I did a thing and made THE BEST VEGAN FUNFETTI SUGAR COOKIES EVER! Not to mention these chewy vegan sugar cookies happen to be super simple and only contain 7 ingredients. If you're looking for a colorful, crunchy on the outside, eggless, soft, and chewy on the inside, easy sugar cookie recipe- this is it!
*Recipe shared February 2018 and updated May 2019*
First, a little un fact. Did you all know I am OBSESSED with rainbow sprinkles?! This obsession started at an early age when I made my parents buy me a wholesale tub of sprinkles from an actual diner. Yes, I am not kidding.
I am happy to say that while making these Vegan Funfetti Sugar Cookies I did not eat all the sprinkles because I guess I'm grown up? What can I say, I'm just a girl who loves rainbow-colored sugar!
Since making these cookies the funfetti obsession has continued pretty heavily on SGTO. Take my Vegan Cookie Cake, Cookie Dough Ice Cream Sandwiches, or my Funfetti Cinnamon Rolls for example. Yep, it's true love over here folks.
So what inspired these cookies? While browsing the internet for good vegan sugar cookie recipes, I honestly found a ton of really complicated recipes. This made me think no... there has to be something better and easier than this?!
Sugar cookies, and more specifically, funfetti cookies are meant to be fun, easy, and full of sugary goodness. So, I did a thing and made my own 7-ingredient sprinkle sugar cookie recipe without butter & without eggs to share with you all!
These cookies require only one bowl, 30 minutes of time to "chill" in the fridge, and only 15 minutes of baking time. They really are THAT easy!
Funfetti cookie FAQ:
Since this is one of the most popular recipes on SGTO, I've added some FAQ for you here. If you have any other questions, leave them in the comments below so I can add them to this section!
Why Cream the Butter and Sugar Together in Cookie Recipes?
Creaming the butter and sugar together helps to bring air into the dough and helps the dough rise. This step is crucial and should be done with cold butter. Don't skip it for ultimate cookie perfection.
Why Do We Chill The Cookie Dough?
A Question I commonly get asked is why I chill the cookie dough in this recipe. Chilling the Cookie dough helps to control the spread of the cookies and allows the sugars to absorb some of the liquid in the dough. I personally think chilling your dough leads to chewier cookies and more flavorful ones! Plus, you only need to chill your dough for 30 minutes to get these benefits.
Do I need to use flax eggs?
"Flax eggs " aka 1 Tbsp of ground flax mixed with 3 Tbsp of water serve as an egg replacement in vegan cookie recipes. While they don't add to the rise/structure of the cookies as eggs do, they work really well to help bind the cookie dough while also giving it moisture.
If you don't have ground flax on hand, chia seeds will also work but will lead to a semi-different consistency here.
Can I use All-Purpose Flour?
The short answer is- YES! Though, expect a different-looking and less crisp cookie. Pastry/Cake Flour contains less protein than all-purpose flour and therefore leads to a lighter softer sugar cookie.
If you are using all-purpose flour for this recipe it is CRUCIAL you use 1 cup + 2 Tbsp instead of the 1 ¼ cup of pastry flour listed. Otherwise, your cookies may not spread enough and may be cake-like vs. chewy. If you have cornstarch on hand, add 1 Tbsp cornstarch to the all-purpose flour to make these similar to cookies using pastry flour.
What vegan sprinkles work best for this recipe?
Believe it or not all sprinkles are not vegan. For this recipe, I recommend vegan sprinkles from India Tree or Sweatapolita sprinkles (not all flavors are vegan so be sure to check). I used their vegan sprinkles in my Vegan Funfetti Cake recipe and they are SO good. *Please note I used Sweatapolita in my photos and India Tree sprinkles in my video to show both*
What about vegan butter?
I've tested this recipe with two vegan butter brands- Miyokos and Earth Balance. I can't speak for any other brands, but I can say these both work amazing in this recipe.
These chewy vegan sprinkle sugar cookies are perfectly crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. With only 7 ingredients and just 30 minutes of refrigeration time, these sugar cookies with sprinkles are sure to be an absolute win for any party!
-TSG (the sprinkle girl?)
