You will LOVE these vegan lemon crinkle cookies, made from scratch in 1 bowl. They are bursting with lemon flavor and irresistibly soft and chewy!
If you love these, you will also love my Chocolate Crinkle Cookies and Red Velvet Crinkle Cookies!
Crinkle cookies are one of my favorite, and when you pair them with lemon I’m in heaven!
While chocolate is everyone’s go-to, and not without good reason, I think lemon sweets are the real dessert hero. Just have a taste of this fluffy Lemon Cake or these decadent Lemon Bars!
Lemon crinkle cookies are so soft and pillowy with perfect cracks. They’re bursting with sunshine lemon flavor and easy to make in 1 bowl. No dough chilling required!
How to make lemon crinkle cookies
Find the complete printable recipe with measurements below in the recipe card.
- First, preheat the oven and prepare your dough. Beat the softened vegan butter and sugar, then add the vanilla, lemon extract, zest and juice and optional yellow food dye. Add the flour, cornstarch, baking soda and salt and mix until just combined.
- Roll the dough into tablespoon sized balls and roll generously in powdered sugar.
- Place on silicone or parchment lined baking pans and bake for 10-12 minutes.
- Remove from oven and let them cool for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
Tips and Variations
- Pretty yellow cookies! For the prettiest cookies, add a few drops of quality yellow food coloring (I like gel) and roll very generously in powdered sugar before baking.
- Lime instead – For lime crinkle cookies, substitute fresh lime juice and zest, and add a few drops of green food coloring!
- Same day – Serve these cookies to company the same day you make them. They will stay yummy for 3-4 days, but the powdered sugar will begin to melt into the cookie, making them less pretty.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Can I make them gluten free? Yes, simply substitute a quality gluten free flour mix.
- Does the cookie dough need to be chilled? I don’t like waiting around for cookies if I don’t have to, and I found that there is no need to chill this cookie dough before baking!
- How long will the cookies last? They last 3-4 days at room temperature, or a few extra days in the refrigerator. Though they won’t be as pretty as the first day. Store in an airtight container.
More citrusy desserts to love
Lemon Crinkle Cookies
You will LOVE these vegan lemon crinkle cookies, made from scratch in 1 bowl. They are bursting with lemon flavor and irresistibly soft and chewy!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup vegan butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon lemon extract
- 3 teaspoons fresh grated lemon zest
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 drops yellow food coloring optional
- 1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup powdered sugar, for rolling
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and line two cookie sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper. Place the powdered sugar in a bowl for rolling the dough in.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, or using a handheld mixer, beat the softened vegan butter and sugar until creamy.
- Add the vanilla, lemon extract, lemon zest, juice and optional yellow food coloring. Mix until combined, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl as needed.
- Stop the mixer and add the flour, followed by the cornstarch, baking soda and salt. Turn the mixer on low speed and mix until just combined.
- Roll the dough into tablespoon sized balls, then roll generously in the powdered sugar to coat completely.
- Place on the prepared pans and bake for 10-12 minutes, until the edges are just set. Do not over bake, they will be very soft but firm up as they cool.
- Let them cool on the cookie sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. Enjoy! These cookies are best served the same day as the powdered sugar will start to melt into the cookies. They still taste good for 3-4 days, but they won't be as pretty!
Video
Notes
- If you don’t have lemon extract, you may leave it out but it adds extra lemon flavor.
- The food coloring is optional, it just makes them yellow instead of pale.
- For gluten free, substitute an all purpose gluten free flour.
Nutrition
Serving: 1of 18 cookies | Calories: 152kcal | Carbohydrates: 28g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.03g | Sodium: 104mg | Potassium: 18mg | Fiber: 0.3g | Sugar: 18g | Vitamin A: 240IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 2mg | Iron: 1mg
Did you make this recipe?Mention @nora_cooks_vegan_ or tag #noracooks!
Could I freeze the dough balls and then roll in powdered sugar before baking? Hoping to get a head start on holiday baking!
Yes, you can freeze the cookie dough balls for up to 3 months. Happy baking!
I made these cookies 3 times. First batch came out white so each time I added more and more food coloring to each batch. I also wad very generous with my powdered sugar anf they are not showing it. When u pick it up they feel wet. I make a chocolate crinkle these look nothing like them. So disdappointed.
Hi there, it sounds like your food coloring was not vibrant enough, causing you to use so much it made the batter wet. Try using gel color so you don’t have to add so much.
Delicious! These were a hit at a dinner party I hosted last night.
My cookies ended up spreading and turned out thinner than the picture (they were absolutely delicious though nonetheless) would you recommend chilling the dough before baking so they turn out thick like in the recipe images? Not sure what went wrong since I measured out the ingredients by scale, I’m suspecting different vegan butters yield different results? Thank you!
I’m glad they were still delicious, but sorry they spread! You could chill the dough if you are finding that happens to you. I’ve never personally had it happen to me with these. Different butters could yield slightly different results, as well as just how soft the butter was when you started the recipe. Chilling for 30 minutes should solve your problem though. Thank you!
Have you tried this with gluten free flour? Is there one you can recommend? Also what about a bit of Tumeric in place of food coloring. They look so good, love lemon desserts.
I don’t think I’ve ever made this one gluten free, but I generally like Better Batter, or King Arthur Measure for Measure. I can’t guarantee it will work, but I’m pretty sure others have reported making it gluten free successfully. Yeah, you can use a little turmeric, but too much and you will taste it.
Delicious! My cookies spread so much that they were thin (I did preheat the oven before putting the balled dough in)…next time I will chill the mixture. I sifted some powdered sugar over the cooled cookies since they didn’t keep much on top after baking 🙂
My mom made these for the welcome dinner for our wedding and they were a hit with vegans and non vegans alike! Nora’s recipes are always great. We love her chocolate chip cookie recipe, lemon bars, and white bean chili also.
