This is the only recipe for Vegan Sugar Cookies you’ll ever need! Easy to make and with soft, melt-in-your-mouth bites, these perfect cookies are almost as much fun to eat as they are to decorate with vegan icing and sprinkles.
More sugar cookie-themed desserts you’ll love: Vegan Lofthouse Cookies, Vegan Sugar Cookie Bars and Chocolate Sugar Cookies!
My Vegan Sugar Cookies are a holiday staple and for good reason! These cookies are soft and buttery with delicate flavors and elaborate icing decoration. My family and I have a ton of fun every holiday season cutting them out with different cookie cutters and playing around with the easy vegan icing and sprinkles!
They’re truly the vegan Christmas cookies of my dreams not only because they’re too sweet and delicious to resist, but also because they’re easy to make. The cookie dough comes together in a pinch and stays soft from beginning to end. Say goodbye to dry and crumbly cookies!
Saving the best for last, the easy vegan icing in this vegan sugar cookie recipe is as shimmery and sweet as traditional royal icing. Customize it with as much food coloring as you like, then pipe it onto the cookies. Just like me and my family, I know you’ll have a ton of fun and make new memories with all of the fun decorations you like.
Why these are the best vegan frosted sugar cookies
- The ultimate vegan Christmas cookie recipe – Just like classic sugar cookies, my vegan sugar cookies are delicate, soft, and a must-have treat for the holiday season. Plus, they keep their shape in the oven.
- Fun to decorate with icing – Make the easy royal icing dupe, add food coloring, and pipe it onto the cookies to make each one more eye-catching than the last.
- Easy to make – This vegan sugar cookies recipe comes together easily using less than 10 ingredients!
- 200+ 5-star ratings! It’s official–these cookies are a hit! Here’s what my readers have been saying…
“I absolutely LOVE this recipe & have made it again & again & again. The cookies are so buttery & delicious, almost like a shortbread, but better!” – Julianne
“I’ve made this recipe now for two years – Holiday cookies, Halloween cookies, Easter cookies … you name it. Perfect. It’s the best Vegan sugar cookie adaptation I’ve found. THANK YOU NORA! Huge for us!” – Karin
”I’ve made these a few years in a row now and they’re so soft and delicious every time! Best sugar cookie ever!” – Sarah
How to make vegan sugar cookies
Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.
Beat the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer until creamy and smooth. Beat in the sugar until the mixture is fluffy. Next, mix in the plant milk, cornstarch, vanilla, and almond extract until combined.
Slowly mix 1 cup of flour along with the baking powder and salt into the wet ingredients. Add 1 more cup of flour and continue to mix until the dough feels like play dough in your hands (it will still look crumbly).
If the dough feels too wet to roll, mix in another 1/4 cup of flour. I always end up using the full 2 1/4 cups of flour.
Scoop the dough out of the bowl and push it together with your hands. Divide it into two balls.
Place a sheet of parchment paper on a flat surface and sprinkle a little flour on top. Add one dough ball to the parchment paper, sprinkle some flour on top, and roll it out with a rolling pin to ¼-inch thickness. Cover with another sheet of parchment on top.
Repeat this step with the second ball of dough, then chill the flattened dough in the fridge.
After chilling, use your favorite cookie cutters to cut fun shapes out of the sugar cookie dough. Lay the cookies onto the lined baking sheets.
Continue re-rolling the scrap dough and cutting it into shapes! Nothing goes to waste here.
Bake the cookies until they’re just starting to turn golden.
Set them aside to cool on the baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack. Make sure they’re completely cool before decorating with icing.
How to decorate sugar cookies
You can either get really fancy and pipe the icing onto the cookies with a piping bag and fine tip or keep things simple by spreading my Vegan Buttercream or another frosting on the cookies with a spatula! Below, I’ll show you how to decorate the prettiest sugar cookies:
- Make a thick batch of icing by only using 1 tablespoon of milk so the icing doesn’t spill over the cookie edges.
- Scoop the icing into several bowls and stir 1 to 3 drops of gel food coloring into each portion.
