Bake them now or later, these Citrus Slice and Bake Cookies are the perfect freezer-friendly cookie. Enjoy these light and butter-y vegan cookies any night of the week!
Store them away in your fridge or freezer or slice and bake the same night – we’re obsessed with this easy cookie recipe. Loaded with candied citrus peel and even more fresh citrus zest, each cookie is packed with light and bright flavour.
They come together in just one bowl with minimal ingredients. Whether you have a hand mixer, stand mixer, or just your arms and a whisk – these simple treats come together in no time. Then just roll them into a log, chill, slice, and bake! But you’ll want to make a double (or triple) batch cause they’re seriously addicting!
Why you’ll love this recipe:
- Freezer-friendly before and after baking.
- Easy to make and minimal ingredients.
- Packed with light and bright flavour.
Top tips for making vegan Citrus Slice and Bake Cookies:
- Let the butter soften. The key to the cookies flavour and texture is vegan butter and we promise you cannot make this dough with butter straight from the fridge. Pull out the butter at least 20-30 minutes prior to making the dough to ensure it’s soft enough to beat.
- Use a hand or stand mixer. You can make this recipe by hand with a whisk or rubber spatula for the best results we recommend using an electric hand or stand mixer. It allows you to really whip up the butter get a super light and airy cookie.
- Don’t over-mix the dough. These cookies are meant to be super light and tender. However if you mix the flour too much then you’ll create a cookie that’s tough. Mix until just combined and no longer if possible.
- Let chill the dough chill. This dough has a high ratio of fat to flour which means when not chilled they will spread a lot. To avoid this, let the dough rest in the fridge or freezer for at least 1 hour before baking to make cookies that keep their shape.
- Bake until lightly golden on the edges. You’re not looking for a deep golden colour for these cookies, just slightly golden brown around the edges at the base of the cookie.
Ingredient Notes:
- Vegan Butter – We use the Becel Plant Based Sticks. We recommend using a vegan butter that you’ve worked with before and know how it bakes up.
- Icing Sugar – Also known as powdered sugar or confectioners sugar. You cannot substitute in granulated or brown sugar here as it will drastically alter the final texture.
- Citrus Zest – You can use any combination of citrus that you have. Our go-to is lemon and orange zest.
- Candied Citrus Peel – Store-bought or homemade work. We get our diced candid citrus peel from Bulk Barn in Canada.
- All-Purpose Flour – We use our local store brand flour (or whatever is on sale). Any unleashed all-purpose flour should work, but we recommend weighing it out instead of using the volume measurements.
- Vanilla Extract – Clear vanilla extract would work best for final cookie appearances, but any vanilla extract will work. You can also omit this if you don’t have it on hand.
Other vegan cookies you’ll love:
How to make Citrus Slice and Bake Cookies:
Ingredients
- 226 g (1 cup) vegan butter, softened
- (⅔ cup) icing sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp orange zest
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 240 g (2 cups) all-purpose flour
- (½ cup) diced candied citrus peel
Instructions
- Using an electric hand or stand mixer beat softened vegan butter and sugar together until light and fluffy – about 5-6 minutes.
- Add the vanilla extract and both zests and mix for 1-2 minutes to help release more citrus flavour.
- Mix in the flour and beat until just combined – be careful not to over-mix.
- Fold in the candied citrus peel until well distributed throughout the dough. But be careful not to overwork the dough.
- Scoop the dough onto plastic wrap and roll into a cylinder about 1 to 1.5 inches wide. Wrap and place in the fridge to chill for at least 1 hour but up to 2 weeks. You can also place in the freezer for up to 6 months if you’d like to prep and use later.
- When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- When the oven has preheated, remove the dough from the fridge and slice into cookies about ½ an inch thick and place on the prepared baking sheet about 1 inch apart.
- Bake cookies For 16-20 minutes or until slightly golden brown on the bottom edge.
- Let rest on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
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