vegan valentine's day recipe ideas

Shower the people you love with sugar (at least on Valentine's Day)

Anyone can hand off a store-bought box of chocolates as a Valentine gift. But nothing says “I love you” better than a batch of these adorably addictive heart-shaped cookies from my new cookbook, Celebrate Vegan. The slight pucker of the lemon zest and raspberry jam reminds me of the fact that, although love is certainly sweet, you need a little contrast to liven things up. You’ll need Linzer cookie cutters for this recipe. 


Here are links to some other vegan Valentine's Day treats recipe ideas:

Chocolate-dipped love

• Chocolate-Dipped Things (Scroll down on page for recipe. Also includes yummy savory recipes by Nava Atlas and Robin Robertson)
• Vegan Apple Galette
• Raw Cookies (Use heart-shaped cutters!)
• Little Lemon Tarts 
• Blood Orange Cupcakes with Dark-Chocolate Ganache

Heart-Felt Linzer Cookies

• 2 cups Earth Balance, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 T lemon zest
• 2 cups unbleached white flour
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 2 T soy flour
• 3/4 cup ground almonds
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ¼ tsp nutmeg 
• Pinch cloves 
• 1 cup raspberry jam
• About ½ cup confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

Makes about 3 dozen, depending on the size of your cookie cutters.


1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray cookie sheet with cooking spray or line with silpat mats. 
2. In a medium bowl, cream together the Earth Balance and sugar. Beat in zest. 
3. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, almonds, and spices. Stir the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture, about ½ cup at a time. When dough becomes too stiff for mixer to handle, begin kneading together with your hands. 
4. Lightly flour a large sheet of wax paper. Roll dough our to 1/8 inch thick Cut into heart tops and heart bottoms, using your Linzer cookie cutter
5. Bake 9-12 minutes or golden. Cool on wire rack. 
6. Dust heart tops with confectioners’ sugar.
7. Spread heart bottoms with jam, and top with heart tops. (I know this sounds abstract, but follow the directions to the letter and it will all make sense!)