Description
A vegan Portuguese biscoitos (cookies) recipe so similar to my avó’s! Quick, easy, only 8 simple ingredients & perfect for dunking in tea!
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 3/4 cup cane sugar
- 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 6 tbsp vegan butter, melted + 1 tbsp, divided
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 tsp salt
- 3 cups white all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
*All the ingredients for this recipe are from our pantry and freezer tips!
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and prepare two cookie sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats.
- Stir the sugar, applesauce, 6 tbsp melted butter, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt together.
- Mix the baking powder into the flour and slowly add to the wet ingredients. Stir with a wooden spoon at first and then switch to mixing the dough with your hand until all the flour is incorporated.
- Prepare a flat surface by laying down a silicone mat or lightly flouring the surface. To form a cookie into the traditional shape, scoop a ping pong size of dough and roll it into a long tubular shape on the flat surface (I roll them out to about 8 inches in length). Then bring the two ends together to form a closed circle and overlap one end on top of the other. See the photos in the blog post and watch the recipe video for help! Alternatively, you can make these cookies into any shape you’d like (figure 8’s are popular as well).
- Lay the formed cookies on the cookie sheets and bake at 350 degrees F for 15 – 20 minutes. If you want softer cookies check them at 13 minutes, brush with the extra 1 tbsp melted vegan butter to help them brown on top and only leave them in for 15 minutes. For firmer cookies, check them at 15 minutes, brush with melted butter and leave them in for 18 – 20 minutes. *The cookies will be firm enough that you can lift them and check the bottoms to see how dark they are getting. It’s ok if the bottoms are dark… I always liked the slightly burnt ones best as a kid!
- These cookies keep well stored in a cookie jar at room temperature for a few weeks if they last that long! I find that these cookies do get softer as they spend time in a sealed jar so don’t panic if they are quite crunchy and you think you over-baked them (also… crunchier means they will hold up better when dunked in tea)!
Notes
Approximate Cost: CAD $3.42 vs. approximately $3.92 using dairy butter and 2 eggs.
Feel free to add in extra flavourings that are not traditional! Almond extract is lovely.
I prefer the texture of these cookies when I mix the dough by hand and not with the use of an electric mixer. If you prefer to use a mixer you can follow the same steps and slowly add the flour to the machine a little at a time.
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Portuguese