Discover easy gluten-free Christmas cookie recipes that are delicious and festive. Perfect for holiday baking and sharing with loved ones!
Delicious and Simple Treats for a Festive Gluten-Free Holiday Season!
Discover a delightful array of Gluten-Free Christmas Cookies that are both tasty and easy to make without relying on traditional flour blends. With options like almond flour, oat flour, and buckwheat flour, there’s a cookie recipe suitable for everyone’s taste preferences. The Almond Flour Gingerbread Cookies bring a classic holiday flavor, while the Chocolate Buckwheat Cookies offer a rich, chocolatey twist. Each recipe provides a unique take on festive treats, ensuring that gluten-free baking can be just as satisfying as conventional methods.
For those looking to experiment with a crunchy texture, the Crispy Peanut Butter Balls are a must-try. These treats feature a fruit-sweetened center that adds a delightful surprise to each bite. Another standout is the Almond Flour Thumbprint Cookies, which are perfect for filling with your favorite jams or spreads, and the Oat Flour Sugar Cookies, which provide a soft and sweet base for holiday celebrations. These gluten-free recipes are perfect for anyone looking to enjoy delicious holiday cookies without the gluten.
Delightful Festive Treats That Everyone Can Enjoy!
If you are hoping to make some delicious gluten-free Christmas cookies you are in the right place today we will make five different recipes that taste just as good as the traditional versions first we’re going to make almond flour gingerbread cookies these are not only gluten-free but they’re also dairy-free and vegan.
With a delicious gingerbread flavor to get started preheat your oven to 350°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper in a large mixing bowl add 1 and 1/2 cups of blanched almond flour blanched simply means the skins of the almonds were removed so the flour is finely ground and will look more like traditional all-purpose flour next add in a 1/4 cup of Arrowroot or tapioca starch.
This is going to act as a binder so you won’t need eggs or gluten next add in 2 teaspoon of ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon an 1/8 of a teaspoon of ground cloves 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder and an 1/8 of a teaspoon of fine sea salt whisk that all together to break up any clumps then add in 2 tablespoons of melted coconut oil.
If you don’t want these cookies to have a coconut flavor use refined or expeller pressed coconut oil for a neutral taste you can also use melted butter if you don’t need a dairy-free recipe I melt my coconut oil by scooping it into this silicone measuring cup this is oven safe so you can place it in the oven while it’s preheating.
It should be melted and easy to measure in just a few minutes next add in 1/4 cup of pure maple syrup and 1 tbsp of blackstrap molasses which gives these cookies their signature flavor stir this all together until the dough looks thick and sticky if you’re hoping to make cutout cookies place the bowl of dough in the freezer for about 30 minutes or you can place it.
In the fridge for 1 hour Once the dough has chilled place it in the center of a piece of parchment paper arrange another piece of parchment paper on top to prevent sticking then use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a flat layer that’s about 1/4 in thick press your cookie cutters into the dough to create your cut-out shapes.
As you can see this dough is softer and more fragile than traditional gingerbread dough so I like to pull away the excess to reveal these cutout shapes then you can gently pick them up and transfer them to your prepared baking sheet if you use a cookie cutter that’s about the size of your palm you should get 15 cookies from this batch.
Feel free to double or triple this if you want to make more bake these almond flour gingerbread cookies at 350°F for about 10 minutes if you like a softer texture or you can add three to four more minutes if you prefer cookies with crispy edges these will be very fragile when you first remove them from the oven so.
Let them cool on the pan completely so they can firm up while you wait on that you can make a quick frosting for decorating these I have a few naturally sweetened frostings on my website but for a classic flavor we’re going to make a quick powdered sugar frosting today this starts with 1 cup of powdered sugar 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
And 1 tablespoon of water start stirring that together and add another tablespoon of water if needed you want the frosting to drip off your spatula but if it’s too drippy it can be hard to control for decorating I’m going to transfer this to a squeeze bottle and now I can decorate the cooled cookies I think these have the perfect flavor with just a touch of icing on top.
