Make your own vegan Nilla wafers at home – you may already have most ingredients in your pantry.
These homemade vegan Nilla wafers are crisp, buttery, and singingly vanilla — honestly better than the store-bought version. The recipe uses just a few simple pantry staples and makes tiny, crisp cookies that taste like mini vanilla sugar cookies.
I developed these wafers to pair with a vegan banana pudding (coming soon), but they’re equally delicious with chocolate pudding or eaten on their own. They also work as a substitute for packaged vanilla wafers in any recipe.
(Tip: make larger cookies and toss them in cinnamon sugar for a simple twist.)
Crush these wafers to use instead of graham cracker crumbs for parfaits or a no-bake crust for lemon bars, cheesecakes, or quick fruit pies. They’re versatile, crunchy, and keep well in an airtight container.
Watch: how to make vegan Nilla wafers
The recipe below is adapted from a vegan sugar cookie base and yields crispy little wafers that will crisp up more as they cool.
Vegan Nilla Wafers
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup spelt, white, or oat flour
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 cup sugar (unrefined if desired)
- 3 tbsp vegan butter or oil
- 4 tsp milk of choice
- 1 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C).
- In a bowl, combine the dry ingredients (flour, salt, baking soda, and sugar).
- Add the vegan butter or oil, milk, and vanilla. Stir until a dough forms. You can press the dough together by hand or place it in a gallon-sized Ziploc and compress it into a ball from inside the bag.
- Roll the dough out very thin on a lightly floured surface (thinner dough yields crispier wafers). Cut small rounds using a cookie cutter or the rim of a jar lid.
- Place the rounds on the center oven rack and bake for 15 minutes. Remove and let cool—the wafers will crisp further as they cool.
Notes
These cookies make an excellent substitute for graham cracker crumbs in crusts and layered desserts. Try them as a base for vegan cheesecakes and fruit pies.
More Vegan Cookies:
Chocolate No Bake Cookies
Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies
Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies
Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Coconut Macaroons
Peanut Butter No Bake Cookies