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Home » Cookies and Bars

Vegan Spritz Cookies {Gluten Free & Allergy Friendly}

Published: Apr 13, 2022 · Updated: Nov 18, 2020 by Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD · This post may contain affiliate links · 5 Comments

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These gluten free vegan spritz cookies are as tasty as the old-fashioned spritz cookies but are made without wheat flour, eggs, and butter. They're often included on cookie plates during the holidays but are a festive and delicious treat any time of year.

Spritz Cookies
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  • Ingredients
  • Equipment needed
  • Decorating tips
  • More holiday treats
  • 📖 Recipe

Gluten free vegan spritz cookies are one of my family's favorite Christmas cookie traditions but really, we make them year-round because they're so good! 

Spritz cookies are traditionally butter cookies with almond flavor added. When my son was diagnosed with allergies to egg, wheat, peanuts, and dairy, it seemed that we would be skipping our spritz cookie tradition.

Fortunately, I was able to use some allergy friendly substitutes to alter the cookie recipe I grew up enjoying!

Ingredients

To make these cookies gluten free and vegan, I used several allergy friendly substitutes.

Butter substitute

To replace the butter, I used Earth Balance Buttery Spread. It is one of the few dairy free margarine options available and it does have a nice flavor. If you don't need to avoid dairy, you can certainly use butter in this recipe.

Gluten-free flour

I have used a variety of gluten free flour blends for this recipe. The main thing with subbing gluten-free flour for wheat flour is to use some whole grain flours and some starches to mimic the texture of wheat flour. You'll also want a flour blend with xanthan gum added as it does help to bind the dough together.

This recipe has been tested with this DIY all-purpose flour blend. When using this blend, I add ½ teaspoon xanthan gum to the flour for this recipe.

I mostly use Bob's Red Mill gluten-free all-purpose flour blend which already has xanthan gum added.

Egg substitute

I have played around with different egg substitutes for this recipe. Specifically, I have tried powdered egg replacers and aquafaba.

Powdered egg replacers

I have made these cookies with two different powdered egg replacers: Ener-G Foods Egg Replacer and Bob's Red Mill Egg Replacer.

Both of these work well in this recipe, however, the Bob's Red Mill egg replacer tends to get thicker than the Ener-G foods option. This makes the dough a bit dryer.

If you find that the dough is very hard to push through the cookie press or the dough is crumbly, add one tablespoon of water and mix it until the dough starts to stick together.

Aquafaba

I always like to try to use allergy friendly substitutes that are the most accessible. I think of grandmas who want to make a treat for their grandchild and might not have access to specialty ingredients or don't want to buy a whole box of egg replacer for one recipe.

For this reason, I also tested this recipe with aquafaba. What the heck is aquafaba? I'm glad you asked!

Aquafaba is the brine from a can of beans. Yes, when you crack open a can of garbanzo beans and dump off the liquid, that's your egg substitute right there! I know it's a little weird but the brine from beans has starch, some protein, and liquid that is similar to an egg so it works well for baked goods.

If you use aquafaba in this recipe, you only need 3 tablespoons. A can of beans usually has about 12 tablespoons (about ¾ cup) so you'll have extra. If you get in the habit of using aquafaba, you can freeze the extra liquid for later. I pour it into an ice cube tray and, when it's frozen, I transfer the cubes to a freezer bag to use in future baking. It's pretty slick!

Aquafaba is usually from garbanzo beans but I have also used great northern and pinto beans and both work fine.

Aquafaba vs powdered egg replacers

We tested both aquafaba and Bob's Red Mill Egg Replacer in these cookies. Here are our observations from testing:

  • Both made dough of the correct consistency for pressing through a cookie press.
  • The aquafaba cookie baked faster so the cooking time had to be reduced by a minute to get a less crunchy cookie.
  • We liked the texture of the Bob's Red Mill Egg Replacer better overall.
A plate with spritz cookies tested with aquafaba and egg replacer
The cookies made with aquafaba and with Bob's Red Mill egg replacer were very similar in appearance.

Overall, it was a close race so I wouldn't hesitate to use aquafaba. Just be sure to take the cookies out of the oven about a minute sooner to avoid having crunchy cookies.

Equipment needed

The main thing you'll need to make gluten free vegan spritz cookies is a cookie press. You can find them at any big box store or on Amazon.

I have used a variety of presses from the cheapest plastic one you can find to an antique metal one that I inherited from my grandma.

A cookie press box
I inherited this cookie press from my grandma!

Grandma's is very different than what you find in stores now. The top knob is turned clockwise to push out the dough and then turned counterclockwise to cut the dough from the press. It took me a long time to figure out how to work it but now I love it!

If I didn't have Grandma's cookie press, I would use one that is a cookie press and decorator. Multifunctional kitchen tools are the best!

Decorating tips

Decorating these cookies is easy! Just find sanding sugar in the color of the season and sprinkle it on before baking.

Spritz
Spritz cookies can be made in all shapes and sizes! Be sure to add sugar decorations before baking.

You can also add food coloring to the dough before baking. During the holidays, I often divide the dough in half and make half of it green for Christmas trees and half plain for other shapes.

