These Halloween sugar cookies are egg free, meringue powder-free, and dairy-free — and so easy to make! They taste perfectly sweet and buttery with a hint of lemon. The royal icing does not harden like traditional royal icing, so it stays soft, creamy, and decadent. As simple as they are, these will be a show-stopper at your Halloween party.
Halloween Sugar Cookies With Royal Icing [Vegan]
Serves
12
Cooking Time
15
Ingredients
For the Sugar Cookie Dough:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup hi-ratio vegetable shortening or vegan butter
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 4 tablespoons aquafaba (liquid from a can of chickpeas)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/4 teaspoon lemon extract (optional)
- Zest from 1 lemon
For the Royal Icing:
- 4 1/2 teaspoons egg replacer
- 6 tablespoons warm water
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 cups confectioner's sugar
Preparation
To Make the Cookie Dough:
- Cream the shortening or vegan butter with the sugar until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes.
- Add the lemon zest, the aquafaba, and the extracts to the creaming butter/sugar mixture and then stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl.
- Next, sift together the flour baking powder and salt and add it all at once to the creamed mixture. Mix just until it is all combined.
- Wrap this dough disc in plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours or overnight before using or you can store it for up to 1 week wrapped in plastic wrap in the refrigerator, or in the freezer for 2 months.
- You must re-work this dough with some additional flour to a pliable consistency after it has been chilled. Do not skip this step.
- Knead it with some flour until it is no longer a crumbly mass, but a soft pliable dough.
- Roll out the dough to 1/4-inch thick and cut shapes as desired.
- Transfer cookie cutouts to a parchment lined sheet pan and bake in preheated to 350° F oven for approximately 15-22 minutes or until light golden brown.
- Cool the cookies while you prepare the vegan royal icing.
To Make the Royal Icing:
- Combine the egg replacer with the warm water and whisk smooth.
- Place the sifted confectioner's sugar in a mixing bowl and then add the vanilla extract and the egg replacer mixture.
- Mix on medium to high speed until it is smooth.
- Color as desired with gel paste food colors and decorate as you like.
- Allow cookies to dry slightly at room temperature.
Notes
Iced Cookies will stay fresh for up to 2 weeks in an airtight container. You can freeze the cookie cutouts before icing.
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You don\’t say what to use as egg replacer here, aquafaba?