Vegan Ladyfingers

Why We Love This Recipe

• Perfect texture: These vegan ladyfingers and crisp on the exterior and a little chewy on the interior. They hold up well to liquid, which brings us to our next point...
• Versatile: These can be used in a wide variety of dessert recipes, from tiramisu, to trifles, to icebox cakes. Or, you can just enjoy them plain, or dipped in chocolate (or coffee!).
• Delicious: These vegan ladyfingers are sweet, but not too sweet, and have an addictive crunch that keeps bringing you back for more.
• Surprisingly easy: The process may look a bit intimidating, but once you get it down, these vegan ladyfingers aren't all that challenging.

Ingredients

Here's what you'll need to make these vegan ladyfingers:

Ingredient Notes

• Flour: We used regular all-purpose flour.
  • Gluten free: We have NOT tried this recipe with gluten free flour, so we are not 100% sure if it will turn out well. If you'd like to make this recipe gluten-free, make sure to use a 1:1 gluten free flour substitute.
• Aquafaba: This is the liquid from a can of chickpeas, and it stands in as our egg substitute. It might be hard to believe, but when whipped, it behaves a lot like egg whites. (See these vegan meringues for more proof!) This ingredient cannot be substituted – it's absolutely essential to getting these vegan ladyfingers right.
• Cream of tartar: This helps to stabilize the beaten aquafaba, works in conjunction with the baking soda as a leavening agent to provide rise to the ladyfingers, and lowers the overall pH of the batter, helping the ladyfingers to brown up in the oven. If you don't have any on hand or can't find it at the store, use an equal amount of lemon juice or white vinegar.
• Powdered sugar: This is both for the batter and for dusting before baking your ladyfingers.
• Caster sugar: This is a fine grain sugar that helps keep the batter nice and smooth, and it also keeps the aquafaba mixture from collapsing. If you don't have any caster sugar, regular granulated sugar should work, but be sure to add it very slowly to give it a chance to fully incorporate into the mixture.
• Kosher salt: We always use Diamond brand kosher salt in our recipes unless otherwise. We do not recommend using table salt. Sea salt is fine to use, but it has a finer grain than kosher salt, so you may want to start with less and add more if needed.

Instructions

STEP 1: In a medium-sized mixing bowl, stir together the flour, 1 cup of powdered sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

STEP 2: Using a stand or handheld mixer, beat the aquafaba on medium speed until it becomes foamy, which should take about one minute. Add the cream of tartar and beat on high speed for 3 minutes.

Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the caster sugar to the aquafaba 1 tablespoon at time, beating for 30 seconds in between each addition. It's important to do this slowly so the aquafaba doesn't collapse and the sugar gets fully incorporated.

Beat until stiff peaks form, about 5 minutes. Scrape down the sides with a spatula, then add the vanilla extract and beat for an additional 30 seconds.

STEP 3: Gently fold the dry ingredients into the aquafaba until they're just barely combined. Don't over mix. See below for 3 stages of what the batter will look like at various points of mixing.

As you continue to fold in the dry mixture, the aquafaba will deflate significantly and the batter will become thick and tacky. That's completely normal! It looks strange, but that's how it's supposed to look. See below for the finished batter.

STEP 4: Transfer the mixture to a piping bag with a ½-inch diameter piping tip or a ziplock bag with a corner snipped off. Pipe the batter into 3-inch strips, leaving about 1-inch between each ladyfinger, since they will flatten out and spread as they bake.

STEP 5: Dust the ladyfingers with powdered sugar. Bake at 375˚F / 175˚C for 12-14 minutes, until edges are golden brown. Let cool for 10-15 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely before using.

Tips and FAQs

• Don't overmix the batter: Overmixing can make the cookies dense and tough, so mix just until the flour is fully incorporated into the aquafaba mixture. That said, it's also important to mix it enough – you don't want any dry flour clumps!
• The batter may look strange, but that's okay. Every time we make these vegan ladyfingers, we're always stressed about how the batter looks (even though it's our recipe!). It looks totally abnormal – not smooth, very thick and tacky, and just a bit wrong. But we promise it's supposed to look like that, and it turns out perfectly every time! If you're not sure how it should look, be sure to reference the step by step photos in the "instructions" section above.
• Use a piping bag: A piping bag is your best bet for evenly sized ladyfingers. We used a round piping tip with a ½-inch diameter.
  • Shortcut: If you don't have the correct piping tip, you can use a plastic bag and cut off the corner. They won't be quite as neat, but it will still work just fine!
• Don't worry if the batter runs together when baking: It's easy to break or slice them apart once they are cool.
• Let them cool completely: Ladyfingers need to cool completely before using them in a recipe. This allows them to firm up and become slightly crispy, which is important for their texture in desserts like tiramisu.
• Storage: Store in an airtight container at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Be sure to store in a sealed container, otherwise they will become stale very quickly.

More Vegan Cookie Recipes to Try

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