Cookie
Spritz cookie dough can be tinted with food coloring for a festive look.

For a "fancy" cookie, try this: Divide the dough in half. Add a food coloring color of your choice to one half and leave the other half white. Add one color of dough to one side of the cookie press then add the other color to the other side. Press the cookies onto the cookie sheet and you will get a "half and half" cookie. My son loves these!

A plate of spring themed gluten free vegan spritz cookies.
Gluten free vegan spritz cookies aren't just for Christmas! You can make a variety of shapes using your cookie press and decorate with seasonal sprinkles.

More holiday treats

  • sunflower butter blossoms
    Peanut Free Sunflower Butter Blossoms
  • Corn Flake Wreaths
    Corn Flake Wreaths
  • allergy free gingerbread cookies
    Allergy Free Gingerbread Cookies
  • Christmas themed gluten free sugar cookies
    Gluten Free Sugar Cookies

📖 Recipe

Spritz Cookies

Gluten Free Vegan Spritz Cookies

Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD
These gluten free vegan spritz cookies are "buttery" cookies that can be made for any occasion.
4.75 from 4 votes
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Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes mins
Cook Time 4 minutes mins
Total Time 25 minutes mins
Course cookies, Dessert
Servings 100 cookies
Calories 114 kcal

Equipment

  • Cookie press
  • Stand mixer optional

Ingredients
  

  • ¾ cup "safe" margarine such as Earth Balance
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons egg replacer
  • 2 tablespoons warm water
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 2-¼ cups all-purpose gluten-free flour
  • 1 tablespoon water (see notes below)
Get Recipe Ingredients

Instructions
 

  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
  • In a mixing bowl, beat the margarine and sugar together until creamy. In a small bowl, mix the egg replacer and water together. Add the egg replacer mixture, vanilla, and salt to the margarine and sugar mixture and mix until combined well. Add the flour gradually while mixing until fully incorporated.
  • If desired, add food coloring to the dough for tinted cookies (we like green for Christmas trees!) Put the dough into cookie press and press onto ungreased baking sheets. Add decorations such as tinted sanding sugar before baking.
  • Bake for 5-6 minutes until set but not brown. Remove cookies from baking sheets immediately and transfer to paper towels or a cooling rack.

Notes

Alternative to the egg replacer: Omit the egg replacer and water and instead add 3 tablespoons of aquafaba (brine from a can of white beans).
If the dough is crumbly after mixing, add 1 tablespoon of water and mix. The dough should come together into a ball when it is the right consistency.

Nutrition

Serving: 4cookiesCalories: 114kcalCarbohydrates: 15gProtein: 0.5gFat: 5.5gSodium: 83mgFiber: 0.5gSugar: 4g
Keyword dairy free, egg free, fish free, gluten free, peanut free, shellfish free, soy free, tree nut free, wheat free
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Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD
Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD
Kristi Winkels is a Registered Dietitian and food allergy mom who helps people navigate dietary restrictions due to food allergies and intolerances. Read more about Kristi and get in touch here.
Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD
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About Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD

Kristi Winkels is a Registered Dietitian and food allergy mom who helps people navigate dietary restrictions due to food allergies and intolerances. Read more about Kristi and get in touch here.

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    4.75 from 4 votes (2 ratings without comment)

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  1. Jessica says

    December 06, 2023 at 9:49 pm

    These cookies came out perfect, taste just like the ones I used to make before I had to start eating egg-, dairy-, and gluten-free! I tried 3 other recipes before this one and none came close. I suggest reading all the notes because they come in very useful! Thank you for this recipe!5 stars

    Reply
    • Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD says

      December 07, 2023 at 5:22 am

      Thanks for your comment, Jessica! I'm so glad you enjoyed them!

      Reply
  2. Patti says

    December 05, 2023 at 1:27 pm

    Can you use applesauce as egg replacement? Thank you!

    Reply
    • Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD says

      December 05, 2023 at 7:09 pm

      Hi Patti,
      I haven't tried this so I'm not sure if it would work. Applesauce would definitely incorporate moisture into the cookies like the egg replacer does but it does not have any leavening agents like egg replacer does so it might lead to a flatter cookie that does not hold its shape. If you try it, I'd love to know how it turns out!

      Reply
  3. Judy says

    December 04, 2020 at 6:59 am

    So good! Make a double batch - they go fast!5 stars

    Reply

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Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD
Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD
Kristi Winkels is a Registered Dietitian and food allergy mom who helps people navigate dietary restrictions due to food allergies and intolerances. Read more about Kristi and get in touch here.
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Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD
Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD
Kristi Winkels is a Registered Dietitian and food allergy mom who helps people navigate dietary restrictions due to food allergies and intolerances. Read more about Kristi and get in touch here.
Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD
Latest posts by Kristi Winkels, RDN, LD (see all)
  • Gluten Free Swedish Meatballs Recipe (Top 9 Allergen-Free) - February 2, 2025
  • Cranberry Apple Sauce {Gluten Free, Top 9 Allergen Free} - November 9, 2024
  • Chocolate Chip Cookies (Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Egg Free) - February 17, 2024
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