Perfectly crunchy vegan shortbread cookies. This small batch recipe contains just 4-ingredients and makes 8-9 shortbread cookies. Easy and insanely good!
We have a brand of shortbread cookie in South Africa called ‘Eat Sum More’. Cool name right? Not vegan though, sadly.
I knew I had to nail down a good recipe for vegan shortbread cookies because shortbread is the base ingredient of all sorts of other cool desserts that I absolutely want to make. Like vegan twix bars (update: this is now made!) and millionaire shortbread. Yum yum yum!
And this folks – is it. This small batch recipe for vegan shortbread cookies is the bomb diggity.
I love that it’s a small batch too because recipes that make like 3 dozen cookies are just not for me.
Considering the fact that it’s just me and Jaye and our cat babies (who funnily enough don’t like cookies), it would be a bit crazy to go making huge batches of things. Or not crazy at all, it depends on the day.
I even got adorable heart shaped cookie cutters for the job.
On the day of baking these our air conditioner died and since it was hot as heck, this was quite a big deal.
As I was working with this cookie dough, the vegan butter that forms quite a large part of this recipe was melting inside the dough and making it really hard to keep the nice little heart shapes I was going for!
So if my heart shaped cookies look a little rough around the edges – this is why! It was about 100 degrees (or more) in my kitchen.
Nonetheless the end result was awesome. This recipe is super simple, being just 4 ingredients.
How To Make Vegan Shortbread Cookies
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
You simply add flour, sugar and salt to a mixing bowl, and then add in the vegan butter and rub it in with your fingers. Form it into a ball, flatten it out or roll it out on a flour dusted surface and cut out the cookies, and then bake.
The result? The crunchiest, most satisfying vegan shortbread cookies. Just about 8 or 9 of them.
Storing and Freezing
Keep your cookies stored in an airtight container at room temperature and enjoy within a week. They are also freezer friendly for up to 3 months.
More Vegan Cookies
- Vegan Oatmeal Cookies
- Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Vegan Chocolate Cookies
- Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies
- Vegan Lemon Cookies
- Vegan Thumbprint Cookies
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Small Batch Vegan Shortbread Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup All Purpose Flour (125g)
- ¼ cup White Granulated Sugar (50g) plus more for rolling
- ¼ tsp Salt
- ½ cup Vegan Butter (112g)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300°F (149°C).
- Sift the flour and add it to a mixing bowl. Add the sugar and salt and mix together.
- Then add the vegan butter, rubbing it in with your fingers. It will first be crumbly and then gradually will form into cookie dough.
- Form the cookie dough into a ball and then flatten it out on a flour dusted surface and cut out some cookies. You can either use a rolling pin or your hands to flatten it out to around ½ inch thick. The dough is quite fragile, so if you use a rolling pin, you can roll and sort of press at the same time. Dust the top of the dough with flour so that the rolling pin doesn’t stick. Roll the cookies in more granulated sugar and place onto a parchment lined baking tray.
- Roll the remaining dough into a ball again and flatten out again, cutting out more cookies and then repeat.
- At the end you’ll cut out your final cookie, and whatever’s left won’t be enough for a last cookie, so just roll into a small ball, roll it in sugar and add it to the baking tray as a bonus cookie.
- You should have around 8-9 cookies.
- Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes* until lightly golden on top.
- Remove from the oven and allow them to cool and firm up directly on the tray before moving them.
Video
Notes
- Baking times: We have baked these cookies for up to 45 minutes for a wonderfully crunchy shortbread. But in some ovens this will be too long and they will burn. Also, if you have more than 8-9 cookies then your cookies will be thinner and may need an even shorter baking time. So keep an eye on them. But feel free to also bake them longer than the 25-30 minutes, while keeping a beady eye on them, if you like your shortbread super crunchy.
- Storing and Freezing: Keep your cookies stored in an airtight container at room temperature and enjoy within a week. They are also freezer friendly for up to 3 months.