But feel free to decorate them however you want almond flour cookies will dry out overnight so store these in an airtight container if you want to keep their soft texture they should last for a week in the fridge or even longer in the the freezer if you don’t eat them all before then the next gluten-free Christmas cookie we’re.
Going to make today are these chocolate buckwheat cookies they taste like a brownie only in cookie form so they bake a lot faster to get started preheat your oven to 350°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper you’ll need two pans like this if you want to bake the whole batch at once but I don’t mind baking these in batches.
In a large bowl combine 1/2 cup of softened butter and 1 cup of coconut sugar if you need a dairy-free cookie use coconut oil or vegan butter instead you can also reduce the sugar to 3/4 of a cup for a darker chocolate cookie just keep in mind that reducing the sugar will also make your cookies spread a little less next add one large egg and.
A 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract stir that together until it looks smooth then add 1 cup of buckwheat flour if you’re already familiar with buckwheat flour you may know that it comes in two varieties and it’s not at all related to wheat despite its name it’s actually a seed that we cook like a grain I am using a light colored buckwheat flour which means the hulls were removed.
Before the flour was made this makes it taste way better than the bluish-gray colored flour that you may also see in the store next add 6 tbsp of unsweetened cacao or cocoa powder this will add a rich chocolate flavor and also help hide that buckwheat taste then add a 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda and 1/4 teaspoon of fine sea salt stir that together until the batter looks smooth.
Then fold in 3/4 of a cup of chocolate chips for a double chocolate cookie use a cookie scoop to scoop about 1 and 1/2 tblspoon of dough onto your prepared pan I can fit about 15 cookies per half sheet pan bake these at 350ºF for 9 to 10 minutes when you remove them from the oven you can press a few extra chocolate chips on top while they are still hot to make them look a little prettier.
This is a trick a lot of food photographers use to make their cookies look better let these cool on the pan completely so they can firm up out of curiosity I tested the other half of this dough as crinkle cookies rolled in powdered sugar but as you can see the powdered sugar totally disappeared while these baked so you don’t have to bother trying that.
These cookies taste like a brownie so they disappear fast in our house if you need a vegan variation check out my other chocolate cookie recipes on my website next we’re going to make crispy peanut butter balls these are inspired by a no-bake recipe made with powdered sugar and butter but the version we’re making today has a center that’s naturally sweetened with fruit.
And it tastes surprisingly delicious to get started you’ll need one cup of tightly packed pitted Medjool dates or 8 ounces if you want to measure with a food scale this recipe works best with soft and squishy dates that you’d buy in the produce section of your grocery store if you can easily split them apart with your fingers to remove the pit that’s a good sign add the pitted dates to a 12-cup food processor.
Fitted with an S blade secure the lid and process until the dates have broken down mine usually turns into a big ball like this break it up with a spatula a little bit then add in a half cup of runny peanut butter I’m using an all-natural peanut butter that needs to be stirred well before you measure it this kind of peanut butter will thicken up.
When you store it in the fridge but I think it’s easier to work with when it’s room temperature like this next add in 2 tablespoons of ground flax seeds and 1/4 teaspoon of fine sea salt secure the lid and process again until the mixture looks thick and sticky then add in 1 cup of crispy rice cereal the popular name brand cereal is not gluten-free.
So make sure you buy a cereal that is labeled gluten-free if you need to secure the lid and pulse the mixture several times until the cereal is evenly mixed in while it looks crumbly it should stick together easily when you press it between your fingers use a tablespoon or cookie scoop to scoop the dough roll it between your hands to form a ball then place these on a lined baking sheet.
Repeat the process until you get about 18 balls then place these in the fridge or freezer to chill next fill a small saucepan with about 1-inch of water place it on the stove over medium high heat find a heat safe bowl that will fit snugly over your pot this is a quick double boiler setup that you can use to melt chocolate chips and I find it works better than melting chocolate chips in a microwave.