- Transfer the colorful sugar cookie icing to one or multiple piping bags (I used Wilton Bags) fitted with a fine tip.
- Trace the cookie edges with your icing, wait for it to set, then fill in the center with more icing. Add some sprinkles as well and have fun!
Check out this helpful video for more guidance and sugar cookie decorating tips.
They will look like this when they come out of the oven. See how they don’t puff up a bunch or spread like some sugar cookie recipes do? Cookie perfection.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, chilling is a must! If you skip this part, the sugar cookie dough will be too soft and sticky, which will make the cookies hard to work with and cause them to spread in the oven. Luckily, I found that rolling out the dough onto parchment paper is the secret to a quick chill time (about 1 hour) so you can cut the cookies and bake them as fast as possible!
Yes, I have had good results making these cookies with King Arthur’s measure for measure gluten-free flour. If you don’t use this brand, use another quality gluten-free baking flour.
My go-to food coloring brand is Watkins, which is vegan-friendly. Several Wilton brand gel food colorings are vegan, too. Always read the label carefully to ensure the brand you’re buying doesn’t contain any animal products. Or, you can try making your own vegan gel food coloring.
Absolutely! Once the dough has come together in a ball, wrap it in a layer of plastic and store it in the fridge for 2 to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 4 months. Thaw the dough in the fridge overnight and set it on the kitchen counter for a few minutes so it can soften before you roll it flat.
Place the leftover vegan sugar cookies in an airtight container (or gift bags if you’re gifting them for the holidays) and store them at room temperature for 2 or 3 days or in the fridge for 5 days. The baked and unfrosted cookies freeze well for about 3 months, too.
Want more vegan Christmas cookies?
- Ginger Crinkle Cookies or Vegan Ginger Cookies
- Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies
- Perfect Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
- Vegan Shortbread Cookies
- Vegan Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
- Vegan Snowball Cookies
The Best Vegan Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
Sugar Cookies
- 3/4 cup vegan butter, slightly softened
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened plant milk soy, almond or oat milk
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract optional, but good
- 2-2 1/4 cups all purpose flour, divided
- 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Easy Icing
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract optional
- 1 tablespoon light corn syrup (can omit, but it makes the icing very shiny)
- 1-2 tablespoons unsweetened plant milk
Instructions
Sugar Cookies
- In a large bowl either using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the vegan butter for about 1 minute until creamy and smooth. Add the sugar and beat on high speed for 2-3 minutes until fluffy and light.
- Now add in the milk, cornstarch, vanilla and almond extract (if using). Beat on high until it is all fully combined, about 1 minute. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed.
- Add 1 cup of the flour to the wet mixture. Sprinkle the baking powder and salt on top of the flour. Mix on low speed, until just combined. Now add 1 more cup of the flour and continue to mix on low until just combined; don’t over mix. The dough should feel similar to play dough when you work it in your hands, but it will look crumbly in the bowl. If it seems too wet for rolling, add another 1/4 cup of flour. You want the dough to be thick, but not dry. I always use the full 2 1/4 cups of flour. If the dough is too wet, your cookies will spread.
- Using a spatula, scoop all of the dough out of the bowl; use your hands if needed to push it all together. Divide the dough in half and roll into two balls.
- On a flat surface, add a sheet of parchment paper. Sprinkle a little flour on it, then add half the dough. Sprinkle a little flour on top of the dough, and roll it out to about 1/4 inch thickness. Place a sheet of parchment paper on top. Repeat for the second ball of dough, and then stack them with parchment paper. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour or overnight.
- Once the dough has been chilled, set it on the counter for 10 minutes while the oven is preheating to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Cut into desired shapes using a cookie cutter and place them on the prepared baking sheets. Continue re-rolling the dough until it is all used.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes, in the middle rack of the oven, until very lightly colored on top and around the edges. They will appear underdone, but they will firm up considerably as they cool. Let them cool for 5 minutes, and then transfer to a wire rack to let cool completely before icing.
Easy Icing
- Whisk all icing ingredients in a bowl. If it seems too thick, add a little more milk. It should be smooth, glossy and not runny. If too runny, add more powdered sugar. You can dip the cookies in the icing, or use brushes, spoons or a squeeze bottle. See this helpful video on how to decorate sugar cookies with icing.