More vegan cookie recipes you will love:
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Vegan Funfetti Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup pastry flour or 1 cup+ 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour+ 1 Tbsp cornstarch
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ¼ cup rainbow sprinkles
Wet Ingredients
- ½ cup vegan butter if you only have unsalted butter, add ½ tsp salt
- ½ cup organic sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- 1 flax egg 1 Tbsp (8 grams) ground flaxseed mixed with 3 tbsp water
Instructions
- First, make the flax egg by adding the ground flax and water to a small bowl, mixing together, and setting aside for 5 minutes until thick and gelatinous.
- Add the sugar and cold butter to a mixer and cream together until light and fluffy, about 1-2 minutes. Then, add in the flax egg and vanilla extract. Beat all the wet ingredients together for around 30 seconds to mix.
- Add the pastry flour and the baking powder to the mixing bowl containing your wet ingredients. Mix until a thick cookie batter has just formed. Do not overmix or else you will form too much gluten and cookies won't spread as much. Then, use a spatula or fork to gently mix in the rainbow sprinkles
- Add the bowl of dough to the fridge, cover, and let chill for 30 minutes.Cover a baking sheet in parchment paper and preheat the oven to 350F.
- Next, remove the dough from the fridge and use a 1.5 Tbsp cookie scoop to form your cookie dough into balls and drop onto the baking sheet. Make sure that each cookie is kept about 2 inches apart since they will spread while baking.
- Slightly press each cookie down with your palm before baking (do not flatten all the way). Then, bake for 12-15 minutes until the cookies are light brown with soft centers.
- Once you remove the tray of cookies, lightly tap it on the counter to produce a more "wrinkly" cookie. Then, let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes as the cookies will still be soft right out of the oven. Finally, transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling.
- Once the cookies have cooled, serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Cookies will keep in a closed container at room temperature from 2-3 days or in the fridge for 3-5 days. Cookies can also be stored and frozen up to 1 month.
- If you would like a crispier cookie, simply reduce the amount of baking powder in the recipe to ¼ tsp (1 gram)
- While this recipe calls for pastry flour, simply reduce the amount by 2 Tbsp if you are using all-purpose flour. If you use sub all-purpose flour for pastry flour 1:1 the cookies may not spread enough.
- For the recipe you see pictured, I used Earth Balance butter. I then tested this recipe with Miyokos butter and found the cookies spread more. If you are using Miyokos butter, I recommend 1-2 Tbsp (about 8-16 grams) of extra flour.
Jasmine says
These vegan funfetti sugar cookies are honestly so good and simple to make! It tastes exactly like birthday cake! 😋🎂 I also love that this recipe does not skimp on the sprinkles so every inch of the cookie has sprinkles! 😍 Before baking I did press a few extra sprinkles on top for aesthetics because after rolling the ball of dough into a ball the sprinkles did kinda get hidden. Besides that I followed the recipe exactly. 👌🏻😎 My siblings loved these cookies a lot! 😱 The cookies disappeared so fast because that is how good these cookies are! Highly recommend everyone try this recipe out! ❤️
Ariel says
Can you use a real egg?
Megan says
I don't test my recipes with eggs, but it may work.
Liv says
My little brother is allergic to dairy,I’m vegetarian,and my parents are vegan so naturally I love making vegan foods lol. I tried this recipe and it worked perfectly omit was so tasty 😋 one thing, we didn’t have sprinkles so I put in vegan chocolate chips and it actually worked out great! I definitely would recommend everyone to try this delicious recipe (:
Megan Horowitch says
Thanks for sharing and glad it worked well even without the sprinkles 🙂
Lisa says
Thank you for this!!! I’ve made these cookies MANY times and they are delicious!! I just made them again but they came out SUPER flat and falling apart 🙁 any idea why???
Megan Horowitch says
You're welcome glad you like the recipe! Super flat cookies could be due to a few things. 1) Not enough flour, which is why I always recommend measuring in grams. 2) Not enough time chilling in the fridge. Less chill time= flatter cookies that spread more. 3) Oven temperature off. If you've baked them a bunch of times this probably isn't the case but it could be! Hope you were able to figure out the problem and they work again next time!
Steph says
These were delicious. I only had whole wheat pastry flour so I used that & added a tablespoon of corn starch. I couldn't help myself and added some mini vegan chocolate chips as well. Freezing half the dough for later.
Gabe says
I love that you gave an option for Miyoko's butter! Ever since eliminating palm oil from my purchases, I've been tinkering with Miyoko's butter recipe to find something that wouldn't spread as much in baking. I ended up adding more protein to the butter recipe -- didn't even think to try adding a little more flour.