Add 3/4 of a cup of chocolate chips to the bowl and stir until they’re smooth and and melted now remove those peanut butter balls from the freezer and coat each one in the melted chocolate because this bowl is over a warm pot of water you won’t have to worry about re-melting the chocolate as you work sprinkle a little sea salt on top of each ball if you like a sweet and salty treat.
Once all of the balls have been coated in chocolate return them to the fridge or freezer to chill until the chocolate is firm then these are ready to enjoy and you can serve them at room temperature for a softer center they’ll probably disappear pretty quickly but if you have any leftovers you can store them in the fridge for up to 10 days.
The next cookie we’re going to make today are my almond flour thumb print cookies these are a classic holiday recipe only this version is gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan to get started preheat your oven to 350°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper in a large bowl add 2 cups of blanched almond flour I measure my almond flour by scooping it into the container and swiping off the excess.
With the back of a knife next add in 1/4 cup of melted coconut oil I’m using refined or expeller pressed coconut oil so the cookies won’t have a coconut flavor but you could also use melted butter here if you don’t need a dairy-free recipe next add 1/4 cup of pure maple syrup you’ll also need 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract and a 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract.
Add a 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon of salt then mix well until the dough looks uniform use a tablespoon to scoop the dough into mounds on the prepared pan I’m going to roll these between my hands to make them look smoother then press your thumb or a finger into the center of each ball.
To make an indentation this is where the jam is going to go you could also use the back of a teaspoon if you prefer add a half teaspoon of jam into the center of each cookie I’m using raspberry jam in half of these and an apple jam in the other half but orange marmalade or cherry jam would also be delicious place these in the oven to bake at 350°F.
For 12 to 15 minutes these cookies don’t brown very much and they will feel very soft to the touch when you remove them from the oven but they will firm up as they cool when they’re done they have a tender inside and the jam yummy center makes these taste irresistible if you end up with leftovers you can store these in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
The last gluten-free Christmas cookie we’re going to make today are my oat flour sugar cookies I also have almond flour sugar cookies over on my website but since we’ve already used that flour twice today I thought we’d try another option do be sure to buy certified gluten-free oat flour so it’s not contaminated during the manufacturing process to get started started preheat your oven to 350°F.
And line a large baking sheet with parchment paper in a large bowl combine 1/2 cup of softened butter and 1 cup of sugar I’m using white sugar for this recipe to give these cookies a classic look but you can use any other granulated sugar that you prefer mix those together then add in one large egg 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract.
And 1 teaspoon of almond extract oat flour can have a pretty strong flavor so the almond extract helps hide that in these cookies once that’s well mixed add in 2 and 3/4 of a cup of oat flour followed by a 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon of fine sea salt stir well until the cookie dough looks uniform for roll out cookies place the dough in the fridge.
To chill for about 15 minutes if you leave it in the fridge too long it can become pretty firm so just keep that in mind once it’s chilled place the dough in the center of a piece of parchment paper place another piece of parchment paper on top then use a rolling pin to roll it out in a flat layer that’s about a 1/4 in thick.
To be honest I might have left this a little too thick but I do love really soft sugar cookies so I think this is going to work well for me if you prefer crispy sugar cookies you might want to roll it a little thinner than this use your favorite cookie cutters to make shapes and pull away the excess dough transfer these to the prepared baking sheet and make sure you leave a little space between them.
So they can spread then repeat the rolling process with all of your scraps until you’ve made as many cookies as you can you can decorate these with frosting like we did with the gingerbread cookies earlier but since we already did that I’m going to just add a few sprinkles to these bake at 350°F for 7 to 8 minutes if you like softer sugar cookies like I do.
Oat flour tends to dry out over time so I think it’s better to err on the side of underbaking them these will feel very soft and fragile when they are hot from the oven but they will firm up as they cool if you prefer crispy cookies you can add a couple more minutes to the bake time depending on the size of your cookie cutters you should end up with about 24 cookies from this batch you can store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge.
For up to a week or freeze these for up to 3 months I hope these gluten-free cookie recipes are helpful and be sure to check out my other videos for more