- Recipe adapted from Epicurious.
Love it. Very simple yet very yummy!! Thank you!
Happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe Tae!
Can these be made gluten-free too?
You can make these gluten free by substituting the flour with gluten free all purpose flour. 🙂
I have made these shortbread biscuits several times now and I serve them cooled with strawberries and ice cream! That’s if we can wait until they cool. Love em!
That sounds delicious! Thanks for your review Tom!
Thank you for this very simple recipe. I used half almond flour and half whole wheat flour. (Some people may not like the almond flour texture, it softens up baked goods a lot but I don’t care). Instead of full sugar I substituted half of the sugar with erithritol. Added pecans, delicious! Reminds me of pecan sandies!
Happy to hear you enjoy the recipe Lauren! And thanks for sharing your substitutions!
Loved the recipe! I made it with gluten-free all purpose flour blend and it turned out incredible! Thank you for such a great recipe 🙂
So glad it worked out with the gluten free flour Catalina! Thanks for your amazing review!
This is by far my favorite shortbread recipe. I absolutely love these with a cup of tea. When my son is home I have to double the recipe because there aren’t any left for me! lol Thank you so much for sharing. I usually use Earth balance sticks, the ones that are recommended for baking. I’ve also used Miyoko’s with great results. Sometimes I add a touch of vanilla or almond extract which is lovely too, but I usually just stick to your version. I have tried coconut sugar in the past, but that didn’t work out so well. I may try a savory version with fresh rosemary in the future. Thanks again, your recipes are always great!
Awesome Dani! Thank you so much for sharing and for your great review!
I made a few changes:
I used 1/4 cup almond flour and 3/4 AP flour.
I did 1/8 cup confectioners sugar and 1/8 cup regular sugar.
I added a splash of vanilla (note I’m also at high altitude, so this extra moisture was helpful)
I chopped up some dark chocolate chunks and mixed them in.
I froze them for 10 minutes before baking.
I baked for 37 minutes and they were perfectly crunchy while still having the buttery softness.
these are the best shortbread cookies I’ve ever had, and I love that this recipe is so flexible. I’ve saved it as a favorite on my home screen for future, regular use!
Thanks for sharing and for your great review Olivia! Glad to know that our recipe is flexible and easy to adjust to your taste!
Not sure if it was the wrong kind of vegan butter (I used Earth Balance sticks) – but the cookies were very bland and the dough just didn’t want to stay together. I hate to leave a low score 🙁 Maybe they just aren’t meant to be eaten solo?
Hi Jenni, it sounds like too much flour may have been the problem. We recommend either weighing it out on a food scale or using the ‘spoon and level’ method. Never scoop the four or pack it into the cup.
Hi Alison! So looking forward to trying this recipe. Re the 1 cup flour: do you sift the flour before or after measuring?
Hi Mitzi. You sift the flour after measuring.
I’ve made these cookies a couple dozen times now for my table top rpg group–super simple to make and my vegan friends love them! I tend to eye out an amount of cinnamon to add, as I find it makes them taste even better. Thank you!
Awesome Sam! Cinnamon is a great addition too. Thanks for the great review!
So easy and so good!!!
These are SO DELICIOUS. I have made them tons of times and they are always amazing. I have even used this recipe as dough for hand pies and they are amazing. I sub coconut sugar in for the cane sugar. And I have subbed oat flour in for the wheat flour and they are slightly more crispy and soooo good!! Thank you!!
So glad to hear that Jessica! Thanks so much for sharing!
I triple the recipe and eat these pretty much all in one day!! They are perfect every time. Thank you!
Brilliant! Thanks for the great review Audrey!
Have made these shortbreads a dozen times now and they always come out perfect – short and crunchy. Great on their own with a nice cuppa or with sorbet or nice cream and fruit for a delicious dessert. Fabulous recipe, five stars!
Thanks so much Debbie!