Just made these lemon cookies again and they’re awesome. They won’t last long in our house. No need to chill the dough, they came out great. We used more food coloring than the recipe calls for and they still didn’t turn out quite as yellow as the pictures on the blog.
I love that these were served at your wedding welcome dinner! Thanks for taking time to share your stellar review and feedback! I appreciate you using my recipes! Happy cooking to you!
I’m generally not a huge fan of lemon flavored desserts, but these have absolutely stellar flavor. I could eat them all day, every day. They were that good.
I didn’t have lemon extract, so I added another couple tablespoons of juice and pinch more zest. Even though I adjusted the flour by a few grams and refrigerated the dough, they came out a little flat.
I hate when people change a recipe and critique the final outcome as if they hadn’t, so I take full responsibility for the cookies coming out a touch flat. I should have either added more flour, some more levening, chilled longer, or all of the above. However, I will definitely be making these again with those adjustments. Not every environment, kitchen, equipment, or ingredients will be the same and you have to adjust. That’s just how cooking is. These are absolutely five star cookies and perfect for a spring luncheon.
As side note, I’ve made many recipes from this blog and they’ve all been phenomenal. Turkey roast, dinner rolls, scalloped potatoes, mac ‘n cheese, Irish stew (recently for St. Patty’s Day), etc. I’m really grateful to Nora and her amazing plant based comfort food recipes.
Hi Cameron. I’m so glad you are loving my recipes, and I appreciate you using them! I love creating easy and delicious recipes, and am glad you loved the cookies! Thanks for taking time to share wonderful review! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!
Since I don’t have lemons, can I use lime and lime juice instead?
Yes, lime juice and zest would definitely work here! If desired, you can also add a few drops of green food coloring. 🙂
great idea!
These are amazing!!! I gave these away at Christmas and brought them to work- everyone loved them!!
Hi Faith. Thanks for your wonderful review! I’m thrilled they were a hit!
These were delightful! My household went through almost all of them within the day. I didn’t have lemon extract so I didn’t put it in but other than that I followed your recipe and they turned out looking just like the picture 🙂
Thank you, once again, for sharing a fantastic and tasty recipe with us all!
You are welcome, Sarah! I appreciate you using my recipes! Thank you for your wonderful review!
Amazing cookies. A big hit among the vegans and non-vegans in my co op.
These are divine! Absolutely perfect recipe as written. I used turmeric instead of food coloring and they are a pretty light yellow. My dough was firm enough to bake as written…it did not need any chilling. So light and tasty. I’m forcing myself to walk away from them as I type.
Hi Stacey. I’m glad you loved the cookies! Thanks for taking time to share your fabulous review and feedback!
Love these but they come so flat. Not like yours and I don’t know what I am doing wrong. Using new baking powder…
Cookies can come out flat for a few reasons. First, because the butter was too soft or melted when you made the dough. Second, your measurements are slightly off. I suggest spooning flour into a measuring cup, then leveling it off with a knife for accurate measurements; do not pat it down or just scoop from a container of flour. Third, because people make substitutions or cut the sugar in half. You can also put the dough in the fridge if it seems really soft, for about 30 minutes, then roll and bake and that will make them thicker. Hope that helps!
I wanted something different for a cookie party at town hall where I work. First I had my non vegan son and boyfriend try them and they loved them. They were a big hit at work and I even got an email from someone saying they were the best cookies there (and there were a lot!) She loved the taste, texture and appearance. No one even knew they were vegan.
While there were lots of cookies left at the end of the party, mine were all gone!
Thank you for another great recipe!
Wow, that is so wonderful! I’m so happy the cookies were a hit with everyone 🙂 Thank you for the amazing review!
I just made these with olive oil because I have no vegan butter on hand and still needed them to be dairy free.
I didn’t measure the oil but just drizzled it in while I beat the sugar til I got a texture I was happy with.
YUM ! They turned out great, chewy in the middle with a lovely crunch around the edges and the very slight olive oil flavour with the lemon is delicious !!
Can i use agave pls?
I don’t think the cookies would turn out as well with a liquid sweetener, unfortunately.
Could I substitute turmeric for the yellow food coloring? If so, how much would you recommend?
You could, yes, I would add just a pinch, maybe 1/8 teaspoon at a time, until you get a slight yellow hue to the dough.
This recipe skips a crucial step when baking cookies with a softened butter base: chilling the dough before cooking. I was foolish and followed the recipe against my better judgement (since one should assume it’s been tested before being published) and they all spread out and melted into each other in the oven.
I found that this cookie dough doesn’t need to be chilled before baking, although it is an optional step depending on the temperature of your dough/kitchen/environment.
Just made these, while I was waiting for your croissants to chill😁 and they are soooo good, I might have added a bit more lemon, because I can’t get enough, but they still turned out lovely! Fingers crossed the croissants turn out as well🤞
I’m so glad you loved the cookies! I love lemony as well! Thanks for your wonderful review and comments!
Kinda rude Benji. I think you meant to say thank you for the free recipe, I have a suggestion…
Can you make the cookies a day ahead of serving and add powdered sugar once on the serving tray?
You could, but the sugar might not stick as well.
Can I freeze them
You can, yes. Just know the powdered sugar coating will likely melt and they won’t look as pretty.
Amazing, best lemon cookies ever! So soft and delicious. This will be a new favourite 😍
I’m thrilled you loved them! Thanks for your fabulous feedback and review!
Can I roll them in regular sugar instead? Love all your recipes.
You could, yes. Thanks for loving my recipes, enjoy!