Tangy lemon and buttery shortbread, these vegan lemon curd shortbread cookies are bursting with flavor and melting in your mouth with every bite! There’s no better way to celebrate Spring and the warm Summer months than with these bright and adorable lemon cookies.
Inspired by my favorite lemon curd dessert recipe: Lemon Cookies that are gluten free, vegan and filled with the creamy and tart curd.
I took my luscious lemon filling and made these linzer style shortbread cookies to make the ultimate Spring dessert.
You’re going to love them!
HOW TO MAKE LEMON CURD COOKIES
Here’s the ingredients you need to get started!
- coconut milk I used reduced fat but full fat will also work
- lemon juice and lemon zest
- cornstarch – cornstarch will help thicken the curd. I have tried this with tapioca starch/flour and it doesn’t yield the same results.
- turmeric for color (can omit)
- gluten free all purpose baking flour – I used King Arthur measure for measure gluten free baking flour but any all purpose or 1:1 gluten free baking flour will work as long as it contains xanthan gum.
- organic powdered sugar and organic cane sugar– sugars provide not just the sweetness of the cookie and the curd but the overall texture as well.
- vegan butter – I like to use vegan butter in stick form when baking so brands such as Earth balance and Melt are best
- vanilla extract – vanilla will enhance the flavor of the cookie – the more the better in my opinion 😉
Commonly asked questions
My favorite way to use up extra lemon curd is smear it on toast or biscuits. You could also use it in other recipes like my Lemon Curd Cake.
I have never been able to find a vegan lemon curd in store which is I always make my own. If you do find one you like, you can easily use it in this recipe.
This homemade vegan lemon curd lasts up to 1 week in the refrigerator.
IF YOU LOVED THIS SPRING RECIPE…
You are going to love some of my favorite lemon recipes on the blog:
Vegan Lemon Muffins with Poppy Seeds
Vegan Lemon Curd Shortbread Cookies
Equipment
- sauce pan
- cookie cutters
- mixing bowl
- baking sheet
Ingredients
Lemon Curd
- ⅓ cup canned coconut milk I used reduced fat but full fat will also work
- ⅓ cup organic cane sugar
- ¼ cup lemon juice about 1 lemon
- zest from 1 lemon
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 tbsp vegan butter
- pinch turmeric for color can omit
Shortbread
- 1 cup vegan butter softened
- ⅔ cup organic powdered sugar + more for dusting
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 cup gluten free all purpose baking flour + more for dusting measure for measure
- ¼ tsp finely ground salt
Instructions
Lemon Curd
- Place all the lemon curd ingredients into a pot over medium-high heat. Whisk until thick, about 4-5 minutes. Watch carefully that the mixture doesn't boil. If it feels too hot, reduce the heat to medium-low. Remove from heat and let cool while you prepare your cookies.
Shortbread Cookies
- Preheat the oven to 350 F° and prepare two baking sheets with parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter until light and fluffy using a handheld mixer. Add in the powdered sugar and mix until smooth and creamy and then mix in the vanilla. Finally add in the flour and salt and continue to mix until a dough forms. Alternatively, you could mix by hand in a mixing bowl.
- Roll the dough on a clean surface dusted with flour until it's roughly ⅛ inch in thickness. Use a 2" flower shape cookie cutter to make 24 evenly sized cookies (gather the scraps and roll out the dough as many times as needed). Use ½ inch piping tip or round cookie cutter to cut out the center of 12 of the cut out cookies.
- Transfer the cookies to the baking sheets and bake for 10-12 minutes and golden brown. Let the cookies cool completely and then dust with powdered sugar.
- Fill a piping bag or plastic zip bag with the curd and pipe roughly 1 heaping tablespoon into the center of the cookies without the circular cutouts. Top with the remaining cookies and serve.
