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Vegan Digestive Biscuits

C’mon…I’m English…It was only a matter of time before I came up with a recipe for vegan digestive biscuits! With their distinctive crunchy, crumbly texture & not too sweet almost nutty flavour, they make the perfect accompaniment to a cup of tea……I’m totally conforming to the typical English stereotype here aren’t I?

Make your own delicious vegan digestive biscuits. Crunchy, crumbly & not too sweet, they make the perfect accompaniment to a cup of tea!

I thought long and hard about what to call this recipe. Should I stick to my roots and call them ‘Digestive Biscuits’ or, as I now live in Canada and most of you are from the USA and Canada, should I call them ‘Digestive Cookies’?

COOKIES OR BISCUITS?

Generally in England cookies are known as biscuits, whereas in Canada and the USA, biscuits are what we in England would call savoury scones. There are so many other foods and general cooking terms that are totally different too. I get so confused! A few I can think of off the top of my head are pancakes/flapjacks, chips/fries, aubergine/eggplant, cornflour/cornstarch, grilling/broiling and double boiler. What’s that all about? I had to google it when I first moved here as I didn’t have a clue what it was. In England we call it a bain-marie!

It’s no wonder I’m confused!

CONFUSED.COM

I really struggle when writing my recipes as I never know what to call these things. I often spend ages deliberating but usually end up choosing the Canadian/American versions as I know that is where the majority of you, my lovely readers are. This time though the English name seems like the right choice. After all, they are English biscuits and ‘digestive cookie’ just doesn’t sound right to me!

Make your own delicious vegan digestive biscuits. Crunchy, crumbly & not too sweet, they make the perfect accompaniment to a cup of tea!

WHAT ARE DIGESTIVE BISCUITS?

Digestive Biscuits were originally created by two doctors in 1839 as a digestive aid. The bicarbonate of soda (or baking soda as my Canadian and American friends know it as) was added to them to act as an antacid. This doesn’t make them sound too appealing, but honestly, they are extremely delicious so please stick with me!

Digestive biscuits are one of the most popular biscuits sold in the UK. According to Wikipedia more than 80 million packs are sold annually. That’s a whole lot of biscuits and just goes to show how great they are. They aren’t however vegan and they contain refined sugar and palm oil which are ingredients I try to avoid.

DIGESTIVES MADE HEALTHIER

My Vegan Digestive Biscuits are much healthier by comparison. There is no dairy, no refined sugar and no refined flour and they contain a relatively low quantity of oil and sugar. The wholegrain spelt flour gives them a delicious nuttiness and the oatmeal adds to the slightly nubbly texture. My recipe does not include the traditional bicarbonate of soda/baking soda so I am afraid they won’t act as an antacid! I tried them with and without and to be honest it didn’t make any difference to their appearance or taste so why bother?

Digestives are not a really sweet biscuit and so my biscuits do have sugar in them but not a lot. Just enough to give them a slightly sweet edge. Because they aren’t too sweet they can also be eaten like crackers  with savoury foods. Try them with some good quality vegan cheese, or spread with my Easy Vegan Butter.

Personally though, I love them just as they are with a cup of tea. That is where the inspiration for this recipe came from.

Make your own delicious vegan digestive biscuits. Crunchy, crumbly & not too sweet, they make the perfect accompaniment to a cup of tea!

I recently made a visit to my local Teafarm to stock up on my favourite brews. Yes, there is a tea-farm in Canada. It is in a beautiful location in North Cowichan on Vancouver Island just an hour away from where I live.  The ‘Teafarm’ experience is just wonderful and combines tea, art & nature.

TEAFARM

Teafarm is housed in a quirky, converted barn, surrounded by beautiful countryside and rows and rows of wonderful Camellia sinensis, plus other beautiful flowers and plants which are all used in Teafarm’s tea blends. Whilst there, you get to drink tea whilst taking in your wonderful, unique surroundings, then admire Margit’s beautiful and unique clay art which is displayed in what was the original milking room. You even get to drink your tea from her hand-made clay cups and saucers. A visit there is an all round lovely experience and hosts Victor and Margit are so incredibly welcoming.

When we left I purchased some of my favourite blends and this stash of beautiful tea was the inspiration behind my vegan digestive biscuits. While relaxing in the back yard with my mug of Yerba Mate Chai I had the urge to bake a tasty accompaniment. As someone who likes to dip biscuits in my tea, digestives were the perfect answer!