- *If you want really pretty cookies, first make the icing thicker, by using only 1 tablespoon of plant milk. Using a decorating tip, outline the cookies with the thicker icing. Then add a little more milk to thin it and flood the inside with icing. This way the icing doesn't spill over the cookie edges.
- Decorate with sprinkles as desired. The icing will take several hours to harden completely. The cookies will stay soft for about 5 days at room temperature.
Notes
- Try to get vegan butter sticks if you can; they are easier to bake with. I always use salted vegan butter; if you use unsalted, add a pinch more of salt. Any brand will work, though Miyoko’s is my favorite in terms of flavor.
- Almond extract is optional but it adds a very good flavor to both the cookies and the icing, so use it if you can.
- To correctly measure flour, make sure to spoon and level by scooping the flour into the measuring cup with a spoon and level it off with the back of a knife. If you don’t correctly measure the flour, you can end up with way too much flour and the dough will be dry!
- If you aren’t comfortable using corn syrup, you may omit it. I rarely use it, but it makes cookie icing pretty and shiny and it’s just 1 tablespoon.
- Baked sugar cookies freeze well. You can also freeze the dough.
Hi, i know this is a vegan recipe –
Wondering if non vegan butter will work? Recipent loves dairy except eggs.
Thanks
It shouldn’t make a difference. Thanks!
Hi Nora. it is my first time making Vegan cookies for a friend of mine and she said this recipe is great. I was wondering why we cannot freeze them once iced. Have you tried to and it doesn’t taste good or falls apart? I know with royal icing using meringue powder iced cookies freeze well. I look forward to trying them!
You can freeze them, I just think they hold up better if you don’t freeze them with the icing, but they are actually fine to freeze with the icing. Hope that helps, and I hope you and your friend enjoy the cookies!
Hi, have you tried cutting out the shapes of the cookies- freezing them then baking the next day?
I haven’t tried it but I’m sure it would work fine.
2 table spoon milk didn’t work had to add more milk but other then that perfect
hey Nora, is there any way I can substitute the vegan butter? Do you think coconut oil should work?
It works okay, but the cookies may spread or puff up. Vegan butter works best.
Hi! I’m a long time (non-vegan real butter) baker making vegan sugar cookies for the first time for an event. I gave your recipe a try and fabulous! So easy and love how the cookies keep their shape. The only thing I did not like (actually detest and threw out the dough) was the Earth Balance butter. Awful fake butter taste. Of course no fault of yours. I tried the Miyoko’s sticks and wow – now that’s a sugar cookie! Everything else I followed your recipe and they were perfect. So thank you. I’m wondering have you had positive results doubling or tripling the recipe? And how long can I keep the rolled dough in the fridge before I bake it? 5 days, 3 days, a week? Thanks and looking forward to trying some of your other recipes!
Thanks so much DeAnn! I’m so glad you liked the sugar cookies. Miyoko’s is wonderful. I have doubled and tripled the recipe with no problems, as we usually make a lot around Christmas time. I think the rolled dough would be find for about 5 days. Thank you!
These were wonderful! We added orange zest to the dough and used fresh squeezed juice in place of milk for frosting. Perfection! These weren’t greasy like other vegan sugar cookies we’ve tried. Thank you!
You’re welcome!
Hi Nora, My son was recently tested and we found he is allergic/ reacting to so many foods. I am trying my best to make Thanksgiving and get through the holidays and still feel like the normal yummy foods. I came across several of your recipes and so thankful♥️ Regarding your sugar cookies, he cannot have almond (almond milk and I’m assuming almond extract?) Do you think cashew milk would work? ( he also cannot have soy, oat or rice). Also, is there another extract to sub for the almond that you might suggest? Going dairy, egg, gluten free along with restricting so many fruits and veggies and even meats is proving to be quite difficult, lol.
