Vegan Shortbread Cookies are buttery, crisp and delicious with a cup of tea! Made with only 4 ingredients, they are perfect for the holiday season or any time of year.
Shortbread cookies are a classic and simple cookie made with very few ingredients. I swapped the dairy butter for vegan butter, and used powdered sugar instead of granulated for a smoother texture.
Then all you need is flour and a little vanilla extract. So easy!
These Vegan Shortbread Cookies make a great base for other cookies that call for shortbread as well, and I have many ideas for the future! My favorite thing to do is mix some colorful sprinkles into the dough (my kids love it, too!).
This post contains affiliate links. Read my full disclosure here.
How to make Vegan Shortbread Cookies
*The exact amounts and instructions are listed in the recipe card at the bottom of the post, this is a visual overview.
First, preheat your oven to 325 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, stir together the flour and powdered sugar.
Now add the softened vegan butter and vanilla to the bowl. Mix with a hand mixer until crumbly and soft.
The dough will look crumbly like this, but if you grab it in your hands and squeeze it, it should hold its shape and be able to be formed into a ball of dough.
Form it into a ball of dough with your hands, and place it on a piece of parchment paper on your countertop. You can also sprinkle the paper with a tiny dusting of flour to prevent sticking. I didn’t the first time, and it stuck a little bit, so the second time I did and it worked well.
Using another piece of parchment paper, roll the dough about 1/3-1/2 inch thick.
Cut into desired shapes. I used a very small round cutter, but you can use anything you desire. Place the cookies on the prepared baking sheets, and continue to re-roll the dough until it is all used.
Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the bottoms are just slightly golden. The tops will look almost not done, but they continue cooking after you remove them, so don’t over bake them. The time will also depend on how large your cookies are.
Special Tips & Substitutions
- Gluten free: I haven’t tested them with gluten free flour, but if you try it let me know!
- What brand of vegan butter? I used Earth Balance sticks, as they make for easier measuring and I can find them at my local store. Melt or Miyoko’s brand would likely work as well.
- Is powdered sugar vegan? If you use organic powdered sugar, it should be vegan. If you are very concerned, you can always make your own from organic sugar by blending it in a high powered blender with some cornstarch ( 2 cups sugar + 2 tablespoons cornstarch).
- Additions: Try adding some colorful sprinkles to the dough before baking, or mini-chocolate chips. You could also frost them with the same icing as my Vegan Sugar Cookies.
Want more Christmas cookies to try this season?
- The Best Vegan Sugar Cookies
- Vegan Snowball Cookies
- Iced Vegan Oatmeal Cookies
- Vegan Ginger Cookies
- Vegan Chocolate Crinkle Cookies
Vegan Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar
- 1 1/4 cups vegan butter, softened
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, stir the flour and powdered sugar together. Now add the softened butter and vanilla and mix with a hand mixer on low-medium speed until blended well. The dough will look crumbly and soft but should smush together when squeezed in your hands.
- Place a sheet of parchment paper on your countertop and sprinkle with a little flour, then form the dough into a ball and place in the middle of the parchment paper.
- Use another piece of parchment paper for the top, sprinkling a little flour on top of the dough to prevent sticking, and roll the dough to about 1/3-1/2 of an inch thick. Cut into desired shapes (I used a small rounded cookie cutter) and place on the prepared baking sheets.
- Continue re-rolling the dough until it is all used. Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes, until the bottom is just slightly golden. Let cool for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Store in an airtight container for 5-6 days.
Notes
- I used a very small cookie cutter and got about 42 cookies. If you use a large cookie cutter, you will get less cookies.
- I used Earth Balance brand of vegan butter. I'm sure it would work with another brand as well, but I haven't tested it.
- For fun, consider adding sprinkles to the dough. Mini-chocolate chips would be fun, too. Or consider frosting them with the same icing as my Vegan Sugar Cookies!
The 1 1/4 cups of butter, does that measure out to a certain amount of sticks? I see in the picture there are two, so I was wondering if the measurement is just two sticks of the earth balance butter?
One stick is 1/2 cup, so you would actually need 2 sticks and half of another stick. That’s a good point, I think the other half is hiding in the photo! 🙂
On my screen, the 2 and the 1/2 cups of flour are separated by an ad so I missed the 2 and had to improvise. Which I did by adding more flour and about a cup of fine almond flour. I also used about a half-cup of coconut oil for part of the vegan butter. The result was actually very good and I think I’ll try it again. Delightful!
