. Wrap in cling film and chill in the fridge for at least 30 minutes to firm up.
- Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 160C / 140C (fan) / 320F and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
- Once the dough is chilled, roll out to approximately ½ cm thickness and cut into shapes. Place on the baking sheet, sprinkle with a little extra sugar and bake for 12-15 minutes until golden brown at the edges, turning half way through to ensure even baking.
- Leave to cool for at least 10 minutes before serving or decorating.
Notes
For decorating, try my vegan royal icing recipe.
Nutrition Information
Yield 20 Serving Size 1 CookieAmount Per Serving Calories 146Total Fat 8gSaturated Fat 5gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 2gCholesterol 22mgSodium 65mgCarbohydrates 16gFiber 0gSugar 5gProtein 2g
Katrina Heywood says
Could I add some cocoa powder to make choc flavoured shortbread?
Aimee says
Hi Katrina. Yes, you can do that (although, please bear in mind I haven’t tested this myself yet.) But try using 250g flour instead and then adding 25g or 4 tbsp cocoa powder. If the dough is a bit dry, add in some more vegan butter or if too wet, more flour. Good luck and let me know how it turns out. I Will test this myself sometime soon.
Katrina Heywood says
Thanks Aimee I’ll give it a go this weekend…
Katrina Heywood says
So I just tried this variation. It worked ok but the dough was a little too soft. I’d recommend more flour than the 250g. I made both versions and the original recipe had a better texture. Really good thanks! Good tip about them still being soft whrn they come out of the oven…
Sarah Clark says
Hi, First time with this recipe and the dough is very sticky and a loose consistency (if that makes sense) Not sure if its to do with the vegan butter I used…. Have put it back in the fridge and will give it longer to chill to see if that helps. Any ideas as to what may have gone wrong? Thanks
Maisy says
Hey I want to make these tomorrow but is vanilla extract okay? And if so how much do I need
Thanks xx
Aimee says
Hi Maisy, sorry for the late reply. Yes, a teaspsoon of vanilla extract is fine!
Koko says
You need 2 tea spoons of vanilla extract.
Anonymouscookie says
I thought it was 1 teaspoon
anna says
It’s 1 tsp of vanilla paste. PASTE.
Or…
2 tsp of vanilla extract. EXTRACT.
Different consistency and different concentration.
Jennie says
Hi,
How long will these keep? Can I make them ahead?
Thanks
Yolanda says
Hi. How can I substitute vegan butter for coconut oil or other as I can not access vegan butter
Koko says
No not really, coconut oil is very moist and it would work differently with the flour is would be very crumbly .
Rael says
Hi, thanks for this recipe
How many does it make? Thank you