Name: Healthier Homemade Vegan Biscuits
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 2 cups flour; 1 tablespoon baking powder; ¼ teaspoon salt; 1 teaspoon sugar; ¾ cup unsweetened plant-based milk + 1 tbsp lemon juice; 8 tablespoon vegan butter (cubed and chilled)

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Can you make homemade vegan buttermilk biscuits that are fluffy, flaky, buttery, and delicious? Yes! You only need 7 simple ingredients, one mixing bowl, and 30 minutes to make this easy recipe! They make amazing biscuits and gravy, and are the perfect side for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

Published March 1, 2019 and updated April 1, 2021.

A cast-iron skillet with homemade biscuits

Is there anything better than a flaky, buttery, homemade biscuit? Yes, there is. A vegan homemade biscuit!

Trust me, I know what a true Southern biscuit tastes like, because I grew up on them. When I set out to make a perfectly flaky and buttery biscuit, it was serious business.

Well, I'm happy to say, these are just as fluffy, flaky, and delicious as the kind I used to make with dairy butter, maybe even better!!

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Biscuits or Scones?
More vegan biscuit and bread recipes you’ll love
Ingredients and substitutions
Pro tips for making the best vegan biscuits
How to Make Them
Frequently Asked Questions
Healthier Homemade Vegan Biscuits
How to Store and Freeze

Biscuits or Scones?

A while back, one of our Facebook followers told us that our biscuits were actually scones. They weren't wrong, and they weren't right.

Huh?

Here's the thing, biscuits in America are called scones in the UK and parts of Europe.

They are both made with flour and butter and they're both eaten with jam and/or butter; however, in my mind, this is where the similarities end.

A true Southern biscuit should rise into puffy and flaky layers. They should be light, not dense.

Scones, are heavier, not filled with flaky layers like these have.

Why are scones heavier than biscuits? Because they're also made with eggs, which prevents them from developing the flaky layers required for a biscuit.

And there you go. Debate over. 😉

More vegan biscuit and bread recipes you’ll love

Vegan Cheddar Drop Biscuits

Southern-Style Vegan Chicken and Biscuits

Vegan French Croissants

Ingredients and substitutions

Flour – If you want ultra-flaky biscuits, then all-purpose flour is the one to use. You can use whole wheat, stone ground, or gluten-free all-purpose flour, but they won’t rise like these do.

Baking Powder – This is the only leavening that will make the biscuits rise into flaky layers, please don’t reduce the amount or substitute with baking soda, because it won’t end well.

Salt – There’s only ¼ teaspoon in this recipe, and when you divide it among 6 to 8 biscuits, it miniscule, so please don’t omit it.

Salt strengthens the protein in the dough, which helps give the biscuits their wonderful texture.

Sugar – Like salt, sugar helps in the development of the texture of the biscuits, and makes them tender on the inside. Again, don’t omit it.

Buttermilk – In this case, we use an unsweetened non-dairy milk, such as oat, pea protein, cashew, or almond (NO coconut milk, it will alter the flavor) milk, then add a bit of acid.

Lemon Juice or Apple Cider Vinegar – This is the acid that goes into the plant-based milk to turn it into buttermilk.

Vegan Butter – Earth Balance and Miyoko’s vegan butter is our butter of choice.

Pro tips for making the best vegan biscuits

Make sure the butter is cubed and cold! We cube ours and then put it in the freezer for about 10 minutes.
Use buttermilk. Vegan buttermilk (plant-milk and vinegar or lemon juice) has acid, which helps the biscuits rise and become tender.
Check the expiration date of your ingredients, especially the baking powder. If it's expired, you'll end up with flat biscuits. 🙁
Don't overwork the dough. If you mix it or knead it too long, you'll have tough biscuits.
Roll the dough thick (about a ½ inch thick) for tall flaky biscuits.
The ingredients and their measurements are crucial to baking a tender and flaky biscuit, so make sure to use all of them and as much as is on the recipe card. Don’t skip the salt or sugar!
Make sure that the oven is completely preheated to 400˚F (204˚C) before putting the biscuits in the oven. If it’s not preheated, they will not bake evenly.
Depending on where you live, the humidity can affect the moisture in the flour, so if you need to add a little more buttermilk to get the dough to the correct consistency, or possibly add a little extra flour because it’s too sticky and wet, do that by the teaspoon until the dough feels right.
For super buttery biscuits, brush them with melted butter just before putting them in the oven.For super buttery biscuits, brush them with melted butter just before putting them in the oven.
Bake them close together in an iron skillet. Iron heats evenly and we don't make ours in anything else.
Your oven could be calibrated differently than ours, so use your judgment about whether or not they’re done baking. If they’re tall, flaky, and lightly browned, they’re done, if they’re not, then give them some more time.

How to Make Them

This is seriously one of the easiest recipes as long as you follow the rules.

Make sure that your butter is chilled. We like to cut it into small cubes and then pop it in the freezer for about 10 minutes to make sure it's nice and cold.

Whisk the lemon into the milk (this is how you turn it into buttermilk) and let it curdle before you put it in the flour mixture.

FIRST

Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and sugar together in a large mixing bowl until well combined.