Megan Horowitch says
Yes just a little bit more flour should do the trick 🙂 I'd pretty much recommend that for all cookie recipes if you're using their butter as it does spread more!
Bhumi says
Made these today with the modification of AP flour and corn starch...they turned out soo good! Thank you Megan for another funfetti hit!
Bhumi says
Made these today with the modification of AP flour and corn starch...they turned out soo good! Thank you Megan for another funfetti hit!
Megan Horowitch says
So glad you loved them!! 🙂
Karie says
Can you use gluten free or Almond
flour?
Megan Horowitch says
Almond flour would not work, but you could try it with a 1:1 Gluten-Free flour blend and follow the measurements for AP flour vs. pastry flour. If you do try it let me know!
D says
Could you use applesauce instead of vegan butter? I don't have any on hand at the moment!
ShortGirlTallOrder says
No unfortunately that would not work it has to be vegan butter for this recipe. Sorry!
Marti says
Just made these- used bobs red mill egg replacer bc I didn’t have flax.. and they turned out beautifully! I ended up cooking for a bit longer to get them crispier. Super easy! Ty xox
ShortGirlTallOrder says
So glad you liked them!
Olivia says
This recipe is seriously FOOL proof and SOO tasty!!! My family finished them in minutes and couldn’t believe they are vegan! The perfect sugar cookie/funfetti cookie! Being vegan is the best❤️ IG @oliviavalentina to see pictures in highlights
Lisa says
Hi Kristi! Just made these super yummy cookies but they didn’t flatten all the way! They look like the same small balls as when I put them in the oven. Thoughts on why this happened??
ShortGirlTallOrder says
Hi Lisa! So sorry to hear that. The main thing I could think of is adding in too much flour. I'm actually planning to retest the recipe this week with gram measurements. Did you make any substitutions with the recipe?
Aimee B. says
These are so pretty and fun. I made them today and we all enjoyed them. Mine didn't really spread that much, but that could be the brand of vegan butter I used. I would totally make these again and change up the sprinkles for different holidays. 🙂
Aimee B. says
These are so pretty and fun. I made them today and we all enjoyed them. Mine didn't really spread that much, but that could be the brand of vegan butter I used. I would totally make these again and change up the sprinkles for different holidays. 🙂
ShortGirlTallOrder says
So glad you liked them!
Jacob says
I love these cookies! They are so festive and taste delicious. They are also super easy to make!
Jacob says
I love these cookies! They are so festive and taste delicious. They are also super easy to make!
ShortGirlTallOrder says
Thanks for the great feedback!
Kristi R says
Thank you so much! Looks like I have some shopping to do 🙂
ShortGirlTallOrder says
You're welcome! Hope they work out for you 🙂
Serena says
I made these just then and they come out so beautifully and crispy. I used non-MnM's because they were in my cupboard (these weren't for me) and they look so beautiful, can't find to try it with vegan ones! The only comment I would make is that I use 1 measuring spoon of bicarb but this was a bit too strong and I could taste it in the batter, using one regular teaspoon probably would have been better. Other than that can't wait to give these as a present!
ShortGirlTallOrder says
Thanks Serena I'm so glad you liked them! Definitely make sure to measure the baking powder (not baking soda) for 1/2 teaspoon exactly or it will alter the taste of the batter. Hope that helps for the next round!
Kristi R says
May I ask what brand of sprinkles you used? I would love to make these but the stores near me only carry regular confectioners glaze coated sprinkles and the vegan ones don't have the same color quality.
ShortGirlTallOrder says
Hi Kristi! I used India Tree Sprinkles for this recipe. I've also tried Sweetapolita brand (only some of the sprinkles are vegan from them so double check) and those are great too.
Brandi Hook says
I can’t find white cake or pastry flour (I have wheat pastry flour though.) Will all purpose flour work?
ShortGirlTallOrder says
Wheat pastry flour will work fine for this recipe :). If you want to use all-purpose in place of cake/pastry flour it will work but may lead to a different texture in the cookie (I've tried it though and it is still delicious, just less soft). To make cake flour at home you can remove 2 Tbsp from 1 cup of flour and replace it with 2 Tbsp of cornstarch. Hope that helps!
Brandi Hook says
Thank you so much! Very helpful!