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Gluten-free Gingerbread Cookies

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As you may know if you follow my blog, I’ve been recreating Scandinavian cookies to be gluten-free, casein-free, and refined sugar-free. I’m half Danish, and we like to incorporate as many traditions into our Christmas holiday as possible. First I made Thumbprint Cookies, and lots of you tried them and loved them. Then I had to make Coconut Dreams. We can’t resist anything coconut after all 😉

GlutenFreeGingerBread_1My husband has fond memories of making gingerbread cookies with his mom and sisters when he was little. I’m afraid I’ve been putting off making spunky gingerbread cookies for far too long. But when Carol at Simply Gluten-Free announced her theme for Go Ahead Honey was Family Traditions I decided it was time.
We always make cookies with cookie cutters, but these are our first gingerbread cookies. None of us could be happier about how they came out. I’m so excited to have another cookie to add to our Christmas traditions 🙂
After we finished decorating our bears and Scandinavian hearts Ashley got to go wild with the leftover frosting in the piping bag =) She squeezed it all over her cookies, and then ate the rest with a spoon. It was great—everyone got to make their own cookies.
This recipe was really easy. I just took my chocolate chip cookie recipe, left out the chips, and added spices. I also added more coconut sugar to make them sweeter and darker in color. Usually the gingerbread cookie color comes from brown sugar and molasses. Using low glycemic index coconut sugar worked out perfectly instead.

Gluten-free Gingerbread Cookies

Add to bowl:
1/2 cup applesauce
3 tbsp flax seed meal or 1.5 tbsp Chia Seed meal
1/2 tsp guar gum
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 cup coconut sugar (which is low glycemic index, but has that nice brown color)
1/4 cup coconut oil or ghee (which is casein-free), liquified
1/4 tsp allspice
1.5 tsp cinnamon
1.5 tsp ginger
Mix with electric mixer.
Add:
1 cup almond meal flour
1/2 cup coconut flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder (Grain-free Baking Powder Recipe)
Mix again.
Lightly flour the side you’re rolling out with a little coconut flour.
Roll to desired thickness and use cookie cutters.
Bake on unbleached parchment paper at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes, depending on the thickness.
Makes about 14 cookies.

Frosting

Puree in food processor:
1/2 cup macadamia nuts
1/4 cup honey or agave
1 tsp ghee or coconut oil
1 tbsp coconut milk
Add the frosting to a plastic bag and cut the tip just barely to pipe your cookies after they have cooled.

♥, Kelly

 

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  2. Hi Kelly,

    Your girls are so sweet and they are so talented to have decorated those cookies so adorably.

    I am definitely going to try these gingerbread cookies in a few days after Christmas.

    What could I use instead of the TBSP of coconut milk. I hate to open a can for 1 TBSP as that needs to be used up quickly. Is it the thick milk you should use?

    Is coconut sugar readily available at health food stores?

    Gail

    Merry Christmas to you and your family Kelly.

  3. I like that you use Bob’s almond meal so I don’t feel like I have to order the giant bag of expensive almond flour. The only coconut sugar I could find locally was palm sugar in hard little half circles. I am going to see if my bullet will crush them for me.

    Your daughters are really blessed to have a mom like you that takes the time to bake Christmas cookies with them.

    Mery Christmas to all of you! I bet those little girls will be up before daylight!

    Jenny L.

  6. I just wanted to thank you for sharing these cookie recipes. I bought that book (after waiting 6 months for it to come out in English) and received it just before going gluten and everything else free. Needless the say, I never used it. I’m going to have to try these gingerbread men though. I have every single ingredient on hand and the only thing I need to replace is the vinegar with lemon juice. Bless you! You are so incredibly inventive and those girls always look like they’re having too much fun. Happy holidays to you and yours.

  8. Kelly
    Just found your site (and book!) via Elana’s latest post. So thrilled as I’m on a mission to learn as much as possible about grain, dairy and sugar free cooking. We’ve gone dairy and sugar free over the years but not grain free before.

    Anyhow prompted by the need to rid my teen of acne we are doing all three and finding it an exciting new world but a bit of a challenge particularly with a large family.
    Oh and to read on your family blog that you also homeschool bought a smile to my face.

    Christmas Blessings.

  9. Ah these look so good, but I wish I had the recipe earlier for my christmas party.. oh well I will definetly make them now! And thanks for the frosting idea, Ive been trying to find sugar free icing recipes.

    Your daughters are gorgeous, and sounds like a fun recipe to do with family.

    Hope you had a great christmas, would love for you to check out my new blog

    theteeniefoodie.blogspot.com/
    gluten dairy and sugar free

    xxx

  10. Waw!! These gf gingerbread cookies look the best!!

    I also love the special tasty frosting!!!

    MMMMM,..I am going to make them tomorrow!

  13. So excited to find this site!! We have just started a GF diet with my son, he has been wanting gingerbread cookies so bad, as this has always been a holiday tradition here. Now I have s GF recipe for them!!! Thanks so much!

  15. Hi Kelly! First comment after my first recipe from your site – and it is FABULOUS! Made the gingerbread cookies (left out the stevia since i didn’t have any) and they still turned out delicious! and i will NOT be making them again until after the “paleo challenge” i’m enrolling in at my gym – they’re addicting!!

  18. Hi Kelly!
    Love your blog, and love the idea of this recipe (haven’t had real gingerbread cookies for years).
    I was wondering if you had ideas for substituting something for the baking powder..
    I am trying the Specific Carbohydrate Diet, and it does not allow starches of any kind, so your grain free baking powder recipe won’t quite work.
    Also, can flax seed be substituted for chia seed? Thank you!

    Katie

  20. Do you grind your chia seed? I bought it one time and didn’t know really how to use it but I’ve seen you mention it a few times in your other cookbook. My family is really enjoying your ideas. Thank you for sharing them. Looking forward to your new cookbook. Merry Christmas and Hope your New Year is fabulous.

  22. Hey Kelly,
    These look awesome! I am going to try them out next Christmas!
    By the way, I live in Denmark…my husband LOVES the traditional honey cakes. I am excited to find a healthier replacement that I can eat too!:)

  23. I stumbled on your blog through Lauren’s Healthy Indulgences and I just gotta say I have the same rolling pin and cookie cutters as you 🙂

  24. Hei, I love your blogg! I made these cookies yestarday and they taste delicious! I wonder where do you keep these bingerbread cookies? In a box or in the fridge?

  27. Kelly, thank you! These are amazing! My kids and I just made them together, and I am so grateful for this recipe! We are a celiac family and I have been trying to make everything we eat not only gluten free but also as healthy as possible and you keep helping us make that happen! Thanks, again!
    Lori

  29. Hi,
    I have just recently found your blog. And I LOVE it…it’s amazing so so many yummy idea’s it’s so awesome for me a mom with so many allergies in our house to have some new and exciting this to make! I have one question. I see a lot of your recipes have “apple sauce/vinegar” My family can not have apple is there anything I can use to sub for apple that you can recommend?
    Thanks soooooooooo much!

  31. In the oven now! I used cinnamon applesauce and had to leave out the stevia and guar gum because I could not find any at my co-op. Love the coconut sugar!!

  33. Hi Kelly – Would these be suitable for making gingerbread houses? I’m trying to find a recipe to make houses on Christmas Eve with a frosting recipe that will hold them together. Any ideas?

    Liz