Topped with cheesecake frosting, these easy Vegan Lemon Cookies are bursting with bright flavor. Made with both lemon juice and lemon zest, these cookies are deliciously sweet and tangy.
With a soft, buttery base and frosted with cream cheese icing, this vegan lemon cookie recipe has the same sweet and tangy flavor as my vegan lemon pie and vegan lemon bar recipe.
The cookies are made with easy vegan pantry staples and require just 12 minutes of baking time. The result is a cookie recipe that’s bursting with citrus flavor, rolled into a comforting cookie base and topped with a frosting you’ll be licking off your fingers.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Easy Prep: After mixing the ingredients for the lemon vegan cookies, the hardest part of the prep is waiting for them to chill.
- Bright Lemon Flavor: The cookies use both fresh lemon juice and a hefty amount of zest to really make the citrus flavor pop.
- Versatile: The eggless lemon cookies are pure indulgence as-is; however, there are many small tweaks you can make to make the cookies unique to your tastes, just like in this vegan lemon cupcake recipe.
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Ingredients
- Sugars: You need both white and brown sugar, as this is what gives the best balance of textures. White sugar helps the cookies spread, whereas brown sugar gives them a chewy, delicious texture.
- Dairy-free milk: Any non-dairy milk will work for the lemon cookies, with the exception of coconut milk, as it adds too much fat to the mixture.
- Lemon: You need both the juice and the zest from a lemon, so you’ll want to make sure it’s ripe. Try to choose one with a bright color that’s firm but has a bit of give when pressed. This applies to oranges, too, like in this orange posset.
- Turmeric: An optional ingredient, but it does give a gorgeous, almost golden color to the cookies.
See the recipe card below for exact ingredient amounts, nutritional information, and detailed instructions.
Variations
- Citrus: These cookies work with other citrus flavors as well, like orange, lime, or grapefruit.
- Frosting: The cream cheese frosting is vanilla-based. However, adding some lemon zest to it can bump up the citrus flavor.
- Glaze: In place of the frosting, you could drizzle the dairy-free lemon cookies with a lemon, powdered sugar glaze instead, similar to these vegan thumbprint cookies.
How to Make Vegan Lemon Cookies
Though the cookies need to chill for at least 30 minutes, the actual prep work on the cookies is minimal. However, don’t overlook the chilling, as this is when the fat in the recipe solidifies so that the cookies don’t spread too much.
Step 1: Combine the ingredients. In a large bowl, mix together all the ingredients to make the cookie dough.
Step 2: Portion Them. Use a scoop to portion the cookie dough onto a lined sheet, then chill the cookies in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Step 3: Bake and cool the Cookies. Bake the cookies for 12 minutes in a preheated oven. Remove from the oven and allow the cookies to cool. To make the frosting, add the heavy whipping cream to a stand mixer and whip until stiff peaks form. Then add the cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla and mix until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
Step 4: Frost. Spread the cooled cookies with the lemon frosting. Make a little indentation and top with lemon curd.
Step 5: Garnish. Add a lemon slice on top and sprinkle with some poppy seeds.
Expert Tips
- Mixing the Frosting: You want to beat the whipped cream until stiff peaks form, and then beat it for another minute. This ensures the frosting won’t be too runny.
- Cooling: The vegan cookies have to cool fully before you spread on the cream cheese frosting. Otherwise, it will heat up slightly and slide off.
- Rolling: If you want more of a crinkled cookie look, roll the portioned cookie balls in sugar before you chill them.
- Storing: Store leftover cookies in an airtight container in the fridge for up to one week.
Serving Suggestions
- If you love a bright, lemony flavor, enjoy these cookies with a glass of creamy lemonade on the side.
- Serve the cookies after a light meal of vegan orzo salad as a simple, fresh dessert.
- Pop these onto a dessert table along with vegan peanut butter pie and candied oranges for a complete spread.
Recipe Video
Vegan Lemon Cookies Recipe FAQs
Yes, you can freeze lemon cookies, but only if they’re not frosted. To do this, let them cool fully before storing them in a freezer-safe bag separated by layers of parchment paper. They’ll stay fresh for up to 3 months. When you need them, let them thaw overnight in the fridge before frosting them.
Though you can make the lemon cookies gluten-free by using a gluten-free all-purpose flour, you may need to add a smidge more milk or butter to balance out the heaviness of gluten-free flour, as each blend absorbs liquid differently.
Sure thing! The lemon cookies, once portioned into balls, can be stored in the fridge for up to 24 hours or in the freezer for up to 2 months. When you need them, bake them right from frozen, adding 2-4 minutes onto the cooking time and watching them closely.
More Delicious Lemon Recipes
Vegan Lemon Cookies
Ingredients
Cookie Ingredients
- ⅔ cup vegan butter 150g
- ½ cup white granulated sugar 100g
- ½ cup brown sugar 100g
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 ½ tablespoon dairy-free milk
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ tablespoon lemon juice
- zest of ½ lemon
- 1 ¼ cups + 2 tablespoon all-purpose flour 215g
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon baking powder
- pinch of turmeric optional, for color
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon poppy seeds
Cheesecake Layer Ingredients
- 220 g vegan heavy whipping cream
- 70 g vegan cream cheese
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
Toppings
- lemon curd
- poppy seeds
- lemon slices
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix the cookie ingredients.
- Use a cookie scoop to scoop out the dough onto a cookie sheet. You should get 12 cookies. Refrigerate the dough for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C.
- Once the cookies have chilled and the oven has preheated, bake the cookies for 12 minutes.
- Add the heavy whipping cream to a stand mixer and whip until stiff peaks form. Add the cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla & mix until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
- Once the cookies have baked and fully cooled, scoop a generous dollop of cheesecake topping on each cookie. Then add a spoonful of lemon curd, poppyseeds, and top with a lemon wedge if you wish!
- Enjoy and store in the fridge!
Notes
- Cookie Scoop: Use a trigger ice cream scoop to portion the cookies so that they’re all the same size. This way, they bake evenly.
- Baking: Remove the cookies from the oven when the edges are golden brown. They may not look fully cooked, but they will firm up on cooling.
- Turmeric: Adding a hint of turmeric into the cookie base will result in a naturally golden lemon color.
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