Yes, cashew milk totally works for the cookies, and any of my other recipes that may call for almond or soy milk. You don’t need to add almond extract, they are perfectly good only using vanilla! That sounds difficult, it’s so wonderful that you are searching for yummy holiday recipes that he can enjoy. 🙂
Hey! I’ve been vegan for over seven years, am celiac, and have many food intolerances including rice and potatoes, tomatoes, etc etc etc. the list seems endless Ahahah. If you ever need help making old traditional foods that your child can eat- PLEASE don’t hesitate to get a hold of me. One. Seven. Seven. Eight. Two. Five. Five. Three. Three. Zero. Five. I am in Canada and have international texting available. Wish you guys the best!!???
Can Oat Milk be used in place of the Almond Milk?
Yes, that should work.
Hi there. I really want to make some Christmas cookies this year but they also need to be gluten free. Do you think this recipe will work with gluten free flour? Thanks!
I haven’t tried making them with gluten free flour yet, but I believe some other folks have with good results. It should work!
Hi Nora!!
First time cookie maker here. I followed your exact recipe with respect to timings and quantities. Same brand butter as well. They tasted good but the surface of the cookies came out with small bubbles and not as clean and wonderful looking as yours. Any idea what could have happened? Thanks
Hi there! Hmmm I’m not sure, I’ve never had bubbles on my cookies like that. I would make sure you are measuring everything correctly, and bake them in the center rack of your oven. I’m not really sure what else would help. Hope that helps!
Does vegan margarine work?
Yes, it should.
These are the best! I rolled them into a log and chilled and just cut them into rounds. It worked perfectly. We have a couple neighbor kids who are allergic to eggs and don’t get baked goodies, but they know who their supplier is now!
I try to avoid earth balance as much as I can, can these be made with Miyoko’s vegan butter instead? Thanks for sharing this recipe! Making some for Halloween!
Yes, Miyoko’s brand is lovely and just fine here. Enjoy!
Is there a way to fix it if you add to much flour?
Sure, you could add a little almond/soy milk, just a few tablespoons at a time until the dough is more moist, not crumbling.
Can you freeze the dough or freeze the finished unfrosted cookies with success?
Yes, either way works!
Thank you Nora <3 this recipe has a special place in my heart cause it’s my go-to for every holiday- currently making Halloween cookies!
That’s so great to hear!
These came out perfect! Not overly sweet but just the right amount. These will be my go to sugar cookies for the holidays. Thank you so much for all your delicious recipes. God bless!
You’re so welcome! I’m so glad they turned out great!
can I put food coloring in the actual dough? if so when do you recommend I put it?
Sure! I would put food coloring in once the dough is mixed, but before chilling of course. Thanks!
I would mix the food coloring in the milk before adding it to the dry ingredients so you get a perfect distribution of color 😀 gel is best because it’s less likely to mess with your dough consistency
Hello! I was wondering, what kind of food coloring did you use for the frostings to make different colors? My little girl and I can’t wait to make these for halloween! 🙂
I used something very similar to these gel colors, though the red one is not vegan. I got them at my local craft store. 🙂 Hope you enjoy!
Hi Nora! Can i replace the unsweetened almond milk with unsweetened soy milk?
Yes, that is fine.
Is this recipe intended to be used with salted or unsalted vegan butter? Both are available to me.
I have only used salted because only until recently has unsalted vegan butter been available. Either will work though, you just might need to add a bit more salt if using unsalted. Thanks!
This was my first time baking vegan and I didn’t have any issues except when my cookies baked, they came out bubbly? Is there a reason? Did I maybe over mix? They kept shape perfectly, 8 minutes exactly.
I’m not sure why they would be bubbly, maybe the dough got too warm before baking? Did you refrigerate the dough first? I’m glad they kept there shape, but they shouldn’t be bubbly.
This turned out amazing!!! I’ve been looking for a vegan recipe for this cookies and I think I just found the perfect one! Thank you thank you thank you!! The taste is amazing, they don’t spread and they keep the cookie cuter shape!!
You’re so welcome!
Tastes great! Hubby and kids all apporved 🙂 The dough was REALLY easy to work with. Baked mine for 8 1/2 min since I like softer sugar cookies and they still held shape great. Thank you for this recipe!!
You’re welcome!