I’m sorry about that! I haven’t seen that myself but I will talk with my ad company to make sure that is happening regularly, that is annoying for sure. I’m so glad you enjoyed the shortbread cookies anyhow, thank you!
Really pleased with how these turned out, melt in the mouth delicious ? Thank you
You’re welcome!
Can these be made chocolate? If so what would be the ratio of cocoa powder to add? Thanks!
They probably could! I think someone else reported doing exactly that. I would replace 1/2 cup of flour with cocoa powder and see how that goes.
This recipe was delicious! It’s currently 95 degrees (F) here in Colorado, so my dough was difficult to work with (too soft in the heat). I popped it in the fridge for 30 minutes before cutting and it worked great.
How long will these cookies keep in the fridge? I’m making them for a tea party but wanted to make them 5 days ahead of time.
They will keep for 5 days, especially in the refrigerator. You could freeze them if you wanted, but I think they will be just fine in the refrigerator for that long. Hope everyone enjoys!
This looks great! can I use granulated sugar instead of powdered sugar?
It should work quite well, but powdered sugar gives them a smoother taste.
I love your recipes! I know it’s one I can trust
I had a hankering for shortbread and my family is vegan, so I used this recipe. Couldn’t have been easier, and they’re absolutely delicious!
That’s so great to hear!!
Hi, these cookies look amazing! Is it possible to substitute coconut oil for vegan butter?
I’ve never tried using coconut oil in the cookies, but it might work. They may be more likely to spread with coconut oil, but I’m not sure. Hope you enjoy them!
These are fantastic! I made a half batch in my food processor (I slowly pulsed until the dough started to come together) and it worked well. I used Country Crock Plant Butter (Avocado Oil). I wonder if anyone has tried to freeze these after they’re cooked. Do they freeze well? Thank you for a great recipe! How fun to have shortbread!
Yes, the cookies freeze well after they have been baked. I’m so glad you are enjoying the shortbread cookies!
Great cookies! I added lemon extract and lavender flowers, they turned out amazing. Thank you so much for the recipe.
You’re welcome!
I baked these using Nuttelex (vegan butter) and separated the dough. Baked half according to the recipe and half after adding celestial seasoning vegan spice recipe (chai tea). DELICIOUS!!! So easy to make although agree with a previous comment to refrigerate the dough before cutting. Might have helped not make it so sticky to work with. LOL. Love your recipes!
Thanks so much for the comment!
Can I sub self-raising flour for the all-purpose flour instead?
Thanks!
It would probably work in a pinch, I know it’s hard to find regular flour right now in some places. I haven’t tested it, so I can’t say for sure, but hopefully it will work!
You are my favorite blog. Your recipes do not disappoint. Just tried these, and they were easy and are delicious. I have been craving a vegan shortbread cookie for YEARS. Thank you Nora!
You’re welcome! And thanks for the great comment!
can i use coconut oil instead of butter? if so, what’s the ration exchange?
Same ratio, hopefully it will work, I’ve never tried it.
It was delicious! Thank you!
I froze the remaining dough –
You’re welcome!
Love, love, love these – so delicious ?.
Can’t wait to make more of your recipes – thank you x
Thanks! Hope you find more recipes you love!
Omg, I just made these adding crushed Earl Grey tea leaves to the flour and they came out so delicious!
I’m so glad they were delicious!
Amazing! Thanks so much!
Tamar
You’re welcome!
I made another batch using gluten free flour. They came out perfect! The only problem was that the dough was too soft, so while cutting cookies, I kept the remaining dough in the fridge which helped alot.
Absolutely love love this recipe.
I made traditional and vegan and love the taste and texture of your vegan recipe over the traditional, got a batch in the oven right now!
btw, I used Almond plant butter for my recipe and it’s fantastic tasting.
I always find what I’m looking for on Nora Cooks! and its always awesome tasting!!!
Thanks for the wonderful comment!
Can I sub for brown rice flour to make it gf*?
I don’t think that would work, but you could use a quality gluten free flour mix.
I made this recipe so many times over the holidays. This is the most awesome recipe. My family absolutely loves it.
I’m so glad your family loves it!
I made these Christmas Eve to leave some out for Santa. I added colorful rainbow sprinkles. They were delicious. So good!
I’m so glad they came out great!
nice shortbread recipe!