Make your own delicious vegan digestive biscuits. Crunchy, crumbly & not too sweet, they make the perfect accompaniment to a cup of tea!

GRAHAM CRACKERS

I am told that digestive biscuits are similar to graham crackers. Having never eaten a graham cracker I can’t comment on this myself but I do know that they can be used as you would graham crackers. They are great for making crusts and combined with a little coconut oil they also make an awesome cheesecake base. They would be great for making s’mores too!

LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THINK OF MY VEGAN DIGESTIVE BISCUITS

If you make these vegan digestive biscuits, or any of my other recipes, let me know what you think in the comments and please rate the recipe by hitting the yellow stars. You can share your pictures on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook too. I am @avirtualvegan. Use the hashtag #avirtualvegan so I don’t miss them!

Now go bake some digestives, put the kettle on, make some tea and relax!

Vegan Digestive Biscuits

Make your own delicious vegan digestive biscuits. Crunchy, crumbly & not too sweet, they make the perfect accompaniment to a cup of tea!
4.97 from 28 votes
Print Pin
Course: Baked Goods, Snack
Cuisine: vegan
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total time: 30 minutes
Makes: 18
Calories: 114kcal

Ingredients

  • 220 g | 1½ cups spelt flour
  • 60 g | ½ cup rolled oats or quick oats
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 60 g | heaping ¼ cup sugar I used turbinado sugar but any light brown sugar will work. Demerara in the UK, as would coconut sugar
  • 80 g | packed 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons coconut oil measured solid
  • 5 - 8 tablespoons non-dairy milk
  • Extra flour for sprinkling

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 380°F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.
  • Add the oats to a food processor and process until they have a course flour like consistency.
  • Add the spelt flour, salt, baking powder and sugar and pulse a few times to combine.
  • Add the coconut oil and process until well combined.
  • Gradually add the milk one tablespoon at a time until a smooth dough forms. It will start balling up and if you touch it, it will feel slightly tacky. I used 7 tablespoons but this will vary.
  • Dust your work surface with some flour. You can use more spelt flour or all purpose is fine.
  • Transfer the dough to floured surface and lightly sprinkle it with a bit more flour.
  • Roll out the dough until it is about 3mm thick.
  • Use cookie cutters to cut into rounds. If you don't have cookie cutters then the top of a mason jar does a great job.
  • Place on the cookie sheet . They don't spread so you don't need to leave a lot of room around each one.
  • Bake for 12 - 15 minutes or until just starting to turn golden brown on the edges and bottom. They will still feel very slightly soft in the middle if you push with a finger but that is fine. As they cool they will firm up and go crisp.
  • Place on a cooling rack and leave to cool completely before eating. They aren't at their best when warm.
  • Store in an airtight container once completely cool.

Nutrition

Serving: 1biscuit | Calories: 114kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 5g | Sodium: 161mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3.4g | Calcium: 2% | Iron: 4%
Tried this recipe?Tag @avirtualvegan on Instagram and hashtag it #avirtualvegan

ABOUT MEL

a virtual veganLong time vegan, creator of A Virtual Vegan & author of the book Vegan Comfort Cooking, Melanie McDonald is all about sharing well tested vegan recipes that are packed full of flavour and perfect for sharing with those you love.

A Virtual Vegan is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. This post may contain affiliate links.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. There’s a no-bake chocolate cake recipe that uses digestive biscuits that I can finally make, so thanks ? I’ve also never had a digestive biscuit before, so I am intrigued to try it.

    Reply

  3. Hi! I’ve yet to try making these, but am wondering what you would suggest about omitting the baking powder and using baking soda instead? Thanks!

    Reply

    • I think you could, but I wouldn’t use 1 teaspoon as I think you might taste it. Maybe 1/2 a teaspoon instead?

      Reply


  4. No offense, but I wish every single recipe website’s writer would shut up and give the recipe already. Every time, three pages of talking about utter rubbish. You know no one reads it through right? We all just skip to the bottom. Save yourself some time, and ours too.
    Digestives are great, well done.

    Reply

    • That recipe writer (me) spends days and days, sometimes months creating each recipe, pays for all of the ingredients, pays to keep the website up and running smoothly and provides the recipe to you completely FREE of charge, so I’ll write what I like before each recipe thank you. Having to scroll for a few seconds to reach it isn’t much to have to do in exchange for a quality, well tested recipe. Some people, like you, don’t care to read what’s before the recipe and that’s fine, (most are polite enough to not complain about it though), but my loyal and dedicated readers of which there are tens of thousands, come to read it even if they aren’t actually making the recipe. That’s what a blog is all about. If you don’t like the format of blogs, you could buy a cookbook or visit a recipe site that isn’t a blog. I’m glad you enjoyed the recipe regardless though.

