These sourdough discard sugar cookies are perfectly sweet vs tangy, with a soft and chewy texture and they have a delicious buttery flavor that no one can resist! They are easy, vegan, egg-free and such an amazing way to use your extra sourdough discard. Perfect sourdough cookie recipe to make during the holiday season or for birthday parties!
There is so much you can do with your extra sourdough discard and homemade cookies are one of the BEST ways to avoid wasting it. Sourdough oatmeal chocolate chip cookies and sourdough peanut butter cookies are delicious, easy and a must-try.
Now, we made sourdough discard sugar cookies and the result was amazing! Adding sourdough starter to your vegan cookie dough adds flavor, moisture and extra nutrients. You can play around with how much sourdough tang you want to add to the cookies and also, you can do a fermentation for even more sourdough goodness.
These are egg-free and dairy-free, and I used plant-based butter to make them completely vegan. They are full of flavor and great enjoyed plain, but also make for a perfect cookie recipe to decorate during Christmas, Easter, Valentine's Day and birthday parties!
Let me know if you give them a try! ❤️
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❤️ Why you will love this recipe
- Amazing sweet and buttery flavor
- Perfect treat to make during the holiday season or on all occasions
- Soft and tender texture with crispy edges
- Easy to control the sourness (use freshly fed vs old discard!)
- Vegan, dairy-free and egg-free recipe
🗒 Ingredient notes (+ substitutions)
- Flour: use all-purpose white flour for the best result (do not use bread flour). I like the flour from King Arthur when making cookies.
- Sourdough discard: you will need a 100% hydrated sourdough discard. Keep in mind that an older discard will give you a stronger tangy taste. I like to keep some unfed discard in the fridge for a few days, even up to 7-10 days, before using it in sourdough discard recipes for a stronger sourdough taste. You can also use active sourdough starter!
- Sugar: I used cane sugar, but regular white sugar will work too.
- Vegan butter: I used the vegan butter from Earth Balance, but you can use other brands as well.
- Vanilla extract: I love how vanilla gives it a nice subtle flavor that enhances the sweetness from the cookies, but feel free to include other flavoring ingredients such as cinnamon or almond extract.
⭐️ Full list of ingredients (+ quantities) down below in the recipe card!
📝 Variations (+ decoration ideas!)
- Easy chocolate sugar cookies: as seen in the picture, we love to dip the cookies in melted chocolate (about ¾ cup dark chocolate chips + 1 tablespoon refined coconut oil). Let them sit on a cooling rack until the chocolate sets and decorate with sprinkles while the chocolate is still soft, if desired.
- Royal icing: for classic cookies for the holiday season, you can create more fancy designs with a simple royal icing recipe. We love this vegan royal icing recipe made without eggs!
- Frosting: for a treat, spread your favorite vanilla or chocolate frosting over!
- Caramel: spread some peanut butter caramel over for a healthy yet delicious dessert.
🍽 How to make sourdough discard sugar cookies
Step 1: Add room temperature vegan butter and sugar to a large mixing bowl and use an electric mixer to combine until uniform, light and creamy.
Step 2: Add the sourdough discard and vanilla extract, then keep mixing until combined.
Step 3: Add flour and salt and keep mixing until mostly uniform (do not over mix!).
Step 4: Use your hands to finish up mixing and press on the dough to form a ball.
Step 5: Transfer the dough to a clean surface and divide the dough into 2 equal portions. Use your hands to shape them into balls.
Step 6: One at a time, place the balls over parchment paper and roll them to a large disc of about ¼ inch thick (or about ½ cm). Make sure not to roll too thin, on the thicker side is best to give a nice texture to the cookies. Cover one with a layer of plastic cling and stack the second layer of rolled dough over. Transfer to a baking sheet, cover well and chill in the fridge for 1-2 hours.
Step 7: Use a cookie cutter to shape your cookies and spread them on your parchment sheet-covered baking sheet. Keep the dough scraps, combine them, roll again + chill briefly and make more cookies!
Step 8: Bake at 350ºF for 8-10 minutes. Watch the cookies closely as they cook fast. You don't want much coloration on them, take them out if you see they are starting to turn brown. Let the cookies cool down before decorating/enjoying.
⭐️ Detailed recipe (+ video) down below in the recipe card!
💡 Baking tips
- I highly recommend weighing the ingredients instead of using cups. If you don't have a kitchen scale, then use the scoop and level method to measure the ingredients, otherwise you risk adding too much flour and having dry or tough cookies.
