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A rimless baking sheet lined with parchment paper and topped with chocolate-dipped shortbread cookies, arranged at a diagonal, on a brown wood surface with a folded off-white cloth.

Vegan Shortbread Cookies


  • Author: Raquel Smith
  • Total Time: 45 minutes
  • Yield: 32 cookies 1x

Description

Making these vegan shortbread cookies is the perfect way to celebrate the holidays. Dipped in melted chocolate and sprinkled with sea salt or ground espresso beans, they’re so good!


Ingredients

Scale
  • 1/3 cup oat flour
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup cornstarch
  • 2/3 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 13 Tbsp cold vegan margarine, cut into 1/2″ cubes (I used Earth Balance)
  • 1 cup dark chocolate chips, plus more if necessary (optional)
  • Sea salt (optional)
  • Ground espresso beans (optional)

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  2. Combine the flours, cornstarch, powdered sugar, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment.
  3. Add the margarine to the bowl, then use the paddle attachment to mix on low speed until a smooth dough is formed – this will take 5-10 minutes. It’ll start out really crumbly and you’ll think you’ve done something wrong, but keep going; it’ll get there.
  4. Grab a handful of the dough and form it into a rough ball. Use a rolling pin to roll it into a sheet 1/4 inch thick.
  5. Use a biscuit cutter to cut into 1 1/2 to 2-inch circles. Place on a prepared baking sheet spaced about 1/2 inch apart (they don’t spread much). Repeat with the remaining dough.
  6. Bake for 10-13 minutes, until just starting to turn golden on the edges.
  7. Remove from the oven, then use a toothpick to poke 5-6 little holes in each cookie – this lets extra steam escape and helps them crisp up. Transfer to a cooling rack.
  8. Place the chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl and heat for 30 seconds on 50% power, then stir. Continue in 30-second increments until fully melted (it’ll take about a minute and a half total).
  9. Dip the cookies in the melted chocolate, then place on some parchment and sprinkle with sea salt or some ground espresso beans. Place in the refrigerator to let the chocolate harden.

Notes

If you’re not vegan, regular unsalted butter will do – and add an extra pinch of salt to the dough.

Some people say Earth Balance in stick form can have an off flavor. It’s not usually noticeable in recipe that are less butter-intensive, but if you’ve noticed before that you don’t like it, then use whatever other vegan butter substitute you prefer. I have only tested this with Earth Balance, so I can’t guarantee results for other substitutions.

These store best in the fridge – the chocolate may become sticky at room temperature.

Nutritional information below includes chocolate coating, without additional salt or ground coffee.

  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Category: Cookies
  • Method: Baking
  • Cuisine: Vegan

Keywords: vegan desserts, holiday baking, cookie, shortbread, dairy-free