Description
These Easy Cut-Out Vegan Sugar Cookies are delightfully soft, lightly sweetened, and perfect for decorating. Made with vegan butter, vegan yogurt, and a fragrant blend of vanilla and almond extracts, these cookies bake up tender and keep beautifully for up to two weeks. The dough is chilled for optimal rolling and shaping, making it perfect for festive cookie cutters. Finished with vegan royal icing and optional dark chocolate and gold leaf garnishes, these cookies are both visually stunning and deliciously dairy-free.
Ingredients
Scale
Cookie Dough
- 150 g vegan block butter (room temperature)
- 150 g granulated sugar
- 30 g Greek-style vegan yogurt (or thick coconut yogurt, e.g., Alpro Greek-style)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste (or vanilla extract)
- 1 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
- 250 g plain flour
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch (cornflour)
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
Icing & Garnish
- 1 batch vegan royal icing
- vegan dark chocolate (optional, for garnish)
- gold leaf sheets (optional, for garnish)
Instructions
- Make the cookie dough: In a large bowl, whisk the vegan butter and sugar together using an electric mixer for 2-3 minutes until the mixture is light and airy. Add the vegan yogurt and continue whisking until well combined, then whisk in the vanilla bean paste and almond extract (if using) thoroughly.
- Combine dry ingredients and chill dough: Sift the plain flour, cornstarch, baking soda, and sea salt into the wet mixture. Use a rubber spatula to combine until a dough ball forms. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, flatten into a disc, and chill in the freezer for 2 hours, or refrigerate overnight for best results.
- Roll out the dough: Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Lightly flour a clean surface and roll the dough to approximately ½ cm thickness. Keep extra flour nearby to dust cookie cutters to prevent sticking. Cut out desired shapes and place them on baking trays lined with parchment paper or silicone mats.
- Bake the cookies: Bake cookies in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, until edges are just beginning to brown but cookies still look slightly underbaked. Allow cookies to cool on the baking tray for 5 minutes, then transfer the parchment with cookies to a cooling rack. Let cool completely for 15-20 minutes to room temperature.
- Prepare and apply icing: Mix a batch of vegan royal icing and tint with your choice of colors. Transfer icing to a piping bag and pipe an outline around each cookie. For fully coated cookies, flood inside the outlines using a thinner consistency icing. Optionally, melt vegan dark chocolate to add decorative bark effects on cookies, and apply gold leaf sheets for a festive tinsel look.
- Allow icing to set and store: Place iced cookies on a cooling rack and let the icing dry completely for 1-2 hours. Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature. They will keep fresh for around 2 weeks.
Notes
- For best rolling and cutting, ensure the dough is well chilled before rolling out.
- Use vegan Greek-style yogurt or thick coconut yogurt to maintain the right dough consistency.
- Adjust icing consistency for outlining versus flooding to achieve professional decoration results.
- Gold leaf sheets add an elegant decoration but are optional and can be omitted without affecting flavor.
- Cookies look slightly underbaked when done; they will firm up as they cool to give a tender texture.