- Use room temperature ingredients! Take the vegan butter and your sourdough discard out of the fridge about one hour before baking. Softened butter is easier to handle, which will help create a uniform texture when mixed with the sugar.
- Don't overmix the dough, this will avoid having tough cookies.
- It is important not to overcook the cookies for the best texture (slightly underdone is even better!). You barely want any coloration on the cookies, so watch them carefully and take them out if they start to brown.
- The cookie will feel underdone and very soft once just out of the oven. Let them cool down before handling and decorating them.
❗️ Storage tips
They stay fresh for 3 days at room temperature. If possible, choose a glass container as opposed to a plastic container, otherwise they turn softer too fast.
I also tested freezing them (non-decorated), which worked fine, although the cookies were softer once thawed.
❓ FAQs
Ideally, yes. This helps prevent the cookies from spreading while baking, keeping them in their shape.
If you want to make them days or weeks ahead of time, then I recommend making the dough, dividing it into 2 balls and covering well with plastic cling. Then, freeze the dough until you need it. Let it thaw overnight in the fridge before rolling and baking.
Yes! Once you make the cookie dough and divide it into 2 balls, cover them well with plastic cling and place them in the fridge for up to 2-3 days before rolling and baking.
🍪 More vegan sourdough discard recipes to try
I hope you like this sourdough discard sugar cookie recipe as much as we do! If you try it, please leave a comment below and rate the recipe to let me know how it was. Your feedback is so helpful!
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📖 Recipe
Sourdough Discard Sugar Cookies (No eggs, Vegan)
Equipment
- Mixing bowl
- Kitchen scale (or measuring cups)
- Measuring spoons
- Baking sheet (+ parchment paper)
- Cookie cutter (optional)
Ingredients
- 115 g vegan butter (115g = ½ cup)
- 170 g white sugar or cane sugar (170g = ¾ cup)
- 130 g sourdough discard (130g = ½ cup)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 305 all-purpose flour (305g = 2¼ cup)
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, add the room temperature butter and sugar and use electric beaters to combine until uniform and creamy. Then, add the sourdough discard and vanilla and keep whisking/stirring until combined.
- Add the flour and salt and mix until mostly combined (DO NOT OVERMIX). Finish mixing the dough using a spatula and use your hands to form a large ball of dough right in the bowl. Transfer the dough to a clean surface and divide the ball of dough into 2, then reshape into smaller balls.
- Transfer one of the balls over a large piece of parchment paper, then use a rolling pin to roll until about ¼-⅓ inch thick (or about ½ cm). Transfer the second ball over a second piece of parchment paper, and repeat the rolling process. Stack both rolled doughs over each other (place a layer of plastic cling in between so they don't stick together) and transfer to a baking sheet. Cover well and place in the fridge to chill for 1-2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- Remove the dough from the fridge and take off the top sheet. Use a cookie cutter to shape the rolled dough left on the baking sheet. Disperse the cookies and remove the retail (combine the extra dough, roll again, chill for 10-15 min and repeat to make more cookies). Bake for 8-10 minutes (the cookies should not brown, watch closely and take out of the oven if the edges start to color). Do the same steps with the second rolled dough. You should be able to make about 25 cookies, although this will vary depending on your cookie cutter.
- Let the cookies cool down on a cooling rack and decorate them with your favorite frosting or dip in melted chocolate.
Video
Notes
- I highly recommend weighing the ingredients instead of using cups. If you don't have a kitchen scale, then use the scoop and level method to measure the ingredients, otherwise you risk adding too much flour and having dry or tough cookies.
- Use room temperature ingredients! Take the vegan butter and your sourdough discard out of the fridge about one hour before baking. Softened butter is easier to handle, which will help create a uniform texture when mixed with the sugar.
- Don't overmix the dough, this will avoid having tough cookies.
- It is important not to overcook the cookies for the best texture (slightly underdone is even better!). You barely want any coloration on the cookies, so watch them carefully and take them out if they start to brown.
- The cookie will feel underdone and very soft once just out of the oven. Let them cool down before handling and decorating them.
- Nutrition: please note that the nutritional information is an estimate per serving provided for informational purposes only (calculated by software) and accuracy is not guaranteed. Consult with your healthcare provider or a registered dietitian if you need precise nutrition calculations for health reasons.
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