      Reply

      • I read the whole thing….. All thumbs are capable of scrolling and its quicker to do that than to complain and criticise! Great biscuits, thank you for the recipe… They’re amazing with a thin layer of dark chocolate too… Now off to make them again with my youngest… Who also enjoyed reading the entire blog post with me ?

      • Thank you Yvette. I’m so pleased you enjoyed them. I keep meaning to make a chocolate version for the blog. I’ll get around to it one day!

    • Press command and F and type in ‘ingredients’ and the’ll take you quickly to the recipe.

      That said I thought this was a nice blog and if I had time I would have read in more depth.

      And to Virtual Vegan, thanks for this recipe and for your attention to palm oil too.

      Reply

    • I recommend using coconut oil. A solid fat makes for crunchier cookies than a liquid one and these should be crunchy.

      Reply


  8. Had a real yen for a digestive today so went in search of a recipe for vegan ones – any I can get as alternatives in the shops in Scotland are too sweet and rely on palm oil.. Made them substituting about one third plain wholemeal as I only had white spelt flour. They taste very similar to tge resl thing and when I gave my partner one without telling him what it was. he identified it as ‘just like a digestive’. I will definitely keep this ‘recipe and can see myself making it often. My one change will be to lessen the amount of salt a bit as we use very little, and as a result I pick up the taste strongly. Thank you for making me happy today! Now going to search through your other recipes!

    Reply


  9. Thanks for this recipe! I’ve made these a number of times now and am currently experimenting with molasses sugar! Need to reduce the oven heat a little as this sugar can burn easily, but they come out with a lovely, deep and fruity sweetness! Thank you! X

    Reply

    • So glad you are enjoying them Rob. I’ve never made them with molasses sugar. I bet it gives them a lovely flavor!

      Reply

    • I have never tried them without the sugar. I would imagine it would be ok although the texture might change a little because sugar makes biscuits/cookies crunchier. Let me know how it works out if you try it! Maybe the first time you could half the recipe just in case things don’t go to plan. If you hover over the amount of servings a slider will appear. Change the number of servings and the ingredient quantities will automatically adjust.
      Even with the sugar though these are good with savory toppings. I eat them with vegan cheese as a treat sometimes. Hope that helps!

      Reply


  11. I omitted the sugar and salt, as I made these for my German Shepherds that have allergies. I divided up the dough and added a bit of pumpkin to one and some fish brine oil to the other. They absolutely LOVE them! I tested preference, I put down several options and told my service dog to “pick”! Fish, then pumpkin, then the molasses dog cookies, then millkbones… Thank you for the recipe!

    Reply


  12. No interest in coconut anything. Used walnut oil. Can’t be bothered looking for vegan “milk”. Used water. Used whole wheat flour. Came out spectacular. About to make some more. Outstanding. Avoid all those “special” ingredients. (We’re in walnut groves all summer, the oil is just around.) Superbly well recieved by husband as we have to give up commercial digestives owing to their palm oil content.

    Reply

  13. Can I use wholemeal flour instead of spelt?
    I’ve a vegan friend and thought she might like these instead of endless bourbons!

    Reply

    • I tested them with wholemeal flour when creating the recipe and it worked, but the flavour is much better with spelt.

      Reply


  14. These digestive biscuits were absolutely delicious! Thank you so much for sharing ! A firm family favourite from now on!!

    Reply

    • Thank you Gaynor. I’m so pleased you enjoyed them and thanks so much for coming back to leave feedback. It’s much appreciated!

      Reply

  15. Can these be made without coconut oil or oil free? also without the baking power or soda? as i usually use sparkling water to replace it .

    Reply

    • You could probably omit the baking powder without making too much of a difference. Don’t replace it with sparkling water though. As for the coconut oil, it’s pretty hard to make a good oil-free cookie. It’s what makes them crisp. You could replace the coconut oil with vegan butter though, or to make them oil-free use another source of fat like nut butter or coconut butter but the quantity might need adjusting and it will really affect the flavour. They wouldn’t end up tasting like digestives.