SECOND

Add the butter to the flour and beat on a slow speed with a paddle mixer until the butter looks like pebbles.

THIRD

Slowly add the milk and beat slowly until it turns into a sticky dough.

FOURTH

Remove the dough from the bowl and on a floured surface, knead it into a round disc. You don't want to knead it too much, just enough to form it into the disc.

FIFTH

Flour a rolling pin and roll the dough in a circle until it's about and inch thick, then cut with a round biscuit cutter or the edge of a glass and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet or in a greased (we used butter) iron-skillet.

We used a 12-inch skillet to make ours.

Roll out the extra dough and repeat until you've used up the dough and bake for approximately 15 minutes, or until the biscuits are puffy and golden brown on top.

Hands rolling out dough with a wood rolling pin

Biscuit dough with a round cookie cutter making individual biscuits

Round biscuits before baking in a cast-iron skillet

Feel free to brush them with melted butter to make them a beautiful golden brown.

Golden brown baked biscuits in a black cast-iron skillet

Frequently Asked Questions

Can You Make Them Ahead of Time?

We recommend making the dough just before baking.

The longer the leavening sits, the less they'll rise.

How to Store and Freeze?

These are best when eaten hot out of the oven.

However; you can store them in an air-tight container for up to two days. They will become a little dry after the first day, so reheat them in the microwave for a minute or in a 350F oven for 10 minutes, or until they're warm and tender again.

You can freeze them for up to one month in a freezer safe container. Heat them in the oven at 350˚F (176˚C) for approximately 15 minutes, or until they're warm in the center.

What to Serve Them With

There are so many ways to eat biscuits, here are a few ideas for you.

BREAKFAST

Spread a little butter or your favorite preserves on them while they're hot.

Make a sandwich out of them with vegan sausage, vegan egg, and a layer of spinach and tomato.

Biscuits and gravy!

LUNCH/DINNER

Serve them with your favorite soup or chili

Biscuits and Gravy! We could eat this for every meal of the day.

Biscuits and gravy on a white plate with a gold fork

Make a batch of our flaky Southern-style vegan biscuits and let us know what you think. We love to hear from you! And, don’t forget to take a picture of your gorgeous creation and tag us @veganosity on Instagram.

Let’s connect! Hop on over to our Facebook page and give it a like, and follow us on Instagram and Twitter, and follow us and share this and other Veganosity recipes on Pinterest. We'd be so grateful if you did. If you like this recipe and can't wait to see what we're going to share next, subscribe to Veganosity. Just fill in the subscription box above our picture in the top right corner of the page. And, Alex and I love hearing from you, please leave a comment and let us know what you think of our recipes.

A white plate with a biscuit covered in blueberry jam with a basket of biscuits, a mug of coffee, and a small bowl of blueberries and scattered blueberries on the table

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Healthier Homemade Vegan Biscuits

Fluffy, flaky, and buttery homemade vegan biscuits that are free from saturated fat and cholesterol! Dig in!

4.29 from 14 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Breakfast, Side Dish

Cuisine: American, Vegan

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 15

Total Time: 30

Servings: biscuits

Calories: 239kcal

Author: Linda & Alex

Cost: $8

Equipment

▢
1 pastry cutter
▢
1 Oven

Ingredients

▢ 2 cups flour
▢ 1 tablespoon baking powder
▢ ¼ teaspoon salt
▢ 1 teaspoon sugar
▢ ¾ cup unsweetened plant-based milk + 1 tablespoon lemon juice
▢ 8 tablespoon vegan butter cubed and chilled

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C) and butter a 12-inch iron skillet or butter a cookie sheet
Cube the butter and put in the freezer while you’re preparing the remaining ingredients.
Whisk the milk and lemon juice together and set aside. It should separate and look curdled after a few minutes.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar together until well combined.
Add the butter to the flour and beat with a paddle attachment on a low speed until the butter breaks down and looks like small pebbles.
Slowly pour in the milk while beating on a low speed until the dough begins to form a solid ball.
Remove the dough from the mixing bowl and knead for about 20 seconds on a floured surface and form into a disc.
Flour a rolling pin and roll the dough into a circle that’s approximately an inch thick and use a round biscuit cutter (we used the 3-inch size), or the rim of a glass to cut out the biscuits. Repeat with remaining dough until you use it up.
Arrange the biscuits in the pan or on a cookie sheet (feel free to brush with melted butter to get a nice and crispy golden-brown crust) and bake for approximately 15 minutes, or until they’re puffy and golden brown on top.
Enjoy!

Notes

NUTRITION FACTS

Tips for Making Perfect Biscuits

Make sure the butter is cubed and cold! We cube ours and then put it in the freezer for about 10 minutes.
Use buttermilk. Vegan buttermilk (plant-milk and vinegar or lemon juice) has acid, which helps the biscuits rise and become tender.
Check the expiration date of your ingredients, especially the baking powder. If it's expired, you'll end up with flat biscuits. 🙁
Don't overwork the dough. If you mix it or knead it too long, you'll have tough biscuits.
Roll it thick for tall flaky biscuits.
Bake them close together in an iron skillet. Iron heats evenly and we don't make ours in anything else.
For super buttery biscuits, brush them with melted butter just before putting them in the oven.

How to Store and Freeze