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    Home » Cookies

    Vegan Lemon Cookies

    Published: Aug 23, 2018 Updated: Nov 12, 2021 by Alison Andrews This post may contain affiliate links

    Jump to Recipe
    Vegan Lemon Cookies

    Vegan lemon cookies with a deliciously tangy and fresh lemon flavor and a soft and buttery texture. Super easy recipe with perfect results. 

    Vegan lemon cookies stacked up on a white plate.

    I absolutely love all things lemon! So these vegan lemon cookies are right up my street.

    There’s something about the tanginess and light and refreshing taste of lemon that just goes so well with sweet desserts (like our vegan lemon cupcakes, vegan lemon cake and vegan lemon pound cake, ooooh yes!).

    And these cookies are soft and buttery with just enough lemon flavor to really pop.

    Vegan lemon cookies stacked up on a white plate.

    How To Make Vegan Lemon 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.

    This is a simple 8-ingredient recipe for the cookies and an even simpler 3-ingredient recipe for the glaze.

    The glaze is totally optional, but recommended, it really makes that lemon flavor shine!

    You start off by adding vegan butter and sugar to your stand mixer and creaming them together. Then you add lemon extract and mix it in.

    Add all purpose flour, baking soda and salt to a separate bowl and mix together.

    Then add the dry ingredients in with the wet and mix in until very crumbly. Add the lemon zest.

    Now add the non-dairy milk and mix again.

    TIP: We used soy milk but you can use any non-dairy milk. 

    At this point it will feel like this will never make a cookie dough, it will feel way too dry. But get in there with your hands and the next thing you know you have a nice big ball of dough.

    The dough is dry, but don’t worry the cookies are definitely not!

    Vegan lemon cookies

    Break off pieces of the dough and roll them into balls.

    Vegan lemon cookies

    And then flatten the balls. You can flatten them with a fork, or by placing a square of parchment paper on top of the balls and then pressing down on it with the base of a glass.

    I tried it both ways and the end result after baking looked identical.

    Vegan lemon cookies

    Bake them at 350°F for 12 minutes.

    When they come out of the oven they will be very lightly browned on top but still very soft in the middle. Let them cool on the tray and as they cool they will firm up.

    Vegan lemon cookies

    The Lemon Glaze

    When they’re completely cool, then drizzle on the delicious lemon glaze. It’s a simple mix of powdered sugar, lemon juice and lemon extract.

    Vegan lemon cookies topped with lemon glaze on a parchment lined baking tray.

    And there you have it, delicious vegan lemon cookies with glaze!

    Vegan lemon cookies stacked up on a white plate.

    Storing and Freezing

    Keep them stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.

    They are also freezer friendly for up to 3 months.

    Vegan lemon cookies stacked up on top of each other.

    More Vegan Cookies

    1. Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
    2. Vegan Chocolate Cookies
    3. Vegan Snickerdoodles
    4. Vegan Peanut Butter Oatmeal Cookies
    5. Vegan Thumbprint Cookies
    6. Vegan Sugar Cookies
    Vegan lemon cookies stacked up with the top cookie broken in half to show the center.

    Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!

    Vegan lemon cookies stacked up on a white plate.

    Vegan Lemon Cookies

    Vegan lemon cookies with a deliciously tangy and fresh lemon flavor and a soft and buttery texture. Super easy recipe with perfect results.
    4.99 from 67 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Baking, Cookies, Dessert
    Cuisine: Vegan
    Diet: Vegan
    Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 12 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 27 minutes minutes
    Servings: 20
    Calories: 133kcal
    Author: Alison Andrews

    Ingredients

    For the Lemon Cookies:

    • ½ cup Vegan Butter (112g)
    • ¾ cups White Granulated Sugar (150g)
    • 2 tsp Lemon Extract
    • 2 cups All purpose Flour (250g)
    • 1 tsp Baking Soda
    • ¼ tsp Salt
    • 1 Tbsp Lemon Zest
    • 2 Tbsp Soy Milk or other non-dairy milk

    For the Lemon Glaze:

    • 1 cup Powdered Sugar (120g)
    • 2 Tbsp Lemon Juice scant*
    • ⅛ tsp Lemon Extract
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Add the vegan butter and white sugar to the bowl of a stand mixer and cream them together. Add in the lemon extract and mix in well.
    • Add the flour, baking soda and salt to a bowl and mix together. Then add the dry ingredients in with the wet ingredients and mix in by hand (don’t use the electric mixer for this part). Mix until crumbly.
    • Add in the lemon zest and mix in.
    • Then add in the soy milk and mix in very well. It will seem like it is too dry to form a dough, but get in there with your hands until it does. Only add more soy milk if you absolutely have to.
    • Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
    • Break off pieces of the big ball of dough and roll them into balls and place onto a parchment lined baking tray. Aim to get 20 balls.
    • Then flatten the balls either with a fork or by placing a square of parchment paper over a ball and flattening with the base of a glass.
    • Place into the oven to bake for 12 minutes.
    • When they are done they will be lightly browned on top but still very soft in the middle. Allow to cool on the tray and they will firm up as they cool.
    • Prepare your lemon glaze by adding the ingredients to a bowl and mixing in with a spoon.
    • When the cookies are completely cool, use a teaspoon to drizzle the glaze over the cookies.