      Reply


  16. These are delicious! Not too sweet, and a really nice flavour. Will be making these again for sure 🙂

    Reply


  18. I wanted to come back here to make a post to tell you I just made these the other night and they were amazing!!!! Perhaps not as melt in your mouth as the digestives I am used to buying however I actually prefer these homemade ones much more! Thank you so much for the recipe, I will be making these weekly for they are simply sublime! Nutty, Crisp, Melt in your mouth, and so easy to make!

    Reply


  20. I made these biscuits for my vegan friends and they asked me for the recepie! (I’ve sent them the link 🙂 I didn’t have oat flour or possibility to grind them so I just used them whole, and they were still amazing. Thank you for the great recepie, will make them again for sure!

    Reply

    • That’s awesome. I’m so glad you are enjoying the recipe! Thank you for taking the time to come back and leave feedback. I appreciate it!

      Reply

    • Thank you Barbara. I’m so glad you are both enjoying them! If you want to make your dog a treat too you could try these dog cookies https://avirtualvegan.com/sweet-potato-dog-cookies/ They get great feedback and have been tried and tested on my dog and all the dogs at the local dog park!
      Thank you so much for stopping by to leave feedback. It’s much appreciated!

      Reply


  23. Made these with home milled oat groats and whole wheat a couple of times. The crackers turned out good, but 1 tsp of salt is way too much for this recipe. Baking powder also has a ton of sodium. Certainly makes it questionable for someone watching their salt intake, as is. For the next batch, I cut the salt and baking powder in half and still landed a great texture and crispness!

    Reply

    • Digestive biscuits do have a slightly salty edge to them which is why there is 1 teaspoon of salt. Without it they don’t taste like the store bought ones which is what I am trying to replicate. I’m glad you managed to adapt them to suit your needs though!

      Reply

  24. i am trying to get the last few diary ingredients out my diet and make my own food so will trying these later as i have everything i need. i’m gonna drizzle some dark chocolate on them as that’s my go-to biscuit. has anyone tried freezing them or can say how long they last in an airtight box. there’s just me so don’t want to make loads that won’t last.

    Reply


  25. I am a big fan of biscuits. I wanted some without butter so I tried yours with some tweaks because I had slightly different ingredients. So I just used 150g of white flower (our inlaws grow wheat so we get free flower) and 70g of buckwheat flower. I also replaced the vegetal milk with soaked millet, linum and chia seeds. Also, I used only 50g sugar and 6 dates instead of the rest. I was expecting good biscuits as you really seemed to know what you are doing, but got amazing biscuits. Some of the best I ever had!
    Cheers!

    Reply


  26. Absolutely fabulous!!!
    I rolled them out and cut them with a fish shaped cookie cutter and made an eye hole with a toothpick. They were on our holiday (Rosh HaShana) table. Everyone loved them. The hubby ate all the leftovers.
    I will be making these again and again.
    Thanks

    Reply

    • Love that idea! I’m so glad the recipe worked for you and that everyone enjoyed them. Thanks so much for letting me know!

      Reply

  27. They sound delish and I am glad you used coconu oil. Just out of curiosity but digestive biscuits are called digestive cause they use baking soda and not baking powder. Have you tried making it with baking soda?

    Reply

    • Thank you! When testing the recipe I found results were better with baking powder so that’s what I went for. I figure these days people aren’t going to be eating them for digestive issues anyway.

      Reply


      • Ok, so I made twice already. Since we make our own nut milk, I used the nut pulp (dried) instead of the rolled oats and I added 1/2 tsp of baking soda. They taste very similar to the original digestive. I really love them! Thanks.

      • That’s awesome. I’m so glad you are enjoying them and what a great way to use your oat pulp!

  29. I’ve been really craving digestives since moving from England, and these look amazing. My flatmate can’t have wheat though (gluten in most other grains is ok), do you think I sub the spelt for something like barley or buckwheat? Also, how much bicarbonate of soda would you recommend if I wanted to add it? Thanks in advance x

    Reply

    • Hi Gary. I haven’t personally tried this recipe with anything other than wholewheat and spelt so I can’t guarantee the results. I think buckwheat could work. Oat flour probably would too, or just a gluten-free flour blend. I’m not sure about barley as I’ve never baked with it.
      As for bicarbonate of soda, I think add 1/2 a level teaspoon and you could probably leave out the baking powder completely.
      I hope they work out for you and what a lucky flatmate you have!

