Biscotti al Limone are soft and chewy Italian cookies bursting with citrusy and sweet flavors from fresh lemon juice and zest, making it an absolute favorite Italian dessert – This Vegan Lemon Cookie Recipe is super easy to make and is dairy-free, eggless, and can be made gluten-free too!
The Best Vegan Italian Lemon Cookies
You’d be hard-pressed to find an Italian dessert without a trace of lemon or zest in it! It’s light and refreshing, has a tangy flavor, and the tart fragrance instantly brighten any dessert or dish you add it to. And if there is a cookie with an abundance of lemony goodness, it is these Italian Lemon Biscotti Cookies!
This version, however, is made without eggs and dairy but still captures the same tender and chewy texture of the classic. They are rolled in two types of sugars then baked until light and crisp! They may look simple, but each piece is loaded with deliciously tart and sweet tastes. You will never be satisfied with just one.
They make the perfect addition to your cookie platters together with some Swedish Oat Cookies, Sugar Cookies, Cinnamon Stars, Gingerbread men and Linzer Cookies.
Ingredients Used
- Vegan butter: gives the cookies a better taste and makes them tender. You could also use coconut oil as a substitute, but the taste and consistency will be slightly different.
- Raw cane sugar: aside from adding sweetness to the dough, sugar also helps with the chewy texture and crispness of the cookies as they bake. You can use other types of sugar too.
- Applesauce: as an egg substitute it helps binding the ingredients and gives the cookies moist crumbs.
- Lemon: juice and zest for flavor.
- Flour: you can also use all-purpose, spelt or gluten-free flour for this recipe.
- Baking powder: is the leavening agent used to make the cookies rise.
- Salt: to balance out the sweetness.
- Ground bourbon vanilla: adds a delicate flavor and aroma to the cookies.
- Powdered sugar: used for dusting. If you do not have it, you can use any granulated sugar and ground into fine powder using a food processor, blender or coffee grinder.
How to make Vegan Lemon cookies (Biscotti al Limone)
As always, I recommend checking out this step-by-step instruction and the recipe video first. Then you’ll find the full recipe with exact measurements in the recipe card below!
Step 1: Make the cookie dough
First, mix the vegan butter and sugar with an electric handheld mixer until creamy. Then add applesauce, lemon juice and lemon zest and mix to combine.
Now sift in the flour, baking powder and vanilla. Add a pinch of salt and mix everything together with a spatula or wooden spoon until it clumps together. Then continue to knead gently with the palms of your hands until you get a soft, smooth, slightly sticky dough.
Shape the dough into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Step 2: Shape and bake cookies
Once chilled, cut the dough into walnut-sized pieces of about 0.7 oz (20 g) each and shape into round balls. Roll each ball in sugar first and then in powdered sugar. Place the dusted cookies on baking trays lined with parchment paper and bake in a preheated oven at 356° F (180° C) for 12-15 minutes.
Allow the biscotti cookies to cool completely on the baking tray. Then store in a sealed cookie tin or jar.
Tips when making Vegan Lemon Cookies
- Do not knead the dough too much, or your cookies will be very chewy and hard.
- Chilling the cookie dough is important. Baking warm dough will result in your cookies spreading too much and not cooking evenly.
- Instead of rolling the cookies in sugar, you can bake them as they are and drizzle with a simple sugar glaze after they have cooled.
- Make sure to place the cookies evenly apart on the baking sheet as they will expand during baking.
- The baking time depends on the oven you are using, so make sure to check on them at the 10-minute mark to make sure they do not burn. Once they turn lightly golden and cracks appear, they should be good to go.
- The cookies will still be soft after baking. So allow them to rest and set on the baking sheet for a few minutes before moving them in a cooling rack.
How to store lemon cookies?
Let the cookies cool completely before storing them in a lidded container or cookie jar. I recommend enjoying them within 3 weeks after making them. If they get too hard, you can try the “apple trick” by placing a piece of apple in the cookie container. This will release moisture into the cookies, making them softer again.
You can also freeze the cookies for 3 months. However, keep in mind that they taste best when freshly baked.
These homemade vegan Biscotti al Limone are:
- Dairy-free
- Eggless
- Soft
- Chewy
- Easy to make
- Budget-friendly
- Perfect as a dessert or snack with tea or coffee
- Filled with lemony goodness!
- Perfect for gifting
- So delicious!
More refreshing vegan lemon cake and dessert recipes
- Lemon Tart with Strawberries
- Lemon Poppy Seed Layer Cake
- The Best Vegan Lemon Cake
- Lemon Poppy Seed Cake
- Lemon Cheesecake
- Strawberry Lemon Cake
- Lemon Blueberry Cake
- Blueberry Bundt Bake
- Easy Vegan Lemon Bars
- Vegan Key Lime Pie
- Blue Moon Lime Tart
Recipe Video
If you try these easy vegan lemon cookie recipe, please leave me a comment and a star rating! And if you take a photo of your biscotti al limone and share it on Instagram, please tag me @biancazapatka and use the hashtag #biancazapatka because I love seeing your creations! Have fun trying them out! 🙂
Vegan Biscotti al Limone (Lemon Cookies)
Author:You do not have a fitting cake pan at hand right now? Try my Cake Pan Conversion Calculator!
Ingredients
- ½ cup (100 g) vegan butter
- ⅓ cup (80 g) raw cane sugar or other sugar
- 3.5 tbsp (50 g) applesauce
- 1 (45 ml) lemon 45 ml juice + zest
- 2 ¼ cup (260 g) flour all-purpose, spelt or gluten-free flour*
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 pinch of salt
- 1 pinch of ground bourbon vanilla
For dusting
- 3-4 tbsp raw cane sugar or other granulated sugar
- 3-4 tbsp powdered sugar
Instructions
*Note: Feel free to check out the recipe video + step-by-step pictures above!
- First beat the vegan butter and sugar with an electric handheld mixer until creamy and fluffy.
- Then add applesauce, lemon juice and lemon zest and mix briefly until combined.
- Now sift in the flour, baking powder and vanilla. Add a pinch of salt and mix everything together with a spatula or wooden spoon until it clumps together. Then continue to knead gently with the palms of your hands until you get a soft, smooth, slightly sticky dough.
- Shape the dough into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
- Preheat the oven to 356° F (180° C).
- Take the dough out of the refrigerator and unwrap it. Then cut into walnut-sized pieces of about 0.7 oz (20 g) each and shape into round balls.
- Roll each ball first in sugar and then in powdered sugar. Place the dusted cookies on two large baking trays lined with parchment paper, leaving enough space between each.
- Bake the trays one after the other in the preheated oven on the middle rack for 12-15 minutes.
- Allow the biscotti cookies to cool completely on the baking trays. Then store in a sealed cookie tin or jar.
- Enjoy!
Notes
- If you do not have powdered sugar, you can use any granulated sugar and ground into fine powder using a food processor, blender or coffee grinder.
- Instead of rolling the cookies in sugar, you can bake them as they are and drizzle with a simple sugar glaze after they have cooled.
- More information and helpful tips, including storing and freezing instructions, are mentioned in the blog post above!
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