    Notes

    1. Lemon zest. 1 Tbsp of lemon zest is roughly what you’d get from 1 small to medium lemon.
    2. Lemon glaze. When you’re making the glaze the tablespoons should be filled to just before the top, not all the way to the top. If you glaze your first cookie and realize that the glaze is just running off the cookie completely, then your glaze is too thin. Add a bit more powdered sugar. 
    3. Storing. Keep your cookies stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week. 

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1Cookie | Calories: 133kcal | Carbohydrates: 23.2g | Protein: 1.3g | Fat: 3.5g | Saturated Fat: 1.3g | Sodium: 113mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 13.4g
    DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? Rate it & leave your feedback in the comments section below, or tag @lovingitvegan on Instagram and hashtag #lovingitvegan
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    About the Author

    Hi I'm Alison Andrews, I'm the voice and cook behind Loving It Vegan. I love making delicious vegan food and creating vegan versions of all your old favorites, so that you’ll never feel like you’re missing out. Find out more about me here.

    Loving It Vegan is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This site may contain some of these links to Amazon.com. If you make a purchase through one of those links, Loving It Vegan will receive a small commission from the purchase at no additional cost to you.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. T says

      July 26, 2023 at 8:19 pm

      My future daughter in law is vegan and loves lemon. I made these for her shower. They are absolutely delicious. I sifted the flour and spooned it into the measuring cup to make sure I didn’t overdo it. The vegan butter I used had salt so I didn’t add any. Also I used unsweetened vanilla almond milk as that’s all I had on hand. I finally tasted one without the glaze. They are yummy. Thank you for making me look good.5 stars

      Reply
      • Nadine @ Loving It Vegan says

        July 27, 2023 at 8:16 am

        So happy to hear your family enjoyed them! And thank you so much for your excellent review!

        Reply
    2. Autumn says

      July 04, 2023 at 8:56 pm

      This is my favorite go-to cookie recipe!5 stars

      Reply
      • Nadine @ Loving It Vegan says

        July 05, 2023 at 12:34 pm

        That’s great Autumn! Thanks for your review!

        Reply
    3. Surinder says

      June 17, 2023 at 2:05 pm

      I lowered the sugar content as I don’t like the fact we all eat too much sugar.
      I also substituted 50g flour for ground almonds.
      The biscuits were delicious as they were, without any extra coating of more sugar5 stars

      Reply
      • Nadine @ Loving It Vegan says

        July 05, 2023 at 2:21 pm

        Thanks so much for sharing and for your great review!

        Reply
    4. Allie Win says

      June 05, 2023 at 4:15 pm

      I have made this recipe multiple times! It is easy and these cookies are beloved. People request them for parties and birthdays all the time. This is prob one of my fav recipes and a delightful treat during the summer. Desserts at non-vegan parties can be hit or miss but this is always a hit!5 stars

      Reply
      • Nadine @ Loving It Vegan says

        July 06, 2023 at 1:08 pm

        So glad to hear you enjoy the recipe and thanks for your great review Allie!

        Reply
    5. Janelle says

      June 03, 2023 at 5:41 am

      I followed the recipe exactly 🙂 yum! My fave is still your Snowball cookie recipe but this was a fresh and delightful change.5 stars

      Reply
      • Nadine @ Loving It Vegan says

        July 06, 2023 at 1:16 pm

        Thank you so much Janelle! So glad you enjoy the recipes! 🙂

        Reply
    6. Rebecca Olivarez says

      April 26, 2023 at 4:04 am

      Thank you! Love this recipe 😋5 stars

      Reply
      • Nadine @ Loving It Vegan says

        July 12, 2023 at 2:30 pm

        Glad you enjoyed it Rebecca!

        Reply
    7. Ruth says

      January 29, 2023 at 3:04 am

      Loved this recipe! How did you get your cookies to be so yellow? Mine were pale using GF flour.5 stars

      Reply
    8. Katie J says

      December 24, 2022 at 9:29 pm

      These are my most favorite cookies ever. The texture is perfect, lemon isn’t too sweet. Very well done!!!5 stars

      Reply
      • Alison Andrews says

        December 29, 2022 at 9:45 am

        Thanks so much Katie!

        Reply
    9. Dana says

      August 20, 2022 at 4:18 am

      This recipe is just the right amount of sweet and citrusy! I substituted the 1/2 cup vegan butter for 1/4 cup oil, as that was the only thing I had on hand. And to keep it natural for me I added lemon juice instead of extract for a 2 to 1 ratio. It’s a lighter taste but oh so good with the semi sweet glaze. I made these cookies for my Vegan Mother and she absolutely loved them.5 stars

      Reply
      • Alison Andrews says

        August 20, 2022 at 9:03 am

        Awesome Dana! Thanks for the great review.

        Reply
    10. Emma says

      July 26, 2022 at 9:43 pm

      I loved the actual cookies, but for some reason it was super crumbly. I tried putting in more milk, but that didn’t work either. Is it supposed to be like that?4 stars

      Reply
      • Alison Andrews says

        July 27, 2022 at 9:54 am

        No, it’s more shorbready, so it’s not crumbly. It’s possible you used too much flour if you needed more milk. I highly recommend weighing the flour. If you don’t have a food scale then the spoon and level method is essential. Spoon the flour into a cup and level off the top with a knife. Don’t scoop, don’t pack it into the cup.

        Reply
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