      Reply


  31. These are delicious! Recipe is easy, with simple unexpensive ingredients. Taste better than the store bought version! Thanks so much for posting and sharing this! X from the Netherlands.

    Reply

    • I am so glad you are enjoying them so much. Thank you for stopping by to let me know. I really appreciate it :O)

      Reply


  32. … just wanted to add that it was such a nice dough to work with that I adapted it to a savory cracker, that turned out pretty great. Omitted the sugar, added 1.5T savory yeast flakes and some diced olives

    Reply


  33. I made these a couple of nights ago and they were perfect, so delicious! The prep time is listed as 5 mins which is a bit optimistic but the bake time was spot on. Thanks for a great recipe.

    Reply

    • I am thrilled you loved these so much Kirk. I think I made a mistake when inputting the prep time. I agree that 5 minutes is a little optimistic. I have corrected it. I think 15 is a little more realistic! Thank you so much for stopping by to leave your feedback. I appreciate it :O)

      Reply

    • Each biscuit counts as one serving and they are 100 calories each. That assumes you get 18 biscuits out of the mixture. My cutter was pretty big so if yours is smaller and you end up with more biscuits they will have less calories each. Hope that helps :O)

      Reply

  35. Ah I have been craving digestives since this popped up on my FB feed the other day. Love the ingredient list and will be trying these this afternoon with the kids 🙂

    Reply


  37. I made these yesterday and ate more than I should. Brought some to work for a friend and she loved them, too. I met digestive biscuits during a trip to Edinburgh in 1999. I was a vegetarian then and missed them on my last trip to the UK in 2012 as I’ve been vegan for 15 years. They’re perfect. I used white whole wheat flour and they tasted great. They go very well with good single malt Scottish whisky, BTW.

    Reply

    • Oh no….don’t go telling me they go great with whisky….now I’ll have to try it! ;O) It should keep my husband happy though. He’ll never say no to sampling some whiskey! I am so glad you enjoyed the biscuits and it’s good to know they turn out well with white whole wheat flour.I will add a little note to the recipe so others know.
      Thanks so much for stopping by to comment Sheryl. I really appreciate it :O)

      Reply

    • Oh I know! I am a chocoholic though and trying to cut back…hence the plain biscuits. I might well add a chocolate digestive recipe in the future when my resolve weakens!

      Reply

  39. I miss digestive biscuits, used to eat them all the time when I lived in England. I can’t believe that now I can make them. Thanks for the recipe. Pinning

    Reply

    • Thank you Sina. Spelt flour is my favourite flour for baking. Let me know what you think when you make them!

      Reply

  42. Tea and cookies, I don’t think it gets much better than that! I knew that they were called biscuits in England but I have never heard the term digestive biscuits…I learned something new today 🙂

    Reply

    • They are so very popular in England. Kind of like Graham Crackers are here. It’s funny they are so unknown here.

      Reply

  49. I’m so with you on the difficulties we find with the American/Canadian names and unit of measurement. I am italian and thus very close to english and french terms. I still call it a bain-marie on my blog, and I’m still confused on the use of the term biscotti (which for us italians is a generic terms for every kind of cookies or biscuits 😉 ). Now, on your Digestive biscuits. I am in love with them, and I’m so happy we are on the same page as regards palm oil and refined sugars! They look perfect, and since I am a fan of spelt flour, I am going to make them 🙂 .

    Reply

    • Thank you so much Nicoletta. That’s so interesting about biscotti. I had no idea it was just a general term for biscuits/cookies in Italian. Let me know what you think of the digestives when you try them? :O)

      Reply

  50. I’ve always wanted to try a digestive biscuit actually! Just calling them biscuits makes them sound healthier, less like dessert but still secretly a cookie 🙂 All the global differences in names of things and measurements and Fahrenheit vs Celsius does make the international part of blogging tricky.

    Reply

  51. I had no idea you were English, Melanie! I love you for making these biscuits, there has been so much outrage at the moment (I’m sure you’ve heard) over British biscuit companies adding milk powder into their biscuits, making them no longer vegan 🙁 So more and more people are looking for recipes like these. Need to try these ASAP <3

    Reply

    • Yes, very English. I’m from Devon. I hadn’t heard of the biscuit outrage in the UK. Interesting. Why do they feel the need to change the recipes and make them even more unhealthy? Sounds like I timed this recipe just right! Interestingly, there aren’t many cookies/biscuits here in Canada that are vegan. The only ones I have found are oreos and imported ones from England.

      Reply

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